Ross Macdonald

Ross Macdonald was the pen name of American-Canadian author Kenneth Millar (1915-1983). During his career, Macdonald wrote crime fiction/mystery novels, largely featuring P.I. Lew Archer that were set in Southern California. Along with Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler , he is considered to be one of the masters of hardboiled mysteries. His plots were complex, usually involving Archer digging up family secrets. His first two Lew Archer novels were adapted into films starring Paul Newman as “Lew Harper.”