Die a Little by Megan Abbott

[anef]

Have just finished reading the above.  It's an amazingly well-written noirish detective story, set in LA in the 50's (or possibly 60's).  Unlike Chandler et al it's told from a  woman's point of view.  The narrator (Lora King) is a school teacher whose beloved brother Bill marries a woman from the film industry.  Gradually Alice's secrets seep into the text, and start to corrupt Bill and Lora's lives.  The prose is tight, the characters seedy, and the narrator's motives are a secret even from herself.  I was gripped from beginning to end.

Also read:  Jennifer Stevenson's Trash Sex Magic