The Big Whatever

When it comes to sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll, Billy's always been in the vanguard, but as the swinging 60s turn into the 70s, he's living a quiet life.

 He has kids now, and he's in debt to the mob, so he's keeping his head down, driving a cab, running some low-level rackets. He may as well have gone straight, it's so boring. Then one day everything changes. He finds a trashy paperback in his cab whose plot seems weirdly familiar. Billy himself seems to be a major character in it. He can't think who could've written it other than Max, his old partner in crime who double-crossed him and left him in the mess he's in. Only Max is dead. He went up in flames, along with lots of cash, after a bank heist. But if Max is alive, Billy has a score to settle. And if he didn't get fried to a crisp, maybe the money didn't either. 

Billy has to find out, by following clues planted in that strange little book. He soon discovers he's not the only one on Max's trail, and has to deal with enemies old and new in his strangest adventure yet. With its ingenious novel-within-a-novel structure, The Big Whatever is a grab-you-by-the throat crime story, an original take on the early 70s in Australia, and a shrewd reflection on a defining moment in modern Australian life. 

“"The Big Whatever can be read as a caper novel or a lament for the '60s and the way a few slimy characters sank the peace and love . . . There's plenty of retro appeal here, harkening back to Newton Thornburg's 1976 cult classic Cutter and Bone." -- Booklist 'Wonderful references to pop culture are dotted throughout, beautifully crafted into the narrative, designed to make readers smile and nod. The sense of humour . . . is razor sharp and desert dry, and about as Australian as you can get in a culture that's got American influence worming its way into everything.' -- Newtown Review of Books (Sydney)”

"The Big Whatever can be read as a caper novel or a lament for the '60s and the way a few slimy characters sank the peace and love . . . There's plenty of retro appeal here, harkening back to Newton Thornburg's 1976 cult classic Cutter and Bone." -- Booklist

'Wonderful references to pop culture are dotted throughout, beautifully crafted into the narrative, designed to make readers smile and nod. The sense of humour . . . is razor sharp and desert dry, and about as Australian as you can get in a culture that's got American influence worming its way into everything.' -- Newtown Review of Books (Sydney)

Peter Doyle is the author of the crime fiction series featuring Billy Glasheen, which brilliantly explore the criminal underworld, political corruption, and the postwar explosion of sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll in Australia. The series, which includes Get Rich Quick and The Devil's Jump, has won him three Ned Kelly Awards, including one for lifetime achievement. Doyle's other books include the highly acclaimed City of Shadows: Sydney Police Photographs 1912-48 and its successor, Crooks Like Us.

Luc Sante's books include Low Life: Lures and Snares of Old New York, Evidence, and Kill All Your Darlings. His lucid, authoritative introductions have graced the works of such seminal authors of crime fiction as Georges Simenon, Richard Stark, and Charles Willeford. Sante is a frequent contributor to The New York Review of Books and teaches at Bard College.

When it comes to sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll, Billy's always been in the vanguard, but as the swinging 60s turn into the 70s, he's living a quiet life. He has kids now, and he's in debt to the mob, so he's keeping his head down, driving a cab, running some low-level rackets. He may as well have gone straight, it's so boring. Then one day everything changes. He finds a trashy paperback in his cab whose plot seems weirdly familiar. Billy himself seems to be a major character in it. He can't think who could've written it other than Max, his old partner in crime who double-crossed him and left him in the mess he's in. Only Max is dead. He went up in flames, along with lots of cash, after a bank heist. But if Max is alive, Billy has a score to settle. And if he didn't get fried to a crisp, maybe the money didn't either. Billy has to find out, by following clues planted in that strange little book. He soon discovers he's not the only one on Max's trail, and has to deal with enemies old and new in his strangest adventure yet. With its ingenious novel-within-a-novel structure, The Big Whatever is a grab-you-by-the throat crime story, an original take on the early 70s in Australia, and a shrewd reflection on a defining moment in modern Australian life.

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