HE CAN’T TAKE IT WITH HIM…
SO HE’S GONE TO PLAN B—
It’s 1961 and Chicago’s sleaziest businessman is trying to pay off his sins. The cruel, strange real estate tycoon Elwood Tymms— known as “Terrible Tymms”— is dying. But go figure— he’s somehow got the idea the wages of sin will pave his way past the pearly gates.
So before he goes, he’s trying to throw all his money to charitable causes in an off-the-wall effort to buy his way into heaven.
But Tymms has a problem: he’s got so many enemies he can hardly walk out his front door without running into a hitman or two. He might end up assassinated before he can finish giving away his cash— and in his mind that means he’d end up in hell.
Enter private investigator and prodigious street fighter Lou Fleener. Lou’s been scaring off clients ever since his last rollicking caper got him falsely branded as a cop killer. To make matters worse, his gorgeous, sharp-tongued wife Cassidy has earned a bogus reputation as an art thief.
Low on booze and cigarettes, Cassidy and Lou feel forced to do something no upstanding Chicagoan would be willing to do: help Tymms by tracking down his would-be murderer.
And in the meantime, they agree to act as his security detail— which means that Tymms ends up taking shelter in their apartment. Big surprise— he’s not the best roommate. And to make matters much worse, his attempted killer may be closer than you’d think…
As usual, Lou and Cassidy’s semi-hardboiled adventures are perfect for armchair travelers who want a glimpse of vintage Chicago with a side of action and another of laughs. The eccentric Tymms shines through as the most ridiculously wealthy scumbag this side of Citizen Kane. Plus, author Lindsay includes plenty of high-stakes brawls for fans of scrappy fighting.