Our hero, Chet, is a cab driver who likes to gamble. His luck hasn't been so good lately until a passenger in his cab gives him a tip on a horse race. Chet decides to go ahead and place a bet on the horse. To his delight, he ends up winning $930. When he goes to collect, his bookie is dead in the middle of his dining room floor. When Chet reports the murder, he immediately comes under the scrutiny of the police who believe he may be involved. The police are soon the least of his worries as two rival gangs plus the beautiful sister of the dead bookie all believe that Chet was involved in the murder.
This is the first book that I have read by Donald Westlake. This book was recommended on a reading list that I subscribe to. At first, I thought the book was a little slow. Gradually, I came to enjoy Chet and all of his bumbling attempts to get his money. Things got even more fun when he teamed up with Abby, the dead bookie's sister. It took me awhile to realize that even though this book was just recorded recently, it was written in 1969. Some things seemed out of date but there was really no allusions to the specific time period of the story. I thought this was a pretty humorous book.
Rating - 4 stars
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