The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler
Written in 1938 and set in Los Angles, The Big Sleep presents Philip Marlowe, a private eye hired by the rich but ailing General Sternwood to solve a case of blackmail. Pursuing his assignment, Marlowe runs up against an assortment of bad guys: thugs, hit men, pornographers, gamblers, mobsters, and the like, as well as General Sternwood's two beautiful but immoral, conniving, and selfish daughters. The convoluted plot includes two murders, several attempted murders, robbery, assault, hold-ups, narrow escapes. It's all wildly improbable. But the convoluted (and sometimes obscure) plot doesn't really matter; this is not a realistic examination of the underworld, or an attempt to reveal the psychology of crime or make a moral point. Instead it's a sort of fantasy crime novel. As such, it is an entertaining book, and what makes it entertaining it is Chandler's writing. The writing is vivid and gritty, the descriptions are evocative, imaginative, and sometimes quite funny. The Big Sleep may not be deep or serious literature, but it is fun to read.