Big Man

by Richard Marsten (pseudonym), Ed McBain

The lives of two New York toughs spin out of control when a routine burglary spirals into a cop killing in this thriller by the author of the 87th Precinct series.

Robbing the cars is Jobbo's idea. Frankie just goes along because it's too hot to do anything else, and he can't resist easy money. They walk along the East River, reaching into open windows and taking whatever they find. Mostly, it's just junk, until Jobbo picks up the .45. It's fully loaded, with the safety off, and Frankie is holding it when the cops come around the corner.

The police open fire, and Frankie shoots back. What else is he supposed to do? Before he knows it, both cops are down, and he and Jobbo are running to meet their connection: the Big Man. With the gun in his hand and two fallen cops at his back, Frankie has a shot at becoming a "big man" himself, unless the law catches up with him first.

A stunning portrait of urban crime, Big Man is vintage Ed McBain. A Mystery Writers of America Grand Master and the creator of the 87th Precinct series, McBain knew the dark side of New York better than anyone else, and in the city's shadows, there's no creature more terrifying than the Big Man.

Genres: Mystery

157 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1959

About the author

Born and raised as Salvatore Lombino in New York City.
Legally changed name to his pseudonym Evan Hunter.
Best known by his pseudonym Ed McBain.

Reviews

[Oliver Clarke · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyably punchy mob novel.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

A direct descendant of W. R. Burnett's Little Caesar (1929), Ed McBain's Big Man tells the story of Frankie Taglio, a young man in New York who falls in with the wrong crowd (or right crowd, depending on your point of view) and soon finds himself a career mobster. Frankie's rise through the mob hierarchy is somewhat difficult to explain: There are strangely few gangsters between him and the top, and Frankie doesn't seem to have much going for him other than a bit of intelligence and the willingness to use a gun. (Then again, maybe that's all any gangster really needs.) Big Man has a fair amount of action, but its drama is driven less by the crimes that Frankie commits than by the changes in his character as he ascends the mob ladder.

[Michael Fredette · Rating 5 out of 5]

A 1959 pulp novel (originally published under the pseudonym Richard Marsten) about organized crime in NYC that holds up remarkably well. The protagonist and narrator, Frankie Taglio, is a small-time criminal (if that) when the novel opens. One summer night, his friend Jobbo talks him into ripping off unsecured goods from people's cars. After stealing a .45 they have an encounter with the police, and Frankie makes a desperate decision to shoot the two cops, which inadvertently establishes his underworld reputation. From there, Frankie rises through the ranks of organized crime and becomes increasingly cold-blooded...Great novel; lean, muscular, and well-plotted!

[GhostofMyrtle]

Evan Hunter, most commonly known under his pseudonym Ed McBain, originally wrote this novel under another pen name: Richard Marsten. Don't expect a police procedural a la The 87th precinct novels. This novel is about a small time hood who enters a criminal gang and works his way to the top only to find it isn't all that it is cut out to be. A good yarn, somewhat reminiscent, albeit updated to the late '50's of the gangster crime films of the '30's.

[Andrew Grisdale · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid little McBain crime thriller. Short, sweet and full of the hard boiled prose you'd expect out of a book from this era. If you like McBain you'll like this.

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very disappointing. I've read non-87th Precinct McBain novels before, but even judging this on its own merits it was poor. Apparently some imprints are worth a few quid though...