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Inherent Vice

by Thomas Pynchon Publisher: PENGUIN GROUP

Bestseller Critically Recognized

A private eye at the edge of an era

Regular price $18.13 USD
Regular price $30.22 USD Sale price $18.13 USD
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Paperback New English

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Awards & Recognition

  • Bestseller

    The New York Times bestseller

    Described in the supplied metadata as a New York Times bestseller.

  • Editorial selection

    Washington Post best book of the year

    Named a best book of the year by The Washington Post.

  • Critical praise

    Rolling Stone: “The funniest book Pynchon has written”

    A review called it “The funniest book Pynchon has written.”

AlbakiReads Editorial

A private eye at the edge of an era

Set in late-1960s Los Angeles, the novel places private investigator Doc Sportello amid a tangle involving his former girlfriend and a reported plan to kidnap a billionaire land developer. Doc’s intermittent marijuana haze and the period’s shifting ideas about love frame a noir mystery with psychedelic elements. The setup links a personal reunion to a wider portrait of a culture in transition, keeping the investigation and the era’s countercultural atmosphere closely connected.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • For readers interested in noir mysteries with a private investigator at the center.
  • For those drawn to fiction set in late-1960s Los Angeles and its psychedelic counterculture.
  • For readers curious about stories that connect romantic entanglements with crime.

Themes

Noir and private investigationLate-1960s Los AngelesCounterculture and changing social valuesLove entangled with crime

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

The New York Times bestseller - Named a best book of the year by the Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, and Los Angeles Times

"The funniest book Pynchon has written." --Rolling Stones

"Entertainment of a high order." --Time Magazine

Part noir, part psychedelic romp, all Thomas Pynchon--private eye Doc Sportello surfaces, occasionally, out of a marijuana haze to watch the end of an era.

It's been a while since Doc Sportello has seen his ex-girlfriend. Suddenly out of nowhere she shows up with a story about a plot to kidnap a billionaire land developer whom she just happens to be in love with. It's the tail end of the psychedelic sixties in L.A., and Doc knows that "love" is another one of those words going around at the moment, like "trip" or "groovy," except that this one usually leads to trouble.

In this lively yarn, Thomas Pynchon, working in an unaccustomed genre, provides a classic illustration of the principle that if you can remember the sixties, you weren't there . . . or . . . if you were there, then you . . . or, wait, is it . . .
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Customer reviews

M
AlbakiReads
Malaika Taylor

I highly recommend to for anyone looking for inner clarity

T
AlbakiReads
Thomas DiMassa

Great service and fast service

Great shopping experience! The book arrived quickly, was well packaged, and matched the description perfectly. I would definitely shop with you again

O
AlbakiReads
Olivia

Smooth.