The Big Bang
- Author Max Allan Collins, Mickey Spillane, Max Allan Collins
- Narrator Stacy Keach
- Publisher Blackstone Publishing
- Publish Date 13 May 2010
- Run Time 7 hours and 41 minutes
- Format Audio
- Genre Crime and mystery fiction, Crime and mystery: hard-boiled crime, noir fiction, Thriller / suspense fiction.
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What to expect
In midtown Manhattan, Mike Hammer, recovering from a near-fatal mix-up with the Mob, runs into drug dealers assaulting a young hospital messenger. He saves the kid, but the muggers are not so lucky. Hammer considers the rescue a one-off, but someone has different ideas, as indicated by a street-corner knife attack. With himself for a client, Hammer—and his beautiful, deadly partner Velda—take on the narcotics racket in New York just as the streets have dried up and rumors run rampant of a massive heroin shipment due any day. In a New York of flashy discotheques, swanky bachelor pads, and the occasional dark alley, Hammer deals with doctors and drug addicts, hippie chicks and hit men, meeting changing times with his timeless brand of violent vengeance.
Originally begun and outlined by Spillane in the mid-sixties, and expertly completed by his longtime collaborator Max Allan Collins, The Big Bang is vintage Mike Hammer on acid—literally.
Critics Review
“Resuming his role from the short-lived CBS television series, actor Stacy Keach slips effortlessly back into character and even offers up his musical expertise by providing original jazz compositions as accompaniment. The sound production is stellar as realistic sound effects are peppered throughout and help to amplify the reading. The big bang from Hammer’s Colt .45 will literally rattle the walls! Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award.”
u201cMike Hammer is the original hard-boiled dicku2014shoot first, dodge questions lateru2026Fun, if you donu2019t take it very seriously and think of it as a slightly skewed dream you once had.u201d
u201cThough it came from two authors, Bangu00a0has a clear, consistent narrative voiceu2026The pace clips along, as conversation leads to assault leads to conversationu2026Bold enough to be memorable.u201d
u201cA great successu2026The Big Bangu00a0is filled with classic Spillane villains, vixens, and a healthy dose of Velda.u201d
u201cA triple combination of talent comes together to bring the iconic Mike Hammer back for a new adventure. Collins, working with Spillaneu2019s incomplete manuscript and copious notes, has completed a sterling addition to the Hammer canon. The third creative element to this mix is the impeccable vocal artistry of Stacy Keach, an actor who for a generation is the embodiment of Mike Hammeru2026Keachu2019s smooth, confident reading perfectly captures Spillaneu2019s most famous creation, whether heu2019s delivering a punch in the face, a slug from a .45, or a kiss to a dame. Pure unabashed, pleasurable pulp.u201d
u201cThe image of a brooding figure contemplating the decline evident all around him, along with characters done in broad strokes, invite comparisons to Batmanu2026an enormously entertaining confection with its politically incorrect views, giving fans of the Mad Menu00a0TV series as well as proponents of vigilante justice something to talk about over the watercooler.u201d
u201cSentences are packed with gritty detail, action scenes have more kicks and slams than a championship karate playoff and the plotu2014Hammer takes on the narcotics mob on the eve of a big heroin shipment to Manhattan in the mid-u201960su2014is tight.u201d
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