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Sam Hunter #1
The Big Enchilada
Los Angeles is a hot town. Hot women. Hot clubs. And, when private eye Sam Hunter is involved, hot tempers.
Sam doesn’t take kindly to threats, so when a street thug busts up his office and warns him to “Stay away from Domingo,” he might as well draw Sam a map pointing where to swing his fists. Soon, Sam finds himself racing around L.A., dodging bullets and spiraling deeper and deeper into a world of sex, drugs and danger. A teenage porn star, an heiress and some spoiled rich brat lead Sam to the Black Knight club, a place dark enough to hide heroin and sleaze from the bright lights of the law.
What will he find when he finally reaches Domingo? Big rewards or a deadly end?
From Edgar Award-winning L.A. Morse, author of THE FLESH EATERS and THE OLD DICK, comes the thrilling story of pimps, pushers and porn that will hit you in the chest like the kickback of a Colt .38 Special.
Sam doesn’t take kindly to threats, so when a street thug busts up his office and warns him to “Stay away from Domingo,” he might as well draw Sam a map pointing where to swing his fists. Soon, Sam finds himself racing around L.A., dodging bullets and spiraling deeper and deeper into a world of sex, drugs and danger. A teenage porn star, an heiress and some spoiled rich brat lead Sam to the Black Knight club, a place dark enough to hide heroin and sleaze from the bright lights of the law.
What will he find when he finally reaches Domingo? Big rewards or a deadly end?
From Edgar Award-winning L.A. Morse, author of THE FLESH EATERS and THE OLD DICK, comes the thrilling story of pimps, pushers and porn that will hit you in the chest like the kickback of a Colt .38 Special.
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1982
7 people are currently reading
45 people want to read
About the author
L.A. Morse
11 books10 followersaka Runa Fairleigh.
Larry Alan Morse grew up in Los Angeles. He attended the University of California at Berkeley and San Francisco State College, and somehow managed to get two degrees in English Lit. He moved to Toronto in the late ‘60s, and has had the usual variety of jobs, including a brief stint in educational television and five years as an administrator at the University of Toronto. Upon returning from extended travels through Southeast Asia, he decided to try and write a novel – something delicate and sensitive and artistic. He discovered just what he was looking for in the true story of Sawney Beane and his family, The Flesh Eaters, the 15th century cannibal clan who ate their way through a good part of Scotland.
L. A. Morse has written four other crime novels. The Old Dick won an Edgar from the Mystery Writers of America; The Big Enchilada and Sleaze, featuring Sam Hunter, the L. A. private eye who, according to one reviewer, “makes Dirty Harry look like Mother Teresa”; and he was instrumental in arranging the publication of An Old-Fashioned Mystery, the lost masterpiece by the enigmatic and reclusive author, Runa Fairleigh. He shifted to another medium with the publication of Video Trash and Treasures, a two-volume guide to the obscure and bizarre movies of the 1980s.
For the last 15 years, L. A. Morse has worked as a visual artist, primarily sculpture. He is an avid birder with over 1,500 species on his world list. When not off looking for birds in the tropics, he currently divides his time between stone carving and making a living in the stock market.
Larry Alan Morse grew up in Los Angeles. He attended the University of California at Berkeley and San Francisco State College, and somehow managed to get two degrees in English Lit. He moved to Toronto in the late ‘60s, and has had the usual variety of jobs, including a brief stint in educational television and five years as an administrator at the University of Toronto. Upon returning from extended travels through Southeast Asia, he decided to try and write a novel – something delicate and sensitive and artistic. He discovered just what he was looking for in the true story of Sawney Beane and his family, The Flesh Eaters, the 15th century cannibal clan who ate their way through a good part of Scotland.
L. A. Morse has written four other crime novels. The Old Dick won an Edgar from the Mystery Writers of America; The Big Enchilada and Sleaze, featuring Sam Hunter, the L. A. private eye who, according to one reviewer, “makes Dirty Harry look like Mother Teresa”; and he was instrumental in arranging the publication of An Old-Fashioned Mystery, the lost masterpiece by the enigmatic and reclusive author, Runa Fairleigh. He shifted to another medium with the publication of Video Trash and Treasures, a two-volume guide to the obscure and bizarre movies of the 1980s.
For the last 15 years, L. A. Morse has worked as a visual artist, primarily sculpture. He is an avid birder with over 1,500 species on his world list. When not off looking for birds in the tropics, he currently divides his time between stone carving and making a living in the stock market.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
January 5, 2020
Does the world need yet another novel about a lone cynical private eye trying to make it in a corrupt and unforgiving world. The answer is an unqualified yes when the detective is Sam Hunter, who is part Mike Shayne and part Hunter S. Thompson.
While the story has the usual hardboiled private eye motifs such as the corrupt vice cop, the sex-starved secretary, the rundown private eye office, dirty pictures, and jealous wives, what sets this book apart is that Hunter has no filter. He says what's on his mind and never seems to turn down a willing dame and there are so many willing that he practically needs a stick to fight them off. When a loud radio in another car in a traffic jam bothers him, Hunter points his gun at the offender. When an uppity receptionist looks down her nose at him, Hunter is as crude as can be. Hunter strikes first in almost every fight and is fond of breaking bones.
This book nails it. It's an early eighties hardboiled story that is so vivid you can feel plastic melting in the Los Angeles heat. Hunter is cynical, crass, overbearing, but knows right from wrong.
Overall, it's a great read. Easy to get into and easy to stay interested in. It's a little bit longer than a classic hardboiled novel would be, but it's from a slightly different mold. In some ways, it is tongue-in-cheek, but in others, it's just over the top excess.
While the story has the usual hardboiled private eye motifs such as the corrupt vice cop, the sex-starved secretary, the rundown private eye office, dirty pictures, and jealous wives, what sets this book apart is that Hunter has no filter. He says what's on his mind and never seems to turn down a willing dame and there are so many willing that he practically needs a stick to fight them off. When a loud radio in another car in a traffic jam bothers him, Hunter points his gun at the offender. When an uppity receptionist looks down her nose at him, Hunter is as crude as can be. Hunter strikes first in almost every fight and is fond of breaking bones.
This book nails it. It's an early eighties hardboiled story that is so vivid you can feel plastic melting in the Los Angeles heat. Hunter is cynical, crass, overbearing, but knows right from wrong.
Overall, it's a great read. Easy to get into and easy to stay interested in. It's a little bit longer than a classic hardboiled novel would be, but it's from a slightly different mold. In some ways, it is tongue-in-cheek, but in others, it's just over the top excess.
January 20, 2017
THE BIG ENCHILADA is the second novel I've read by author L.A. Morse, the first being The Old Dick. Sam Hunter is a no-holds barred/love 'em & leave 'em private detective that seems like a cross between Dirty Harry and Johnny Wadd. Standard disclaimer for this one should be "Bow Chicka Wow Wow" as it is a good action mystery-crime/hard-boiled novel with a healthy dose of porn thrown in. I'm personally more comfortable with the less explicit novels of the genre, but can say that the sexual content doesn't take away from what is a well written book. Recommended for MA only, 4 stars.
March 9, 2017
I can't believe I never read anything except "Videotrash & Treasures: A Field Guide to the Video Unknown" by L.A. Morse before. That video guide was very useful before the internet by the way. I guess I have a few more books to look forward to though. The man only wrote a handful. What a shame.
The Big Enchilada is about a private eye in 1982. Yeah, I know by the time 1982 came around the P.I. stories had worn themselves out. Tired and predictable. But not with this one. There is enough sex and violence to keep any hard-boiled, noir lover turning the page. The action hardly ever lets up. Neither does our P.I. Within the first few chapters he has the sheets flying.
The story is told by Sam Hunter, the P.I. He's about to go on vacation to Mexico when a giant of a man busts in to his office to give him a warning. "Stay away from Domingo." With that the big ape tears the office and Hunter up. Well no decent dick can let that happen. He cancels his trip and sets of to find out who Domingo is. As stated above, Hunter comes across an array of crazy thugs. Porno producers with overbearing mothers. Sex starved mother and daughter neighbors. An exclusive kinky club for the rich and famous. All the while he throws down all sorts of food that would melt you stomach walls to bits. Put all these together and you got one hell of a book.
The Big Enchilada is about a private eye in 1982. Yeah, I know by the time 1982 came around the P.I. stories had worn themselves out. Tired and predictable. But not with this one. There is enough sex and violence to keep any hard-boiled, noir lover turning the page. The action hardly ever lets up. Neither does our P.I. Within the first few chapters he has the sheets flying.
The story is told by Sam Hunter, the P.I. He's about to go on vacation to Mexico when a giant of a man busts in to his office to give him a warning. "Stay away from Domingo." With that the big ape tears the office and Hunter up. Well no decent dick can let that happen. He cancels his trip and sets of to find out who Domingo is. As stated above, Hunter comes across an array of crazy thugs. Porno producers with overbearing mothers. Sex starved mother and daughter neighbors. An exclusive kinky club for the rich and famous. All the while he throws down all sorts of food that would melt you stomach walls to bits. Put all these together and you got one hell of a book.
September 13, 2025
Dirty and violent (not that there's anything wrong with that).
Pretty enjoyable. No great shakes.
Pretty enjoyable. No great shakes.
June 6, 2018
Private Eye Sam Hunter's office is broken into by a hulking monstrosity name Mountain, Sam Hunter decides to investigate and find out the truth behind the man who sent Mountain, a mysterious criminal figure named Domingo...
I love this book, I love it enough to take it on a trip and read it for a second time while I have 300 other books that I haven't even touched. I mainly love it because of the general pace of the book. Sam Hunter is an ever-present fountain of wisdom when it comes to what a dump Los Angeles is, and will go on nearly page long soliloquies about the nature of the city. Hunter's "investigations" are also very entertaining, as in all he does throughout most of the book is really just beat people up and yell at them. The author takes things to a very interesting place near the end when Sam Hunter almost plays Elliot Ness, and orchestrates the building of an elite squad of cops and has them raid all sorts of criminal enterprises.
Another thing I love is how incredibly sleazy this book is. Not only does it take great pains to bringing to light the seedy side of L.A., with a razor sharp focus on the porn industry, but the book itself. Sam Hunter, like many a Private Eye before him, has women throwing themselves at him almost constantly. The difference is, Morse isn't going to fade to black or imply like Spillane would. We get a lot of these sex scenes detailed throughout the book, and they are all VERY detailed.
The writing is, as well, very well done. I often found myself completely absorbed in Hunter's antics,
as well as finding quite a few funny moments throughout the novel.
Strongly recommended.
I love this book, I love it enough to take it on a trip and read it for a second time while I have 300 other books that I haven't even touched. I mainly love it because of the general pace of the book. Sam Hunter is an ever-present fountain of wisdom when it comes to what a dump Los Angeles is, and will go on nearly page long soliloquies about the nature of the city. Hunter's "investigations" are also very entertaining, as in all he does throughout most of the book is really just beat people up and yell at them. The author takes things to a very interesting place near the end when Sam Hunter almost plays Elliot Ness, and orchestrates the building of an elite squad of cops and has them raid all sorts of criminal enterprises.
Another thing I love is how incredibly sleazy this book is. Not only does it take great pains to bringing to light the seedy side of L.A., with a razor sharp focus on the porn industry, but the book itself. Sam Hunter, like many a Private Eye before him, has women throwing themselves at him almost constantly. The difference is, Morse isn't going to fade to black or imply like Spillane would. We get a lot of these sex scenes detailed throughout the book, and they are all VERY detailed.
The writing is, as well, very well done. I often found myself completely absorbed in Hunter's antics,
as well as finding quite a few funny moments throughout the novel.
Strongly recommended.
December 27, 2016
This is hard boiled hard boiled. Sam Hunter is a LA private eye. This is his story
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews