The Porkchoppers

Two hard-nosed bosses scrap for control of America's largest union.

Born to a steelworker but harboring theatrical aspirations, Donald Cubbin grew up tempted by two careers. A Hollywood scout finally notices him, but Cubbin has already taken a job with the local union boss. He's always regretted that decision - especially now.

After decades climbing the ranks, Cubbin runs the show as the union's president. An election looms, and his opponent proves to be a dangerously loose cannon. Cubbin made dozens of enemies over the years, and one has just engaged a hired killer. The fight for Cubbin's job starts with muckraking but could end in murder.

Review quote

"Ross Thomas is without peer in American suspense." - The Los Angeles Times.

"What Elmore Leonard does for crime in the streets, Ross Thomas does for crime in the suites." - The Village Voice.

"A first-rate political novel of manners . . . the pace is superb, the plot brilliantly intricate, the dialogue crackling and witty." - National Review.

Biographical note.

The winner of the inaugural Gumshoe Lifetime Achievement Award, Ross Thomas (1926-1995) was a prolific author whose political thrillers drew praise for their blend of wit and suspense. Born in Oklahoma City, Thomas grew up during the Great Depression, and served in the Philippines during World War II. After the war, he worked as a foreign correspondent, public relations official, and political strategist before publishing his first novel, "The Cold War Swap" (1967), based on his experience working in Bonn, Germany. The novel was a hit, winning Thomas as an Edgar Award for Best First Novel and establishing the characters Mac McCorkle and Mike Padillo.

Thomas followed it up with three more novels about McCorkle and Padillo, the last of which was published in 1990. He wrote nearly a book a year for twenty-five years, occasionally under the pen name Oliver Bleeck, and won the Edgar Award for Best Novel with "Briarpatch" (1984). Thomas died of lung cancer in California in 1995, a year after publishing his final novel, "Ah, Treachery!"