Donad E. Westlake: What's so Funny? (UK 2008)

From the Publisher:
Donald Westlake turns the world of crime and criminals upside down and has the last laugh in "What's So Funny?", his latest comic caper novel. His perennially depressed master thief, John Dortmunder, finds himself involved an impossible crime, one he doesn't want and doesn't believe in and which he'd rather avoid if possible... but a little blackmail goes a long way. All it takes is a few underhanded moves by a tough ex-cop named Eppick to pull Dortmunder into a game he never wanted to play. With no choice, he musters his always-game gang and they set out on a perilous treasure hunt for a long-lost gold and jewel-studded chess set once intended as a birthday gift for the last Romanov czar. Unfortunately for everyone, then and now, he became the last Romanov czar without making it to his own birthday party. From the moment Dortmunder reaches for his first pawn, he faces insurmountable odds...

Donad E. Westlake: What's so Funny? A Dortmunder Novel. Quercus, ISBN: 9781847243850 (May, 2008), 352 p., £7.99

Donad E. Westlake: What's so Funny? (USA 2008)

From the Publisher:
In his classic caper novels, Donald E. Westlake turns the world of crime and criminals upside down. The bad get better, the good slide a bit, and Lord help anyone caught between a thief named John Dortmunder and the current object of his intentions. Now Westlake's seasoned but often scoreless crook must take on an impossible crime, one he doesn't want and doesn't believe in. But a little blackmail goes a long way in...

WHAT'S SO FUNNY?
All it takes is a few underhanded moves by a tough ex-cop named Eppick to pull Dortmunder into a game he never wanted to play. With no choice, he musters his always-game gang and they set out on a perilous treasure hunt for a long-lost gold and jewel-studded chess set once intended as a birthday gift for the last Romanov czar, which unfortunately reached Russia after that party was over.

From the moment Dortmunder reaches for his first pawn, he faces insurmountable odds. The purloined past of this precious set is destined to confound any strategy he finds on the board. Success is not inevitable with John Dortmunder leading the attack, but he's nothing if not persistent, and some gambit or other might just stumble into a winning move.

Donad E. Westlake: What's so Funny? Grand Central Publishing, ISBN: 0446401153 (March, 2008), 400 p., $7.99

Donad E. Westlake: What's so Funny? (UK 2007)

From the Publisher:
John Dortmunder, the hero of Westlake’s Dortmunder series and his latest novel What’s So Funny? is a hard-luck criminal genius, the comic flipside to the cold and serious Parker of the Richard Stark novels

John Dortmunder hasn’t gotten where he is today by turning a blind eye to an easy heist. But he also knows an impossible job when it comes along. So when an ex-cop named Eppick presents him with a job that involves stealing a bejewelled, solid gold chess set, a chess set weighing more than one man can carry, from an underground vault in a Manhattan bank, Dortmunder says no thanks.

Eppick says it is steal the chess set or go to jail for previous. So John and his bumbling band of good natured thieves put together a plan. But is it a workable plan?

Donad E. Westlake: What's so Funny? A Dortmunder Novel. Quercus, ISBN: 1847241107 (December, 2007), 359 p., £12.99

Donad E. Westlake: What's so Funny? (USA 2007)

From the Publisher:
In his classic caper novels, Donald E. Westlake turns the world of crime and criminals upside down. The bad get better, the good slide a bit, and Lord help anyone caught between a thief named John Dortmunder and the current object of his intentions. Now Westlake's seasoned but often scoreless crook must take on an impossible crime, one he doesn't want and doesn't believe in. But a little blackmail goes a long way in...

WHAT'S SO FUNNY?
All it takes is a few underhanded moves by a tough ex-cop named Eppick to pull Dortmunder into a game he never wanted to play. With no choice, he musters his always-game gang and they set out on a perilous treasure hunt for a long-lost gold and jewel-studded chess set once intended as a birthday gift for the last Romanov czar, which unfortunately reached Russia after that party was over.

From the moment Dortmunder reaches for his first pawn, he faces insurmountable odds. The purloined past of this precious set is destined to confound any strategy he finds on the board. Success is not inevitable with John Dortmunder leading the attack, but he's nothing if not persistent, and some gambit or other might just stumble into a winning move.

Donad E. Westlake: What's so Funny? A Dortmunder Novel. Warner Books, ISBN: 0446582409 (April, 2007), 359 p., $24.99