Reluctantly investigating a kidnapping threat against his ex-girlfriend's billionaire beau, Doc Sportello tackles a bizarre tangle of nefarious characters before stumbling on a mysterious entity that may actually be a tax shelter for a dental group.

Pynchon, it seems, is a lot a matter of personal taste. If you've read Pynchon before, you know that there's a distinct, kind of irreverent and slapstick but wide-ranging and all-consuming style that his writing has, and much of the fun from the books comes from how many ideas appear and how they fit together in strange ways. Inherent Vice is no exception in that regard, although this time set as a quasi-noir detective story in Southern California's hippie culture. NUBClub was split on this one depending on how much you like that style. If you enjoy it, then the investigations and tribulations of Doc Sportello as he meanders through an investigation involving a mysterious ship, drug dealing, and a wide cast of strange and fun to follow characters. The book becomes a kind of more intellectual Lebowski, with a similar sense of SoCal chill and forces working in the background, only more frenetic and more idea-laden. But that's if you liked the style. A good portion of NUBClub found the book exhausting, with just too many characters and directions to attach to. No one could argue with the style or the humor of the book, but some just thought it was too much work for that enjoyment. But those who got in to Doc's rhythm found the novel a wacky and wild quasi-detective story hitting all of Pynchon's core strengths of cryptic power structures, over the top scenes, and beautiful and setting-specific style.