''It Couldn't Matter Less'' is a 1941

thriller novel Thriller is a genre of fiction, having numerous, often overlapping subgenres. Thrillers are characterized and defined by the moods they elicit, giving viewers heightened feelings of suspense, excitement, surprise, anticipation and anxiety. Su ...

by the British writer

Peter Cheyney Reginald Evelyn Peter Southouse-Cheyney (22 February 1896 – 26 June 1951) was a British crime fiction writer who flourished between 1936 and 1951. Cheyney is perhaps best known for his short stories and novels about agent/detective Lemmy Ca ...

. It is the fourth in a series of novels featuring the London-based private detective

Slim Callaghan Slim Callaghan is a fictional London-based private detective created by the writer Peter Cheyney. Like another of Cheyney's characters, the FBI agent Lemmy Caution, he was constructed as a British response to the more hardboiled detectives of Ameri ...

who enjoyed a series of dangerous adventures similar in style to the hardboiled American detectives created by

Raymond Chandler Raymond Thornton Chandler (July 23, 1888 – March 26, 1959) was an American-British novelist and screenwriter. In 1932, at the age of forty-four, Chandler became a detective fiction writer after losing his job as an oil company executive durin ...

and

Dashiell Hammett Samuel Dashiell Hammett (; May 27, 1894 – January 10, 1961) was an American writer of hard-boiled detective novels and short stories. He was also a screenwriter and political activist. Among the enduring characters he created are Sam Spade ('' ...

. It was published in the United States as ''Set-Up for Murder''.

Synopsis

Callaghan is persuaded by Inspector Gringall of

Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's 32 boroughs, but not the City of London, the square mile that forms London's ...

to meet with Doria Varette a torch singer in a

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

. She hires Callaghan to look for her missing boyfriend Lionel Wilbery. Before long Callaghan realise he has got into a case that is far more complex than it first seems.

Film adaptation

In 1955 it was adapted into the French film ''

More Whiskey for Callaghan ''More Whiskey for Callaghan'' (French: ''Plus de whisky pour Callaghan'') is a 1955 French thriller film directed by Willy Rozier and starring Tony Wright, Magali Vendeuil and Robert Berri. It is an adaptation of the 1941 novel ''It Couldn't Mat ...

'' directed by

Willy Rozier Willy Rozier (27 June 1901 – 29 May 1983) was a French actor, film director, film producer and screenwriter who also used the pseudonym Xavier Vallier. Filmography Director * ''Les Monts en flammes'' (1931) * ''Calais-Dover'' (1931) * ''Le ...

and starring Tony Wright, Magali Vendeuil and

Robert Berri Robert Berri (16 December 1912 – 22 November 1989) was a French film actor. He appeared in 100 films between 1937 and 1979. Selected filmography References External links * 1912 births 1989 deaths French male film actors Male ...

.Goble p.82

References

Bibliography

* Goble, Alan. ''The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film''. Walter de Gruyter, 1999. *Magill, Frank Northen. ''Critical Survey of Mystery and Detective Fiction: Authors, Volume 1''. Salem Press, 1988. 1941 British novels Novels by Peter Cheyney British thriller novels British crime novels Novels set in London William Collins, Sons books British novels adapted into films {{1940s-thriller-novel-stub