Something's Down There (2003)

Make no mistake: Spillane's a dinosaur. Back in the '50 and '60s, his Mike Hammer novels were all the rage among folks who preferred their detective fiction without highfalutin Chandlerian poetics and with a double dose of macho attitude. Not much has changed. In his latest tale, Spillane (now 85!) writes like the Cold War never ended (one character calls Cubans ''Cubies'') and feminism never happened (''You didn't think, you stupid broad,'' tough-guy protagonist Mako Hooker barks at a woman). In spite, or maybe because, of such business, ''Something'' is a satisfying little potboiler; its blithe lack of concern with present-day political correctness gives it a rough-hewn charm that's as refreshing as it is rare.