Plot summary

Luckypenny, the title character, is married with two young adult children. Like the author himself, Luckypenny has lost a leg in World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

. He works as an accountant

Accountant

An accountant is a practitioner of accountancy or accounting , which is the measurement, disclosure or provision of assurance about financial information that helps managers, investors, tax authorities and others make decisions about allocating resources.The Big Four auditors are the largest...

 with an English arms firm. Discovering some financial irregularities he blackmail

Blackmail

In common usage, blackmail is a crime involving threats to reveal substantially true or false information about a person to the public, a family member, or associates unless a demand is met. It may be defined as coercion involving threats of physical harm, threat of criminal prosecution, or threats...

s his way to promotion

Promotion (rank)

A promotion is the advancement of an employee's rank or position in an organizational hierarchy system. Promotion may be an employee's reward for good performance i.e. positive appraisal...

.

He is sent to negotiate an arms sale to fascist Italy and becomes embroiled in a scheme to smuggle cash out of the country, arranged by his boss to get rid of him. He is caught, but escapes with the aid of a young woman, who, unbeknownst to Luckypenny, is an Italian espionage agent

SPY

SPY is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:* SPY , ticker symbol for Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts* SPY , a satirical monthly, trademarked all-caps* SPY , airport code for San Pédro, Côte d'Ivoire...

.

The agent falls in love with Luckypenny and helps him to land a large contract for his company.

Additional adventures involve Luckypenny’s children. His son, Tom, and the boss's daughter fall in love, but Tom is shattered when he discovers that she is not a virgin. Luckypenny’s daughter and his boss also begin a love affair.

The novel ends in Fascist Spain, where Luckypenny’s fate depends upon the intervention of his Italian lover.