MIDWAY through The Big Sleep - the first of Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlow detective novels - Marlow interviews a hustler mixed up in a murder investigation. “You're broke, eh?” he asks, sounding typically tough. To which comes the reply: “I been shaking two nickels together for a month, trying to get them to mate.”

At a time when most people are hoping that the coins in their pockets will somehow get together and multiply, it was refreshing to visit a stylish hotel that offers good value and good quality. Rooms start at only £45 a night.

The Big Sleep hotel, named after the genre-defining book (a deckchair in the lobby carries a print of the classic Penguin cover), is on King Edward's Parade not far from Eastbourne's bandstand. I checked in, trying to see the hotel through the eyes of no-nonsense Marlow.

An ash-blonde receptionist with greenish eyes smiled politely as she took my details - reminding me of the clerk of the risqué bookshop at the beginning of The Big Sleep. As she pecked at a keyboard, I glanced around the all-white room. It looked like an overgrown ice-box.

BACKGROUND

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The blonde didn't say much. Then she smiled again and handed me a plastic key. “Go up the stairs at the back,” she chirped matter-of-factly.

The stairs at the back led to a large room with silver and black patterned wallpaper and black chandeliers that made me think of dead spiders. On the bedside tables sat lamps with black shades. There were mirrors everywhere. The bed had a headboard mirror. There was a door-sized mirror near the desk. The desk also had mirrors on its sides.

I looked out of the window. Past the hotel sign I could see a row of palms on the other side of the parade. Christmas tree-style lights hung between Victorian street lanterns with peach-coloured bulbs.

I investigated the bathroom. It was large enough, with a tub. There isn't much more to say about the bathroom.

After a walk along the parade - “No jumping off the pier” said a sign - I returned to the hotel bar. This was a curious affair by the lobby, decorated in queasily clashing colours: bright oranges and lime green.

A burly man with grey hair that looked slicked with Brylcreem took my order. I asked him about the hotel. “It has its moments,” he said softly. I drank a couple of fingers of bourbon listening to two women giggling on a green sofa with “Peace” and “Love” cushions.

I liked the Big Sleep. It's one of a three-hotel chain part-owned by the actor John Malkovich, with other properties in Cardiff and Cheltenham. It's also cheap. In Chandler's book, Marlow says: “To hell with the rich. They make me sick.” Well, you don't have to be loaded to stay here.

Bottom line Mystery Guest paid £115 for a B&B double. Rooms cost from £45

Best thing Cheap and chic

Worst thing No restaurant

Need to know The Big Sleep (01323 722676, www.thebigsleephotel.com), 1 Lansdowne Terrace, Eastbourne, Sussex BN21 4EB

Room 7.5 out of 10

Service 6 out of 10

Value 8 out of 10

Score 7.17

PUT TO THE TEST: 20 Mystery Guest questions for... The Big Sleep, Eastbourne

1. Do rooms have kettles/coffee makers? And is there fresh milk?

Kettles and fresh milk.

2. Is there a hairdryer, and is it fixed to a wall?

Yes there are hairdryers, connected to walls.

3. Are coathangers metal, wooden, removable?

Plastic removeable.

4. Complimentary bottle of water?

No.

5. Sheets and blankets or duvets?

Duvets.

6. What about a 'pillow menu'?

No.

7. Is lighting good enough for reading?

Yes.

8. Is there a shaving/make up mirror? And is it well lit?

No.

9. What about the in-room entertainment system?

Flat-screen TV and Sky channels.

10. Is there a temperature control panel?

No.

11. Do the windows open?

Yes.

12. Is there good sound-proofing?

Yes.

13. Is there wi-fi internet access?

Yes, £8 for 24 hours.

14. Is there a good place to go jogging nearby?

Along the seafront.

15. What is the vegetarian food selection like?

N/a - no restaurant.

16. Is there baby listening/babysitting? And are children welcome at adults’ evening meals?

No. But children are welcome at the hotel.

17. Is there wheelchair access to all areas?

Yes.

18. Do you get a free paper in the morning?

No.

19. Is there a pub round the corner?

Yes, the Buccaneer.

20. Is there free car parking? And is it secure?

Parking costs 50 pence overnight and is on-street.

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