Rating: 
Summary: He did it again!
Review: Reading Robert B Parker is for me like eating potato chips or cotton candy. Insubstantial for the most part but I cannot stop. Once again, the silver-tongued Spenser dazzles his way through most of Massachusetts, unwinding a ball of twine which has Susans ex-husband in the middle. Susan, who has always seemed slightly above the rest of mortal women, actually shows some flakiness here. But she still doesnt eat or drink. I am looking forward to a novel which has Susan ingesting more than a teaspoon of anything. This one is a great (but way too quick) read.
Rating:
Summary: Rather a landmark novel in the series...
Review: Somehow, I feel a batch of people have missed the point here. This is a pivotal novel, one in which Susan has to face some things she would prefer not to. Susan's ex-husband comes to her for help. Of course, she doesn't understand the kind of help he's looking for and her misunderstanding involves Spenser and eventually turns up a batch of stuff that the ex is involved in. Human emotions are dealt with here, and it's revealing to watch Susan as she begins to realize some of her own hang-ups. As far as the mystery goes, there isn't great mystery here. We learn what's going on at the same time that Spenser does and much of it isn't a surprise. Parker does telegraph much of the time and I believe this to be purposeful. More and more, in these later Spenser stories, Parker does something unexpected. This time, it's the ending which is unusually abrupt. There's reason here, and Parker does know exactly what he is doing in the way he's crafting these stories.
Rating:
Summary: Rather a landmark novel in the series...
Review: Somehow, I feel a batch of people have missed the point here. This is a pivotal novel, one in which Susan has to face some things she would prefer not to. Susan's ex-husband comes to her for help. Of course, she doesn't understand the kind of help he's looking for and her misunderstanding involves Spenser and eventually turns up a batch of stuff that the ex is involved in. Human emotions are dealt with here, and it's revealing to watch Susan as she begins to realize some of her own hang-ups. As far as the mystery goes, there isn't great mystery here. We learn what's going on at the same time that Spenser does and much of it isn't a surprise. Parker does telegraph much of the time and I believe this to be purposeful. More and more, in these later Spenser stories, Parker does something unexpected. This time, it's the ending which is unusually abrupt. There's reason here, and Parker does know exactly what he is doing in the way he's crafting these stories.
Rating: 
Summary: It's okay. They can't all be knockouts.
Review: Sometimes I wonder if those of us who read series (especially long-standing series like Spenser) have unrealistically high expectations for each new book. I think the truth of the matter is that some books will be great and some will be just okay, and maybe a few will genuinely suck (though not too many, we hope). After all, who has a great year every year? Some are good, some better than others. That's just real life. And Parker's series seems to do a good job of replicating this aspect in Spenser's life. Some years have huge crises and brushes with death; others not much happens. This volume is one of the mid-level ones. It's okay, not bad, not great either. One aspect I think rather unrealistic is the idea that Spenser and Susan have been together for twenty years and have never talked about her past. In most dating relationships, this comes up in the first month. In some ways, perhaps this is Parker overcompensating for unduly neglecting this aspect of Susan's character in the past. He probably felt like he had to get it in sometime, and though it would have been more appropriate some ten or fifteen books ago, it's probably good that he got it in now. Parker has said that he doesn't have a favorite Spenser book; he feels like all of them are just episodes in an ongoing series and they sort of blur together. And maybe in this way, Spenser really reflects life. So if this book wasn't a dazzler, that's okay. That's just life.
Rating: 
Summary: Aging Spencer is back with a vengence. A delightful read.
Review: Spencer is back, in all his aging glory. This book did not disappoint. As with all spencer books, the engaging repartee' was delightful. Want to know what happens to p.i.'s when they get older? Do they just fade away? Not this guy. Hawk appears deeper, yet!
Rating:
Summary: Who would have thunk it?
Review: Spenser as Alan Alda-oozing-type male feminist? Come on Robert B!... Spenser USED to be a very sexy character - a girl likes a bit of sensitivity, but that cotton candy stuff has got to go!! And enough with the Susan Silverman whining, it's even a turn off for me, and I'm a woman! Sorry I wasted the $$ on this one, hope RBP can redeem himself soon. Sincerely.
Rating:
Summary: One of the better, if not best of the most recent Spensers
Review: Spenser is back, but this time it's not about him. Susan, although she isn't "on screen" a lot, dominates this book. It is Spenser's feelings for her that motivate him to help a man who he would much rather hit. Good banter with Hawk and Quirk. The point of it all though, is that we learn a great deal about Susan. If you're a Susan fan (I am) you'll love it, if not, you'll hate it. Not as Good as Small Vices (The best Spenser book ever, in my opinion) but a good read.
Rating: 
Summary: Save your money, find a new author
Review: Spenser is back. And it's too bad. Better to remember him as he was. Not as bad as "Chance", but just about as bad as "Thin Air". Parker ran out of new ideas right around "Paper Doll" and though "Walking Shadow" fought bravely, Spenser is dead. Or should be. Does anybody care about Susan's childhood? Does anyone want to hear the line about Hitler liking dogs again? NO. Spesner fans want Spenser and Hawk in motion. They want the glory days of Spenser breaking Hawk out of jail. Susan's ex-husband shows up in this one, and she sends him to Spenser for help. Appearances by series favorites Quirk, Rachel Wallace, Lee Farrell and Tony Marcus don't do enough to assuage the irritation felt by the long'time fan. Don't even think about looking for Frank Belson.
What a waste of paper.
Rating:
Summary: Clever dialogue, good character development, good plot.
Review: Spenser, a Boston private detective, is approached by his girl friend to help her ex-husband with his sexual harrassment lawsuit. The twists and turns of plot leads to murder and mayhem which is sorted out by Spenser and his ad hoc colleague Hawk. Hawk is a gentleman of color who can on occasion lapse into ghettoese. Parker captures the dialogue in ways which are reminiscent of Mark Twain at his best. As an example, Spenser and Hawk visit a bar owned by Tony a gentleman who runs the prostitution operation in Boston. Hawk notes: "'Tall skinny kid with the slick hair? Came in with the other two brothers? Name is Ty-Bop Tatum. He's Tony's shooter.' 'Ty-Bop?' I said. 'What happens when you got thirteen-year-old girls naming babies,' Hawk said." An entertaining and satisfying reading experience.
Rating:
Summary: Spenser's a known quantity -- and therein lies the fun
Review: Spring brings in its train a new Baseball season and a new Spenser novel, so it's appropriate that the aborning baseball season is mentioned in Robert Parker's latest, "Sudden Mischief." Like Baseball, Spenser novels offer colorful and diverting variations within a very predictable form, and are utterly entrancing to those who understand their innate appeal. (Another parallel: The weakest recent entry in the series, "Thin Air," featured a designated hitter for Hawk.) Because the characters are so memorable and sharply-drawn, the plot of a given novel need be little more than an afterthought to appeal to true believers -- and this is certainly true of "Sudden Mischief." Those in search of a densely-plotted mystery should look elsewhere. For those -- like myself -- whose Spring ritual involves snatching up the latest Spenser on the day it's available, reading it in one eager pass, and lending it to a similarly addicted friend, "Sudden Mischief" will be smoothly satisfying. They may even find themselves unconsciously repeating Spenser's lietmotif from the novel: "This thing shows every sign of not working out well for me...."
| 
