Rating: 
Summary: Decent, but,,,,
Review: Confusing. I don't like trying to twist my brain around a complicated bank fraud/murder mystery when reading a Spenser novel. Dialougue is still great.
Rating:
Summary: A bit tired, but still worthwhile
Review: I agree with those that feel that the Spenser series has seen its best days. Maybe Parker realizes that also, and is using the dog Pearl's aging as a plot device hinting that time is catching up with all the characters. Yeah, Spenser must be about 70...Hawk too, and Susan not far behind. Quirk and Belsen must be ready to retire from the police department, and is that a transistor radio Vinnie Morris is always listening to, or a hearing aid? Still this isn't a bad book and spending two or three hours with it is more enjoyable than most of what you'll find on TV. Maybe some of Spenser's readers are tiring also. I saw a couple of reviews written by those who seemed to have lost out on who killed Nathan, and others who didn't see the significance of Susan's client who commits suicide compared to the possibility of Nathan's suicide, or her feeling of failure because of her client's suicide compared to Spenser's failure to protect a character who came to him for protection. All of the above shows that Parker hasn't lost it yet, but I fear he's tiring. This Spenser book does have a surplus of characters, even after a larger than usual number of them get killed. So what am I saying? I'm saying that this is a must for Spenser addicts, but only because it is Spenser. However, it is rather pedestrian and it may be that your strongest emotion in reading the book is regret that Pearl is indeed getting pretty old.
Rating: 
Summary: A return to good form
Review: Mr Parker's Spenser has been taking a second seat next to the Jessie Stone novels lately, and you can tell. Hush Money was fine, but Hugger Mugger and Potshot were awful. I got this one a while ago, but never read it, and decieded it was time due to the new Spenser book, Back Story, coming out. I was pleasantly suprised.
Not only was it finaly reset in Boston, but the novel had many twists and turns. Hawk and Vinnie Morris turn up, Susan and Spenser have to deal with an aging Pearl. The book is a turn towards the great books Mr Parker put out in the early 90s, like Walking Shadow, Chance, or Small Vices.
Highly recomended.
Rating:
Summary: Ahhh, Refreshing
Review: Parker rebounds nicely from the disappointing Potshot, putting Spenser back where he belongs - in Boston, and away from the dirtballs that populated Potshot (well, okay, we do have to put up with a cameo from Vinnie Morris but it's tolerable). The only real let-down is that Rita Fiore has gone to the dark side and become a criminal defense lawyer. Otherwise, we have standard Spenser fare - highly entertaining and able to be read in one sitting.
Rating:
Summary: Not the best in the series, but I enjoyed it anyway...
Review: My copy of this Spenser novel was borrowed, not purchased. Therefore, the fact that it isn't quite as good as most of the others I've read didn't bother me too much. If you read a dozen or so of the many other reviews posted here, you will get a pretty good idea of what's weak in "Widow's Walk." After so many years, those of us who have read most or all in the series can just about predict the dialogue from Spenser, Susan and Hawk. And Robert B. Parker's books are almost all dialogue. He never wastes much time on needless description. That's a trait I happen to like, but others may disagree. It's a quick read, and it did keep my interest enough to make me postpone a little housework to spend time finishing. I like all the characters so much, but I would enjoy another Sunny Randle outing soon, and maybe a book in which Hawk takes center stage at long last. Spenser and Susan have had a great run, but both are truly darn close to retirement age. Had I purchased this in hardcover, I would have felt less than satisfied. Perhaps in the next one, Spenser could sell his private eye biz to a protege and just be teaching him or her the ropes? Pearl the wonder dog seems close to death in this episode. I have loved Mr. Parker's books for 20 years. I don't think he needs to retire totally, as has Dick Francis, but it seems time to let Spenser recede.
Rating: 
Summary: Humor and mystery all in one!
Review: I had not read or listened to any of this author's books before and was delighted to find a good mystery that also included a wonderfully dry sense of humor. I would definitely recommend this book!
Rating: 
Summary: Punchy
Review: Just as he must have staggered to his feet when Ezzard Charles was beating the crap out of him way back in '49, Spenser lumbers back into the ring for a few more rounds after a couple of out-of-state beatings (i.e., "Hugger Mugger", "Potshot"). He's back on his home turf, looking fat and sassy before a hometown crowd. The whole entourage is in his corner, pulling for a knockout. At first, he looks pretty good, dancing about, landing a flurry of jabs, but then his legs go dead, the clinches are more frequent, and soon he's sleepwalking. Yeah, there's some blood. The crowd always loves that. At the end, his punches go loopy; he's huffing and puffing, covering his face. Then you realize that it's all an illusion: once again old man Spenser's only shadow boxing. These ancient fighters, they gotta know when to hang up the gloves.
Rating:
Summary: Life Would Be Easier If We All Talked Like Spenser
Review: Spenser is hired to try to clear the name of young widow accused of killing her old, rich husband. The woman is so stupid that the police think that her playing dumb act might be a little to good. Plus they have witness to a large public argument hours before his death, and a crook offering testimony that he was hired by the widow to do the job, although he says he took the upfront money and skipped out on performing the actually service. What seems like an open and shut case is only saved by Spencer, and this is mostly because of sheer luck on his part. Mostly stumbling in the dark, Spenser knows he's getting close to something once he realizes he's being watched, and people start dying. A lot of them. This is a basic Spencer story, with completely hilarious interactions between our hero and the motley crew of seemingly unrelated people who all end up tied to one crime and two main criminals, but not necessarily the ones you think. And there is plenty time with Hawk, which made for the funniest part of this book. It's not the best novel in the long series, but it is a fun book.
Rating:
Summary: Widow's Walk & Joe Mantegna ROCK
Review: Throw Joe Mantegna into the part of smart mouthed, sassy and surprisingly sensitive Spenser and you've got an entertaining hit. If you don't guffaw in several parts, there's got to be something wrong with your humor bone.
Rating:
Summary: Widows Walk
Review: I am a big fan of Robert B. Parker and have read all of his books. This one was alot better the "Potshot",that one was a bit disappointing. But "Widows Walk" kept me reading, not wanting to put it down. I would like to see another book out about his character "Sunny" .
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