Rating: 
Summary: Spenser is great even away from Boston
Review: I have read all the Spenser novels by Robert B. Parker, and I feel this is one of his best efforts. Even though Susan appears only briefly and Hawk is in France, a strong plot and believable characters make this an excellent addition to an excellent series. Someone is shooting horses at the Three Fillies Stables in Lamarr, Georgia. Walter Clive and his daughter Penny hire Spenser to find out who is shooting the horses. They are concerned about their prized 2-year-old, Hugger Mugger who has a chance to become a Triple Crown Horse. Spenser encounters some strange characters who aren't what they appear on the surface. When Walter Clive is murdered, Spenser is fired by Clive's daughter, Penny. Later a new client hires Spenser to find out who killed Walter Clive. There are many twists, and the reader doesn't know the whole story until the last page. A real winner!
Rating: 
Summary: Familiarity breeds contempt
Review: For some readers apparently. While this is far from Spenser at his best, it is still a workable formula. For me, believable dialog is what helps to hold my interest and Parker has it down pat. Compare the character word play in any Spenser book to say Tom Clancy's wooden characters and it is a jarring contrast. It is interesting to read the great variance in the other reviews, new readers loved it [wait until they read the early stuff!] and old time fans disliked it. Hawke went to France, Boo-hoo- he's a support character [a damn good one] but it is realistic to suspect he might just have a life that doesn't include Spenser. I agree that some of the Susan relationship is getting tired, but it is interesting to watch Spenser's fidelity tested from time to time. Overall I have read far, far worse and will keep reading and buying until I am sorely disappointed. A little more action will keep me happy next time out.
Rating: 
Summary: Flat, boring, studid
Review: I hadn't read a Spenser novel since high school, but remember enjoying reading them when the series was on TV. What a disappointment! I felt like I was reading something that had been written in a two week burst of procrastination. I wouldn't recommend this book for anyone who enjoys more than cartoon sketches attempting to pass for characters.
Rating:
Summary: Spenser gets older and more tired, but still is fun
Review: This bizarre Spenser story is really a fish out of water. First, he's not in Boston, he's down in Georgia dealing with a stable in trouble. That's OK - he's been in other towns before without trouble. Second, however, Hawk is off missing for the entire book. Third, Susan is especially annoying. Gays are thrown in to show PC-ness instead of being truly integral like in his other books. You also get the by now completely annoying continual reference to not-living-together-is-perfect-for-us. The worst part, however, was how completely predictable the entire plot was. What a completely unsatisfying ending. We knew from the very beginning what was going on. There's a side-plot tossed in that is supposed to get you thinking along a certain line, but it's really only beating a dead horse. So to speak. As usual, Parker's writing is fantastic. His irony is great. His characters are fascinating. His plots, though, seem to suffer as time goes on. Once again, there are huge plot holes in the story. Items were dropped in that must have seemed like a good idea in search for a context. If you're a Spenser fan, you'll appreciate the writing style and in general the development of the Spenser characters. If you haven't read Spenser before, go back and start with the earlier books, and work your way up to this one. It might make more sense if you do.
Rating: 
Summary: Not a good effort.
Review: There has been a decline in the quality of the Spensernovels for several years, and this is probably the worst effort of all.Since I have never read a non-Spenser book by Robert Parker, I don'tknow if his powers as a writer are deserting him or if he has just lost interest in this character. I suspect the latter, as this novel reads like a middle draft of a book, rather than a final. The ending is abrupt and gives the impression that the author just gave up rather than that he finished the story. Parker at his best was a serviceable writer with a gift for wisecracking dialogue, and in Spenser and Hawk he had two excellent characters, and a series formula which worked very well. The best Spenser is comparable to the best John D. MacDonald, but a long way from the least of Raymond Chandler. Still, a lot of people enjoy the series, and we hope that Mr. Parker will give us a better effort next time. END
Rating:
Summary: Best Spenser book yet (no lie)
Review: I'm not sure what all the other reviewers missed, but in my mind, this book ranks at the top of the Spenser series. Spenser's wisecracking humor is superb. Hired to find a horse killer, Spenser soon finds the crime spreads to include a human victim. Abruptly, he is dismissed from the case, leaving him to wonder why. Hawk stays home during Spenser's southern sojourn, but Susan makes plenty of appearances, analyzing the psychosis of a disfunctional family of rich misfits. Overall, I would say this book reminds me of John D. MacDonald's Travis McGee series, which I love.
Rating: 
Summary: Dick Francis need have no fears....
Review: My disappointment in this Spenser book is probably my fault. Reading the jacket, I thought that hey, Parker is going to see what he can do with Spenser in a Dick Francis type story. I shoulda known better. The race horse element in this book is strictly peripheral to a rather tired and typical Spenser storyline. Even Spenser himself sounds like he's getting tired of the series. When he's let go early in the book, he actually says okay, goes home, takes a ho-hum case and is ready to forget all about the job he was first hired to do, until he's hired by another of those involved. When he goes back, those he wants to question refuse to talk to him, and be darned if he doesn't accept that. Hey, this isn't the Spenser we've known and loved! I'm not going to tell you not to read this book. If you're a Spenser addict like me, you'll read it anyway. However, this book convinced me that it's time for me to investigate his two new series.
Rating:
Summary: Delicious as usual but not very satisfying in the end
Review: I have been a big fan of Parker's Spenser novels for a long time. The plots are predictable--which is perhaps one of the reasons why people like to read these novels. Spenser is witty, likable, and honorable. After all these years and after all the Spenser novels, I never seem to get tired of Spenser. The ending--catching/killing the bad guys, like the predictable plots--usually gives me a great sense of satisfaction. But Hugger Mugger is a bit of a disappointment. The story is interesting, the suspense is there though to a lesser degree than some of his other novels, but the ending leaves much to be desired--there does not seem to be a resolution. One of the perpetrators walks out a free woman (though the police chief hints at carrying out justice at some later point), and the other--I am not sure what the story is--it is implied he is guilty but it is not clear as to exactly which part of the crimes he had actually committed. So for all the anticipation for the past couple of nights, I feel being left out cold. That's life, perhaps, but that's not why I pick up a Spenser novel to read.
Rating:
Summary: A Quick, Entertaining Read
Review: Hugger Mugger, in typical Robert B. Parker style, is a quick and incredibly entertaining read. The dialogue is pithy and peppered with our hero's (Spenser's) wisecracking which kept me chuckling throughout the story. The playful verbal sparring that occurs between Spenser and his "met-his-match" shrink girlfriend belies a deep loving bond that helps make Spenser a more complex character and an admirable man. Placed in sexually compromising situations, his loyalty prevails. The supporting cast in Hugger Mugger is described in just enough detail for the reader to enjoy the roles they play, but not be diverted from the fast-paced dialogue that sweeps one through the book. Hugger Mugger is another opportunity to spend some time with smart-aleck Spenser and have some fun. Go for it!
Rating:
Summary: Spenser, we hardly knew ya ...
Review: RBP's best works (with Spenser of course) take the world as it exists, poke fun at the pretension found there, and provide surprising Spenserian solutions to crimes, situations, etc. that are based on a view of justice that is wise, pragmatic and morally pure. In HM however (and some of Parker's other more recent efforts) the emphasis is on sexual situations, PC, and recycled 'cute' repartee. Spenser himself is more pretentious than real and the reader hopes that his main squeeze (Susan Silverman, a PhD Harvard shrink who is vanity personified) will float down the drain as she sits in the sink putting on her makeup. What's wrong here? The plot is ludicrous, Spenser is sleep-walking, Hawk is in Paris, Tedy (who appears as a Spenser sidekick in at least one other RBP effort) is a PC cardboard character, and Susan is too much with us. There is little action and no suspense, and the conclusion is unsatisfying by almost any measure.
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