Rating: 
Summary: This was our first glimpse of how good the series would be
Review: The first two novels in the series are entertaining but this is where we see Parker's potential for the first time. Spenser has become more complex than his predecessors like Spade or Marlowe, as we see here. His moral dilemma is the kind of character crisis i enjoy reading and Parker writes very well. The scene where he lures the bad guys into the woods is unforgettable. Hard to believe I was only a few years old when this book came out. I first read it at 12 or 13 years old.
Rating: 
Summary: Mandatory reading for Spenser fans
Review: This early Spenser is essential if one is to understand the series hero. The value system that makes him different from those he pursues, and often even the cops, is spelled out here in both word and deed. It also helps us understand what draws him to and keeps him with the sometimes-exasperating Susan Silverman.Even if you aren't a big fan of the series and are just looking for a read to get through a winter's day, this is a good choice. The mystery is a good one, with things of real value at stake (pardon the pun). Spenser takes us along every step of the way as he gets to the bottom of it, so the reader never feels cheated by the detective having information that we don't. (I must admit that perhaps the snow made me enjoy this book more than I ordinarily might have. Reading about Spenser watching baseball, eating hotdogs and peanuts and drinking beer in a great old ballpark is enough to make this girl downright misty-eyed as I dream of summers spent in my beloved Wrigley Field.)
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: This is the 3d in the Spenser series. Next to Sandy Kofax, Marty Rabb is the best pitcher Spenser has ever seen. Rabb is with the Red Sox, and someone in the organization hires Spenser to find out if there is any truth in the hint of a whisper that he is throwing games or allowing hits. There are lots of laughs in this story, especially in the first half. Spenser is also quite introspective. He sleeps with Brenda Loring twice, and, while that disturbed me, I liked what he thought when he first kissed her: "There is excitement in a new kiss, but there is a quality of memory and intimacy in kissing someone you've kissed often before. I liked the quality. Maybe continuity is better than change." Brenda is not dating Spenser exclusively, and there is no mention whether Susan is. At one point, Spenser needs to talk about something, and he realizes that Brenda is only for fun times and that he can discuss serious issues with Susan. This story presages the commitment to each other made by Susan and Spenser in _Promised Land_.
Rating:
Summary: Parker knocks one out of the park!
Review: This is the second Spenser book I've read, and it's definitely a home run. Spenser's hired to find out if the Boston Red Sox' leading pitcher is on the take or not, gets involved with a few nice folks and quite a few who aren't as nice. The characters and their interplay with Spenser help make this a superior P. I. story. The pitcher and his wife, the madame of a New York bordello, a flashy pimp, a flamboyant sports announcer and his bubblegum chewing martial arts expert assistant, an on-the-edge mob boss and his hit man, a knowing and not altogether unsympathetic cop, Brenda from the first novel, and Susan from the second each provide good scenes moving the story along. What lifts this novel above the average Spenser novel and the basic tough detective genre is Spenser's personal code, the set of principles that he lives by, and the struggle he faces when the only way to bring about a satisfactory resolution to the situation is to violate one of those principles. This is, on one hand, a fast, enjoyable read and also, on the other hand, a satisfying look at what makes the main character tick. Very highly recommended to casual P. I. readers as well as serious ones.
Rating:
Summary: Parker knocks one out of the park!
Review: This is the second Spenser book I've read, and it's definitely a home run. Spenser's hired to find out if the Boston Red Sox' leading pitcher is on the take or not, gets involved with a few nice folks and quite a few who aren't as nice. The characters and their interplay with Spenser help make this a superior P. I. story. The pitcher and his wife, the madame of a New York bordello, a flashy pimp, a flamboyant sports announcer and his bubblegum chewing martial arts expert assistant, an on-the-edge mob boss and his hit man, a knowing and not altogether unsympathetic cop, Brenda from the first novel, and Susan from the second each provide good scenes moving the story along. What lifts this novel above the average Spenser novel and the basic tough detective genre is Spenser's personal code, the set of principles that he lives by, and the struggle he faces when the only way to bring about a satisfactory resolution to the situation is to violate one of those principles. This is, on one hand, a fast, enjoyable read and also, on the other hand, a satisfying look at what makes the main character tick. Very highly recommended to casual P. I. readers as well as serious ones.
Rating:
Summary: Living with the consequences of your actions
Review: When a friend suggested I should read the Spenser novels because I would appreciate the character and his humor, this was the novel she wanted me to read since she knows I like baseball. Of course, I am going through them in order and this is the third of Robert B. Parker's series. The case here is that Spenser has been hired by the Red Sox to look into the rumors that Marty Rabb, the best lefthander in the game since Koufax, might have gambling connections. As always, there is much more to the story than meets the eye, which is always part of the fun when following Spenser along the trail. What I most like about this book is that Parker has not slipped into a pattern. For Spenser this case is much more of a solo effort than the first two, which is totally appropriate given the peculiarities of the situation and the solution that is forced upon him and the people he has been hired to help. The world of the detective is always an attempt to restore order, even when making things right is impossible. One of the strongest dictates is that there are consequences for your actions, and in "Mortal Stakes" that rule has serious implications for both Spenser and his clients. This book is about couples--Marty and Linda Rabb, Bucky Maynard and Lester Floyd, Frank Doerr and Wally Hogg--and how Spenser deals with them to solve the case. I was somewhat disappointed to see only vague references to Susan Silverman for most of the novel, but her absence is certainly strategic given the story Parker is telling here. In that context, Spenser's relationship with Brenda Loring reinforces through the two women in his life the two sets of choices that confront our hero. The "couple" motif was quite effective. As always, Parker's novels are great reads for those of us committed to the commuter lifestyle. You can polish them off in two days on your trips to and fro work.
Rating:
Summary: Living with the consequences of your actions
Review: When a friend suggested I should read the Spenser novels because I would appreciate the character and his humor, this was the novel she wanted me to read since she knows I like baseball. Of course, I am going through them in order and this is the third of Robert B. Parker's series. The case here is that Spenser has been hired by the Red Sox to look into the rumors that Marty Rabb, the best lefthander in the game since Koufax, might have gambling connections. As always, there is much more to the story than meets the eye, which is always part of the fun when following Spenser along the trail. What I most like about this book is that Parker has not slipped into a pattern. For Spenser this case is much more of a solo effort than the first two, which is totally appropriate given the peculiarities of the situation and the solution that is forced upon him and the people he has been hired to help. The world of the detective is always an attempt to restore order, even when making things right is impossible. One of the strongest dictates is that there are consequences for your actions, and in "Mortal Stakes" that rule has serious implications for both Spenser and his clients. This book is about couples--Marty and Linda Rabb, Bucky Maynard and Lester Floyd, Frank Doerr and Wally Hogg--and how Spenser deals with them to solve the case. I was somewhat disappointed to see only vague references to Susan Silverman for most of the novel, but her absence is certainly strategic given the story Parker is telling here. In that context, Spenser's relationship with Brenda Loring reinforces through the two women in his life the two sets of choices that confront our hero. The "couple" motif was quite effective. As always, Parker's novels are great reads for those of us committed to the commuter lifestyle. You can polish them off in two days on your trips to and fro work.
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