Comeback

Rating:
Summary: A Perfect Example of Pulp-noir Professionalism
Review: "When the angel opened the door," reads the first line of this novel, "Parker stepped first past the threshold into the darkness...." It's a wonderful beginning, plunging us into the fast-paced and dangerous underworld of "mechanics": professional criminals whose honor extends only as far as it's useful.

The set-up is simple: four crooks team up to rob a televangelist whose travelling crusade is playing the stadium of a small midwestern city. With the help of an inside man, the job's a cinch, and it nearly goes off without a hitch, netting these mechanics over $400,000 in small, unmarked bills. But as soon as this criminal team makes its ingenious getaway, the betrayals begin.

Donald E. Westlake, a prolific writer, is best known for his comic caper novels featuring Dortmunder, the ever-beset thief whose plans always go awry. But Comeback is written under an old nom-de-plume, Richard Stark, and its hero is Parker, a gunmetal-cold operator whose pragmatism doesn't flinch from murder.

As the crooks maneuver to see who can get away both alive and flush with loot, the police circle ever closer to nabbing them. And the plot thickens when some hapless punks decide to elbow in on the score while the televangelist's own ex-military "security chief" begins to follow some leads of his own. Throw in a definitely on-edge detective and a libidinous and buxom choir-leader, and you've got one hell of a hard-boiled stew. And just when you think Parker's soup is cooked, the pot is tipped and our hero is spilled into the fire.

But Parker is no shrinking violet. At one point in the novel, as he is surrounded and unarmed, a character even says to him, "By God, you're sure of yourself." Parker's response is non-verbal but refreshingly direct. In an age where the flawed and self-doubting hero has become such a cliche, it's a kick to follow the exploits of a man whose only reservations regard his chances of survival, not his motives.

Westlake (or Stark, if you prefer) has constructed a taut and entertaining piece of pulp that manages to utilize the conventions of crime fiction without becoming wholly conventional. And the setting for the book's climactic confrontation between Parker and his nemesis is, literally, a cliffhanger.

True, it ain't Joyce or Faulkner, but, on its own pulpy terms, Comeback is just as masterful. And we all need a little roughage in our diets.

Rating:
Summary: A Perfect Example of Pulp-noir Professionalism
Review: "When the angel opened the door," reads the first line of this novel, "Parker stepped first past the threshold into the darkness...." It's a wonderful beginning, plunging us into the fast-paced and dangerous underworld of "mechanics": professional criminals whose honor extends only as far as it's useful.

The set-up is simple: four crooks team up to rob a televangelist whose travelling crusade is playing the stadium of a small midwestern city. With the help of an inside man, the job's a cinch, and it nearly goes off without a hitch, netting these mechanics over $400,000 in small, unmarked bills. But as soon as this criminal team makes its ingenious getaway, the betrayals begin.

Donald E. Westlake, a prolific writer, is best known for his comic caper novels featuring Dortmunder, the ever-beset thief whose plans always go awry. But Comeback is written under an old nom-de-plume, Richard Stark, and its hero is Parker, a gunmetal-cold operator whose pragmatism doesn't flinch from murder.

As the crooks maneuver to see who can get away both alive and flush with loot, the police circle ever closer to nabbing them. And the plot thickens when some hapless punks decide to elbow in on the score while the televangelist's own ex-military "security chief" begins to follow some leads of his own. Throw in a definitely on-edge detective and a libidinous and buxom choir-leader, and you've got one hell of a hard-boiled stew. And just when you think Parker's soup is cooked, the pot is tipped and our hero is spilled into the fire.

But Parker is no shrinking violet. At one point in the novel, as he is surrounded and unarmed, a character even says to him, "By God, you're sure of yourself." Parker's response is non-verbal but refreshingly direct. In an age where the flawed and self-doubting hero has become such a cliche, it's a kick to follow the exploits of a man whose only reservations regard his chances of survival, not his motives.

Westlake (or Stark, if you prefer) has constructed a taut and entertaining piece of pulp that manages to utilize the conventions of crime fiction without becoming wholly conventional. And the setting for the book's climactic confrontation between Parker and his nemesis is, literally, a cliffhanger.

True, it ain't Joyce or Faulkner, but, on its own pulpy terms, Comeback is just as masterful. And we all need a little roughage in our diets.

Rating:
Summary: Rob Peter to Pay Parker
Review: After a very long hiatus, arch criminal Parker is back. This time he is involoved in the robbery of a Jim Baker-like tele evangelist's revival. After he steals the money, one of his partners tries to double cross him and steal the money from Parker, but he fails. Now Parker must find and nutralize the traitor, find his other partners who are lost, and avoid the law and the evangelist's head of security. Like all the other Parker books, "Comeback" is fast paced, action packed and contains ingenious capers I myself wouldn't stake my life on. But in Richard Stark's world, the cops aren't that bright, most of the crooks aren't either, and Parker is nearly omnipitant. It is still a lot of fun to read, and for some reason, these robbery thrillers never get old.

Rating:
Summary: Rob Peter to Pay Parker
Review: After a very long hiatus, arch criminal Parker is back. This time he is involoved in the robbery of a Jim Baker-like tele evangelist's revival. After he steals the money, one of his partners tries to double cross him and steal the money from Parker, but he fails. Now Parker must find and nutralize the traitor, find his other partners who are lost, and avoid the law and the evangelist's head of security. Like all the other Parker books, "Comeback" is fast paced, action packed and contains ingenious capers I myself wouldn't stake my life on. But in Richard Stark's world, the cops aren't that bright, most of the crooks aren't either, and Parker is nearly omnipitant. It is still a lot of fun to read, and for some reason, these robbery thrillers never get old.

Rating:
Summary: New to me but now I'm hooked
Review: Although I adore the crime/detective genre I must confess that I'd never even heard of Richard Stark (and hadn't read Westlake either). But now I'm hooked. To my mind the writing - sharp, clear, direct prose that I would die for - in "Comeback" is superb and I coundn't put the book down. The characters were equally as fascinating as some of the best in Elmore Leonard, who is one of my all time favorites favorites. I'll wait until "Backflash" comes out in paperback, but in the meantime I'm ordering some of the older books. Can't wait till they arrive!

Rating:
Summary: Parker: A Bad Guy Who's a Helluva Good Read
Review: Hey Parker, long time no see. Damn good to hear from you again. I know you have no use for this friendly banter so I'll shut up. But really man, hope you stick around plenty.

Rating:
Summary: pretty good
Review: I enjoyed the movie Payback, based on "The Hunter", by Stark, so I went to get it but couldn't, so I picked this one instead. I enjoyed the book, and thought it was well written, but I have a couple complaints; 1. I frequently doubted the effectiveness of the crooks' plans. They hang around the immediate vicinity of the crime for days, eating in restaurants, checking in and out of motels, stealing cars, etc, all on the pretext that this is less likely to lead to capture than simply leaving town would be. 2. The climax,with Parker and Liss playing hide and seek in a dark house, dragged on way too long, and then the very end was way too abrupt, as if the author had to pee, but wanted to finish the book first. I did enjoy the book overall, though.

Rating:
Summary: Classic Parker - Stark/Westlake, But.....
Review: I enjoyed the story, have been reading Westlake since I was a kid and read The Spy in the Ointment. The Parker books by Stark were (are) more edgy and well written, good solid stories. Other reviewers here have done a much better job than I can discussing the merits of the story and the characters, etc.

I found Comeback to be a bit disappointing, however - it was too easy a read. Amazon so helpfully shows the books dimensions (slightly larger than your typical paperback) and it's page count (304), but when it arrived and I opened it, I was dismayed to see that the book had huge margins and very generous line spacing - I had to doubletake and be sure I had not ordered the "large print" version!

Overall, a good story, there just wasn't quite as much of it as I had expected.

Rating:
Summary: glad stark is back
Review: I have raved before about the quality of stories produced by master crime writer Donald Westlake. And now Westlake's alter ego, Richard Stark, is back, which is cause for much celebration. Westlake is great because he writes concisely and sharply, with plenty of surprises in his plots. But best of all, he's funny. Stark is a meaner guy. Characters in Stark's books have a tougher attitude and there is little, if any, humor. But the books work because, by taking away the necessity to keep it light, the reader can better enjoy the grim realities of the story. On the book jacket, crime novelist Ed McBain refers to Westlake and Stark as the "Jekyll and Hyde of crime fiction," adding, "and I can't for the life of me tell you which one I enjoy the most." Well, I can. I'll take Westlake over Stark any day - I could always use a good laugh - but Stark is still fun to read. In his new book, Stark brings back his character of Parker, a skilled criminal, for the first Parker novel in 23 years. As with most books by Westlake, the story seems simple at first: Parker is offered a chance to split the loot for a job with two other criminals. But then the inevitable double crosses occur. You see, these aren't exactly honest people Parker is dealing with. There is a television evangelist making millions by conning people into thinking he's genuine and caring. One of his assistants, Tom Carmody, meets an ex-convict through a social-work program in which the church works with paroled criminals. Carmody is frustrated - he's "got religion," as his boss, the evangelist, complains - and feels the evangelist isn't using his money to help people. Maybe, Carmody suggests, he can help someone steal some of the money and they would then split it, with the criminals getting some money and Carmody using his share to help the homeless or some other good cause. Easy, right? Well, except that nothing is ever simple and easy in these books. One of the guys tries to steal the $400,000 from his partners after they successfully do the job and, when foiled, isn't ready to give up. Soon Parker is left with no money himself, a problem he intends to resolve. And one of his partners is determined to kill him. I'd elaborate but I don't want to give away any more surprises. The book has great characters and very believable dialogue, at times putting novelist Elmore Leonard to shame. I join the rest of the mystery audience in saying, welcome back, Parker.

Rating:
Summary: Thank God He's Back!!!
Review: I just finished COMEBACK by Donald Westlake writing as Richard Stark. It was a heist novel starring "Parker" , the thief from Stark's novels written in the 1970's. It was great to see Parker back in this updated adventure. I hope Westlake writes more of them. In this book, Parker and his crew rip off a TV Preacher during his stadium show. Doublecrosses, violence, and cat-and-mouse games ensue. Westlake never gives the name of the city that 99% of the action takes place, but he seems to be dropping many clues. Its not California, the Midwest, Memphis or Baltimore. Can anyone tell me the setting for this novel? My guess is Philadelphia, although I can't be certain. Anyway, go out and read this book. Make some noise about it, too, so Westlake writes some more. This wasn't the best Parker novel ever, but it was head and shoulders above most of the crime novels written today. Also, if you are intersted in seeing where Quentin Tarantino got many of his ideas, read other Parker novels.