Mortal Stakes (Spenser)

Mortal Stakes, the third in the Spenser series, is wonderful on many levels. It is more than just about baseball and blackmail and a lone wolf PI taking on underworld thugs. It is also about relationships: between couples, between business partners, between a sports idol and his fans and also his teammates. Parker handles all of these relationships well, with the plot twisting down to a somewhat surprising end: the hero is not who you think! Excellent read - I highly recommend.

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.

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.)

Of the three early Spenser novels I've read recently, I found I liked this one over God Save The Child and The Godwulf Manuscript. I think mainly because Spenser is realizing just how right Susan is for him and how much she understands him and what he does. The other aspect I enjoyed was that he felt so sick about luring in and killing those two men. It just makes him so human. I like that in my detectives. Sensitivity combined with the ability to kill..A very exciting read..I recommend it highly.

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_.