Cold Service (2005)

Cold Service revolves around Spenser helping Hawk instead of vice versa, which is usually the case. Written in the swift take no nonsense Parker style, Cold Case is another great read for Parker or detective fiction fans. ( )

It's deja vu all over again! In (Small Vices) (Spenser novel #24), private detective Spenser is shot and is nursed back to health by Hawk, at which point the two seek revenge. In Cold Service (Spenser novel #32), the roles are reversed: Hawk is shot, Spenser nurses him back to health, at which point the two seek revenge. And the mysterious Gray Man appears in both novels.

Nonetheless, I rather enjoyed this novel as a bit of escapism, and seem to have ranked it higher than most of the (embarassingly large) number of his books that I've read. The plot has its convolutions, and the actions scenes are captivating, enough so to make up for the amateur psychologizing by Spenser's ladylove, Susan. So what if their revenge involves murder of perpetrators (the vicious Ukranian mob); this is morality at its most primitive. Parker fans will most likely enjoy this work, and it's a good introduction for newcomers to his ouevre. ( )

They shot Hawk?!? Now Spenser helps Hawk come back to form and the two set out to take down a crooked town. Even the Grey Man returns. My second-favorite Spenser book. ( )

With Parker's perennial trio of Spenser, Hawk and Susan, what's not to love about Cold Service? Parker's inclusion of the Ukrainian syndicate and sinister minor characters makes this book a compelling read. This author manages to blend chivalry, wit and a capacity for violence into a likable lead character. Spenser and Hawk are, once again, friends we'd like to have and men we'd like to love. ( )

While trying to protect a bookie, Hawk is shot and nearly killed by the Ukrainian mob. The mob also kills the bookie and all the members of his family except for his youngest son who was in day care at the time. It will take Hawk quite a while to recover from his injuries, but when he does, he vows to kill each member of the mob, plus the ringleader. He'll have plenty of help from Spenser and some other familiar faces, but before he does, he wants to make sure the bookie's young son is taken care of financially for the rest of his life.

Robert Parker's Spenser books are fun but frustrating at times to read. The fun part comes with the witty dialogue between the characters, especially Spenser and Hawk (and there's a lot of Hawk in this book). The city of Boston itself is a character, and it's easy for Bostonians to imagine Hawk, Spenser and Susan actually walking down the city streets. The books are always exciting, quick reads. The frustrating part is that Spenser and his long time love, Susan Silverman, seem to have the same conversations in every Spenser book as Susan insists on analyzing both Spenser and Hawk. After so many years together, she should know by now that Spenser is who he is and Hawk is, well, Hawk is Hawk.

I have not read "Small Vices" (although it looks like I should) so I was a bit lost as to who The Gray Man was and what part he played in Spenser's past. Also, the book is a chapter too long, Parker should have ended it with the scene at the shopping mall, which would have been a perfect ending, rather than yet another conversation between Spenser and Susan about Spenser and Hawk's actions.

Fans of Robert Parker will enjoy this book, as long as they don't expect anything new. ( )