Bad Business

Bad Business is actually one of the more satisfying Spenser novels, despite some tepid reactions. Spenser uncovers a mare’s nest of corporate greed and manipulation, murder, wife swapping and other sexual shenanigans that somehow all tie together. The first question is how, the second is who?

Bad Business is in some ways an homage to the great detective novels and films of the forties, especially at the outset. Spenser is hired to do some divorce work, but as he’s following the suspected philanderer, he uncovers another private eye following his lover. Soon there’s another private eye following a player tied to a company which is a big energy provider, which just so happens to have as it’s main man a guy who has very viable show more political aspirations.

That alone is enough to make Spenser’s head hurt, especially considering all the sexy corporate wives of rather loose loyalties he keeps encountering at every turn — including his client. But when Spenser realizes that the same man who has hired the other two detectives is not the husband of either woman in question he claims that he is, it’d be comical were it not about to become so deadly.

Is it sexual appetites stoked by a proponent of the Courtly Love theory that’s brought the murders about, or are there twisted corporate financial manipulations at the center off this hairball? And if it is both, do they somehow tie in together? Is it love or money at the bottom of this thing, or both? It’s going to take a while for Spenser to unravel the answer in this one.

Hawk is in this one a lot, and Vinnie as well. Quirk, Belson, Healy and sexy Rita Fiore have some moments as well. Susan is her usual self, but the plot this time out, both an homage to the past, and a parody which sets it squarely in the world of modern day corporate America, is interesting enough that she’s easier to take, and not as much of a distraction this time around — though she is in it quite a bit.

In this entry, Spenser even has a rather promiscuous doll living at his place for a while, with Vinnie and Hawk keeping an eye on her for her own safety. Spenser calls in a super CPA guy named Marty to try to unravel the financial end. The money end, what’s going on at Kinergy, is pretty complicated, but interesting; not as complex perhaps as MacDonald’s Travis McGee entry, Pale Gray For Guilt, but in that general ballpark.

There’s a truly satisfying end to this one, which includes a serial killer, which you’ll never see coming. All in all, a fabulous read. A bit different from other entries, being much more focused on plot than usual at this point in the series. It’s overflowing with Parker’s trademark witty dialog and the characters we came to love — at least while Parker was still alive and writing them. Highly recommended. show less

My review was first published at at Blogcritics: http://blogcritics.org/books/article/bad-business-by-robert-b-parker/

Parker's last several Spenser novels feature simple, almost transparent plots, familiar banter between Spenser and his partners, and Spenser jousting, verbally and sometimes literally, with the vanity of the modern world. More and more he has become the paradoxical paladin, a chivalrous knight in a world of ignorance and barbarism.

This story is simple - Spenser is hired by the wife of a corporate finance executive at a large corporation to find evidence of infidelity. His investigation turns into a murder investigation, and unravels a tale of shady accounting and inflated stock prices - a scandal on a par with Enron. show more Within this tale is the tale of a corporate trainer who counsels the gullible executives of the company to explore adultery in order to better understand the nature of true love. This charlatan passes off his blatant rationalization for exploring sexual healing under the rubric of chivalrous medieval poetry - to the ironic amusement of Spenser, the true knight.

Parker has learned to say a lot with very little. His characters are well established and their words are almost predicable, but comforting. His genius lies within his powers of observation, his social sensibilities and his descriptive powers, presented in Spenser's blunt, spare, ironic observations of life.

I agree with another Blogcritic who reviewed "Bad Business" earlier this year. The timeline of the Spenser novels has collapsed. Logically Spenser should be a near geriatric with no business in fistfights and gunfights. And I think I have lost the sense of danger that surrounded Hawk, Vinnie Morris and Quirk. They have become a little familiar, and have lost their ambiguity. But unlike that critic who sees the later Spenser novels as tired, I see these late novels as refined, spare and elegant examples of character-driven mystery fiction. show less

Bad Business is as good as any of the 27 (!) novels by Robt. B. Parker that I have read -- meaning it's not bad, to a reader whose expectations are not unrealistically high. Parker probably had fun with this plot, with the profusion of cheating spouses each of whom has hired private detectives to spy on their own cheating spouses. The Enron- like financial scandal is all- too credible, although it's hard to imagine any smart woman falling for the transparent sex procurement scam being run by one of the evil-doers. In this novel, Parker has made more of an effort than in most of his more recent works, and the effort shows. The dialogue between protagonists Spenser and Hawk particularly sparkles. One phrase that I rather liked: when show more Spenser accompanies girlfriend Susan as she shops for clothes, he admits that in most of the stores, he fits in "like a warthog at a cat show." show less

I happened to be listening to the audiobook of this 2004 Spenser novel at the same time I was reading a 1982 Spenser novel and, well, I became utterly depressed at the clear decline of the series. I guess I shouldn't abuse an author as prolific as Parker over slacking--who wouldn't get lazy?--but this cliched, repetitive, and downright dull entry into the series was a bit of a wake up call. Maybe I should just stop in the 80s.

Bad Business is the 31st (!!) novel by Robert B. Parker featuring Boston private detective Spenser. This one, unlike many of the others, is an actual who-done-it of the Agatha Christie form. It features many of Spenser’s sub-characters, notably Hawk, Vinnie Morris, and Boston homicide detective Healy, all acting in their usual macho-competent roles. Susan Silverman is also present, and not as cloying as she can be.

When a woman hires Spenser to see if he is cheating on her, Spenser discovers that the husband has hired his own p.i. to check up on his wife. It gets more complicated from there.

This one is better crafted and more suspenseful than most Parker novels (which sounds like quite a complement), but it is also pretty repetitive show more in its themes and the tone of its conversations. For Parker fans (and I count myself among them), it delivers what we have come to expect, but maybe is just a little too much like all the others in the series.

(JAB) show less

Spencer is hired to get the goods on a cheating husband, but quickly discovers a round-robin of cheaters connected to a major corporation, most of whom have hired PIs of their own. The whole thing gets nastier -- and deadlier -- as financial hanky-panky and corporate pandering crop up. Hawk does a great turn here as he introduces a new lady friend to the mix.

Parker was always so sparing with words. He learned to say a lot with very little. That was his main thing, as far as I'm concerned. His characters are well established and their words are almost predicable, but comforting and always up to mark.

The timeline of the Spenser novels no longer exists. Logically Spenser should be a very old man with no business in fistfights and gunfights. The sense of danger that surrounded Hawk, Vinnie and Quirk is also no longer there. They have become quite tamed in “old” age, and have lost their double-sided take on life, that was so refreshing in the beginning.

Nevertheless, I still see these late novels as refined and comforting examples of character-driven mystery fiction. Moreover the humour show more throughout the book is a blast… Sometimes I was laughing out loud…I always come back for more, when I’ve read too many books not worth a damn thing! Parker is almost always a safe haven… show less