Book Review-Older Books 27

Cold Service, by Robert Parker.  Published by Putnam Sons, March 2005, 305 pgs.

Spenser is a Boston private investigator extraordinaire.  He is currently at the hospital bedside of his right hand man-above-men Hawk, who was shot three times in the back protecting a local bookie and his family.  The bookie and his family did not survive, except for his young son.  Hawk has been upgraded from critical to stable status and will soon be able to go home.  Spenser and Hawk plan to investigate who instigated the hit and see about a little reparation.  Hawk still has to convalesce and this is degrading to this very proud man who has only depended on himself in all things.  But get stronger he will, and Spenser will be there for him.

They soon uncover that the hit was arranged by the Ukrainian mob and some of the players involved include the mayor of Marshport, and his own little fiefdom.

Hawk has always been Spenser’s link to the various underground criminal elements in the city, as Spenser has been Hawk’s link to the different policing agencies in Boston.

Spenser utilizes these contacts and Hawk utilizes his to find who was responsible for the hit.  They develop a plan not only to pay them back, but also to make them pay.  There is a little boy out there who needs to be taken care of, and Hawk plans to see to it. It makes little difference how many bodies it may take to make it so.  Susan, Spenser’s lover and friend, is a psychologist, and she cares for and respects Hawk, but parts of this are difficult for her to condone.  But as always she is a source of support.

Robert Parker has written many Spenser novels and this one is a fine example of his unique writing style and his use of very different speech syntaxes of his characters.  The characters are motivating and very individual in their contributions to the story.