Breakout (Parker Novels) [Paperback]

Richard Stark (Author)

Book Description

Series: Parker Novels | Publication Date: November 1, 2003

One Way in. No Way Out. Even master criminals make mistakes. Parker's most recent sin has landed him in prison, where it's only a matter of time before the law uncovers his real name-and the extent of his astounding criminal career. To escape, Parker must ignore one of his cardinal rules and take on the only partners he can find. Yet his fellow convicts demand a price: the moment they get free, they want Parker to help them break into a former armory now storing a mother lode of precious gems. For Parker, the plan includes too many people, too many complications, and too many weak links. But with a potential big payoff just ahead, Parker is willing to jump-out of the frying pan, into the fire, and onto a scheme that will soon pit every man against every other. Just the way Parker likes it...

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Richard Stark, who is also Mystery Writers of America Grand Master Donald E. Westlake, lives in upstate New York.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Mysterious Press (November 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446678252
• ISBN-13: 978-0446678254
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.8 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #367,091 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Breakout of that Boredom and Pick Up a Parker Novel, February 24, 2006

By 

James N Simpson (Gold Coast, QLD Australia) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Breakout (Parker Novels) (Paperback)

This is another quick and simple Parker adventure by Donald E Westlake writing under his pen name Richard Stark. Whilst there are certainly better Parker adventures where the reader gets to see Parker's skills in action, in Breakout the reader gets to see just how intelligent this criminal is. If you haven't checked out Westlake's novels under his own name definitely do so as well. His masterpiece The Ax as well as Corkscrew and the Scared Stiff are all great places to start. Short chapters make putting down Breakout when you have to a breeze.

In Breakout Parker is behind bars in the overcrowded Stoneveldt, a transit prison for those awaiting trial and the probable outcome of an even worse actual jail. Although the authorities can't work out who he actually is they do know one of his alter egos killed a prison guard and escaped from a California prison so it won't be long before he's extradited there. This is not a place Parker wants to go so he must escape Stoneveldt, where no one else has ever done so before. Stoneveldt isn't the only place he will have to escape from before leaving town.

If you like Westlake as Richard Stark or himself also check out James Pattinson (Pattinson not Patterson), a British author who writes very similar novels.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A First Class Richard Stark / Parker Outing, November 30, 2002

By 

P. Falina (Belfast, ME USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Breakout (Hardcover)

One of the other customer reviews made the point that the Stark / Parker and Westlake / Dortmunder books are in fact the same books. I think that's a little over simplified, but I have to admit that there's more than a little truth in that suggestion. Toward the end of BREAKOUT, I thought, "Good grief, this is THE HOT ROCK!" That's also over simplified, but you get the idea.

In THE HUNTER, Stark mentioned in passing that Parker was once arrested as a vagrant, and escaped from a work farm by killing a guard. This is the record, as Ronald Kasper, but with Parker's own prints, that dogs him, although it's by no means his last killing, on or off record.

This time out, Parker participates in a pharmaceutical heist that goes wrong. Unlike so many other times, he isn't allowed to disappear into the woods or down a convenient, unwatched alley. He goes, not strictly to jail, but to a "detention center", where suspected felons wait before and during trail. This is essentially the same kind of less-structured environment that Dortmunder wrestles with in THE HOT ROCK.

Parker is visited by a court-appointed lawyer, and manages to get a message to his long-time squeeze, Claire. Presto, a more clued-in attorney shows up, and things begin to roll. Ed Mackey, previously involved in Parker escapades, drops in to show his gratitude for past favors, and assists Parker in identifying fellow prisoners who might be useful in an escape.

They escape, and then Parker becomes involved with outsiders who assisted in the escape, who have a jewelry heist to pull. The heist goes down, and goes bad; Parker survives with his two fellow escapees, but must then break out of the converted armory that the jewels were stored in.

Are you getting the picture? This would be pretty ordinary stuff, but for Mr. Stark's masterful handling, plus a certain sense of humor. Told by one of his fellow cons that prison isn't a natural environment, Parker says, "It isn't an environment ... It's a body cast."

OK, the good lawyer is rather fortuitous (makes you wonder what happened to guys like Amos Klee), but the cops have been steadily getting less dumb, if still sparse. BREAKOUT's Inspector Turley reminds me a lot of the careful, smart cop from THE SEVENTH.

Bottom line: if you enjoy taking a ride with Stark, this one will be a pleasant trip.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Brief but compelling. Great fun., March 2, 2004

By 

Larry Gandle (Tampa, Florida) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Breakout (Parker Novels) (Paperback)

Parker, the antihero thief of Richard Stark (AKA Donald Westlake) is one of my favorite creations. The books are always written with one caper or problem to be solved. This usually includes a set up of a robbery then problems develop. The fun is to see how Parker solves the problems and keeps out of jail.
BREAKOUT is a bit of a departure from this formula in that Parker is arrested and jailed in the first chapter. He must try to figure out a way out of, not only jail, but out of town. He is paired with the usual miscreants in which it is difficult to determine who is trustworthy.
The book is, as usual, relatively brief, yet always compelling. It can be read in one lengthy sitting. Parker is a cold-blooded thief and killer, yet, Stark breathes such life into him that the reader cannot fail to root for his success. A truly fun read.