Customer Reviews

Double Deuce

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Parker likes to change up the Spenser series. He gets stuck in a formula just chugging along in Boston, and likes to mix it up every few novels. He writes a basic Spenser novel, and they complain hes just going through the motions. If he writes something different they complain he should stick to what he writes best. Give me a break!
Here's why you should read Double Deuce. The classic stand off. Yes, we get to learn alot more about Hawk, but not too much as to deflate the mystery about the caracter. But the boasting that goes on between Hawk and the Gangs is interesting.
There isnt alot of mystery in this one, some of the Spenser novels arent so much a who-done-it but more of a how-will-you-resolve-it kind of book. I've read this book many times, there are better in the series, but if your reading them in order, don't skip this one!

"Double Deuce" is the Spenser novel where our hero finally plays the supporting role to Hawk. A drive-by shooting in the Double Deuce project has claimed the life of 15-year old Devona Jefferson and her baby. Hawk is hired by the tenants association to find the killer and drive out the gang that considers the place their turf. Spenser signs on, at one-third of the nothing Hawk is being paid, to help out. Since Hawk is in the lead on this one the question of why he is doing this becomes a major subplot. At face value it seems he is doing it for a woman who just might be his Susan Silverman, but of course nothing can be taken at face value in a Spenser novel and expectations are rarely met.

Since this is the 19th novel in Robert B. Parker's series of Spenser novels, it is certainly about time that Hawk had a chance to take the lead. Of course this means that "Double Deuce" has a much different feel to it because whereas our hero takes every opportunity to mouth off to everybody on anything, Hawk's strength is in just looking at people until they fall apart (one of the reasons I think the character worked so well on television is that Avery Brooks had the looks down cold). So while this is the most atypical Spenser novel yet, it does try to be true to the Hawk character, which justifies the stylistic change. I just think that he works better as more of a man of mystery where we never really know why he does what he does. Hopefully Parker will take a second try at having Hawk be the main character in a future novel.

Parker has succeeded in writing crime thrillers that are entertaining and fast reads and yet give you issues to think about. "Double Deuce" is no exception, and this time, the issues are racial relations and gang psychology.

This novel has a more intense than usual opening for Spenser, because we get to sorta know the young girl and her baby daughter just before they're killed, and to have a feeling of the life they were leading.

From there, as other reviews have pointed out, Hawk is the principal character this time, though Spenser does provide him with valuable information just before the climax. And hey, Hawk is involved in a relationship too, as if trying to clear a housing project in the ghetto of a gang isn't enough.

The romantic side plot this time takes up the question as to whether Spenser & Susan should be living together or not.

Especially good here is the portrayal of the attitude of the project residents and the activist preacher helping them towards Spencer. Also good is the portrayal of the grudging mutual respect between Hawk and the gang leader. On top of that, we're given an idea of how Hawk, in his own way, rose above his childhood beginnings.

this book allows the Hawk persona to be explored and developed and gives some insight into the charm(?) mystique that is Hawk

Spenser is an enjoyable character in print and was beguiling on the tv.

VIVA LA PARKER

When 14-year-old Devona Jefferson and her three-month-old baby Crystal are shot down near the projects at 22 Hobart St (thus called Double Deuce), a committee of the residents comprised of women, old men and the reverend Orestes Tillis contact Hawk and ask him to help weed out the gangs who have taken over the neighborhood. Hawk agrees to help and brings in Spenser. Understandably suspicious of Spenser, many of the residents outright state that they do not want him there - the most outspoken being Tillis, who calls Spenser the White Satan and says that he will not support Spenser being there. Hawk says that Spenser is there with him and if anyone has a problem with that, then both he and Spenser will be on their way.

Spenser and Hawk spend a lot of time around the Double Deuce, trying to work out who runs the Hobarts (the local gang) as well as who spiked (shot) Devona and her baby. As they investigate, connections to their old "friend" Tony Marcus pops up - it seems that Marcus has been using the Hobarts to run drugs through the area.

In many ways, this was a very difficult book to read - not to say I did not enjoy it, but it was full of uncomfortable truths about the disenfranchised who surround us every day. It paints a very bleak picture of life in the projects. I would recommend this book to just about anyone - read it and think about it.

Spenser and Hawk are both noble, honorable men of the highest caliber. They are the best of friends, willing to join the other in the deadliest of fights, all the other has to do is ask. In this story, some people in a ghetto neighborhood are desperate to rid their neighborhood of the scourge of gangs and drugs. They turn to Hawk to help them, but are unable to offer him anything in return. Hawk agrees and then asks Spenser to assist him at the same rate of pay.

While we learn a great deal about Spenser's past in the Spenser series of books, Hawk is an enigma. In this book, we learn a little bit about him, but he remains circumspect about his past. All we learn is that he probably grew up in a very dangerous environment and through unusual circumstances managed to survive to adulthood. Hawk uses those skills to probe the neighborhood and deal with the members of a violent youth gang. A teen mother and her new baby have been ruthlessly gunned down and the prime suspect is a gang led by a very tough kid named Major Johnson. They proclaim their innocence, although they are coy about it, as they enjoy the attention from Hawk, someone they respect.

There is a subplot as well. Spenser and Susan agree to live together, so Spenser moves in with Susan. Although they "get along", there is a great deal of underlying tension. Susan eats healthy and Spenser eats hearty. Finally, they agree that they love each other and will stay together, but they dissolve their cohabitation union. Hawk also has a love interest, a beautiful black woman who tries to get inside him but fails. When Hawk shoots past her to wound a man threatening to kill her, she decides that her interest in Hawk is not that strong.

As always, the dialog in this Spenser novel is entertaining and would uplift even the weakest plot, which this one is not. There are strong supporting minor characters, including an ex-nun who works with gang members. She drinks whiskey with Spenser and he even takes note of her in a non-professional way. This is one of the better Spenser novels.

This was the first Spenser novel I ever purchased. Since I've always been a fan of Hawk's from the old "Spenser: For Hire" TV show, I was rather pleased to see that he'd received most of the focus despite the whole Spenser series being told first-person by Spenser. Being from the greater Boston area, I also liked being taken on a virtual tour of the more questionable areas of the city, especially since cities like New York or LA tend to get more focus in detective fiction.

Mr. parker has created another worthwhile read for all of us Spenser fans. Not many writers have the kind of talent to do what Parker does no matter the genre. He is truly improving over time. it is especialy interesting to watch Spenser and Susans relationship develop over time. if you want something to take your mind off everything then pick this one up,but even if you dont it is still well worth the money and time spent.

I love all the Spenser books but this one is my favorite! It'sprobably because Hawk is my favorite character but remains somysterious. "Double Deuce" gives us more inner Hawk than in any other book. I wish someone would tackle an annotation of the Spenser series - I'd buy it!

Double Deuce is primarily named after the low-income housing project at which some of the action in the story takes place. But it also describes the plot structure of the book. Two plots, each involving pairs. On one side, a double homicide. On the other, a contrast of two relationships. Both of these plots are rich in social commentary, clearly the focus of this book.

Content in works of the Spenser genre can be largely partitioned into mystery and suspense. The former is uncertainty over what happened, while the latter is uncertainty over what will happen. Double Deuce, however, is rather lacking in both. As in Playmates, a book which precedes this one by several years, Parker uses the work to take a look at issues of the black community. Double Deuce is the more successful of the two. Parker's views on the subject are certainly worth the reading, even if it isn't a classic of social commentary.