Customer Reviews

Mortal Stakes

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is the second Spenser book I've read, and it's definitely a home run.

Spenser's hired to find out if the Boston Red Sox' leading pitcher is on the take or not, gets involved with a few nice folks and quite a few who aren't as nice. The characters and their interplay with Spenser help make this a superior P. I. story. The pitcher and his wife, the madame of a New York bordello, a flashy pimp, a flamboyant sports announcer and his bubblegum chewing martial arts expert assistant, an on-the-edge mob boss and his hit man, a knowing and not altogether unsympathetic cop, Brenda from the first novel, and Susan from the second each provide good scenes moving the story along.

What lifts this novel above the average Spenser novel and the basic tough detective genre is Spenser's personal code, the set of principles that he lives by, and the struggle he faces when the only way to bring about a satisfactory resolution to the situation is to violate one of those principles.

This is, on one hand, a fast, enjoyable read and also, on the other hand, a satisfying look at what makes the main character tick.

Very highly recommended to casual P. I. readers as well as serious ones.

This is the 3d in the Spenser series.

Next to Sandy Kofax, Marty Rabb is the best pitcher Spenser has ever seen. Rabb is with the Red Sox, and someone in the organization hires Spenser to find out if there is any truth in the hint of a whisper that he is throwing games or allowing hits.

There are lots of laughs in this story, especially in the first half. Spenser is also quite introspective. He sleeps with Brenda Loring twice, and, while that disturbed me, I liked what he thought when he first kissed her: "There is excitement in a new kiss, but there is a quality of memory and intimacy in kissing someone you've kissed often before. I liked the quality. Maybe continuity is better than change."

Brenda is not dating Spenser exclusively, and there is no mention whether Susan is. At one point, Spenser needs to talk about something, and he realizes that Brenda is only for fun times and that he can discuss serious issues with Susan. This story presages the commitment to each other made by Susan and Spenser in _Promised Land_.

Against the backdrop of baseball Spenser finds himself undercover and investigating the Sox's top pitcher. This is third in the Spenser series and features Spenser without much of the normal cast of characters that surround him in later books--nonetheless--it is classic Spenser with all the usual wit. Susan and Spenser do seem to connect on a higher level late in the book. He is able to confide in her. In the aftermath of the case Susan pegs Spenser's moral makeup right on. My favorite instance of this is later in the book when Susan says, "Two moral imperatives in your system are never to allow innocents to be victimized and never kill people except involuntarily." The plot in this is as exciting as ever. If you like this, I'd recommend trying one of Troy Soos baseball mystery series as well.

Mortal Stakes, the third in the Spenser series, is wonderful on many levels. It is more than just about baseball and blackmail and a lone wolf PI taking on underworld thugs. It is also about relationships: between couples, between business partners, between a sports idol and his fans and also his teammates. Parker handles all of these relationships well, with the plot twisting down to a somewhat surprising end: the hero is not who you think! Excellent read - I highly recommend.

This early Spenser is essential if one is to understand the series hero. The value system that makes him different from those he pursues, and often even the cops, is spelled out here in both word and deed. It also helps us understand what draws him to and keeps him with the sometimes-exasperating Susan Silverman.

Even if you aren't a big fan of the series and are just looking for a read to get through a winter's day, this is a good choice. The mystery is a good one, with things of real value at stake (pardon the pun). Spenser takes us along every step of the way as he gets to the bottom of it, so the reader never feels cheated by the detective having information that we don't. (I must admit that perhaps the snow made me enjoy this book more than I ordinarily might have. Reading about Spenser watching baseball, eating hotdogs and peanuts and drinking beer in a great old ballpark is enough to make this girl downright misty-eyed as I dream of summers spent in my beloved Wrigley Field.)

Of the three early Spenser novels I've read recently, I found I liked this one over God Save The Child and The Godwulf Manuscript. I think mainly because Spenser is realizing just how right Susan is for him and how much she understands him and what he does. The other aspect I enjoyed was that he felt so sick about luring in and killing those two men. It just makes him so human. I like that in my detectives. Sensitivity combined with the ability to kill..

A very exciting read..I recommend it highly.

I am starting to like these books more and more. It is interesting to see what topic he will use in the plot. The first book, the setting was a college campus and a missing manuscript. The second one was a missing 14 year old and this one was about baseball. Spenser is hilarious. A very likeable character. The only thing I don't like about the series so far is the relationships with the women in his life. Too casual. Maybe it was a sign of the times (the 70's) but I feel like he uses the secretary and the school guidance counselor for a little more than sex and a good meal. Even so, Im going to read more. He intrigues me.

It's been a while since I've read this, but it's always been my favorite. Spenser wisecracks, gets tough, and does his usual business. This is probably the set-up to the Parker formula, with Spenser coming up with a plot to rope all the villains together. Except in this novel, Spenser actually feels remorse. It's something that always bothered me about the Spenser series, he can kill without caring, but in this novel (as in CATSKILL EAGLE) Spenser feels the death in the pit of his stomach. A great read. If you haven't read Parker yet, this is the one!

Spenser's third book is his first foray into the "someone's fixing the game" story. He's put on the case by Healey (from "God Save") and is looking into the Red Sox and trying to figure out if someone's fixing the game. He drinks Miller (argh) and while he talks about "Susan Silverman" he's also seeing "Brenda Loring" (always the full name). Susan's given him a birthday and xmas present so it's been a little while since the last book.

Spenser goes out to Illinois and New York on some tracking, but the rest of the story centers around Boston. He confronts a loan shark and his watchdog, asks Lt. Quirk for help. He tries to help out the trapped instead of doing what he was hired to do, which is fun, to watch his moral code develop and strengthen.

Very strangely, though, Spenser sets up two people to be killed. Remember, Spenser is the guy who a few years later later won't shoot a truly bad guy who is a mortal threat to him - just because the guy is unarmed and on the floor. For him to be deliberately setting up the death of two guys is a little on the edge of his "morality scale". He's like a colt growing into a horse - he's at that slightly awkward stage, but you can see the huge potential just around the corner.

My thoughts - I like the "inside the action" stories, where you learn about something in detail. It's neat hearing about how baseball works at Fenway, and the locations are all right around Boston.

However, it's bizarre that book 2 was so solidly "Susan Silverman" while this one shows Brenda and only mentions Susan in bits until the end. Spenser still drinks heavily as he almost "doubts what he's doing" - he doesn't have the self confidence of later books. He's unsure about confronting the loan shark. He drinks Miller!! He sets up the bad guy so he can kill him. Hmmmmmmm.

MORTAL STAKES is the third Spenser novel, and is one of the best ones. The plot involves Spenser being hired by the Boston Red Sox to determine whether one of their pitchers is throwing games. Spenser's investigation leads him to look deep into the personal history of the pitcher's wife, which reveals quite a few skeletons.

I really enjoy reading Parker's prose. The writing in MORTAL STAKES is lean, funny, and always entertaining. His early Spenser books are the best, because the character is still young, fresh and unsure of himself. In the later books, he becomes a bit too much of a self-satisfied superhero for my tastes. My advice is to read the first ten Spenser novels first -- they are some of the best private eye fiction you will ever read.

In short, MORTAL STAKES is a classic novel by one of the most important American crime writers working today. If you've never read Parker, this novel is certainly worth your time, although you might want to read GOD SAVE THE CHILD first to get a bit more background on who Spenser is.