Walking Shadow (Spenser) (Paperback)

~ (Author) "The last time I'd worked in Port City had been in 1989 when an important software tycoon had hired me to retrieve his wife, who..." (more)
Key Phrases: prick master, low faan, hunk city, Mei Ling, Port City, Craig Sampson (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In fine form here, Parker's sardonic Boston PI Spenser, last seen in Paper Dolls , encounters danger, venality and plenty of comic material in this brisk tale spanning the worlds of experimental theater and illegal immigration. While he'd rather be at work renovating the old farmhouse that he and his lover, psychiatrist Susan, have bought in nearby Concord, Spenser agrees to find out who is following the Artistic Director of the Port City Theater Company, on whose board of directors Susan sits. The detective is utterly bored by a performance of the latest production in Port City, "a town 50% Portuguese and 50% Chinese"--until one of the actors is fatally shot from the audience. The shooter gets away, leaving Spenser with murder to probe as well. After talking to one of the board members, Spenser is warned out of Port City by the woman's husband, an important member of a Boston tong. The threat prompts a call to his old pals Hawk and Vinnie, who, he notes, blend in to the theatrical scene "like two coyotes at a poultry festival." As Spenser discovers that the influx of Chinese illegals into the area is being overlooked by the Port City Chief of Police, an actress in the company reports that she too is being followed. Another murder and a kidnapping occur before the mysteries are resolved and Spenser can get back to his sledgehammer. Although the detective lags in reaching a conclusion readers may have sussed out earlier, the expected pleasures of an adroit Spenser adventure are here in full supply. BOMC selection.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

The latest from the best-selling author of Paper Doll (Putnam, 1993) is a whodunit starring the redoubtable Spenser. According to the publicist, Parker breaks new ground with a truly ambitious plot.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Berkley (June 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425147746
• ISBN-13: 978-0425147740
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #43,911 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #47 in

  Books > Mystery & Thrillers > Authors, A-Z > ( P ) > Parker, Robert B.

• This is item 23 in The Spenser Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One we reread often!, October 3, 2000

By	Lisa Shea "LisaShea.com" - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)

Susan's on the board of the Port City Theater Company, and asks Spenser to help one of it's employees with a stalking problem. Spenser does, but finds no stalker. Then, during a show, one of the actors is shot. While questioning people, Spenser talks to a board member, which upsets her husband, who controls the Chinese gang in the area. So Spenser has no clues and the Chinese "Death Dragons" after him.

To complicate matters (if you believe they aren't already), another woman claims to be stalked, and then is kidnapped. The local police chief is no help, as he's in the "employ" of the Chinese.

Things wrap up in the end, but not after some unexpected plot twists and character development that is really stellar. Usually Spenser is just about fantastic writing and environments. This time Parker also put some solid work into developing the characters you meet, and the cultures involved.

On the downside, I think Parker was on an "annoying women" kick. This woman was TRULY annoying, although to make up for her, the Chinese translator they use is smart, resourceful, and brave.

Port City is very well described - you get a very good sense both of how it feels to wander its streets, and also of its history and people.

An interesting sideline, which provides nice counterpoint to the story, has the pair working on a house in Concord - pruning and ripping out the innards. In addition to Susan and Hawk, Spenser calls on the help of Vinnie - a mob friend (ex-main-man of Joe Broz) with amazingly fast gun draw. He has Farrel, the gay police officer help him out, too.

All in all, one of the greats in the Spenser lineup.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars entertaining and educational, December 2, 2003

By	"truthandjustice" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Walking Shadow (Hardcover)

Whenever I read a Spenser/Hawk book I am picturing Robert Urich, who was unbeatable as that character in the t.v.'s series of Spenser. I miss him, but on to the story. Spenser is asked by Susan, his girl, to help find out who is stalking the director of the Port City Theater's Company, of which Susan is a trustee. He finds no stalker, but while watching the play, one of the cast is shot right in front of the audience and killed. Another woman claims that she is being stalked and yet they find no one stalking her and then he receives a tape of her tied to a chair and being held hostage. There is the Chinese mafia connection, as a large portion of Port City is Chinese and another of the trustees is Chinese with connections to them. Spenser is threatened by the boss and told not to come back or he will be killed and so enters Hawk and Vinnie for back up protection. The educational part is learning a little about the illegal immigration trafficking of the Chinese people. My favorite characters, as always, were Spenser and Hawk. I don't want to tell you too much more except that I did enjoy the book.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Spenser cleans up Port City, October 20, 2001

By	Paul Skinner (Manassas, Virginia United States) - See all my reviews

Port City must be the most dreary place on planet Earth. I've never been there, but I feel like I have. Spenser somehow escaped pneumonia in this twisted thriller, not too mention being the #1 target of the Chinese mafia. This unusual story starts with a Greek theater director, who thinks he's being stalked. Then it takes off with murder, illegal immigration, and some whacky women. Spenser needs more help than Hawk can give him, so he finds a thug named Vinnie and a Chinese grad student to help him navigate through the streets of Port City in this curious adventure. The book reads well, and the plot twists keep you entertained. Robert Parker knows how to write a book that reads fast.