Rough Weather (Spenser)
by Robert B. Parker
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Book Summary Information
Author: Robert B. ParkerEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2009-09-01
ISBN: 0425230171
Number of pages: 336
Publisher: Berkley
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780425230176
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of Rough Weather (Spenser)
Book Review: Spenser, come back!
Summary: 2 Stars
First on, let's focus on the positives: for almost four decades the Spenser stories have collectively been, without doubt, one of the greatest detective series ever. He and his allies (most notably his paramour Susan Silverman and his tougher-than-nails sidekick Hawk) have meted out their own special justice in over three dozen mysteries--most but not all in the Boston area.
Throughout this series Spenser's fans could always count upon his quick wit, fast hands, an unshakeable ethical code, and his "See It Through to the End" credo. Whether the cases involved a missing person, a cheating spouse, personal security, or even carrying out vengeance, Spenser's work always carried with it an ethical dilemma from which true justice would have to be extracted, with or without the consent of his employer.
I've been reading these novels ever since my late college years in the early 1970s ("The Godwulf Manuscript"), and I have always been enthused every time a new Spenser paperback hit the shelves. During the interim I felt I always got what I'd paid for: humor, adventure, a clever plot, and a compelling case that moored my guy in a quandary that required an unusual and clever resolution. And I loved Parker's spare writing style, one that always seemed to me to symbolize how Hemingway would have written had he a sense of humor.
That is, until recently. Not usually a naysayer, I've heard the complaints of others and yet I tried to ignore what they were saying: the formula is getting stale; there have been too many trips to the well; no new ground is being broken. But I hung in there...the books were still fun, and I'd rather spend my time inside Spenser's head, even on a bad day, than with most characters on their best.
But with "Rough Weather," I have to admit that I, too, am getting bored. It's not just that for the umpteenth time he's re-treading an old character, doing more or less a sequel. No, it's more than that. It's kind of a...well...a boredom has set in. Like so many other fans, I think Mr. Parker is just earning a paycheck.
As I read "Rough Weather" I once again watched as all the basic elements were wheeled out: the sexy repartee between Our Hero and the perpetually "ready for a roll in the hay" Ms. Silverman; the racially centered badinage between him and Hawk (whose most essential feature lately is to alternate his speaking style between that of a street thug and a college graduate); the inevitable punch out scene where our Hunk knocks out a tough guy; and the women who throw themselves at him but he remains true to Dear Old Sue.
But it goes further than even that: in "Rough Weather," the antagonist doesn't even remain consistent within his own characterization. He's appeared before, and up until now the most interesting thing about him has been his sheer professionalism; he is maddeningly thorough and NEVER makes a mistake. In fact, he's the one foe who has come closest to ending Spenser's reign. But by the end of this novel he's behaving like a sniveling fool.
And yes, everything HAS been done before. We know that Spenser is going to run up against some amalgamate of evil corporate types; sexually frustrated women who spin out of control when he walks by; pseudo intellectuals who appear to know it all but are only a Spenser quip away from a humbling experience; tough brutes who would scare the pants off you and me, but Spenser and Hawk routinely dispatch like they're swatting flies, and the perennially steamy repartee between Spenser and Susan, who falls into a swoon with him about a dozen times a book.
Unfortunately, I think, after all of this time, that P.I. Spenser may finally be facing the one fundamental foe he cannot vanquish, the one enemy he cannot overcome: a languid Robert B. Parker, who has gotten too comfortable himself, and is content with doing what Our Hero never would: phoning it in.
Summary of Rough Weather (Spenser)
Hired as a bodyguard at an exclusive society wedding, Spenser witnesses an unexpected crime: the kidnapping of the young bride, which opens the door for murder, family secrets, and the reappearance of an old nemesis.
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