Bad Business is Very Good
By Susan Reeder April 8, 2004 Issue

Fans of Spenser, Susan Silverman and Hawk all rejoice with the issue of a new book featuring this trio by Robert B. Parker. I almost hate to purchase Parker’s Spenser books because the reader zips through them so fast, the time to read compared to the cost doesn’t seem valid. On the other hand, the library always has a waiting list and I’m impatient.

This is the 30th book about the hard-boiled private eye with a sensitive and intelligent soul. Since I came late to the Spenser books and missed the television series altogether, last year I started at the beginning and read all the previous books. Parker has wisely stopped referring to incidents like the Korean War in dating his hero, because an 80-year-old Spenser and Hawk would be unlikely to intimidate by presence alone. And intimidate they often do with sardonic looks and their physicality. Thus, my picture of Spenser is that of a very fit and feisty 50ish guy methodically getting to the bottom of his cases with a little help from some long standing friends like Hawk and several police professionals, who also aren’t aging.

In this outing, Spenser is initially hired to follow Trent Crowley by his wife who suspects an affair. The first day on the job he follows his quarry to an assignation, only to discover the lady he meets has her own gumshoe following her. Ultimately a third private eye is revealed and the story starts rolling along at a rapid pace. As most of the story is propelled by dialog in all Spencer books, chapters are short, but a lot happens. As Spencer tries to sort out who’s following whom and for what purpose, one of the executives at the company where Crowley is CFO is murdered. This puts the company under the Spenser microscope as well.

As the story unfolds, it becomes apparent that many in the company hold a radio talk-show host Darrin O’Mara in high esteem. The host is a proponent of open marriage to the extent of sharing spouses, with a stated goal of making marriages stronger. Spenser all but holds his nose at this philosophy since, as everyone knows, he and Susan are ever faithful, without the legality of marriage binding them.

As Spenser attempts to find the murderer, he delves deeper into the inner working of Crowley’s company and the life of the talk show host. He enlists Hawk and his current flame to go to one of O’Mara’s sex seminar for undercover work.

One of the more interesting hallmarks of Parker’s work is the women are so finely sketched. Uniformly highly and more educated than the men in their lives, they are also witty and beautiful. Clearly Parker has a high opinion of women and an eye for fashion as well. Parker always describes the clothing on all his characters down to the smallest details, even if the characters are jogging—an unusual habit for a male writer.

To tell more of the story would deprive the reader of the sheer joy of discovery. If you’ve never read any of the Spenser books, you can jump right in with this one. They are increasingly timeless and the mysteries at the heart of all the stories are credible. If you go to the library to check out your first Spenser book, get three, the reading goes fast.

Bad Business, 310 pp, G. P. Putnam’s Sons available in book stores and local libraries.

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