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Spenser question

JoeZhang

Vice Admiral
Admiral
I've been reading the Spenser novels and while I enjoyed the first few, the quality seems to be going south, I've got as far as A Catskill Eagle and it's awful, I was hoping Susan got shot in the face.

Do they get any better or shall I pack it in here?
 
I guess it depends on what you like about Spenser in the first place. Since Robert Parker decided to keep Spenser more or less in real time it got increasingly weird for people to fear Spenser and Hawk as they became senior citizens.

Have you tried Robert Crais Elvis Cole series? They are basically the same books moved to LA.
Spenser compared to Cole:
Spenser is a Korean War veteran, Cole Vietnam. Spenser was a boxer, Cole a martial artist. Spenser had ex French Foreign Legionnaire Hawk, Cole has ex Marine and LAPD SWAT officer Cole......
 
I really enjoyed the Spenser novels I read. (I got up to around Playmates or Stardust. I keep intending to pick the series back up again...) I liked the terse but playful dialogue of Spenser and Hawk, and the storylines were usually pretty good, especially when focused on those two characters.

Yes, Susan could be quite annoying, with her "come here, come here; get away, get away" routine, and when she was the damsel to be rescued. That annoyance seemed to recede in most of the later books I read, if I recall correctly.

One thing that drove me crazy when reading the Spenser novels -- they always made me hungry! The detailed descriptions of the various meals, especially those prepared by Spenser himself, sounded delicious!
 
I'm a huge fan of the Spenser series, as well as the Jesse Stone and Sunny Randall series, so I would suggest you keep reading.

I found the later Spenser books to be more entertaining, especially as the character becomes more developed, and the relationships w/ Susan and Hawk mature.

If you find that the Spensers aren't keeping your interest, try the Jesse Stones. There's a slighter darker tone to the character, and he comes across, in my opinion, as a slightly more three-dimensional character than Spenser.

Robert Parker was my go-to author for something fun to read, and was sorry to hear about his passing. He's one of the few authors whose books I can go back and re-read and still be entertained.

Dead Red Shirt #76
 
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