Hush Money (Spenser)

This one began with a smoothly captivating, yawning weather "report" brought to the reader through the ambiance of a baseball game singing over radio waves. Spenser was bemoaning the contrast of slower ages passed, when a sports announcer could linger leisurely around springtime baseball news, between sudden screams of stand-up-and-cheer, bat cracking action. But, that day, as Spenser narrated, the radio voice was sliding so fast through a long list of ads, the endless promotions threatened to overrun notice of ongoing fly-balls busting and bursting through air.

A few of the early chapters took off slowly, mesmerizing-ly, with Spenser's sensual briefs of weather reports giving lazy home-runs to the sleepy emergence of spring, as money was extorted subtly in underplots.

Loved the way Parker posed Spenser slipping into such a still mode of respect as to consciously quiet his breathing as Hawk opened an accounting of a childhood experience with one of the suspects who had triggered a brief loss of control in Hawk's steel-studded cool.

The dual cases in HUSH MONEY, one a favor for Hawk, the other a favor for Susan, were a switch from the usual focus on a single client case, which has been the deal in the 7 Spenser novels I've read, with each additional one making me more glad I have around 26 left to read, with Parker still penning posh. The alternation of cases was a tantalizing treat of contrasts, especially as I wondered if a connection might emerge between them, even though the way each was introduced would, in "reality" cause them to have no cross over, no bleeding through, as it were.

Well, except that in the real world serendipity and synchronicity exist. And in fiction there's always the Right Brain at work, which causes authors to slip in amazingly cohesive, subtle themes which they weren't aware of as they were writing, maybe weren't aware of after the book was published and selling for a few decades. Then a sneaky reviewer comes along and sees a shiny silk thread woven through the words, visible only after the activation of some type of predestined ray to The Spectrum of Light, brought into reality by a time-release "code" built into the Laws of Physics during Day Two of Implementation of The Plan of The Genius.

Okay, all right. This is a P.I. novel. It isn't sci fi. But. Physical Reality is. Sci fi. It's the best sci fi in the evolution of life. What I'm v-rooming and v-rooming and v-rooming to say is that two totally disconnected cases which a detective is working simultaneously, whether in fiction or in reality, might have Right Brain, serendipitous connections. And, I, of course, having written a series of sci fi novels, with a couple of stand alone sci fi mss in progress, have a brain which looks around every fictional word for clues to the glue which connects seemingly unrelated happen stances.

So. For a time in my reading of HUSH MONEY I admit to having wondered if a seemingly nice, quiet lady in the gay (was he?) professor's case may have actually been the stalker in the "rescue me" conniving female case.

Most readers expect that, in the world of The Novel (feel very free to read my review of James A. Michener's book of that title) sub plots will religiously cooperate toward a tied-together denouement, ultimately joining with the main plot in an ever twisting vine of cranial convolutions contrived within the mind of the author.

The main theme of this novel, under which all the machinations play, seems to be a dramatization of sexual variations among various levels of human purity and pollution, with these variations brought into a cross-stitching pattern laid over stereotypes and sub-cultural demands, with the saffron thread of hypocrisy overcoming all within a tight weave of labyrinth proportions.

It was amazing how Parker brought out the admirable and the putrid within multiple types of sexual exchanges among multifaceted characters. But, KC Roth took the cake of the conniving female. As Parker described her, she had so many layers of contrivances, if they were all peeled away, nothing would be left. And yet, Spenser found a simple, natural a way to "save" KC from her "rescue me" contrived cries. However, after that didn't last, Spenser had to call in Susan, the "Big Gun," who played a few extraordinarily delightful scenes in this one.

The reader is required to make do with only one cooking scene rearing a fry pan and pasta pot in HUSH MONEY, but what an entry! My menu of it would drool in describing, "Black Bean Linguine, with the beans olive-oil-sauteed with garlic cloves, laced with Sherry, finished with fresh cilantro."

Yep, "Leftovers R Us." Given his perpetual ability to take whatever ingredients are at hand and gourmet the heck out of them, Spenser began joking about his new catering business taking over his not having a single clue to chew.

Spenser again ran through his evolving ethics of "to kill (in cold blood but with `just cause') or not to kill." And he made no bones about Hawk's willingness to kill (without a license, sans cultural sanction) human vermin. As usual, creativity won, and Spenser found ways of less bloodletting to solve injustices and end problems, which sometimes required more than one application of solutions. With two cases to juggle in HUSH MONEY the plots became so convoluted I wasn't sure how/if they interconnected, except to make the point that race, color, creed, and sexual persuasions had nothing to do with a person being a pig, or human with integrity (I don't mean to denigrate the cleaner species).

Layers upon layers of excellent pig interviews exposed their stench so plainly the pages reeked (entertainingly, of course). With that setting established in stinky spades, when a real human being stepped into a session with Spenser the fresh air was so evident my eyes literally widened (and quit watering). I was hugely impressed that Tommy (David) Harmon seemed so absolutely real. I've met only a small number of people like him in my life. Every word of dialogue in that interview refreshingly set David aside and above, but one reply stood out. It was David's reply to Spenser's repeated ease-setting promise that, in his line of business he wouldn't get far if he blabbed heavy secrets divulged in an interview.

Spenser said: "I can avoid mentioning your name."

Harmon replied: "If I said it, I'm responsible for it."

Being responsible for everything one has ever blabbed or written, wow. Given my overboard spontaneity, and foot-in-mouth tendency, I've had some tough chewing eating certain words I've spewed without proper clues. Ohhhh. Myyyyyy.

I'll conclude by quoting my nephew Lonnie, with his adorable 5 years-old voice still speaking clearly in my mind nearly 40 years later. He had been spouting off at the mouth into my tape recorder for several minutes when he stopped suddenly, face glowing, and grinned around the words, "Shut my mouth."

Linda G. Shelnutt

I really love the Spenser series but lately they are coming out a little fast and a little light. Hush Money had the feel of a great Spenser book, snappy liners, Hawk by his side, but it couldn't keep me going. Spenser and Hawk are so tough that their opponents should be just as formidable and often times they are not. Hush Money offered little challenge to Spenser and I feel it is about time he face one. Maybe in the future Spenser and Hawk can come up against some real tough guys. We all know Spenser and Hawk aren't getting any younger lets focus on that and strip them of the "S" they wear on thier chests and maybe we can care a little more about them. Hey even Mike Hammer got beat up a few times.

I had avoided reading Hush Money for many months because I feel that Parker has been coasting for many years. I have been getting tired of the basic plot of the invincible Spenser and his trusty sidekick Hawk bashing their way through mysteries.
Hush Money reminded me of how much I enjoy Parker's writing. His characters are fun to listen to, and his descriptions are very funny -- I laughed out loud many times.
Overall, I'd recommend the paperback version of this book. It's a quick, enjoyable read.

In Sudden Mischief, Parker started to erode his historical credibility. Susan's first husband, who a couple of books before had given her Pearl when he left for London, reappears. Unfortunately, now he hasn't seen Susan in 20 years, and his relationship with the dog has been forgotten. Also, Parker changes his mind on whether Giacomin's dad is still sending him money or not. This trend gets worse in Hush Money. Spenser should be about 65, and the same age as Hawk. However, we find out that Hawk is about 3 years older than a forty year old. This would be fine, if Parker decided to just go the Kinsey Mahone or Hercule Poirot route, which he would have to do soon anyway if he wanted Spenser to keep beating people up. But, the inconsistencies are worse; for example, his car blows up, and soon reappears. In addition, there are many awkward plot twists, and several times when credibility becomes an issue. Overall, this reads like a first draft. Parker fans will still want to read it- but at least avoid the hardback costs.

Robert Parker's Spenser novels are very good. Easy to read and the plots are not too involved. I like the fact that the characters are the same in each novel e.g. Hawk. The story lines are fun to read and it seems that Spenser gets into "jams" but always find a way out.

This is true Parker, or rather, true Spenser. The characters we all love vary little from their true nature - Hawk is Hawk and Susan is Susan. Although readers unfamiliar with the Spenser series may think this is somewhat boring, fans such as I love these books. There is a familiarity and comfort in these characters, and Hush Money presents them at their best (or worse). The plot line, as usual, is secondary to the character byplay. A short, quick read, but well worth the money

A terrifically funny, and fun, fast read, perfect for vacation or the plane. The double plot keeps momentum peaked, and this Spenser novel thankfully lacks the bitterness that crept into the middle of this long and successful series. Parker's crisp, spare style looks deceptively easy but is the mark of a master of the genre. Highly recommended.

Having been a fan of the Spenser series for years, with each book I open, I secretly hope this is the one that will inspire "Spenser: the Motion Picture" It didn't take long to realize that this book, "Hush Money" was certainly not going to be that book. Confusing issues of attempting to solve 2 cases simultaneously, Spenser now becoming the "Captain Kirk" of Dectectives, can't help but have beautiful women fling themselves at him. Hawk has been reduced to a uninteresting cartoon character. When Hawk speaks he sounds like more like a character from Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer than a modern day man of the street. In "Hush Money" Spenser's car is blown to bits, only to mysteriously reappear several chapters later, even Parker himself must have lost interest.

A very entertaining mystery with private investigator Spenser involving the death of a gay college student and university politics. I especially enjoyed Parker's portrayal of multiculturalist professors.

Although I appreciate the fact that we are learning more about the pasts of Hawk & Susan, this effort is not worth buying in hardcover. The plotline with Susan's friend seems unrealistic and contrived. There also are holes in the story that should have been filled. Spenser and Hawk are irritating in their relapse to macho posturing quite evident during the Taming a Sea Horse era. I wish Mr. Parker would return to the quality of Valediction, Ceremony or The Judas Goat. If he is searching for fresh ideas, why not write a novel predominately from Hawk's perspective?

Think about it. In the early Spenser novels we were often told that Spenser as a boxer had once fought Jersey Joe Walcott. Assuming that the fight would have taken place about 1950 Spenser must be at least 70 now. But he's still going strong!

You either love Robert Parker's Spencer and Hawk or you do not. I do. His dialoge is fast, the humor dry, and the lines between good guys and bad guys are clear. I enjoy the wise cracks, the confidence and sometimes bravado of the two. They are confident and sure--and realistic to boot. I look forward to his books and read them as soon as they hit the stand.

In reading the past three or four books, I skipped right over the inter-chapters depicting Spenser with Susan. It makes for quick reading and I miss nothing.
I'm glad to learn more about Hawk. How 'bout more show, though, and less tell?

Hush Money was my first Parker/Spenser novel, but it certainly won't be my last! I loved the witty dialogue, the intricate plot, the characters, and the exposure of political realities behind the ivy covered walls. Burt Reynolds narration was right on target - he's the perfect Spenser read. I will purposely look for more Parker/Reynolds combinations.

In this one, Spenser undergoes a thorough study of his homoerotic relationship with Hawk, while girlfriend Susan tries to resolve her electra complex. Meanwhile, Spenser is worrying about his cholesterol. This is not the Spenser, or Robert Parker, that so many of have to come to love over the years.

Parker's delghtful character descriptions plus Burt Reynolds reading would be a must even without a plot--So far--Hush Money is our favorite. And Burt Reynolds is magnificent with each character he reads.