Spenser

37 primary works • 51 total works

Thin Air

by Robert B. Parker

Published 9 May 1995

Her name is Lisa St. Claire. Her husband's a cop. Her whereabouts are unknown. Spenser thought he could help a friend find his missing wife. Until he learned the nasty truth about Lisa St. Claire. For starters, it's not her real name...

Chance

by Robert B. Parker

Published 1 April 1996

Mafia princess Shirley Meeker wants her husband back. So does her father the kingpin and a few other shady characters. Spenser and hawk head to Vegas to find Anthony Meeker and to confirm their suspicion that all these people aren't just missing Anthony's smile. And Spenser has to make some sense of some very disorganized crime...

Sudden Mischief

by Robert B. Parker

Published 9 March 1998

Susan Silverman's ex doesn't call himself "Silverman" anymore--he's changed his name to "Sterling." And that's not the only thing that's phony about him. A do-gooding charity fundraiser, he's been accused of sexual harassment by no less than four different women. And not long after Spenser starts investigating, Sterling is wanted for a bigger charge: murder...

Hush Money

by Robert B. Parker

Published 5 March 1999

Robert. B. Parker adds another classic to his legendary Spenser series with Hush Money, a morally complex tale that pits the burly Boston P.I. and his redoubtable cohort, Hawk, against local intellectual heavy-weights. When Robinson Nevins, the son of Hawk's boyhood mentor, is denied tenure at the University, Hawk asks Spenser to investigate. It appears the denial is tied to the suicide of a young gay activist, Prentice Lamont. While intimations of an affair between Lamont and Nevins have long fed the campus rumour mill, no one is willing to talk, and as Spenser digs deeper he is nearly drowned in a multicultural swamp of politics: black, gay, academic, and feminist. At the same time, Spenser's inamorata, Susan, asks him to come to the aid of an old college friend, K.C. Roth, the victim of a stalker. Spenser solves the problem a bit too effectively, and K.C., unwilling to settle for the normal parameters of the professional-client relationship, becomes smitten with him, going so far as to attempt to lure him from Susan. When Spenser, ever chivalrous, kindly rejects her advances, K.C. turns the tables and begins to stalk him. Then the case of Robinson Nevins turns deadly.
It is, Spenser discovers, only the tip of the iceberg in a great conspiracy to keep America white, male and straight. Spenser must call upon his every resource, including friends on both sides of the law, to stay alive.

Hugger Mugger

by Robert B. Parker

Published 4 April 2000

"It's easy to see why Parker's snappy banter and cynical eye have kept fans turning pages for 25 years . . . his wisecracks, combined with Parker's shorthand flair for scathing characterization, make for a satisfying read," said Entertainment Weekly of last year's Hush Money. Now Parker presents Spenser with a deceptively dangerous and multi-layered case: Someone has been killing racehorses at stables across the south, and the Boston P.I. travels to Georgia to protect the two-year-old destined to become the next Secretariat.

When Spenser is approached by Walter Clive, president of Three Fillies Stables, to find out who is threatening his horse Hugger Mugger, he can hardly say no: He's been doing pro bono work for so long his cupboards are just about bare. Disregarding the resentment of the local Georgia law enforcement, Spenser takes the case. Though Clive has hired a separate security firm, he wants someone with Spenser's experience to supervise the operation.

Despite a veneer of civility, Spenser encounters tensions beneath the surface southern gentility. The case takes an even more deadly turn when the attacker claims a human victim, and Spenser must revise his impressions of the whole Three Fillies organization--and watch his own back as well.

With razor-sharp dialogue, eloquently spare prose, and some of the best supporting characters to grace the printed page, Hugger Mugger is grand entertainment.

Widow's Walk

by Robert B. Parker

Published 7 March 2002

When fifty-one-year-old Nathan Smith, a once-confirmed bachelor, is found in his bed with a hole in his head made by a.38-caliber slug, it's hard not to imagine Nathan's young bride as the one with her finger on the trigger. Even her lawyer thinks she's guilty. But given that Mary Smith is entitled to the best defence she can afford - and thanks to Nathan's millions, she can afford plenty - Spenser is hired to investigate Mary's bona fides. Mary's alibi is a bit on the flimsy side: she claims she was watching television in the other room when the murder occurred. But the couple were seen fighting at a high-profile cocktail party earlier that evening, and the prosecution has a witness who says Mary once tried to hire him to kill Nathan. What's more, she's too pretty, to made-up, too blonde, and sleeps around - just the kind of person a jury loves to hate. Spenser's up against a wall; leads go nowhere, no one knows a thing. Then a young woman, recently fired from her position at Smith's bank, turns up dead. Mary's vacant past suddenly starts looking meaner and darker - and Spenser's suddenly got to watch his back.
With lean, crackling dialogue, crisp action, and razor-sharp characters, Widow's Walk is another triumph.

Back Story

by Robert B. Parker

Published 1 March 2003

In 1974, a revolutionary group calling itself The Dread Scott Brigade held up the Old Shawnut Bank in Boston's Audubon Circle. Money was stolen. And a woman named Emily Gordon, a visitor in town cashing traveller's cheques, was shot and killed. No one saw who shot her. Despite security camera photos and a letter from the group claiming responsibility, the perpetrators have remained at large for nearly three decades. Enter Paul Giacomin, the closest thing Spenser has to a son. Twice before, Spenser's come to the young man's assistance, and now Paul is 37, his troubled past behind him. But when Paul's friend Daryl Gordon - daughter of the long-gone Emily - decides she needs closure regarding her mother's death, it's Spenser they turn to. The lack of clues and a missing FBI intelligence report force Spenser to reach out in every direction - to Daryl's estranged, hippie father, to Vinnie Morris and the mob, to the mysterious Ives - testing his resourcefulness and his courage. Taut, tense and expertly crafted, this is Robert B. Parker at his storytelling best.

Bad Business

by Robert B. Parker

Published 8 March 2004

One of the great series in the history of the American detective story gets even better when Spenser is hired by a jilted bride to follow a cheating husband, only to cross paths with a detective hired to tail the two-timing wife. They aren't the most trusting couple in town, but as it turns out, they are the most dangerous.

Cold Service

by Robert B. Parker

Published 1 March 2005

When his closest ally, Hawk, is beaten and left for dead while protecting a bookie, Spenser embarks on an epic journey to rehabilitate his best pal, body and soul. But that means infiltrating a ruthless mob—and redefining his friendship with Hawk in the name of vengeance...

“Cold Service moves with the speed of light.”—Orlando Sentinel

School Days

by Robert B. Parker

Published 1 September 2005

A horrifying school shooting draws Boston PI Spenser into a harrowing investigation in this thriller by New York Times bestselling author Robert B. Parker.

When a Massachusetts boy is accused of mass murder, his socially prominent grandmother is convinced of his innocence and is willing to fight for him. But based on the boy's resigned attitude and the evidence stacked against him, Spenser isn't convinced of anything--except that there's trouble ahead...

Hundred-Dollar Baby

by Robert B. Parker

Published 1 October 2006

A client from a decades-old case reaches out to Boston PI Spenser-but can he rescue troubled April Kyle once more? Longtime Spenser fans will remember that once upon a time, though not so long ago, there was a girl named April Kyle-a beautiful teenage runaway who turned to prostitution to escape her terrible family life. The book was 1982's "Ceremony," and, thanks to Spenser, April escaped Boston's "Combat Zone" for the relative safety of a high-class New York City bordello. April resurfaced in "Taming a Sea-Horse," again in dire need of Spenser's rescue-this time from the clutches of a controlling lover. But April Kyle's return in "Hundred-Dollar Baby" is nothing short of shocking. When a mature, beautiful, and composed April strides into Spenser's office, the Boston PI barely hesitates before recognizing his once and future client. Now a well-established madam herself, April oversees an upscale call-girl operation in Boston's Back Bay. Still looking for Spenser's approval, it takes her a moment before she can ask him, again, for his assistance. Her business is a success; what's more, it's an all-female enterprise. Now that some men are trying to take it away from her, she needs Spenser. April claims to be in the dark about who it is that's trying to shake her down, but with a bit of legwork and a bit more muscle, Spenser and Hawk find ties to organized crime and local kingpin Tony Marcus, as well as a scheme to franchise the operation across the country. As Spenser again plays the gallant knight, it becomes clear that April's not as innocent as she seems. In fact, she may be her own worst enemy.

Now and Then

by Robert B. Parker

Published 1 September 2007

Investigating a case of infidelity sounds simple—until it plunges Spenser and his beloved Susan into a politically charged murder plot that’s already left three people dead.

Rough Weather

by Robert B. Parker

Published 1 October 2008

A high society wedding ends unhappily ever after in this mystery starring Boston PI Spenser—“the timeless hero of American detective fiction” (The New York Times Book Review).

Hired as a bodyguard at an exclusive 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.

The Professional

by Robert B. Parker

Published 1 October 2009

Hired to counter a blackmailer who has had affairs with several wealthy women, Boston private eye Spenser finds the case turning violent when the women are systematically murdered, a situation that is complicated by the discovery that not all of the blackmailer's conquests make sense.

Painted Ladies

by Robert B. Parker

Published 1 October 2010

Called upon by The Hammond Museum and renowned art scholar Dr. Ashton Prince, Boston PI Spenser accepts his latest case: to provide protection during a ransom exchange-money for a stolen painting. The case becomes personal when Spenser fails to protect his client and the valuable painting remains stolen.

Spenser fails his assignment to protect the person responsible for handing over ransom money for a stolen painting. He then decides to track down the thieves and retrieve the masterpiece on his own, putting his life in danger. The plot contains violence.

Sixkill

by Robert B. Parker

Published 1 May 2011

A bad-boy movie star named Jumbo pushes the limits of his reputation when he's accused of rape and murder. When the Boston PD calls on Spencer, he meets Jumbo's young bodyguard, Zebulon Sixkill, and the two form an unlikely alliance. It's a high profile case for Spenser, but the Hollywood secrets he uncovers are sordidly unsavory- and not just those of the accused...

Silent Night

by Robert B. Parker and Helen Brann

Published 28 October 2013

It's December in Boston, and Spenser is busy planning the menu for Christmas dinner. He's confronted in his office by a homeless boy named Slide who has found refuge with an organization named Street Business, which gives shelter and seeks job opportunities for the homeless and lost. Slide's mentor, Jackie Alvarez, is being threatened, but it's not a simple case of intimidation; the trail leads to a dangerous drug kingpin, whose hold on the at-risk community Street Business serves threatens not just the boys' safety and security, but their lives as well.

Potshot

by Robert B. Parker

Published 20 March 2001

Boston PI Spenser returns - heading west to the rich man's haven of Potshot, Arizona, a former mining town reborn as a paradise for Los Angeles millionaires looking for a place to escape the pressures of their high-flying lifestyles. Potshot overcame its rough reputation as a rendezvous for old-time mountain men who lived off the land, thanks to a healthy infusion of new blood and even newer money. But when this western idyll is threatened by a local gang - a twenty-first-century posse of desert rats, misfits, drunks and scavengers - the local police seem powerless. Led by a charismatic individual known only as The Preacher, this motley band of thieves selectively exploits the town, nurturing it as a source of wealth while systematically robbing the residents blind. Enter Spenser, called in to put the group out of business and establish a police force who can protect the town. Calling on his own cadre of cohorts, including Vinnie Morris, Bobby Horse, Chollo Bernard J. Fortunato, as well as the redoubtable Hawk, Spenser must find a way to beat the gang at their own dangerous game.

Small Vices

by Robert B. Parker

Published 31 March 1997

The Professional (A Spenser Mystery)

by Robert B. Parker

Published 5 November 2009

Private eye Spenser has never had any difficulty handling women. But when four stunningly beautiful trophy wives hire him to protect them against a blackmailer threatening to expose their infidelities, even he must admit that they look like trouble.

Tracking down Gary Eisenhower, the blackmailer and serial adulterer, isn't too difficult - but almost in spite of himself Spenser finds that he quite likes the guy. Certainly the women, with their loose purse-strings and looser morals, and their loveless marriages to rich, powerful, corrupt men, are hard to feel sorry for.

But a killing soon changes the complexion of the case, and draws Spenser into the world of Boston's moneyed aristocracy: a world of corruption, vice and murder. As the bodies start to pile up, Spenser must decide which of his friends he can trust.

'One of the great series in the history of the American detective story' New York Times