Robert B. Parker's Bye Bye Baby
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-01-21 21:21:55
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Ace Atkins
- ISBN：B08XNCFVQP
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
harry heisler
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Robert B。 was the besrBut Ace takes a back seat to no one。 If you didn't know it wasn't Parker， you'd swear it was！ I've read all of the original Spenser books and there is no difference between old and new。 Atkins is Parker incarnate。 Period Robert B。 was the besrBut Ace takes a back seat to no one。 If you didn't know it wasn't Parker， you'd swear it was！ I've read all of the original Spenser books and there is no difference between old and new。 Atkins is Parker incarnate。 Period 。。。more
Oscar Phelps
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Phelps World: I collected Ace's last SPENSER novel on January 18th 2022。 12 years after the death of RBP。 I stretched it out to last through two days in an effort to savour。 It was much better than I had expected。 Lots of flashbacks， historical references， reminiscences， typical RBP repartee and banter， sharp sardonic quips and familiar phrases etc。 The dynamic between SPENSER and HAWK was good and overall it felt like a series bookend。 Good to have Broz and Vinnie， Quirk， Belson & the latest Pe Phelps World: I collected Ace's last SPENSER novel on January 18th 2022。 12 years after the death of RBP。 I stretched it out to last through two days in an effort to savour。 It was much better than I had expected。 Lots of flashbacks， historical references， reminiscences， typical RBP repartee and banter， sharp sardonic quips and familiar phrases etc。 The dynamic between SPENSER and HAWK was good and overall it felt like a series bookend。 Good to have Broz and Vinnie， Quirk， Belson & the latest Pearl involved。 Takes in the start & finish of SPENSER。 Perhaps it should be？ Fifty SPENSER novels， like 60 years of James Bond is enough？ As RBP noted to me just prior to his death， to have SPENSER continue after he himself had gotten off the bus， may be unseemly。 He always felt that when he got off， then SPENSER would get off with him。 Ace Atkins has done a very creditable job however， of maintaining the legacy。 This last one is perhaps his best effort and as such very fitting。 DBG - Author of the Oscar Phelps novels 1997-present （January 20th 2022） 。。。more
David White
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The comfort of an old friendSpenser and Hawk together again。 A great story told well。 If you've been reading since the beginning， you'll love this one。 Ripped from today's headlines， The comfort of an old friendSpenser and Hawk together again。 A great story told well。 If you've been reading since the beginning， you'll love this one。 Ripped from today's headlines， 。。。more
Donna
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3。5 stars。In this #49 in the series， Spenser is hired to guard a liberal congresswoman who is receiving death threats。 Her haters seem to be white supremacists。 You know Spenser is going to take exception with this harassment。It's like old home week with this book。 All my favorites are here - Spenser， Susan， Vinnie， Hawk， and Sixkill。 Been a few books since readers have seen Sixkill。 I love Spenser。 I've been with him for most of the 49 books。 His droll wit is unmatched。 How many people still sa 3。5 stars。In this #49 in the series， Spenser is hired to guard a liberal congresswoman who is receiving death threats。 Her haters seem to be white supremacists。 You know Spenser is going to take exception with this harassment。It's like old home week with this book。 All my favorites are here - Spenser， Susan， Vinnie， Hawk， and Sixkill。 Been a few books since readers have seen Sixkill。 I love Spenser。 I've been with him for most of the 49 books。 His droll wit is unmatched。 How many people still say Yikes？ This one wasn't my favorite of the series - little too much politics in it to be totally enjoyable but did I mention that I got to see Hawk and Sixkill？ As I was reading along， I wondered if the congresswoman was modeled after representative AOC。 And readers get set up for a new character in the next edition。 。。。more
Mark Bayhi
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DisappointingToo much extreme left politics， not enough story。 Reads like a recruiting manual for Antifa or BLM。 I don't buy novels to learn the author's political perspective。 DisappointingToo much extreme left politics， not enough story。 Reads like a recruiting manual for Antifa or BLM。 I don't buy novels to learn the author's political perspective。 。。。more
PottWab Regional Library
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A
Annie
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Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader。 Robert B。 Parker's Bye Bye Baby is the 49th Spenser novel， and the 10th （by my count） written by Ace Atkins after Mr。 Parker's death。 Released 18th Jan 2022 by Penguin Random House on their G。P。 Putnam's Sons imprint， it's 320 pages and is available in hardcover， audio， and ebook formats。 I've been in love with this series since book 1 （The Godwulf Manuscript） and I was really sad when the author passed， thinking that I would have to confine mysel Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader。 Robert B。 Parker's Bye Bye Baby is the 49th Spenser novel， and the 10th （by my count） written by Ace Atkins after Mr。 Parker's death。 Released 18th Jan 2022 by Penguin Random House on their G。P。 Putnam's Sons imprint， it's 320 pages and is available in hardcover， audio， and ebook formats。 I've been in love with this series since book 1 （The Godwulf Manuscript） and I was really sad when the author passed， thinking that I would have to confine myself to re-reads to get my Spenser/Hawk fix。 I was nervous about someone else taking over the writing， but have been really impressed and happy with all the newest books in the series。 This has been a pillar series for me， especially in the last couple of years of madness with the pandemic and all of the misery and unhappiness and stress in the world， this series has been a treasured escape。I have been revisiting the original books （by Parker himself） as well as the posthumous books and they keep growing on me。 I love the banter and the way the established characters really live and breathe。 Yes， they're popular fiction， but I'll stand up in any graduate English lecture class and rebut the sneering label "light popular fiction" with the fact that they're really superbly well written。 They go to the same shelf in the internal library in my brain as John D。 MacDonald and Rex Stout - popular fiction， yes， but also satisfyingly rendered and worthwhile。It's a solidly written PI murder mystery with an indelible American flavor。 Boston's local atmosphere and settings are a vital part of the book。 I love Spenser's relationship with Susan （smart， funny， capable， and real） and the interplay between Spenser and his compatriots。 I loved the sarcastic wit and real humor and repartee in the dialogue。 I'm obviously a solid fan of this series， and my opinion wasn't dented one tiny bit by this latest adventure。 Ace Atkins isn't Robert B。 Parker， but he's pretty darned close。 Five stars for fans of the series。 Probably four to five for new readers who enjoy gritty American PI adventures。 For readers unfamiliar with the series， grab them as you can find them。 They all work perfectly well as standalones。Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes。 。。。more
Diane Saul
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This is a good addition to the Spencer series。 Snappy dialogue along with some detective work。 All of the main characters are interesting and besides the action there is a bit of humor thrown in with the interactions between the characters。 I enjoyed reading this book。 Ace has done a good job continuing the series along the same lines as Robert Parker。 Thank you to net galley for an advanced readers copy。
Shoshana
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Ace Atkins is the bomb。 His own series about Quinn Colson， the on and off again sheriff of Tibbehah County， Mississippi is absolutely stellar， and his continuation of Robert B Parker's Spenser series is just wonderful。 Atkins' Spenser lives， breathes and works in Parker's Boston; if the transition hasn't been seamless， it has been damn near perfect。In "Bye Bye Baby" Spenser gets involved in politics。 He is hired to protect a rising， young progressive Congresswoman。 I don't like spoilers， so I wo Ace Atkins is the bomb。 His own series about Quinn Colson， the on and off again sheriff of Tibbehah County， Mississippi is absolutely stellar， and his continuation of Robert B Parker's Spenser series is just wonderful。 Atkins' Spenser lives， breathes and works in Parker's Boston; if the transition hasn't been seamless， it has been damn near perfect。In "Bye Bye Baby" Spenser gets involved in politics。 He is hired to protect a rising， young progressive Congresswoman。 I don't like spoilers， so I won't give any， but there are wisecracks， action， and ruminations galore。 This is vintage Spenser。 and it is very good， indeed。 I understand that this is the last Spenser that Atkins is going to write， which is a great pity， but at least he is going out with a winner。Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC。 。。。more
Jay
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In ROBERT B。 PARKER'S BYE BYE BABY， Spenser finds himself protecting a rising female politician during her campaign whose agenda and very existence is seen as a threat to those who'd rather protect the status quo and have the woman shut up。。。permanently if necessary。Ace Atkins has made the Spenser series his own during a nearly 10 year run on the series and that continues to be the case on his final story。Spenser is not only protecting the congresswoman from threats the FBI says are real but he' In ROBERT B。 PARKER'S BYE BYE BABY， Spenser finds himself protecting a rising female politician during her campaign whose agenda and very existence is seen as a threat to those who'd rather protect the status quo and have the woman shut up。。。permanently if necessary。Ace Atkins has made the Spenser series his own during a nearly 10 year run on the series and that continues to be the case on his final story。Spenser is not only protecting the congresswoman from threats the FBI says are real but he's trying to identify the specific people making the threats and shut them down。 Along with help from Hawk and others， he tracks down white nationalist Bishop Graves。 Graves is the leader of the group and clearly a dangerous fanatic。But the past and present collide when a rival from Spenser's earlier days pops up as a person of interest。 The various moving parts of the story leave Spenser and Hawk dealing with threats from both within the campaign and from the outside forces that are irrationally irate against the candidate。 But when bodies start turning up， the pressure to bring down those threatening the congresswoman ratchets up with the Feds and Boston PD looking to box Spenser out of doing the job he was hired for。I have to say that I was reticent at first when the politician was clearly a fictional stand-in for a real life person but Atkins deftly made it work so that it didn't feel like a run of the mill homage。 The expected banter between Spenser， Hawk， Susan and the recurring cast of characters like Marty Quirk， Frank Belson and others is still sharp and sparkling。Perhaps most importantly is the book's subplot wherein Hawk asks for Spenser's help in tracking someone down。 It has the explosive potential to change many things in Hawk's life and I'm hoping that it isn't a plot point abandoned by the next writer for the series （Mike Lupica， whose written Robert B。 Parker's Sunny Randall series） because I for one would love to see where that goes。A recurring theme in the narrative is that Spenser and Hawk are getting "long in the tooth" for the lives they lead。 But with razor sharp dialogue and a keen sense of when to pump up the adrenaline， Ace Atkins takes ROBERT B。 PARKER'S BYE BYE BABY to a place where readers will always see them as eternal warriors， with a seriously sarcastic wit， protecting Boston， the city they call home。In other words， this was just a great read！ 。。。more
Kathleen Gray
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I've read every one of the Spencer books and must note up front that this is perhaps the most complex and topical of the lot， Spencer has been hired because someone is threatening Congresswoman Carolina Garcia-Ramirez （CGR）， a rising progressive politician with a compelling pitch who is anathema to white supremacists， among others。 There's a break in at her office， bad things happen to her staff and ar her home， and so on， forcing Spencer to wrap in Hawk and bring in Zeb。 Oh， and he's got to dea I've read every one of the Spencer books and must note up front that this is perhaps the most complex and topical of the lot， Spencer has been hired because someone is threatening Congresswoman Carolina Garcia-Ramirez （CGR）， a rising progressive politician with a compelling pitch who is anathema to white supremacists， among others。 There's a break in at her office， bad things happen to her staff and ar her home， and so on， forcing Spencer to wrap in Hawk and bring in Zeb。 Oh， and he's got to deal with his old nemesis FBI SAC Bobby Ngyuen。 And Boston politics。 As always， Spencer has snappy comebacks and fans of detective fiction should keep an eye out for the names he offers to new people he meets。 There are sharp observations about the people that surround CGR （including her boyfriend）。 Susan Silverman and Pearl （the puppy） both figure in。 And Hawk's made a request to Spencer- no spoilers from me。 As always with Spencer novels， the plot zips along and you'll find yourself attached to one or more of the supporting cast （for me， this time it's her body man）。 Thanks to edelweiss for the ARC。 It's a good read。 。。。more
Doreen
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1/7/2022 Wonderfully topical， tho the ending could have been a bit punchier。 Full review tk at CriminalElement。com。 1/7/2022 Wonderfully topical， tho the ending could have been a bit punchier。 Full review tk at CriminalElement。com。 。。。more
Kemper
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I received a free advance copy of this from NetGalley for review。This is a real good news/bad news situation。 The good news is that this is probably the best Spenser book that Ace Atkins has written yet。 The bad news is that it’s the last one he’s doing。 *sigh* Let’s focus on the good news for the moment。Carolina Garcia-Ramirez won a stunning upset in a Congressional race， but while her outspoken support of progressive policies has made her a new hero for the left， the right wingers hate her gut I received a free advance copy of this from NetGalley for review。This is a real good news/bad news situation。 The good news is that this is probably the best Spenser book that Ace Atkins has written yet。 The bad news is that it’s the last one he’s doing。 *sigh* Let’s focus on the good news for the moment。Carolina Garcia-Ramirez won a stunning upset in a Congressional race， but while her outspoken support of progressive policies has made her a new hero for the left， the right wingers hate her guts and aren’t shy about saying so。 When some of the threats seem to be more serious than the typical social media bile， Spenser is hired to provide protection and do some sleuthing to see if someone in CGR’s inner circle might be a mole。 It doesn’t take long before Spenser finds clues indicating that a white supremacy group is plotting against CGR。 As usual， Spenser turns to Hawk for help， but this time Hawk has a favor to ask in return。 He wants Spenser to track down a woman he hasn’t heard from in years。So obviously this one was inspired by a real person and the reactions to her， and that’s a little tricky because Spenser has always been extremely apolitical。 That hasn’t changed with Atkins writing it so while Spenser admires CGR for several reasons， that’s on a human level， not a political one。 Spenser also won’t abide racism so making the bad guys a bunch of white power assholes means that this is still a straightforward good guy vs。 bad guys story with a few ripped-from-the-headlines elements instead of the book feeling like a political manifesto even as Atkins uses the opportunity to highlight how the worst of the worst have felt free to really be themselves these days。All of that made for a compelling plot， but where this one really crackles is with the very Spenser-ness of it all。 The dialogue and banter is quick， clever， and frequently funny。 The action is sharp， especially in a climatic scene。 Some Spenser history comes up。 A lot of delicious sounding food is eaten， and some booze gets drank。 There are still dates with Susan， work-outs with Hawk， and a dog named Pearl。 The Hawk sub-plot of him asking Spenser to find a woman was an interesting wrinkle in all this。 Atkins had cracked the door open a little on Hawk。 Not so much that it gave away too much about a character， who is cool precisely because of the mystery about him， but just enough that it made him feel fresh and even a little more dangerous。 What comes out of that is another piece of a great book。Maybe it’s because I knew that this was the last Spenser that Atkins is doing， but it all seemed extra sharp to me this time。 I hated to finish this one because it meant that something I’ve very much enjoyed for ten years now is coming to an end。 As swan songs go， this is a great one， and hopefully whoever takes over Spenser next can do half as well。 。。。more
Amy Phelps
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Not my favorite but still fun！ Enjoyed seeing Z again。
Sandy
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Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this book， in exchange for a fair and honest review。I enjoyed this very much - the first few Ace Atkins Spenser books were too over the top （WAY too much stupid wisecracking！）， but he has really settled in to these books and has found his own voice here - still with the feel of Robert B。 Parker's works， but not exaggerated。Here， Spenser is protecting a young female Boston politician - AOL in another state and with a different name。 No real ques Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this book， in exchange for a fair and honest review。I enjoyed this very much - the first few Ace Atkins Spenser books were too over the top （WAY too much stupid wisecracking！）， but he has really settled in to these books and has found his own voice here - still with the feel of Robert B。 Parker's works， but not exaggerated。Here， Spenser is protecting a young female Boston politician - AOL in another state and with a different name。 No real question who this is based on， but that's okay。 Atkins uses this as a vehicle for Spenser to take on white supremacy and the current toxic political climate。 Probably no real surprises here， but it's good， compelling， Spenser action - kept me involved and reading， and I definitely enjoyed it！It's a good read for anyone who likes the Spenser novels - well worth reading！ 。。。more
Abibliofob
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Sigh， this is the last Spenser！ At least by Ace Atkins， this great detective once created by the fantastic Robert B。 Parker。 I will miss this annual visit to Boston but it's been a good run and I think Spenser deserves to retire。 Thankfully Sunny Randall is still active。 Atkins has done a great job of keeping this character alive but I prefer his Quinn Colson。 As usual this book is well written and we get to meet some of our favorite friends of Spenser。 I must thank@this_is_edelweiss #GPPutamsSo Sigh， this is the last Spenser！ At least by Ace Atkins， this great detective once created by the fantastic Robert B。 Parker。 I will miss this annual visit to Boston but it's been a good run and I think Spenser deserves to retire。 Thankfully Sunny Randall is still active。 Atkins has done a great job of keeping this character alive but I prefer his Quinn Colson。 As usual this book is well written and we get to meet some of our favorite friends of Spenser。 I must thank@this_is_edelweiss #GPPutamsSons and @penguinrandomhouse for giving me this advance copy and of course a big thanks to @aceatkins for writing these books。 Highly recommended。 。。。more
Crimefictioncritic
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Robert B。 Parker became one of my go-to authors almost two decades ago after I read my first Parker book。 I’ve enjoyed reading his Jesse Stone， Sunny Randall， and particularly his Spenser novels。 Then， sadly， Parker died in 2010。 To my delight and that of many of his fans， his heirs and publishers found and commissioned other authors to continue those popular series and Parker’s legacy。I’ve read all thirty-nine of the Spenser books written by Parker， and his fortieth， Silent Night （2011）， unfini Robert B。 Parker became one of my go-to authors almost two decades ago after I read my first Parker book。 I’ve enjoyed reading his Jesse Stone， Sunny Randall， and particularly his Spenser novels。 Then， sadly， Parker died in 2010。 To my delight and that of many of his fans， his heirs and publishers found and commissioned other authors to continue those popular series and Parker’s legacy。I’ve read all thirty-nine of the Spenser books written by Parker， and his fortieth， Silent Night （2011）， unfinished at the time of his death。 His longtime agent， Helen Brann， completed that one。 Yes， a few books felt a little formulaic and tired。 But I can’t recall disliking any of them， and kept buying and reading them。 So it thrilled me when the Robert B。 Parker estate chose award-winning author Ace Atkins （The Ranger， 2011， etc。） to continue the series。 I just wasn’t ready to give up Spenser。Atkins’ first Spenser novel， Lullaby （2012）， was a very readable， well-written book。 But despite the ravings of the New York City reviewers， the transition from Parker to Atkins wasn’t nearly as seamless as they claimed。 Atkins didn’t quite capture the essence of the character in that first novel and Spenser just didn’t seem like Spenser。 But with each new installment， Atkins improved his interpretations of Spenser and the other characters until his Spenser versions became virtually indistinguishable from the originals。 That’s why it disappointed me to read on Atkins’ Twitter feed that Bye Bye Baby， his tenth Spenser novel， is his last， since he feels it’s time to turn his attention to other projects。Kyle Rosen， chief of staff for Congresswoman Carolina Garcia-Ramirez， hires Spenser， the consummate knight errant Boston P。 I。 to provide security and help identify those who represent the most credible threats to the congresswoman’s safety。 Garcia-Ramirez， an outspoken rising star in national politics on the eve of a tight primary， has received many death threats in response to her progressive and liberal agenda centered on race， poverty， health care， and the environment。Reminiscent of Rachel Wallace （Looking for Rachel Wallace， 1980）， when her publisher， John Ticknor， hired Spenser for a similar assignment， the fearless and self-directed Garcia-Ramirez is less than thrilled about Rosen hiring Spenser to protect her。 She resists the idea， but as he did with Wallace， Spenser wins her over。 He and longtime sidekick Hawk provide security for the congresswoman while Spenser does the sleuthing to sniff out and neutralize the credible threats。 Predictably， considering who Spenser is protecting， the baddies turn out to be a white supremacist group called “The Minutemen，” run by a guy named Bishop Graves。The action heats up when the FBI gets involved and the Boston special agent in charge， Bobby Nguyen， tries to force Spenser off the case。 But despite the uncooperative congresswoman and interference from Nguyen， the intrepid Spenser perseveres。 He painstakingly identifies the key players threatening Garcia-Ramirez and puts into motion his own plan to neutralize the threats。Bye Bye Baby is classic Spenser。 With Hawk watching his back， Spenser gets into the usual number of violent confrontations on the way to achieving justice and upholding his personal code of honor。 Love interest Susan Silverman lends support with her psychiatric insight。 Once again， Ace Atkins captures the essence of the Spenser novels， complete with beloved characters like Susan， Hawk， Belson， Quirk， and Pearl， the wonder dog （version 3。0）。 Zebulon Sixkill even makes an appearance。Despite the passing of his creator， I’ve appreciated that Spenser and his world have remained for the past ten years。 As he has done with the previous nine books， Atkins does a great job here providing an imaginative plot while retaining the characters and relationships that keep these novels familiar， comforting， and enjoyable to read。 And we all need something dependable to rely on in this crazy， polarized， and pandemic plagued world。The biggest difference I’ve noticed in the last couple of Spenser books I’ve read is that Adkins has leaped forward in time and Spenser is now in the 21st century where the internet now exists and mobile phones have replaced pay phones and the like。Most of Parker’s books， including those written in the 1990s and 2000s， were set firmly in the seventies and eighties。 That has allowed me to continue choosing to ignore the fact that Spenser， a Korean War veteran， has aged little since he first appeared in 1973。 I prefer to think of him as a sporty 40-year-old。 But moving the Boston P。 I。 into the 21st century and drawing attention to it by referring to current events makes it increasingly difficult to indulge this suspension of belief。 I could be wrong， but maybe Atkins feels he has stretched credibility for the character as far as it will go and that’s part of the reason he is retiring from the series。 This makes me wonder if this is finally the end of Spenser， which makes me aware I’m still not ready to give him up。As in previous installments in the series， the story line and characterizations offer more of the same with few surprises， but Bye Bye Baby is classic Spenser， and an enjoyable read for fans of the series。Penguin Random House publishes Bye Bye Baby by Ace Atkins from January 18， 2022。 I received an advance copy of the book from the publisher via Net Galley used for this review， representing my honest opinions。 。。。more
Kori Potenzone
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This was a REALLY hard book to review as it was a very complex read。 I mean this in the best way possible！ Robert B。 Parker's Bye Bye Baby， is not a book you will fly through but one that you want to sit and absorb。 You will need to pay close attention or you will miss it！ I really enjoyed this novel from start to finish。 I initially asked for the E-ARC， because I absolutely loved the cover （I mean come on！ Its amazing！） but I got just so much more out of it。 Ace Atkins， knows how to tell a stor This was a REALLY hard book to review as it was a very complex read。 I mean this in the best way possible！ Robert B。 Parker's Bye Bye Baby， is not a book you will fly through but one that you want to sit and absorb。 You will need to pay close attention or you will miss it！ I really enjoyed this novel from start to finish。 I initially asked for the E-ARC， because I absolutely loved the cover （I mean come on！ Its amazing！） but I got just so much more out of it。 Ace Atkins， knows how to tell a story and you can tell the research was done。 The character development was on point and the plot was done with precision。 This book does not disappoint！ I highly recommend this book！ 5 stars！ 。。。more
Tana
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ARC - I love the Spenser series。 The returning charachters always make the story so much more fun。
Monnie
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Yes！ Although I've read and enjoyed all the Spenser book written by this author after original author Robert B。 Parker's passing， there always seemed to be something missing。 For one thing， the "voice" of Spenser's pal Hawk never seemed quite right （and too often， he didn't get enough page space for my liking - he's a favorite recurring character）。 Well， I'm delighted to report that both my complaints went down the drain in this entertaining adventure; both Spenser and Hawk sound very much like Yes！ Although I've read and enjoyed all the Spenser book written by this author after original author Robert B。 Parker's passing， there always seemed to be something missing。 For one thing， the "voice" of Spenser's pal Hawk never seemed quite right （and too often， he didn't get enough page space for my liking - he's a favorite recurring character）。 Well， I'm delighted to report that both my complaints went down the drain in this entertaining adventure; both Spenser and Hawk sound very much like they used to， and Hawk appears enough to keep me satisfied （well， almost）。To be sure， the topic is timely as well; asked by her chief of staff to help with protection， Spenser takes on guardian duties of Carolina Garcia-Ramirez， an incumbent congresswoman of color who's in the middle of a reelection campaign。 In the primary， she's trying to hold off one of the "establishment" - meaning an old white man。 Problem is， she's been getting death threats that her chief of staff thinks she isn't taking seriously enough。 Carolina doesn't believe she needs extra protection and Spenser isn't sold on the job， but his longtime squeeze Susan Silverman is a huge fan of the congresswoman so offers some encouragement。 Just in case （and because he can't be everywhere at once， Spenser brings Hawk into the security detail - and later， another familiar character， Zebulon Sixkill， a brute of a guy who got his training courtesy of Spenser and Hawk。 The whole thing turns deadly serious when someone tries to run down Carolina and her boyfriend; Spenser's team， and the FBI （who， needless to say， aren't thrilled that Spenser is on the case） chalk up most of the threats to a group called The Minutemen - white supremacists at their finest led by a Harvard grad turned gun-toting anti-establishment guru。A few other characters from previous books will be familiar to fans as well， including the late Joe Broz， with whom Spenser had a sort of hold hands to keep from fighting relationship。 This time， though， he tangles with the gangster's wayward son， Gerry - whose hand Spenser has no intention of holding。 And in the midst of all this， Hawk asks Spenser for a favor that no doubt will make its way to the next book and beyond。Spenser's usual humorous banter seems even more on target than usual （I hope the line about '50s heartthrob Pat Boone stays in the final version - it's a hoot， so watch for it）。 The most recent incarnation of Spenser and Susan's dog， Pearl， adds a bit of fun to lighten the story's darker side。 All told， this one grabbed and held my attention throughout - so much so that I polished it off in a single day （which， of course， made me sorry the next day that I hadn't tried to make it last）。 Thanks to the publisher， via NetGalley， for giving me the opportunity to read and review a pre-release copy。 。。。more
Natalie
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Spenser gets better with age。 This is a Spencer book， full of the usual characters， but brought up to date by a plot based on a supposed assassination of a progressive， minority political figure based loosely on AOC。 Spenser protects her while going up against a white hate group based in Boston。 As always， the chase is fun。 Spenser and Hawk deal with aging and are aware of limitations。 Of course， Susan remains as beautiful as ever。 There is a perfect setup for the next Spenser/Hawk adventure。 I Spenser gets better with age。 This is a Spencer book， full of the usual characters， but brought up to date by a plot based on a supposed assassination of a progressive， minority political figure based loosely on AOC。 Spenser protects her while going up against a white hate group based in Boston。 As always， the chase is fun。 Spenser and Hawk deal with aging and are aware of limitations。 Of course， Susan remains as beautiful as ever。 There is a perfect setup for the next Spenser/Hawk adventure。 I can’t wait！Thank you Netgalley for this novel。 Without a doubt， Spenser remains one of my favorites。 。。。more
Wade Dizdar
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