Hundred-Dollar Baby

April Kyle, the madam of a high class house of prostitution in Boston enlists the help of PI Spenser to protect her establishment from thugs hired to disrupt the business. Spenser had known April as a young girl and twice gotten her out of bad scrapes in earlier novels-- Ceremony (1982) and Taming a Sea Horse (1986). Though he willingly helps her, Spenser quickly finds out that April's story is not as straightforward as he had been led to believe. As he continues to investigate, he unravels a web of deceit and murder.

I have mixed feelings about this entry in the series of Spenser mysteries. It is certainly a quick read, as the vast majority of the text crackles with the crisp dialog for which Robert B. Parker is noted. On the other hand, there is limited action to accompany the repartee, and the reader will guess who the murderer is long before Spenser does.

So, while it's good to see Spenser on the case, along with his oft-time collaborator Hawk and many of the series regulars, the story is a bit thin. One final note, after I read this book, I listened to the story read by Joe Mantegna on compact disc. I had listened to earlier Spenser novels narrated by this fine actor, and I enjoyed his reading of this one too, being less disappointed by the plot, as I already knew what happened.