Dirty Money
Grand Central Publishing - Grand Central Publishing
Release date: 2008-04-23
Hardcover
Author: Richard Stark
Fiction, Fiction - Espionage / Thriller, Mystery/Suspense, Fiction / Suspense, Suspense, Bank robberies, Criminals, Parker (Fictitious character)
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Dirty Money
Date undefinedThe third part of a trilogy does not disappoint, but when did a Parker novel ever really disappoint?? A combination of clever and forceful, Dirty Money resolves the leftover issues of the prior two novels, ties it up neatly, and frees us for the next round of Parker efforts. Terrific.
Dirty Money
Date undefined"Dirty Money" is a continuation of "Nobody Runs Forever" with "Ask The Parrot" occurring between them. While it can be read as a stand-alone, there is at least one crucial scene that makes sense only if you know what happened in "Ask The Parrot."
"Dirty Money" refers to the marked or "poisoned money" that Parker and his associates stole in an armored car robbery in "Nobody Runs Forever." As that book concluded, the heat was getting so intense after the robbery that Parker and company were forced to hide the 2.2 million dollars in the loft of a rural abandoned church and escape as best they could. Now, barely a week later, Parker feels compelled to grab his partner, McWhitney, and try to recover the money before the cops find it or his other associate, Nick (who is now a cop killer) gets to it first or uses its location as trade bait with the feds.
Add to this combustible mix Sandra Loscalzo, a bounty hunter, who has partially figured out Parker's dilemma and wants a cut of the dough, and several cops from the previously mentioned novels who are still nosing around. Even Parker's long time squeeze, Claire, is prominently featured in this installment.
The plot simply focuses on Parker's plan to surreptiously get the money out of the church in a community still teeming with cops, get it back home, and arrange for money laundering to trade dirty money for clean money--at a large discount. Along the way, he and his partners have to contend with confrontations with police, negotiations with a past adversary for money laundering, and bad guys out to steal their haul before they can launder it. Of course tension is ratcheted up by accidental run ins with police patrols, a desperate Nick, and a double cross or two.
I rated this book lower than I usually do for a Parker novel for several reasons. I thought the pacing and action was noticeably slower than usual in "Dirty Money." Although there was tension at times, I sensed that Parker was less malevolent, dare I say, more mellow in this installment than I have come to expect. It is a very quick read with Stark's (Donald E. Westlake) usual spare and efficient styling and I recommend it as very good entertainment.
Dirty Money
Date undefinedDetailed yet fast-moving crime tale delivers the goods, satisfyingly and often violently wrapping up the loose ends from the last two "Parker" books, "Nobody Runs Forever" (which ends in a great cliff hanger) and "Ask the Parrot".
The "Parker" novels only reveal characters' traits and personalities through their responses to plot developments (there are no breaks in the plot to show what characters do during a quiet night at home, for instance), and this novel is no exception. Having said that, we do get a few new chords in the song this time out, to keep things interesting. For one thing, we get to see a lot more of Parker's girlfriend (or possibly wife, for all we know) Claire, who actually helps out with the caper in progress. And there's also an entertaining female bounty hunter, Sandra Loscalzo, who's part of the gang this time. Sandra's amusing banter (which even makes the stoic Parker crack a small smile from time to time) adds another layer to the book, but not to the point of softening the hardboiled nature of the proceedings (thankfully).
I did like the fact that Parker is actually allowed an outright laugh line this time out, positioned as the last line in the book, no less. But don't worry; though very funny, it's an edgy, noir-ish bit of humor very much in tone with the dark flavor of this excellent crime series.
Note to fellow Amazon Kindle users: The book reads excellently on the Kindle, which is also offering the previously mentioned "Nobody Runs Forever" and "Ask the Parrot". So you're all set to enjoy the entire three-book epic. And by the time you're finished, maybe a few other "Parker" novels will make their way onto Kindle (right now, "Firebreak" is the only other one available). But, really, you don't need to read these books in order. Even among the closely-related entries (like the ones covered in this review), you can just pick up any "Parker" book and start reading. It's just more fun to experience things as the main character does. If fun is the right word for a series where a happy ending is the crooks evading the cops and getting away with the cash.
