Saturday, January 26, 2008

"The Seventh" by Richard Stark

Another in the series of Parker novels takes a different twist over previous books. While you still get the background on the heist that Parker pulls off in this case the robbery of the gate proceeds from a football game at a stadium while the game is still in progress. However the interesting twist that Stark (aka Westlake) adds into this novel is that the focus is on a double cross. When Parker returns to find the woman he was holed up with dead, the money gone and the police closing in on him the action really heats up. I'd say that like the other Parker books this is a fast and easy read and while a 155 page novel isn't a short story it in many ways reads as quickly. What I found interesting about "The Seventh" is the interesting series of switches that the reader is setup for as we follow Parker on his hunt to find the killer and recover the money. 

I'll hold back on going into more detail here on the plot and the nature of the story to avoid handing out any spoilers. Suffice it to say if you like the a quick fast moving mystery "The Seventh" should fit the bill quite nicely.

This book also carries the title "The Split" depending upon where your copy of the book was published. 

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