Paula L. Woods
Some quietly powerful scenes between Spenser and Hawk show the depth of their long-term friendship, and equally thoughtful exchanges between Spenser and Susan reveal an enduring and enviable love. All this in a package that features writing as lean and seductive as poetry -- plus Hawk dishing up his own brand of retribution -- makes Cold Service one hot mystery.
— The Washington Post
Library Journal
Spenser cares for badly injured buddy Hawk, then goes after the Ukrainian mob that nearly killed him. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
Publishers Weekly
Parker/Spenser fans will remember Small Vices (1997), wherein the Boston PI was shot nearly dead and his sidekick Hawk nursed him back to health. This strong new Spenser novel flips that scenario, with Hawk shot and Spenser helping him first to get better, then to take revenge. Their targets are Boots Podolak and his army of Ukrainian thugs who run the black/Hispanic Boston satellite city of Marshport. Their goal is more complicated than just vengeance, though. When Boots's henchmen shot Hawk, they also killed the man he was protecting-a rival of Boots-as well as the man's wife and two of his three children, and now Hawk wants not only to destroy Boots and his operation but to channel millions of Boots's money toward the surviving child. To get at Boots, Spenser and Hawk tap on several series regulars, most notably black gangster Tony Marcus, who is doing business with Boots, and the Gray Man, the assassin who nearly killed Spenser in Small Vices; meanwhile, Susan, Spenser's psychiatrist girlfriend, dispenses sage advice, but stays mostly in the background. The novel features a complicated plot, numerous tough guys and plenty of tension that builds to an (interestingly) off-page mano- -mano shootout between Hawk and Boots. This isn't Parker's best, nor his best Spenser, and the novel has a slightly rushed quality, but it's sincere, visceral entertainment that will more than satisfy the author's fans. Agent, Helen Brann. (Mar. 3) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
Kirkus Reviews
Eight years after Spenser was shot and left for dead (Small Vices, 1997), it's Hawk's turn to seek revenge on his would-be killers. The Ukrainian mob, branching out from Brooklyn to Beantown, wants to horn in on Luther Gillespie's racket, so the bookie hires Hawk as his bodyguard. Result: Gillespie dead, most of his family ditto, Hawk shot three times in the back. Naturally, this will not stand; as soon as Hawk's back in shape several months later, he's eager to go after the shooters. Identifying five Ukrainian suspects is a snap, but when the DA's office bobbles the case, Hawk and Spenser are left on their own, except for the sympathy of Susan, Spenser's favorite shrink; Cecile, Hawk's favorite thoracic surgeon; and the underhanded but heartfelt support of the Boston Police Department and the FBI. The shooters, it seems, are protected by Boots Podolak, the mayor and unofficial owner of Marshport, whose move into Boston is fully though unhappily supported by Massachusetts East mob kingpin Tony Marcus. Hawk's problem, then, is to eliminate the button men and provide a trust fund for the surviving Gillespie boy without ruffling too many feathers of the mob, the Ukrainians, or their overlords, heroin-smuggling terrorists from Afghanistan (don't ask). If this unusual diplomatic brief sounds fearfully complicated and well outside Hawk and Spenser's usual field of expertise, don't worry. It's nothing that can't be resolved by the condign application of baleful glares, well-chosen handguns, and a concentration of man's-gotta-do wisdom that's high even for this celebrated series (Bad Business, 2004, etc.). Somebody seems to have misplaced a reel between the High Noon build-up and the Fistful ofDollars finale. The testosterone-laced attitudinizing is sharp and often compelling, though no substitute for an honest attempt to surmount difficulties that melt away instead at a touch of Spenser and Hawk's magic hands. Agent: Helen Brann/Helen Brann Agency
AUG/SEP 05 - AudioFile
While Spenser is the hero of many of Parker's novels, the focus of this one is his sidekick and close friend, Hawk. At the opening, Hawk lies badly wounded, the result of an ambush by a gang of Ukranians who run the Boston suburb of Marshport and are aiming to expand their control. While Hawk heals, he and Spenser plot revenge. Joe Mantegna IS Spenser, cultured but violent when necessary. However, he morphs nicely into the African-American Hawk; Spenser's brainy girlfriend, Susan; and Ukranians with unpronounceable names. The plot is heavy on dialogue; the constant "he said/she said" can grate on the ears. There are many good scenes, nonetheless, and Parker fans will not be disappointed. J.B.G. © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine
