Review of "The Judas Goat," by Robert B. Parker

Review of

The Judas Goat, by Robert B. Parker ISBN 0440141966


Five out of five stars

 This Spenser story has him acting as a bounty hunter. A year ago, a wealthy man named Hugh Dixon was in a London restaurant with his family when a terrorist group bombed it, killing his family and severely maiming him, he is now confined to a wheelchair. Yet, a fire still burns in him and he is determined to get his revenge. He hires Spenser to find them, paying him $2,500 per person, dead or alive. When Spenser says that he is no assassin and will not kill them unless he has to, Dixon agrees.

 The case takes Spenser to London and away from Susan, a fact that gnaws at him. He learns from the British police that the likely suspect was a group called Liberty and no real evidence has ever been gathered. With nothing to go on, Spenser puts an ad in the paper that he hopes will get their attention and force their action.

 The ad has the desired effect and Spenser quickly learns that he needs assistance, so he calls for Hawk. Even though they are outnumbered, Spenser and Hawk are able to take down most of the group, yet their greatest battles are with the leader and his large and extremely powerful assistant named Zachary. The fight is a brutal one, in a rare feature of the Spenser stories they face an adversary that is physically superior to them.

 While there is a lot of fighting, there is also a significant amount of emotional action between Hawk and Spenser and Spenser and Susan. Hawk is inclined to just kill people as a matter of convenience while Spenser fundamentally does not like killing, doing so only when necessary. The story is interesting in both the physical action and interpersonal interaction areas.