Flashfire

Parker, Book 19

De: Richard Stark

Narrado por: Mark Peckham

The basis for the movie Parker, starring Jason Stratham and Jennifer Lopez!

Between Parker's 1961 debut and his return in the late 1990s, the world of crime changed considerably. Now fake IDs and credit cards have to be purchased from specialists; increasingly sophisticated policing makes escape and evasion tougher; and, worst of all, money has gone digital - the days of cash-stuffed payroll trucks were long gone.

But cash isn't everything, and now Parker's after a fortune in jewels. In Flashfire, Parker's in West Palm Beach, competing with a crew that has an unhealthy love of explosions. When things go sour, Parker finds himself shot and trapped - and forced to rely on a civilian to survive.

©2000 Richard Stark (P)2012 AudioGO, Ltd.

Tight story; no BS

What’s to dislike; I’ve got nothing else to say other than there’s a 15 word minimum that’s required for this review.

Made me actually laugh out loud with delight

This has all the grit and toughness of any great Parker novel. But for me, who has not yet read all of them yet, although I’ve read a few, it has some added features that I loved.

While there is often humor in Donald Westlake‘s work particularly the Dortmunder novels, and it even peaks out here and there in the Parker novels, for me this one had more, but it fits so well. It was not like Dortmunder humor. It fit the Parker character perfectly. This may become one of my favorites if not my favorite of all of them.

And there’s also an element in this particular novel, that added a lot for me. I won’t say what it is, because maybe it’s a spoiler for some people. It would have been a spoiler for me if I knew about it before hand. It’s really not a plot element, as much as a character element. And I found it delightful. While I’d like to write more about it here, I’m going to save it for something else, because it would be I think a spoiler for some people. But it made the book even better for me, and I like all of the Parker books that I have read so far. I think I’ve read about five or six of them. I have all of them as part of my Audible membership it seems, so I look forward to listening to the rest.

And as far as the listening, the reader is awesome. He does some really interesting subtle things, including coming up with his own “stage directions“, but also uses the subtle ones that are written into the book, that after listening, seem obvious as a good use of the writing to decide what voice to use. The careful listener, and experienced reader, will probably pick up on what I mean. This is definitely a five star book all around, and I will probably read it multiple times. Especially since these Parker novels, aren’t very long. Well worth listening to multiple times, even at different speeds both slower and faster. Highest recommendation

Where’s the money?

Another great story, stronger than the last I want to say. Don’t know how Stark does it.

alter your speed

there was another comment here earlier. speed up the narration to 1.1 or higher. makes it better. and once you get past the first chapter the narrator gets his pacing better

slow narrator. speed him up to 1.1 speed

story is good - it's Parker
Narrator needs work. Too nasal and slow for me.