• Butcher's Moon

  • A Parker Novel, Book 16
  • By: Richard Stark
  • Narrated by: Joe Barrett
  • Length: 10 hrs and 6 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (368 ratings)

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Butcher's Moon

By: Richard Stark
Narrated by: Joe Barrett
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Publisher's summary

The 16th Parker novel, Butcher’s Moon, is more than twice as long most of the master heister’s adventures, and absolutely jammed with the action, violence, and nerve-jangling tension listeners have come to expect. Back in the corrupt town where he lost his money, and nearly his life, in Slayground, Parker assembles a stunning cast of characters from throughout his career for one gigantic, blowout job: starting - and finishing - a gang war. It feels like the Parker novel to end all Parker novels, and for nearly 25 years, that’s what it was.

©1974 Richard Stark; Foreword © 2011 by Lawrence Block (P)2013 AudioGO

What listeners say about Butcher's Moon

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great suspense. Great read.

A lot of killing. I was smiling a lot at the end.

This is one of the best Parker books. It’s better if you read Slayground before this. This continues that story. This is sooo good. Great revenge! Parker takes on a local mob. They are no match for Parker. They are like children next to him.

I was intrigued with a comment in the Forward by Lawrence Block. When Stark was writing the first Parker novel, Block asked Stark if he knew where the story was going. Stark said “Sort of. I’ll just keep writing and see where it goes.” That reminded me of Stephen King. King said something like he never knows his plot or ending in advance. He just starts with an inspiration. I think that’s a great way to write. Stark is doing the same.

The narrator Joe Barrett was pretty good, but I did not like his voice for Parker. It sounded too normal-guy-like. I prefer Keith Szarabajka.

THE SERIES:
This is book 16 in the 24 book series. These stories are about bad guys. They rob. They kill. They’re smart. Most don’t go to jail. Parker is the main bad guy, a brilliant strategist. He partners with different guys for different jobs in each book.

If you are new to the series, I suggest reading the first three and then choose among the rest. A few should be read in order since characters continue in a sequel fashion. Those are listed below (with my star ratings). The rest can be read as stand alones.

The first three books in order:
4 stars. The Hunter (Point Blank movie with Lee Marvin 1967) (Payback movie with Mel Gibson)
3 ½ stars. The Man with the Getaway Face (The Steel Hit)
4 stars. The Outfit.

Read these two in order:
5 stars. Slayground (Bk #14)
5 stars. Butcher’s Moon (Bk #16)

Read these four in order:
4 ½ stars. The Sour Lemon Score (Bk #12)
2 ½ stars. Firebreak (Bk #20)
(not read) Nobody Runs Forever (Bk #22)
2 ½ stars. Dirty Money (Bk #24)

Others that I gave 4 or more stars to:
The Jugger (Bk #6), The Seventh (Bk#7), The Handle (Bk #8), Deadly Edge (Bk#13), Flashfire (Bk#19)

GENRE: noir crime fiction

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5 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
  • RJ
  • 07-29-21

Unrestrained retribution!

We join Parker and the rest of the string running ahead of the cops from a botched jewelry store job. An undetected alarm called the police. Parker was on a bad string of four jobs and he needed cash. He thought of the old armored car job in Tyler where he had hidden the loot in the longboat on the Desert Island in the Marooned building at Fun Island Amusement Park. That was two years ago. Time to see if it was still there. He called Grofield. It was gone. Mob boss Adolf “Al” Lozini was next, but he was heading the same way as Bronson from the past. Lozini said he didn’t have it, never had it. So much for the setup of the story. There’s a takeover in the works in Lozini’s organization, and a Mayorial election coming up in a matter of days with Lozini’s man dragging behind. These circumstances could spell the end for Lozini. But where was, or who had Parker’s money? Then again, it’s a fatal mistake to double-cross Parker or do worse. One of the most intense and violent volumes of the series. Quite out of character for Parker but one man pushed him too far. Back in 1974, this would have been the end of the series but thankfully, 23 years later Parker returned.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Narration...8. Story...9. Parker, 10!

I'm finding that I love the stories that I find by accident more than anything else.
Granted, like I've said before, its definitely dated but what fun it is to still be able to go back in time.
What I'd like to see is how Parker would do in the new millennia? curious is all.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Watch out Parker’s Pissed.

Usually he’s all business but when some jackasses kidnap his friend Grofield Parker unleashes a whirlwind upon the godforsaken city of Tyler.

Watch the sparks fly as Parker goes to work.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

One of, if not the best Parker novels.

Butcher's moon contains a mix of Parker nostalgia, favorite characters, action sequences and humor that ties up the Parker series in a dramatic fashion. Westlake could have ended the Parker saga here, and I would have been ok with it.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

One of the best in the series

I absolutely Love how a bunch of past characters from different books end up together in this one

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

This book is like finding $100 in your suit coat.

Coming across Richard Stark’s Parker series has made me very happy. If you’re looking for a new series of novels, look no further. These books are quick hitters of about 5 hours each. Stark is a master storyteller and Parker is the perfect vehicle for his greatness. There are 24 books. Do yourself a solid and start with the first book. The best part is the books are free with your membership. Enjoy.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Loose Ends come back again

This book is a return for Stark to the Parker character after a years long hiatus, and a triumphant one at that for weaving in several hanging story threads from “Slayground” and other previous books. Stark always finds ways to improve and refine his stories, such as bringing Parker and Alan Grofield together for jobs even if Grofield suffers for them. Either from greed or hubris, Grofield keeps teaming with Parker. Parker, despite being annoyed with Grofield’s cavalier personality, demonstrates a strong sense of loyalty to him in saving his life when the job turns south (except for “Slayground”, although Parker was too occupied to worry about anyone else’s life). These dynamics hit a new high in the book, with Parker having to get creative in helping his partner make it home. Even Handy McKay notices Parker’s determination here. Other favorite tertiary characters return, heroes and villains, and Stark gives each of them their own demeanor and desires to distinguish them. It’s always fun seeing the fellow travelers in Parker and Grofield’s line of work as they drop into the story looking for their own scores so they can chase their own dreams.

Something that has been a running theme in the last few novels preceding this one, is Stark’s story climax. The plot is so tight and engaging, that when the final act starts it’s explosive with Parker or his friends gunning for their lives and money barely factoring in due to the danger. The first dozen books were not wanting for satisfactory resolutions, but it is evident that the later ones improved on that front. Easily one of the top ten best Parker books so far.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Maybe the Best - Certainly the Longest

This Parker book is over 10 hours. That’s more than twice what most of the books are. But it earns it. I highly recommend you read most of the others that are before this one first. Because now I am pretty sure if you like the Parker books, you could still enjoy this one on its own, it’s much better if you know some of the threads which get tied up in this one. This was the last book for many decades, end it works as kind of a temporary final chapter.

Thankfully Westlake did come back to the Parker universe over 20 years later.

So far, this is my favorite of the series. And that’s saying something, because I have liked a few of them quite a bit.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Best Parker ever

After sixteen Parker novels, this is the best one. It has been interesting seeing the Parker character grow and change. Here we see a new dimension of him.

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