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For fans of the mystery novel, it is always good news when Robert B. Parker publishes a Spenser novel. And this year has seen the release of two new books.
SCHOOL DAYS is the 33rd entry in the series that now stretches back over three decades. And Boston's tough but sensitive PI with no known first name is still cracking wise and quoting poetry, as he stands up for the underdog and seeks out truth and justice for a fee.
Some longtime fans of the series will immediately and unfairly write off SCHOOL DAYS for two big reasons. This is a Spenser book without his faithful yet brutal sidekick, Hawk. And it contains only long-distance cameo appearances by Spenser's longtime love and psychiatrist girlfriend, Susan. But Pearl, their German shorthair pointer, does play a vital role in the case.
Critics will say that a Spenser book without Hawk and Susan would be like "The Honeymooners" with only Jackie Gleason --- still good but somehow incomplete. But this criticism is totally wrong when it comes to SCHOOL DAYS. For one thing, the novel from earlier this year, COLD SERVICE, was a Hawk book, dealing with his being critically wounded by assassins. And that book also had plenty of Susan, as she tried to help Spenser work through issues such as death and vulnerability.
SCHOOL DAYS is nowhere near as heavy or violent. It is a straightforward detective story, which allows Spenser to do what he does best: dig into areas where everybody wishes he would stay out of. The case starts when two affluent teenagers launch a Columbine-like attack on their exclusive private school, killing five students, an assistant dean and a Spanish teacher, while wounding eight others. The wealthy grandmother of one of the students, who is convinced of his innocence, hires Spenser.
However, the case is open and shut. Both boys confessed to the crime. As Spenser begins to dig, he also quickly sees that they probably committed the massacre. But the problem comes in the reaction of virtually everyone he talks to. "Everybody wants this to go away," he says. Afraid for their reputations, the school president and chief of police not so gently order Spenser to stop digging. But even the parents of the boys and the boys themselves seem uninterested in mounting any sort of defense.
A weaker detective would simply walk away and take his fee with him. But as longtime readers of the series know, Spenser is not a man to be bullied away from anything. So even if his client's grandson did it, Spenser decides to start picking at loose ends.
Where did two rich kids with no guns in their homes come up with four automatic weapons? And how did kids with no firearm experience manage to hit 21 out of 37 shots? And the biggest string of all: why did they do it?
Spenser keeps digging, even after he is threatened, shot at and ultimately fired from the case. His quest for the truth takes him from the boredom and alienation of affluent suburban kids to inner city gangbangers to the dark secrets that people in positions of power will do anything to keep hidden.
Robert B. Parker is a master craftsman. SCHOOL DAYS shows once again Parker at the height of his powers. And while this book might not have Hawk, Susan or the big shoot 'em up finale of our heroes taking down yet another criminal syndicate, it ranks as one of Parker's best Spenser books.
Parker handles the explosiveness of the Columbine-type story with sensitivity and insight; he does not go for the cheap, 60-second sound bite explanations that might be given by the pundits on the 24-hour news channels. SCHOOL DAYS takes a twist that the reader does not see coming --- but when it comes, it makes perfect if shocking sense.
Like all of Parker's books, it is almost underwritten, a monument to simplicity. Concise hard-hitting dialogue that reads the way people talk. Exact descriptions that never get in the way of the story. And short, almost cinematic chapters that propel the reader along and effortlessly build suspense. With each book, Parker gives writers lessons on how to write the mystery.
But the ultimate success of SCHOOL DAYS comes from the fact that it is a different, more complex and ultimately much darker Spenser novel. For sometimes, even for the greatest detective in fictional Boston, it is too late to bring complete justice and the truth will not set anybody free. All you can settle for then, as Spenser says, is "an easier room in hell." And that is a terrifying thought.
--- Reviewed by Tom Callahan
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