Someone to Watch Over Me
By Ace Atkins (based on Robert B Parker)
Release Date: January 12, 2021
Ebook Available from WV Reads!
2 Stars - A weak entry in the beloved Spenser series. The blurb is pretty much what you get here, Spenser and his protege of sorts Mattie tailing a creep who targets teenage girls. This was mildly entertaining but not quite a thriller as the private investigators banter and navigate this weird case.
I'll be honest, I don't come to this book as a die hard fan of the series like so many. I've read a few Parker novels, all by Parker, because they're short and I like PI novels. They make good filler books. Atkins' work is more familiar to me, but I think I picked the wrong book to try here. Spenser may be technically about 90 years old by this 50th or so entry series. But I respect the way authors can tweak their timelines so it doesn't bother me. He does come off a bit out of sorts here though, along with his good buddy hawk. They're content to mostly let Mattie take the reins. And Mattie's a bit too hard to like, even right off the bat. She's a bit too young and brash to take the lead.
The plot should be the driving force here, a web of mystery for Spenser and his counterparts to untangle. Atkins and Parker have similar gritty styles and he's not new to this fictional world. But by Chapter Ten or so, it's obvious we're not in for a lot action or intrigue. A bad man hires a really dumb teenager for massage. That teen sort of gets taken under the wing of this ragtag bunch, but she's just annoying to me. Now, Atkins I know is a fan of having a big villian lurking in the shadows (even specifically one that prays on young girls). But I've read that before and I wasn't super invested in revealing and taking down that guy who will inevitably be involved in a larger sex trafficking ring than originally suspected. Even as someone not engrossed in the series, this book feels kinda phoned in. Sure, it's a quick and easy read, revisiting many of Parker's beloved characters who Atkins seems able to embrace. So if it's part of your reading routine to hit all these, go for it. Otherwise, I'd say skip it and go for something with a bit juicier mystery.
(NS)
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