SIXKILL

In the late Robert B. Parker’s final Spenser mystery, the intrepid private eye takes a movie star’s troubled ex-bodyguard under his wing—both to provide guidance and to find out if the star he used to work for was responsible for the death of a young groupie. Aside from making Spenser’s quietly threatening police chief buddy into a shrill carnival barker, series veteran Joe Mantegna does his usual excellent job communicating the story’s humor and tension, as well as the characters’ turbulent undercurrents. The bodyguard character, Zebulon Sixkill, is further illuminated by Mantegna during several flashback chapters. While the book contains themes and scenarios fans have seen many times before, SIXKILL provides a strong swan song to the author’s entertaining career. J.P.M. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine [Published: JULY 2011]