There are three problems with Little White Lies. The first is that Robert Parker's beloved Spenser mystery series was used up well before the author's death. Small Vices in 1997 was the last good one, and Potshot in 2001 should have been the finale. There just wasn't anything more to say about Spenser.

The second problem is that Ace Atkins either doesn't understand Spenser, or is trying to write a new mystery series capitalizing on the Spenser/Parker name. Even in Parker's lesser efforts, in which the characters in the Spenser universe go through their rote shticks like a never ending soap opera, Spenser is Spenser. Atkins' character is not. He doesn't think, talk or act like Spenser.

Third, while I'm not a big fan of Atkins' work under his own name, he writes competent action thrillers with tight plots. For some reason he prefers to have Spenser drift through a boring and incoherent plot that seems to be made up as it goes along. There are some promising action scenes, but all are allowed to fizzle out, and none have any influence on the plot. There is no climax, merely a few hand waves about how things were resolved off screen.

I admit to a prejudice in favor of burying bestselling authors when they die, but some novels-after-death can be pretty good. This is not one of them.

I am so happy Ace Atkins has continued on with Robert B. Parker's Spenser series. This was another fun Spencer read. He is helping a girl recover money that was taken by a con man she'd fallen for. All the wonderful characters are here, Susan, Pearl, and Hawk.

Atkins captures the voice of the post "Catskill Eagle" Parker, when Spenser became a household name thanks for a string of best-sellers and a network TV shows that ran for 3 seasons in the US. Parker's early work is untouchable for its dialogue and pacing. Atkins gets much of that in this newest continuation novel. Unfortunately, he trods the same ground that Parker walked so many times in his books, that is stuck in a bit of a rut. That said if you enjoy Spenser and his cronies, you will enjoy this book. It is a wonderful summer entertainment but just don't expect a whole lot,

Though very much like previous books in the series, this one adds a bit more depth to the ending.

(The official title of this book is apparently Robert B. Parker's Little White Lies, but Parker has been dead for six years. Adding the names of dead authors to titles of books they didn't write is a questionable marketing gimmick and not one that reviewers need to promote.)

Ace Atkins is a seasoned writer with a biting sense of humor. Little White Lies is his sixth Spenser novel, after the forty that Robert B. Parker wrote. Atkins captures Parker’s voice, which I think of as a more sophisticated Mickey Spillane.

A right-wing pundit who passes himself off to cable “news” programs as a former CIA agent has swindled Spenser’s latest client in a land deal. The client happens to be a patient of Spenser’s girlfriend. Spenser’s effort to track down the swindler leads him to an equally unsavory owner of a gun range. The two men seem to be working together to sell shady investments, while one or both of them may be making illegal sales of a different kind.

Spenser’s inability to abide a liar puts him at odds with the con man, and his effort to expose the scam takes up the first half of the novel. By the second half, he’s in Atlanta, dealing with gun nuts and a megachurch preacher, all of whom are engaged in swindles or worse. Of course, Spenser’s buddy Hawk has his back, often playing the straight man for Spenser’s sarcastic remarks as they explore Atlanta’s underbelly. Another buddy, Tedy Sapp, plays a similar role while adding some sexual orientation diversity to the cast of good guys.

Little White Lies is a classic detective story, with a few murders sprinkled among the other crimes that Spenser investigates. Between lunatics who think that Jesus carried an AR-15 and the cynical “preachers” who exploit their fears and prejudices, Spenser has his hands full.

Little White Lies isn’t particularly surprising or memorable, but those are not qualities I would expect to find in a franchise that has lasted this long. Little White Lies is a fun, quick read, an entertaining visit with familiar characters. It easily lives up to, but does not surpass, expectations.

I usually spend some time in my reviews of the new Spenser books from Ace Atkins talking about how well he’s done with the tricky job of taking over the series from the late Robert B. Parker. I’m not going to do that anymore because at this point this is entirely Atkins’ series, and Spenser is as good as he’s ever been.

Connie Kelley was swindled out of several hundred thousand dollars by her boyfriend, M. Brooks Welles, who has since vanished, and Connie would like Spenser to track him down and get her money back. Welles claimed to be a military veteran and spy whose experience made him a regular fixture on the cable news as an expert in those matters. What Spenser quickly finds is that Welles is a con man who has left a trail of broken promises and unpaid bills in his wake including a land scam that involved a shady gun dealer.

One of the best parts of this one is the character of Welles because he makes for an infuriating bad guy for Spenser to chase. He’s a compulsive liar who absolutely will never admit that he’s fibbing even when he’s confronted with direct evidence of it. What’s really amazing is how many people he’s burned who continue to fall for it and keep putting their faith in him. I mean, what kind of rubes continue to believe a guy who has been conclusively proven over and over again to be completely full of shit?

As usual we get a lot of twists and turns that find Spenser eventually making a trip down South where even more shenanigans are going on. Along the way he’ll have to deal with cranky cops, angry ATF agents, a wavering client, professional mercenaries, and more scams than you can shake a stick at. We also get the reappearance of a supporting character we haven’t seen in a while as well as plenty of great stuff with Hawk, too. Atkins also continues to rehab Susan so that I actually now enjoy her interactions with Spenser rather than just cringing at the sight of her name on the page.

Of course the heart of it all is Spenser who is his usual hard-punching, straight-shooting, smart-mouthed, gourmet-cooking self, but he still continues to show signs of growth in these newer books including a refreshingly pragmatic streak of how far he’s willing to take a case. Overall, it’s pretty much a book that most fans of Spenser or modern PI novels in general would enjoy reading.

Robert B Parker - most specifically via his Spenser, Sunny Randall and Jesse Stone series - was my go-to author of the last decade or two. Then he died. Tragic, for his family, friends and loved ones. And slightly annoying for his fans. #joking #kinda

However... such was the strength of his Spenser, Jesse Stone and Appaloosa series that his family and publishers found authors to continue those legacies.

I felt as if I'd missed A HEAP of books in this series. But according to Goodreads, (my bible for tracking my reading since 2012) I've (only) missed three of the six Spenser novels (by Atkins) following Parker's death in 2010.

I recall reading Atkins' first efforts with Spenser, back in 2012, and decided he pretty much nailed Spenser's voice - his droll wit and his enjoyable repartee with bestie Hawk.

The biggest difference I've noticed in the last couple of books I've read is that we've leapt forward in time and Spenser is now in the 21st century. Although not an avid user, the internet now exists in the PI's world along with mobile phones and the like.

Many of Parker's own books in the series (including those written in the 90s and 2000s) remained firmly settled in the 70s and 80s.

I continue to choose to ignore the fact that Spenser's not really aged since he first appeared in 1973 cos I prefer to think of him as a rakish 40ish type. (Similarly I still tend of think of myself as being in my early 40s, or perhaps even my late 30s. And #spoileralert, I'm not!)

Atkins continues to (pretty much) retain the voice of Spenser, inherited from Parker and a lot of his idiosyncracies, including his unhealthily clean exclamations like, "Hot damn!" and "Yikes!"... (no f-words or c-words here!); and attention to detail when it comes to Susan's, Spenser's and Hawk's outfits of choice. I always assumed that (along with the princessing-up-of-the-vain-and-annoying-Susan) to be the influence of Parker's wife, Joan; but I may have been wrong in that.

And, like I said, other than his annoyingly-jolly exclamations (which 'date' him a little) Spenser's moving with the times. The thugs he's dealing with now aren't the local crime bosses running prostitutes and drugs, rather they're dealing weapons and there's talk of terrorists and ISIS.

It doesn't often happen but I'm relieved - despite the passing of his creator - that Spenser and his world, remain. Atkins does a great job with new plots amidst the characters and relationships that keep these novels familiar, comforting and enjoyable. And we all need something to rely on in this crazy ever-changing world.

(But, 'cos I can't help myself... It was slightly weird however, for Spenser to comment - in this (the 45th) outing - on how little he knew of Hawk's family of origin and the fact he didn't know where his BFF lived. I can understand the need for plausible deniability but it surprised me and jolted me out of my comfortable malaise a little as I tried to remember if Spenser had really never visited Hawk 'at home' before!)

Robert B. Parker and the Spenser series has always been one of my favorites. When he passed away in 2010, I was devastated. After hearing his wife and sons wanted to continue the series, I was skeptical as his writing style was so unique. I now admit Ace Atkins has done a great job with the Spenser chronicles. He has managed to keep Parker's wit and cynicism. Little White Lies is my favorite of the Ace Atkins Spenser books.

I have over a dozen Robert B. Parker books, yet this is the first one in his series that I've read. I have read Ace Atkins books before that he has written not as Robert B. Parker. I loved the Ace Atkins books and yes, I loved the Robert B. Parker book. I can tell there is a different style of writing.

I really like this Spenser character. What a smarta$$ he is. I like that, reminds me of myself. In this particular book, his client has met a man online and she has given him $360,000. Now that man has left and she wants her $$ back. Spenser soon finds out, she really doesn't care about the $$, she wants the man back. Spenser is determined though, his client is paying for the $$, she's getting the $$. There are several shady characters involved in this mystery and I certainly would not turn my back on them. Getting through the muck of all this and discovering just who this online man really is made for great reading.

I enjoyed this book immensely and was thoroughly entertained. I will certainly be looking forward to reading more in this series. Now, I am going to have to get out my own Robert B. Parker books and see how the real man holds up to his replacement. HA!!

Huge thanks to Penguin Group Putnam for approving my request and to Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest unbiased review.

LITTLE WHITE LIES by Ace Atkins follows Spenser as he takes on a case from a patient of his girlfriend and psychiatrist Susan Silverman named Connie Kelly, who comes into his office after having been taken for almost three hundred thousand dollars by her older boyfriend named M. Brooks Welles who has disappeared. Spenser is hired to locate him and see that the money is returned if at all possible, and almost immediately suspects Welles to be a con man who is making claims to education, military service, and CIA involvement that none of which can be verified. Connie unfortunately seems to trust Welles in spite of the overwhelming evidence that he is not who or what he claims to be, and makes things more difficult for Spenser in trying to work on her behalf.
Ace Atkins has done a phenomenal job of taking over the Robert B. Parker Spenser series and has restored many of the qualities that faded in many of RBP's later books in the series, while successfully making it possible for Spenser to age but not seem dated and to build upon characters already present. One particular aspect that he has improved on is with the character Susan Silverman allowing the novels to not become saturated with psychoanalysis and drama. LITTLE WHITE LIES is a little heavier on the psychological focus being that the client Connie is Susan's patient. Hawk and Spenser also fill in some blanks on their past together and individually that fits perfectly, very well done by an author working with characters developed by another author over a lengthy period of time.
Solid action takes place in the second half of the book which includes not only Hawk, but friend Tedy Sapp, who has really developed into a character that fits very well in the series bringing a different aspect as an individual, and can be trusted and relied upon in all situations. I have to say the first part of the book seemed a little slow in going, but moved along nicely at around the midway point.
Honestly it's difficult for me to objectively rate and review an Ace Atkins novel as he's one of my favorite authors, both of the Spenser series as well as the Quinn Colson books. Rating the first part would be a 3, and between 4-5 for the rest of the book, so I'll try to average it out a bit.
4 stars.

Robert B. Parker’s Little White Lies is the latest installment in Robert Parker's Spencer series and is written by Ace Atkins. The storyline flows smoothly and the book and combines humor, suspense, and mystery which Mr. Atkins has blended perfectly. The storyline is well thought out and there is excellent character development. The author has woven together intriguing characters, unexpected twists and turns, and complicated relationships.

Boston PI Spenser’s longtime girlfriend, Susan, who has a Harvard PhD in psychology, refers a client to him. Connie Kelly thought M. Brooks Welles was the perfect man for her until he cheated her out of over a quarter of a million dollars. Connie hires Spenser to find him and get her money back but she still loves him and really just wants him back. M. Brooks Welles turns out to be a mystery man, with lots of identities and secrets and Spenser uncovers he’s involved with multiple shady deals with dangerous people. Spenser trails Mr. Welles from Boston to Georgia and engages the help of his friends and trusted allies, Hawk and Teddy Sapp. When Connie is murdered, Spenser, who never drops a case and is determined to find justice, is determined to unveil her killer, stop the bad guys, and secure the return of her money for donation to her favorite charity.

I received an Advance Reader Copy of this book from NetGalley and voluntarily reviewed it.

I don't care what it is about...I love these characters and I love the way Ace Atkins does Robert B Parker.

★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2 (rounded up)
This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
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Pearl and I were off to Central Square . Her long brown ears blew in the wind as we drove along Memorial Drive against the Charles. Rowers rowed, joggers jogged, and bench sitters sat. It was midSeptember and air had turned crisp. The leaves had already started to turn red and gold, shining in Technicolor upon the still water.

I debated about what quotation I'd open with -- I went with this Parker-esque (and Atkins-esque) description. Little White Lies is one of the better of Atkins run on this series, because (like here) he did something that feels like something Parker would've written, but not quite what he'd have said (the more I think about it, the less I think that Parker'd have said "bench sitters sat").

Actually, that's true of the other quotation I almost used, too:

I nodded , adding water to the new coffeemaker sitting atop my file cabinet. I’d recently upgraded from Mr. Coffee to one of those machines that used pre-measured plastic cups. I placed my mug under the filter, clamped down the lid, and returned to my desk. Demonic hissing sounds echoed in my office. Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio?



This is Atkins sixth Spenser novel, and you'd think he's got enough of a track record that I could stop comparing him to Parker. Well, you'd be wrong -- I can't stop. This, like most of Atkins' work on this series, is so reminiscent of early Parker novels that it makes some of the latter Parkers look more like they were written by a hired gun. Still, I'm going to try to keep it to a minimum because it doesn't seem fair to keep doing.

Susan has sent one of her clients to Spenser for some help that she can't provide. Connie Kelly had been dating someone she met online, invested in one of his real estate deals -- and he vanished, taking the money with him. Could Spenser track him down and get her cash back? Sure, he says. It doesn't take long for the investigation to show that he owes plenty of people money -- a couple of months rent here, hundreds of thousands of dollar there.

Here's the fun part: M. Brooks Welles, the deadbeat in question, is a silver-haired, silver-tongued mainstay on cable news. He's former CIA, and an expert on military and national security issues -- one of those that producers call on regularly when they need a talking head. Why's a guy like that flaking out on real estate deals? Spenser knows something fishier than expected is going on -- which takes him into a world of mercenaries, gun deals, and the ATF.

Then someone tries to kill him. A couple of times. And the book stops feeling like a semi-light adventure, poking fun at the blowhards on cable TV and the state of American Journalism, and how we shouldn't trust as many people who have cameras pointed at them as we do. Things take on a different tone, bodies start piling up, and a darkness slips in to the book. This also brings in Belson and his new boss -- who's still not a fan of Spenser. About the same time, Connie starts to waver in her conviction that she wants her money back and Welles punished. Spenser, naturally, doesn't care and plows ahead. Hawk is able to connect Spenser with some mercenaries that travel in the same circles as Welles and the chase is on. Eventually, the action moves from Boston and its environs to Georgia. Which means that Teddy Sapp is going to make an appearance.

All the characters were great -- I would've liked some more time with some of Welles' co-conspirators in Boston, I think it'd have helped round out our picture of his crimes. But it's a minor complaint. We also got plenty of interaction with his Georgia-based colleagues. Even the characters that show up for a page or two as witnesses to the crimes were interesting -- it's the little things like those that add so much. It was nice to see Teddy Sapp again, too. He was the best part of Hugger Mugger (faint praise, I realize). The Hawk material was very good -- maybe Atkins' best use of the character yet.

I fully expect that people are going to spend a lot of time talking about the ending -- it didn't feel like a Parker ending. That said, it felt like an ending that pre-A Catskill Eagle Parker might have tried. It was satisfying, don't misunderstand, it's just not the kind of ending that Parker employed. Honestly, there were two other perfectly acceptable places to end the book -- and if not for the progress bar at the bottom of my screen, I might have believed that thee ending was earlier and equally strong.

Now, because Atkins and the Parker estate aren't stupid, there are certain characters that you just know are safe, no matter what shenanigans that they've let Atkins and Coleman get away with when it comes to killing off long-term supporting characters. But there was a definite feeling of peril when it comes to [name redacted] and [name redacted]. Sure I knew they'd live to be read about another day, but I wondered how healthy they'd be in the meantime.

This is sharply written, as usual. Atkins knows what he's doing (in this series or anything else) -- a great mix of character moments and plot. Spenser's voice is strong -- as are the voices of the other regulars. It was just a pleasure to read through and through. Let me leave you with one more snippet that is could've come from an early-80's Spenser just as easily today's, a voice like this is enough reason to read the book -- the rest is just gravy (and there's plenty of gravy):

I returned with sore legs back to my seat on the steps. I spent the next fifteen minutes watching women of all ages, sizes, and colors walk past me. I liked the way most women walked. I liked the way they dressed. And talked and smelled. I was pretty damn sure I was a fan of women in general. Did this make me a sexist or a feminist? Or somewhere in between.



Disclaimer: I received this eARC from Putnam Books via NetGalley in exchange for this post -- thanks to both for this.
N.B.: As this was an ARC, any quotations above may be changed in the published work -- I will endeavor to verify them as soon as possible.

I have read nearly all of Parker's books, and I was so sad when he passed and Spenser ended. That being said, this is the first book I have read by Ace Atkins. It was true to form, and I continue to love Spenser, Susan, Hawk, and all the colorful and loved characters. The story was good, albeit a bit weird to not be written by Parker himself. I will be reading more books by Atkins.

I've probably read every Spenser and Hawk books out there by Robert Parker and his ghost writers. The characters are always hard charging, moral, and flawed in a way I can relate to. His longtime girlfriend Susan, with the Harvard PhD in psychology, is always there to untangle the confused human brain explaining what is really behind the odd and dangerous actions of Spenser's unusual clients.

In Little White Lies (G.P. Putnam's Sons 2017), Spenser is hired to retrieve a jilted woman's money from the man who swindled her. When Spenser gets close, she changes her mind, but it's too late for Spenser. He's already found out this cad has swindled many women and may be involved in murder. Spenser spends the rest of the book going from twist to turn in an effort to figure it who's cheating whom and how to make the innocent and the families left behind whole again, all with his usual irreverent attitude about the entire process:

"As a communication expert, I figured we might communicate in Morse code. Assuming she could hear me knocking my glass against the bar. And assuming she knew Morse code."

"When at first you don’t succeed, keep bugging the hell out of people and see what shakes out."

"...she leaned up on her toes, kissed me on my cheek, and told me it was nice to finally meet an authentically good man. I nearly blushed, had I been the blushing type, and looked for a horse to ride away on."

There's nothing wrong with this book at all. Spenser and Hawk are their usually hard-charging, odd selves. The plot is clever and tricky enough to keep my attention. There's just something different from the original Robert Parker series. I'm not even sure what it is, but it's why I have the book 4/5 instead of 5/5. If this is your first read in the series, you'll probably think it's perfect.

I'll review this book on my blog on March 31st.

Loren Estleman is just the best writer of noir fiction writing today, and The Lioness is the Hunter proves it again. This book is the 26th in the Amos Walker series. If you have never read any of them, treat yourself. You do not have to start with book one.

Amos Walker is a P. I. in Detroit. This case is full of the classic characters and situations that make up noir fiction. What separates Mr. Estleman is his prose. Whether he is writing dialogue or a description: of Detroit, of a character or of a building, he creates an atmosphere. I read a sentence and go back to savor it again.

Keep on writing, Mr. Estleman!

I love this book so much! Ace Atkins stays true to wonderful characters created by Robert B. Parker... so many great moments in this book, all woven around a great Spenser (with an "s") adventure... and we get to catch up with some of Spenser's old friends, too. A great afternoon read, and one you'll want to re-read as it is so well done. Thank you, Mr. Atkins, for keeping Spenser, Susan, and Hawk going...