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The Godwulf Manuscript

(Spenser #1)

Robert B. Parker

3.91 · Rating details · 16,992 ratings · 1,077 reviews

Spenser earned his degree in the school of hard knocks, so he is ready when a Boston university hires him to recover a rare, stolen manuscript. He is hardly surpised that his only clue is a radical student with four bullets in his chest.

The cops are ready to throw the book at the pretty blond coed whose prints are all over the murder weapon but Spenser knows there are no ...more

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ebook, 208 pages

Published September 30th 2009 by Dell (first published June 2nd 1973)

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May 14, 2007 Bill Kerwin rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: detective-mystery

I hear this Ace Atkinson guy is good, but I can't bring myself to read a new Spenser now that Parker has died. Instead, I've decided to re-read the first dozen or so Spensers until gal-pal Susan starts annoying me again.

In this first mystery, Spenser is hired to find a medieval manuscript stolen from a university. Soon manuscript retrieval takes a back seat when one of the undergraduate radicals suspected of the theft is charged with murdering her boyfriend, and Spenser is convinced she has been ...more

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Jul 02, 2008 Kemper rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: detectives, crime-mystery, spenser

I read Robert B. Parker’s The Professional last month and wrote a long review trashing him for ruining Spenser in the last half of his career. Parker died this week, and I feel like a jackass. He had provided me a lot of enjoyment over the years and had a lot to do with turning me into the crime-mystery fan I am today.

Plus, while reading the obits his death, and the high praise that was heaped on him by modern mystery writers for reviving the detective genre in the early ‘70, I remembered why I ...more

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Mar 23, 2019 carol. rated it liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: fans of Spenser

Shelves: male-lead, mystery

Ah, the first Spenser mystery, the one to start a series of almost forty books in forty years. Having started it somewhat in the middle, I went back to the beginning to see where it all began. I found writing that appealed even more than mid-series when Parker had distilled his writing down to the bare bones. Though I'm a fan for the art of minimizing in my physical life, there's something to be said for richness in mood and setting, particularly in a mystery, and this supplies it in spades. It Ah, the first Spenser mystery, the one to start a series of almost forty books in forty years. Having started it somewhat in the middle, I went back to the beginning to see where it all began. I found writing that appealed even more than mid-series when Parker had distilled his writing down to the bare bones. Though I'm a fan for the art of minimizing in my physical life, there's something to be said for richness in mood and setting, particularly in a mystery, and this supplies it in spades. It is also coarser, to be certain; late Spenser was sanitized and heroic, faithful to Susan. It's clearly early Spenser, evidenced by a gratuitous torture-porn scene that literally did nothing for the plot, and Spenser's general attitude of a swinging 70s ladies' man.

There's a bit of social commentary as well, which late Spenser also seems more comfortable avoiding. Spenser is consulted by a college dean who wants him to find a missing illuminated manuscript which is apparently being held for ransom. He has to spend his time hanging around radical, anti-establishment college students who are all about the dogma, man. It allows for some solid, world-weary reflections: "I felt the beer a little, and i felt the sadness of kids like that who weren’t buying it and weren’t quite sure what it was." One of the radicals gets framed for murder, so the case rapidly shifts from a missing McGuffin to a Find the Real Killer.

It's interesting, sometimes, to read these older books and feel the time period soaking through. This is a booze-soaked story, to the point of a cop offering Spenser a pint as he's recovering in the hospital, and the cops are very period. I was kind of amused/fascinated to find an incident where the police officers transported a gunshot victim. They did that, you know, pre-ambulance days. Emergency medical services didn't really get underway until 1970, and paramedics a bit later. I'll be honest; the female characters are accessories, which would annoy me more if it had been long-standing through the series. No, some day, the psychologist Susan will come in and annoy us all with her anorexic eating habits, so I suspect my tolerance was indirectly the result of my irritation with future direction. Parker is also weirdly fascinated by clothes and describes what each character is wearing, even extraneous ones. Again, kind of fun in the retrospective sense. "He looked like a zinnia. Tall and thin with an enormous corona of rust red hair flowing out around his pale, clean-shaven face. He wore a lavender undershirt and a pair of faded, flare-bottomed denim dungarees that were too long and dragged on the floor over his bare feet."

Overall, a solid P.I. mystery, and a good start to a series. ...more

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Mar 24, 2010 James Thane rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: crime-fiction, spenser, robert-b-parker

"The office of the university president looked like the front parlor of a successful Victorian whorehouse."

Thus opens the novel that introduced Robert B. Parker's most famous creation, Boston P.I., Spenser. Spenser was a former cop who'd been fired for insubordination, and he was also a veteran of the Korean War. When The Godwulf Manuscript was published in 1973, he was apparently somewhere in his middle forties, which means that when Parker wrote his last contribution to the series in 2011, Spe "The office of the university president looked like the front parlor of a successful Victorian whorehouse."

Thus opens the novel that introduced Robert B. Parker's most famous creation, Boston P.I., Spenser. Spenser was a former cop who'd been fired for insubordination, and he was also a veteran of the Korean War. When The Godwulf Manuscript was published in 1973, he was apparently somewhere in his middle forties, which means that when Parker wrote his last contribution to the series in 2011, Spenser would have been in his early eighties. With the publication this year of the latest book in the series, written by Ace Atkins, Spenser would be pushing ninety.

For a guy that old, he still does amazingly well. More important, for a series this long--now forty-five books--the character and the concept have held up very well. Truth to tell, the series had begun to falter a bit toward the end of Parker's life, but Atkins has put it back on track and restored it to its former glory.

From the beginning, as suggested by the opening sentence above, Spenser was a world-class smart ass. He was also a very tough guy, wise to the ways of the world, and, naturally, hugely attractive to the ladies. He worked by his own rules, and for Spenser, the ends almost always justified the means. He was a very worthy successor to the generation of tough-guy P.I.s who had come before him.

In this case, a very valuable manuscript has been stolen from a Boston University. The manuscriptnappers are asking $100,000 for its safe return, but this is not one of the more stellar universities for which Boston is known. They don't have a hundred grand, and so the university president hires Spenser to get the manuscript back.

Spenser's main lead is to a group of campus radicals. Almost immediately, someone is murdered and the stakes are raised significantly. The murder and the theft are obviously related, and Spenser soon finds himself caught between the university officials, the cops, some local mobsters, a lot of uncooperative students and a particularly nasty faculty wife. Naturally, none of these will pose any significant problem for Spenser, but things will get very dicey along the way.

Rereading the book after a very long time was a lot of fun, and it's held up very well, especially for a book that's now forty-three years old. Mainly that's because the character of Spenser seems somehow almost timeless and the story moves along so well that you don't even stop to think about all the modern technology that Spenser doesn't have at his beck and call.

The character is obviously not fully formed yet. A couple of characters are introduced who will accompany Spenser through the entire run of the series, but Parker is still feeling his way along here, and it was interesting to go back and see the character again as he initially appeared.

This is the book in which Spenser meets Brenda Loring, who will be his first significant love interest. I liked Brenda a lot, and like many another fan of this series, I rue the day when she disappeared from the series only to have Spenser wind up with the insufferable Susan Silverman. Happily, that doesn't happen for a while, which is one of the reasons why so many of the early books in this series are among the best of the lot. All in all, this was a great trip back down Memory Lane. ...more

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Apr 19, 2010 Dan Schwent rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: crime-and-mystery, 2010

The Godwulf Manuscript has gone missing from the university and Spenser's been hired to find it. But what does the stolen and ransomed manuscript have to do with the murder of a dope dealer, seemingly by his girlfriend? And can Spenser figure out what is going on before being murdered himself?

This is the first Spenser book and quite a good read. While the story is called the Godwulf Manuscript, the aforementioned manuscript doesn't actually get that much action and is phased out pretty early. Th ...more

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Dec 20, 2017 Jason Koivu rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, crime, detective

Robert B. Parker's Spenser detective series kicks off very academically, literally. A valuable manuscript goes missing from a Boston university and Parker's hero Spenser is called in to investigate.

This gives Parker a chance to poke fun at stuffy academic types, while showing that Spenser isn't a total meathead himself. However, Spenser is a tough guy and when things get rough Spenser gets tough.

Things do get rough. The stolen manuscript turns into a bigger issue that Parker unfolds at a nice p ...more

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Apr 12, 2020 Matt rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: just-for-fun

I’m officially ashamed to call myself a private detective/noir fan. I should be beaten, flogged, and taken out to pasture. I hadn’t heard of the Spenser series until last week when I was doing some deep digging on Amazon’s bestsellers lists. It may have turned into my favorite iteration of the private detective novel. It has the perfect combination of darkness and humor. My eyes start to well up when I start to think about this genre fading away. There’s something about the smart-ass, loner priv ...more

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Mar 08, 2012 Jim rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 3series, 2fiction, mystery-thriller, 1audio

Another excellent novel by Parker. Spenser (spelled like the poet, with an 's', not a 'c') is a tough, noir detective. The plot had me guessing a fair amount & it was very well paced. Loved the ending. Well read, too. I'll look forward to more of these. ...more

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Aug 12, 2018 Patrick Sherriff rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: crime-and-such

I picked this up at a secondhand bookshop last month and at first thought I'd stumbled onto a poor imitation of Raymond Chandler, complete with a bourbon-soaked wise-ass PI, dames in distress, and .45s singing like Philip Marlowe was alive and well. How derivative, my snooty wise-ass reviewer's voice began... but don't listen to him. What we have here is a loving homage to Chandler's creation. If you like hardboiled PIs for hire and you've read all Chandler published, why wouldn't you want to se ...more

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May 19, 2015 Carol rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: series, fiction

The Hook - I’m a Robert Parker/Spencer virgin. Ace Atkins, who is the new voice of Spencer, was in my neck of the woods doing an author talk so I decided to begin the series at book one.

The Line – ”Insubordination. It’s one of my best things.”

The Sinker – This guy’s tough, one I’d call Mr. Spencer if I knew what was good for me. 195 lbs. coming at you with a power-horse of muscle and one whole lot of smart talk to go along with it. On top of this he cooks, delicious offerings, some gourmet, fast
The Hook - I’m a Robert Parker/Spencer virgin. Ace Atkins, who is the new voice of Spencer, was in my neck of the woods doing an author talk so I decided to begin the series at book one.

The Line – ”Insubordination. It’s one of my best things.”

The Sinker – This guy’s tough, one I’d call Mr. Spencer if I knew what was good for me. 195 lbs. coming at you with a power-horse of muscle and one whole lot of smart talk to go along with it. On top of this he cooks, delicious offerings, some gourmet, fast food too and eggs. He listens to jazz, can hold his own in discussing books, and is no slouch when it comes to drink; bourbon, brandy, and even has a few bottles of good wine just in case. His city, Boston, gives him a substantial backdrop for crime and mayhem. These characteristics give me a hint of the man who will continue a career as a private eye in several more mysteries.

Speaking of mystery this one was ok. It’s really about the man more than the story. Spencer is hired by a Boston University to recover the stolen Godwulf Manuscript, an illuminated rare book. When Spencer asks what an illuminated manuscript is he gets a good description:

A handwritten book, done by monks usually, with illustrations in color, often red and gold in the margins. This particular one is in Latin, and contains an allusion of Richard Rolle, the fourteenth-century English mystic. It was discovered forty years ago behind an ornamental façade at Godwulf Abbey, where it is thought to have been secreted during the pillage of the monasteries that followed Henry the Eighth’s break with Rome.”

Illuminated books in themselves are an interesting topic but I would have to be satisfied with the above as though it prompts his hiring it is not the real focus of this story. The original cover featured a nice picture of an illuminated book however. The University President thinks a group called SCACE (Student Committee Against Capitalist Exploitation) may be behind the theft and Spencer is off to interview a few. When one radical male student ends up dead, his girlfriend becomes the prime suspect. Spencer doesn’t believe she’s guilty and we’re off and running.

Originally published in the early 70’s The Godwulf Manuscript held up pretty well. I couldn’t help but think though how some things have really changed.
Half a dozen McDonald’s burgers and a pint of bourbon constituted Spencer’s distracted driving of the day. Of course there are other changes in the 40+ years since the series origins but it really seemed not to matter. Parker has been compared to Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett. Stepping in Chandler’s shoes he finished the last Marlowe book, Poodle Springs. It seems somehow fitting that the Parker’s pen is passed on to Ace Atkins, to keep Spencer, this beloved P.I. alive and ready to fight another day. ...more

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Mar 22, 2012 Eric rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Fans of hard-boiled detective fiction

Shelves: detective-mystery

Robert Parker is yet another author who I went about reading backwards, starting with his Everett Hitch & Virgil Cole westerns (which are awesome, by the way) instead of with Spenser, the detective that made him famous.

What actually drew me to read this book at this point in time was a review from Orson Scott Card recommending the latest Elvis Cole novel by Robert Crais -- a series and author I'd never read -- that also mentioned Parker and his detective Spenser. So I decided to read the both th ...more

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Jan 25, 2013 Melissa rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: ah-deadly

Spenser is officially my new favorite guy. He has everything I'm looking for in a private detective. He takes guff from no police lieutenant: "Quirk looked at me, then Belson . . . 'You're not working for the D.A. now, boy, you're working my side of the street, and if you get in the way I'll kick your ass right into the gutter. Got that?' 'Can I feel your muscle?' I said."

He's so tough he considers his bourbon cut with the addition of bitters or ice (I myself need a little water or, heaven forb ...more

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Sep 07, 2017 Bill rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Private Eye Spenser makes his first appearance in this witty thriller from Robert B Parker. The story was written (& is set in) the early 1970s & world weary Parker speaks his mind at every opportunity. This allows for some sharp & highly amusing dialogue throughout the story. This may be the first Spenser novel I've read, but it won't be the last. ...more

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Mar 05, 2018 Tim rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 1970s, reviewed, mystery-crime

"The office of the university president looked like the front parlor of a successful Victorian whorehouse."

That is one hell of a line to start your book off. It certainly sets a tone for our narrator, doesn't it?

Let's start off with a little background... not on the book, but on me. A week or so back I started reading the first of Parker’s Jesse Stone novels, and the reaction from a few of my friends was along the lines of “Why are you reading this when you haven’t read any of the Spencer novels "The office of the university president looked like the front parlor of a successful Victorian whorehouse."

That is one hell of a line to start your book off. It certainly sets a tone for our narrator, doesn't it?

Let's start off with a little background... not on the book, but on me. A week or so back I started reading the first of Parker’s Jesse Stone novels, and the reaction from a few of my friends was along the lines of “Why are you reading this when you haven’t read any of the Spencer novels?” I’ll be honest, the only thing I knew about Spencer came from the back of the Dresden Files books, where they say that Dresden is a combination of Spencer meets Merlin. So yeah… I was a bit clueless there, and decided to check out the first of this 30+ book series. The end results? Fairly entertaining.

As mentioned, I came into this after reading Night Passage, so I’m coming from the unique perspective of starting off with a later Parker book and then going to his first. The writing style is so different that they could be two completely different authors. The chapters are longer here (despite being the shorter book) and there are lot more description, whereas the other book was mostly dialogue. The later book was faster paced, whereas this one is much rougher and very clearly channeling authors that came before him (Here’s looking at you Chandler). I can’t really say that one approach is better than another, but I will say it was easier to get into Night Passage.

With that said, Spencer is a more entertaining protagonist than Stone was; he’s got more charm and a great sense of humor that shows off from the first line. I get the feeling though that Parker was trying to figure out the tone for the character. I haven’t read the other books, so I’m not sure how the character will evolve, but Parker was certainly off to a good start.

My only real issue with the book is that I wished it would have focused more on the manuscript in the title. One could have based an entire book off that hunt, but Parker instead chooses to focus on a more traditional mystery, with the manuscript seeming more like an after thought the farther we go. That aspect gets resolved, but its unsatisfactory when compared to the rest of the plot.

All in all, I found it a pretty good start to the series, and one I’m will to continue with in the future.
...more

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Jul 18, 2018 Marty Fried rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, audiobooks

I've heard of this series in the past, and thought it might be interesting to check it out. It's a bit old, but only a little dated which might be a minus for younger readers as there are some references that might be missed. No problem for me, of course.

It was a fairly fun read, very quick, and I was finished before I knew it. He's definitely a wise guy, but then again, so am I, so it was OK. I'll try to remember some of his quips. Like, "I made a bet with myself that ..., and I won."

He's a bit ...more

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Mar 24, 2010 LJ rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, male_author, contemporary_post_1945, mysterybookclub, private_investigator, massachusetts, boston

First Sentence: The office of the university president looked like the front parlor of a successful Victorian whorehouse.

Boston PI Spenser (with an “s” like the poet) has been hired by a university president to recover a 14th century illuminated manuscript. He is directed to a SCARE, the Student committee Against Capitalist Exploitation and Terry Orchard, one of the members, whom he finds along with her aggressive boyfriend, Dennis. Spenser receives a 2 a.m. call and finds Terry drugged. Dennis First Sentence: The office of the university president looked like the front parlor of a successful Victorian whorehouse.

Boston PI Spenser (with an “s” like the poet) has been hired by a university president to recover a 14th century illuminated manuscript. He is directed to a SCARE, the Student committee Against Capitalist Exploitation and Terry Orchard, one of the members, whom he finds along with her aggressive boyfriend, Dennis. Spenser receives a 2 a.m. call and finds Terry drugged. Dennis dead and the evidence of a professional hit.

I’ve not read this book since the 1970s and it is an interesting cultural look back. I am very happy fashions have changed away from white vinyl boots and leisure suits and that technology has advanced from mimeographs and typewriters. As silly as some of the slang sounds today, at least it wasn’t as profane as today’s speech.

It is also interesting looking at Spenser in his later 30s. He still thought he was funnier than anyone else did. This is a pre-Hawk, pre-Susan Spencer. As annoying as Susan can be, the one thing she did bring to the series was Spenser’s monogamy.

What hasn't changed is Spenser's doggedness, determination to see the case through, dedication to the innocent and his cooking. I am always amazed that he has just the right ingredients in his kitchen to make a wonderful meal.

What Parker did extremely well was description, dialogue and plot. With a very few words, you knew where you were and the other characters in the scene. He often employed analogies—“The wet wool smelled like a grammar room coatroom.”—which put you right into his scene. His dialogue, even with the slang of the period, was always tight, crisp and real. As to plot, the story started a bit light and annoying. However, once it took hold, it hit its stride and I was completely engrossed.

Re-reading this very first book makes it clear as to why I have read every other book Parker wrote.

THE GODWULF MANUSCRIPT (PI-Spenser-Boston-Cont/1973) – VG
Parker, Robert B. – 1st of series
A Dell Book, ©1973, US Paperback – ISBN: 04401129613

...more

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Nov 25, 2012 Mike (the Paladin) rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Well, I don't guess I'll be reading another Spencer book soon...but to be fair it may not be all "the book's" fault.

First I lived through the '70s and don't long for more of the shaggy clothed, self-righteous pan handlers who lived on their parent's income while cutting down the life style of people who are/were stupid enough to work for a living. I graduated in that generation and never quite fit in. I was too busy working.

Silly me.

Okay so Spencer doesn't suffer these fools gladly in this book ...more

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Mar 26, 2013 Mira rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: reviewed

Be warned: I am about to spoil the shit out of this book, so don’t read on if you’re not up for it.

The Godwulf Manuscript gets going when the president of a university in Boston — unnamed, but from context it’s probably BU — calls in private detective Spenser. A fourteenth-century illuminated manuscript has disappeared, and an anonymous caller has demanded $100,000 in ransom. This is a total giveaway — if “the university” were Harvard they’d fish the money out of their couch cushions and the boo Be warned: I am about to spoil the shit out of this book, so don’t read on if you’re not up for it.

The Godwulf Manuscript gets going when the president of a university in Boston — unnamed, but from context it’s probably BU — calls in private detective Spenser. A fourteenth-century illuminated manuscript has disappeared, and an anonymous caller has demanded $100,000 in ransom. This is a total giveaway — if “the university” were Harvard they’d fish the money out of their couch cushions and the book would be done here. They don’t and it’s not.

In the initial interview with Spenser, the president indicates that a far-left student organization, SCACE, is at the top of his suspect list. I should note that he’s fingering the group for precisely no reason. He literally says “it’s a gut guess,” I guess because they’re a bunch of hippies? No worries, it turns out that he is totally right to finger this group for precisely no reason. Onward!

Anyway, Spenser goes to investigate, and the first person he talks to is Terry Orchard. Terry is a girl born into privilege who has gone anti-establishment during her college years and is, at twenty, the secretary of SCACE. He takes her to a local pub for a beer to ask her about the manuscript, and about a minute into their conversation her boyfriend shows up and Spenser punches him in the face. Then he leaves without getting any answers from Terry or Dennis.

So, naturally, when a couple of hoodlums break into Terry and Dennis’s apartment, shoot Dennis dead, and dope Terry unto incoherency, her last lucid thought is “must … call … that … guy … I met … that one time ….” Thank goodness she knows one person who she can count on as a true friend in this world! Spenser to the rescue!

The book goes on in this vein. Spenser is a badass and smarter and better than everyone, and whenever it looks like he might run into a dead end, someone will call him out of nowhere and give him a new lead. Oh, and in case you were in suspense, yes, he does sleep with the twenty-year-old Terry. I bet you were worried that might not happen! Rest easy, my friend. It does. Oh, and you’ll be relieved to know that he sleeps with her mother, too. He spaces them less than 24 hours apart. Don’t worry, though, he’s a total gentleman. I mean, both of those ladies came on to him. Saying no would have been plain uncivilized.

The book ends “happily.” Terry remembers where she came from and gets back on the right track — you can tell because she starts wearing makeup and ditches her faded Levi jacket for a dapple gray suede coat with white fur trim. I am not remotely kidding. The unhinged cowardly hippie professor is safely behind bars, thank God. And Spenser gets to bang the university president’s secretary.

Oh, the manuscript, you ask? That got returned 75 pages ago. Did you think that was what the book was actually about? Hahahahahahaha sucker! ...more

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May 04, 2018 Nate rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I was very, very impressed with this first Spenser book. My dad is a huge fan of Parker’s so I don’t know why I slept on this series for so long. I think I kind of wrote his stuff off after having to sit through the TV show as a kid, but I really enjoyed myself with this one. Spenser is super likable, tough as nails but still obviously a good guy and legitimately funny. A lot of characters in books I read come off as less funny than their authors seem to want them to be (as much as I like him, E I was very, very impressed with this first Spenser book. My dad is a huge fan of Parker’s so I don’t know why I slept on this series for so long. I think I kind of wrote his stuff off after having to sit through the TV show as a kid, but I really enjoyed myself with this one. Spenser is super likable, tough as nails but still obviously a good guy and legitimately funny. A lot of characters in books I read come off as less funny than their authors seem to want them to be (as much as I like him, Elvis Cole is probably the best example of this...even characters around him say shit like “he’s not as funny as he thinks he is") but I found myself chuckling out loud at some of his smartassery.

The plot didn’t start off as anything world-changing but it did blossom from a “missing item” case into a suitably complex murder mystery with the attending staples of the PI genre like the aloof and cold rich folks, suave mob boss with his ever-present ugly and violent henchmen, journalists with necessary inside information, etc. There’s not much of a supporting cast in this one, but I appreciated the alone time inside Spenser’s head and it helped me get a feel for his character early on in the series. There were parts of the novel where it did show its age (mostly dealing with the obnoxious hippie/counterculture characters around the university and their goofy slang) but I did appreciate the details on the very 70s fashion.

Man, I knew this series was long-running but I just looked at its page on this site and Parker managed to crank out like 40 of these motherfuckers while also writing other series and standalone novels? That’s impressive. Hopefully they stay at this level of quality or better because I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this one. Usually the first few books in a series are a little shaky and I really didn’t feel any of that with this one. It had it all; violence, action, multiple mysteries, atmosphere, a fun and likable main character, sex, and some observations on human nature unique to the author--in short, The Good Shit. I very much have that “falling in love with a new series” glow in my brain at this point and I’m excited to see where the books take me. ...more

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Dec 02, 2010 Lisa (Harmonybites) rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Hard-boiled Mystery Fans

Recommended to Lisa (Harmonybites) by: The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Ultimate Reading List

Shelves: ultimate-reading-list, crime, contemporary, mystery, fiction, novels

I didn't like Spenser, and that's a problem with a novel starting a series, one in a first person voice where Spenser is supposed to be your intimate guide into the story. If you don't like your narrator and protagonist, then you're going to need a really strong voice or plot or style or characterizations, and I didn't find that the case here.

I did rather enjoy the story in the beginning--it was published in 1973 and reading about the campus radicals, the hippies, the days where you called cops ...more

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Oct 21, 2011 Cathy DuPont rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Really liked...first of Spenser novels. Curious though because Parker said in interview(s) later that he didn't create first name for Spenser. However, on page 87 of paperback, Spenser (as I read it) is called Jim by two cops escorting him from campus. Only reference to Spenser's first name. Perhaps Parker forgot that couple of paragraphs as years and books went by? Anyone else notice that?

***************

Well, well, well. Before I started reading the Jim Spenser (sounds funny) and Hawk series, ...more

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Jul 09, 2018 Peter rated it liked it · review of another edition

Spenser was one of my absolute favourite series in the 80s. The book is different but at least you meet Spenser again. Well, I like the TV series better to be honest. After so many episodes it's hard to switch to the real Spenser character depicted in the book. ...more

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Dec 16, 2019 Sebastien Castell rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery

I'd never read any of Robert B. Parker's novels about his wise-cracking private investigator, Spenser. However I'd recently noticed a mention of the fantasy author Steven Brust's style being likened to that of Robert B. Parter, so I wanted to give one a try.

First, I'm not sure I'd agree with the characterization of Brust being stylistically like Parker. Yes, both feature a certain noir-ish prose that has resonances with Hammett and Chandler, but Brust's Vlad Taltos tends to be a lot more interna I'd never read any of Robert B. Parker's novels about his wise-cracking private investigator, Spenser. However I'd recently noticed a mention of the fantasy author Steven Brust's style being likened to that of Robert B. Parter, so I wanted to give one a try.

First, I'm not sure I'd agree with the characterization of Brust being stylistically like Parker. Yes, both feature a certain noir-ish prose that has resonances with Hammett and Chandler, but Brust's Vlad Taltos tends to be a lot more internally-focused than Spenser. That said, others might find more commonality between the two than I did.

Taken on its own, The Godwulf Manuscript is a fun and fast-paced read. Spencer's a likeable lead character with, if not a heart of gold, at least a heart. Like his noir forebears, he pretends to a certain dispassion but a deeper sense of right and wrong propels him into danger with regularity. The rest of the cast come off less as nuanced characters and more like parts of the landscape through which Spencer must travel. It's certainly an entertaining landscape, though.

One of the challenges of reading detective novels from the 70's and 80's is that you're highly likely to run into attitudes of the time, filtered through the author's own sensibilities, that for today's readers range from out-of-date to out-and-out offensive. Spencer's neither overtly sexist nor homophobic as a character, and in fact Parker seems to go out of his way to show those who use homophobic slurs in the book in a poor light. But the underlying narrative dynamics still favour a sense of the world in which women are understood in terms of sexual attractiveness and men in terms of their relative power over each other. I've no expertise whatsoever in evaluating how much a book reinforces or transgresses against oppressive norms, so I may be either giving Parker too much or too little credit.

Taken as a whole, though, I enjoyed the first Spenser novel. He's the sort of rugged wise-cracking P.I. we've seen many times, but done here, I think, with a bit more skill and self-awareness. The Godwulf Manuscript is the kind of quick, feisty detective novel that no doubt hooks many readers into reaching for the next one in the series. ...more

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Dec 08, 2019 Jamie rated it liked it · review of another edition

3.5 stars. Stubborn and cheeky to a fault, I can't help but think of Chandler's Philip Marlowe as I read this first Spenser story. Looking forward to more. ...more

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Nov 17, 2013 Carmen rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Anyone

Shelves: traditionally-published, fiction, mystery, he-says

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Aug 30, 2013 Rhonda rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: wichita-public-library

I've been curious about the Spenser series for a long, long time. I wish I hadn't waited so long to read one. I really liked it. It's set in the 1970's. I smiled a lot at the descriptions of the clothes worn by college students and the dialogue, man! Everyone is "man." Lots of action, a tiny bit of very modestly described sex (which is good by me as I don't like too much sex in books). The plot was compelling and I loved Spenser. I will certainly continue the series and I won't be waiting long t ...more

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Apr 30, 2018 Meg rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: crime-and-mystery, fiction, owned

Being a PI seems to have been far more work before cellphones and the internet. This 70s PI series has been on my TBR list forever and I’m pleased it kicked off well. Story was good and suitably gritty, lead character was entertaining and has aged reasonably well (a couple of books from the same era haven’t appealed because the lead characters have a sexist dickhead vibe when read now).

I really enjoyed this book and look forward to the rest of the series, and am particularly keen on seeing Ace ...more

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Jul 17, 2012 Mur Lafferty rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012-books, summer2012

Hey cookie, hey lovely, your thighs are lush, let me sleep with you, or maybe your daughter, but I'll be a gentleman and wait till NEXT chapter to plow her field. what, there's a macguffin that's missing? Let me insult everyone who could aid me and sleep with a few dames and I'll get it sorted out before the next broad spreads her legs for my incomprehensible sex appeal.

No, I didn't like it. ...more

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Jan 12, 2013 Doranna Durgin rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Ahh, the first Spenser book. Heavily dated, but not in a way that affects the story; for me, it added to the story. And no one does dry dialogue like Robert Parker with Spenser!

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Jan 03, 2008 Jen rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: male-author, detective-fiction

Spenser is hired by a Boston University to recover an ancient manuscript, the Godwulf Manuscript, that was stolen and ransomed. In the process of locating this manuscript, people start dying, and a young woman is set up to take the fall for at least one of these murders. The young woman's parents also hire Spenser to clear her of the murder charges.

I LOVED this novel. I love the plot, which was complex but didn't vear off into unnecessary subplots. I loved the dialogue. Spenser's wit is hysteric ...more

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About Robert B. Parker

Robert B. Parker

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Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database named Robert B. Parker.
Robert Brown Parker was an American crime writer. His most famous works were the novels about the private detective Spenser. ABC television network developed the television series Spenser: For Hire based on the character in the late 1980s; a series of TV movies based on the character were also produced. ...more

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“Halfway through my steak I caught sight of myself in the mirror behind the bar. I looked like someone who ought to eat alone. I didn't look in the mirror again.” — 8 likes

“It was a bright day, but cold, and the whores had emerged, working the Combat Zone, looking cold and bizarre in their miniskirts, boots, and blond wigs. Being seductive at twenty degrees was heavy going, I thought. Being horny at twenty degrees wasn’t all that easy either.” — 1 likes

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