Synopsis
When Spenser is asked to take a case for his lover's ex-husband, he reluctantly obliges. Brad Sterling has always been a troublemaker, and now he's facing sexual harassment charges while in the midst of planning a huge fundraiser. As Spenser digs into the circumstances surrounding the fundraiser, he uncovers some nasty business that may not be in his client's best interest.
| Details | | Publication Date: | 1998-03-01 |
| Size | | Length: | 288 pages | | Height: | 9.8 in | | Width: | 6.8 in | | Thickness: | 1.2 in | | Weight: | 23.2 oz |
Publisher's Note
"Parker's finest in years . . . one can't-put-it-down story. Again . . ." proclaimed San Francisco Chronicle of Robert B. Parker's most recent New York Times bestseller, Small Vices . And The Washington Post Book World agreed, "Small Vices deserves instant inclusion in the Spenser canon." In Sudden Mischief, Parker's stouthearted hero unwillingly takes a case that tests his sleuthing skills-and his commitment to the woman he loves. Brad Sterling-former Harvard football player, ne'er-do-well, and Susan Silverman's long out-of-touch ex-husband-is, by all appearances, a successful businessman. But when, in the course of running a vast fundraiser called Galapalooza, he is charged with sexual harassment, he turns to Susan for help. Though Brad denies the charge, he's desperate, behind in alimony and child-support payments to other exes, and on the verge of dissolution. When Spenser reluctantly agrees to take the case, however, Sterling claims everything is fine-he's free of debt and free of problems. While the harassment charge begins to look more and more specious, Spenser senses there is something wrong with Galapalooza, as leads to charities turn into dead ends. Susan, meanwhile, becomes steadily more problematic as she wrestles with demons reinvigorated by the resurrection of her ex-husband. As the questions mount, Brad disappears, a body is found, and clues to a shadowy mob connection begin to coalesce. Spenser finds himself fighting a two-front war: against some very bad men, on the one hand, and against an increasingly difficult Susan, on the other. Dark, contemplative, and morally complex, Sudden Mischief is a brilliant meditation on the meaning of justice, love, and passion.
Brad Sterling - former Harvard football player, ne'er-dowell, and Susan Silverman's long-out-of-touch ex-husband - is, by all appearances, a successful businessman. But when he is charged with sexual harassment in the course of running a vast fund-raiser called Galapalooza, he turns to Susan for help. Though Brad denies the charge, he's desperate, behind in alimony and child support to other exes, and on the verge of dissolution. When Spenser reluctantly agrees to the case, he finds Brad denies everything. Sterling claims everything is fine - he is free of debt and free of problems. While the harassment charge begins to look more and more specious, Spenser begins to sense there is something wrong with Galapalooza, when leads to charities turn into dead end. Susan, meanwhile, becomes steadily more problematic as she wrestles with demons reinvigorated by the resurrection of her ex-husband. As the questions mount, Brad disappears, a body is found, and a shadowy mob connection begins to coalesce. Spenser finds himself fighting a two-front war: against some very bad men on the one hand, and an increasingly difficult Susan, struggling with her own resurrection, on the other.
Industry Reviews
"Not a bird or a duck in sight; but with this kind of dialogue in bloom, it must be spring."
New York Times Book Review - Marilyn Stasio (03/22/1998)
"Parker writes as mean a page as ever. But this time the daisy chain of felonies is limp and illogical, and the deep moralizing--Susan's florid attitudinizing about her onetime husband--is merely self-important. Fortunately, there's always next year."
Oestreich
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