Donald E Westlake writes this novel under the pseudonym of Richard Stark. This books marks the beginning of series named after the lead character Parker. Parker is engaged in criminal activities like robberies and armored car hold ups. He never loses sleep for neither engaging in these kind of activities nor dealing with lowlife creatures associated in this line of business. Parker himself can be considered as one of the lowlife with a perverted sense of justice.
The book is written in the style of a paperback. The plot is simple. There is a heist and Parker is double crossed. Now Parker has to recuperate, survive with no money and finally extract revenge on all those who cheated him out of his share. As you can see, it is an interesting premise. The events flow briskly keeping us engaged in the proceedings. The narratives shifts briefly from Parker's and to that of Parker's enemy. This is interesting too as we get to see both sides of the coin.
The language used by Donald E Westlake aka Richard Stark play a major role in making this book an easy one to read. He uses less words to convey greater effect. At many point, he effortlessly slips into details and a few lines later, moves back into the main plot without the reader sensing the change. If you are in the mood for a plain old revenge drama where it is difficult to differentiate between good guys and the bad guys, this one is for you!
Tags: Books,Donald E Westlake,Richard Stark,Parker
Didn't they make the movie "Payback" from this novel?
ReplyDelete:) So you remember the movie.
DeleteMel Gibson's character in the movie is inspired by Parker. But they were not able to use the name for contractual reasons. The basic theme is the same. Parker is double crossed and left for dead. Now he has to take revenge. The plot of the movie had added many more twists to make it more thrilling.