Ask the Parrot

Product description Sometimes mystery master Donald E. Westlake is the author of uproarious crime capers. Sometimes he has a mean streak-and its name is Parker. From his noir classic The Man with the Getaway Face to his recent novel Nobody Runs Forever, whenever Westlake writes as Stark, he lets Parker run loose-a ruthless criminal in a world of vulnerable "straights." On a sunny October afternoon a man is running up a hill. He's not dressed for running. Below him are barking police dogs and waiting up ahead is a stranger-with a rifle, a life full of regrets, and a parrot at home who will mutely witness just how much trouble the runner, Parker, can bring into an ordinary life. The rabbit hunter is Tom Lindahl, a small-town lonely heart nursing a big-time grudge against the racetrack that fired him. He knows from the moment he sees Parker that he's met a professional thief-and a man with murder in his blood. Rescuing Parker from the chase hounds, Lindahl invites the fugitive into his secluded home. He plans to rip off his former employer and exact a deadly measure of revenge-if he can get Parker to help. But Tom doesn't know Parker and that the desperate criminal will do anything to survive-no matter who has to die... From AudioFile In Stark's third Parker novel, the professional thief is fleeing through the backwoods of Massachussetts after a bank heist. He is rescued by Tom Lindahl, a recluse obsessed with getting back at the dog-racing company that he believes destroyed his life. The two form an unlikely pair as Parker, ever the opportunist, decides to help Lindahl rob the dog track. An ending that leaves the listener with many questions doesn't help this unusual story. However, William Dufris's performance is excellent and makes up for the weaknesses in the plot. Dufris's delivery of the characters' voices, complete with local accents, is totally believable. Author Stark is also known as Donald Westlake. S.S.R. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine