What's not to love about Spenser? He has a sense of humor and he knows when to shut up and sit still. There was one point in this book (toward the beginning) that I laughed out loud, probably at something Hawk said.

Love Spenser. Love Hawk. Spenser's girlfriend? Yeah, I'd hang out with her (even though she does take every opportunity to wave her Harvard diploma).

The 'damsel in distress' - April Kyle (apparently back for a third time in Spenser's life)? I could not care less about her or what happened to her. Wow.

Now, I know that women who are 'damaged' (I've been reading that description a lot recently) often have issues, but if she burst into tears or flew off the handle for no apparent reason one more time, after asking Spenser for his (free) help, I woulda gone looking for a stereotypical Vinnie to pop her. Of course, I have no patience for manipulative women, so maybe I was too hard on her. Or not.

Read the book. I don't think you'll be too surprised or disturbed by the ending (which seemed a bit abrupt, by the way).

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You can't go wrong with Hundred-Dollar Baby or anything else that Mr. Parker pens. He continues to keep me enthralled with each new book and I'll keep coming back for more as long as he's able to write them. Sad to say but I'm not sharing my hardcopy edition. I'm collecting them to re-read in my twilight years.

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Great Spencer book! Brings character in from previous book... kept me wondering right to the end!!! Loved it!!!

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Delighted to find another Spenser/Hawk tale from Robert Parker!! Always enjoy the banter between the two "tough guys" and this book is no exception. Wish they brought back the television show based on Spenser.

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A client from a decades-old case reaches out to Boston PI Spenser -- but can he rescue troubled April Kyle once more? â Longtime Spenser fans will remember that once upon a time, though not so long ago, there was a girl named April Kyle -- a beautiful teenage runaway who turned to prostitution to escape her terrible family life. The book was 1982's Ceremony, and, thanks to Spenser, April escaped Boston's "Combat Zone" for the relative safety of a high-class New York City bordello. April resurfaced in Taming a Sea-Horse, again in dire need of Spenser's rescue -- this time from the clutches of a controlling lover. But April Kyle's return in Hundred-Dollar Baby is nothing short of shocking.

When a mature, beautiful, and composed April strides into Spenser's office, the Boston PI barely hesitates before recognizing his once and future client. Now a well-established madam herself, April oversees an upscale call-girl operation in Boston's Back Bay. Still looking for Spenser's approval, it takes her a moment before she can ask him, again, for his assistance. Her business is a success; what's more, it's an all-female enterprise. Now that some men are trying to take it away from her, she needs Spenser.

April claims to be in the dark about who it is that's trying to shake her down, but with a bit of legwork and a bit more muscle, Spenser and Hawk find ties to organized crime and local kingpin Tony Marcus, as well as a scheme to franchise the operation across the country. As Spenser again plays the gallant knight, it becomes clear that April's not as innocent as she seems. In fact, she may be her own worst enemy.

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Not Parker's best. This dreary tale of an ambitious young madam who wants Spenser to help her open a chain of upscale brothels drags on too long before it clunks to its inevitable conclusion.

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