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this may be my last spencer while parker avoids repeating the recuperation scenario, and while the basic plotting and the dialogue and descriptions are extremely good, the book left me tired and annoyed. the plot, for all its twists, felt rather claustrophobic--all but one of the usual secondary characters appear, for no real reason except to be included for the fans' comfort. part of the resolution was sickeningly sentimental and unrealistic. i miss the pointed social comments of the earlier books. i'm tired of the now forced nobility and general angst. i'm tired of the constant comments about young women's bodies by every man who appears in the books. i'm tired of the spenser/susan relationship--don't these two ever disagree on anything? and could the woman just once in a while actually eat like a normal person? and maybe gulp at least a glass of water. i'm really annoyed at the way hawk's relationships are handled. only jewish white women have emotional courage and understanding? i can enjoy formulaic series, since i can be as attached to series characters as anyone else. but parker is repeating too many of the same parts of the formula in his recent novels without including the development of situations and characters other than the usual cast that make his earlier works more interesting.