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aelwood's review against another edition
4.0
Book 5 was pretty suspenseful and action-packed. I enjoyed the fast paced nature as the story unfolded. There was definitely more violence (and death) than in any of the novels yet; but the imagery of working on an international case made up for it.
cwebb's review against another edition
3.0
Found this early Spenser novel in a Half Price Books and spent a few dollars and it was... fun enough. The early ones are quite short and straight-forward. The fun is there, as are Hawk and Susan. The later books have more pages, more mystery, more turns and more elaborate crimes as well as jokes.
stevem0214's review against another edition
5.0
Great as always! I'm not sure if this is the first time we meet Hawk, but I sit and really do laugh out loud when I read the dialogue between these two guys.
corita's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this one. It was a quick read, and unlike #4, which seemed very dated, this one held up fine.
If you haven't read Parker's Spenser mysteries, you should give them a try. Spenser is funny, witty, sometimes charming, and always ready for a fight.
If you haven't read Parker's Spenser mysteries, you should give them a try. Spenser is funny, witty, sometimes charming, and always ready for a fight.
endpaper's review against another edition
3.0
Although not my favorite Spenser novel, the conversations between Hawk and Spenser are alone worth the price of admission.
dantastic's review against another edition
3.0
A quadriplegic millionaire hires Spenser to go to London to track down the nine people responsible for his condition and the death of his wife and children. Spenser quickly gets in over his head and brings in Hawk. Can Spenser and Hawk stop gang of terrorists and earn their reward?
The Judas Goat had the most violence of any Spenser story yet. He and Hawk go through the meat grinder, especially near the end. There's no way the two of them would be able to leave the US after the trail of bodies they left across four countries. If you ever wondered if Spenser and Hawk could throw lead with the best of them, wonder no longer. Not only that, they didn't seem like super-heroes in the process. Spenser got shot in the ass, for God's sake!
The best part of this book, outside of the frequent gunfights, is the relationship between Spenser and Hawk. As I've said before, Hawk's Spenser's true soul mate, not Susan Silverman.
Now that I've mentioned Susan Silverman, why don't I got into the reasons I didn't rate this one higher. For one thing, the Spenser-Silverman relationship nauseates me a bit, like that couple in high school that was always touchy-feely and cooing to one another. "You hang up. No, You hang up... etc."
The other thing that got on my nerves was the constant description of what the characters were eating. Yeah, I know, it's been a staple of the Spenser series since the beginning but I think Spenser and Hawk must have eaten fifteen damn meals in this one! I normally like when Spenser cooks but I don't need to know how tough the veal is after he and Hawk have gunned some bastards down!
So The Judas Goat was pretty good but not my favorite Spenser so far. You could find worse reads for an afternoon in the car dealership waiting room.
The Judas Goat had the most violence of any Spenser story yet. He and Hawk go through the meat grinder, especially near the end. There's no way the two of them would be able to leave the US after the trail of bodies they left across four countries. If you ever wondered if Spenser and Hawk could throw lead with the best of them, wonder no longer. Not only that, they didn't seem like super-heroes in the process. Spenser got shot in the ass, for God's sake!
The best part of this book, outside of the frequent gunfights, is the relationship between Spenser and Hawk. As I've said before, Hawk's Spenser's true soul mate, not Susan Silverman.
Now that I've mentioned Susan Silverman, why don't I got into the reasons I didn't rate this one higher. For one thing, the Spenser-Silverman relationship nauseates me a bit, like that couple in high school that was always touchy-feely and cooing to one another. "You hang up. No, You hang up... etc."
The other thing that got on my nerves was the constant description of what the characters were eating. Yeah, I know, it's been a staple of the Spenser series since the beginning but I think Spenser and Hawk must have eaten fifteen damn meals in this one! I normally like when Spenser cooks but I don't need to know how tough the veal is after he and Hawk have gunned some bastards down!
So The Judas Goat was pretty good but not my favorite Spenser so far. You could find worse reads for an afternoon in the car dealership waiting room.
gsatori's review against another edition
3.0
Maybe it isn't good Parker, and maybe it reads too much like a throwaway. Maybe. But bad Parker is better than no Parker.
michellekorm's review against another edition
3.0
This book used to come up when I searched for "goat" in the library catalog as a child. I was mad because it wasn't actually about goats. Now I am an adult who reads detective novels, so I am reading it.
bookhawk's review against another edition
4.0
Parker’s Spenser series is older yet the books are still entertaining private investigator novels. I wish I had discovered decades ago. Seems like a precursor to great writers like Sandford, Crais, Connelly, and Child.
vhzest's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25