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A Savage PlaceRobert B. ParkerPublished 1981 |
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Reviewed and Researched by Lisa Shea
Spenser is recommended by Rachel Wallace to go out to LA and help bodyguard Candy Sloan. Candy is working on a story about a mob tie-in to films that her lover happened to see. Candy is rather inept at reporting which is sort of strange. Her basic idea of "keep asking questions and nosing around and see what happens" is exactly what Spenser does. But when she asks questions and noses around, she just doesn't understand how to evaluate the results. So she sits there and says "now what?" when to Spenser it's obvious what her nosing around has told them.
The news organization tells Candy the cops should handle it, they tell Spenser to go home. He stays for free, Candy, having already had her boyfriend killed by her ineptness, tries to sleep her way into finding out the truth. Despite Spenser's best efforts she's slain. Spenser beats up on the bad guys and then goes home sad and alone.
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Lisa's Notes I have REALLY mixed opinions on this story, and the movie version is quite different from the story which again gives me really mixed opinions. But let's concentrate on the book here. It's an early Spenser story, so while he goes on a lot about "I'm a white knight" and "I do what I feel right with", he sleeps with Candy because it seems fun. He calls her "Babe" - some Boy Scout. He says he'll tell Susan and she won't mind because it was just about sex (even though he's Candy's bodyguard and rule #1 about being a bodyguard is to keep things professional!! Don't get personally involved!!). But he says he doesn't want Susan sleeping with anyone else because that would be personal. What??? Obviously he modifies this thinking going forward but it seems REALLY slimy for him to even try to rationalize sleeping around like that. Obviously he wouldn't sleep with a ruthless, evil but sexy bimbo, so he slept with Candy because he liked her. Meaning some emotions were involved. They make a lot about Candy not "getting" the obvious clues that Spenser sees, and Candy wanting to do things to prove women can achieve success just as well as men can. But in their various discussions on the topic, Candy always comes off as girly and Spenser as ineptly saying "I can do whatever I want to, nyah nyah". If you compare these discussions to ones in later stories, Spenser is SO much better at explaining his stance. Sure, this was a young Spenser. But he was not an admirable Spenser in many ways. He scolds Candy for playing the gender card and then does it himself even more strongly. Candy dies in the end, because Spenser was not on top of things, and he goes home to Susan, tho we never see Susan. The only glimpses of Susan are when he talks about meeting her in the beginning, and that he's going home to her in the end. If I was Susan I'd be pretty upset with Spenser for his "Oh hey there dear I just had unprotected sex with a trollop that sleeps around Hollywood because she looked good. So much for my willpower. How was your week?" Some 'continuity' notes. In the last episode, Early Autumn, Spenser was buddy-buddy with Hawk and he and Susan were spending time together but not always happy. In this one Spenser never considers bringing in Hawk (tho he could have been really helpful in several scenes) and he talks of Susan as being his darling. While he cheats on her of course. He even makes a comment about his mom warning him to be safe rather than sorry, which is strange since she died giving birth to him ... Spenser used to drink a lot of named beer - this time it's all just "BEER". Did Parker get scolded for name-dropping? He's in essence back to his bourbon-and-beer days. Maybe it was the influence of Paul, that he's going back to his womanizing-and-hard-drinking roots. Interestingly, in Rachel Wallace he claimed he didn't like hard liquor - he'd much rather drink beer. Rachel Wallace hooks him up with Candy Sloan here, and now he's actively ordering cognac and brandy half the time. A change of heart? Those tracking Spenser's income - he makes $200/day plus expenses here. Also note you meet Detective Samuelson here. |
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Traveling in Spenser's Footprints * office - overlooking Berkeley and Boylston * Takes American out of Logan, implied * LA Airport * Beverly Hillcrest in LA * runs all over, drives all over * Wetherly Drive - Candy's House * Hamburger Hamlet on Sunset * Summit Studios - Pico * Farmer's Market on Fairfax * Doheny St - agent's office * The Palm in Santa Monica * Don Hernando's at Wilshire * Century City - Oceania Industries over LA Country Club * Red Onion by Rodeo * studio * Hall of Justice * Linda Crest in Hills - Felton's house * Westwood Holiday Inn - Felton's last stand * Mandarin in Beverly Hills * Hyatt Regency Bar * Greenblatt's on Sunset for supplies * Perino's following Candy * Brewster's House - Roxbury Dr between Lomitas and Sunset * Le Brea Tar Pits * Ma Maison * oil rigs by airport * Rafferty - house in Marmount on Sunset - looks Moorish (only mentioned) |
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Spenser's Menu and Drinks * lots of coffee various places * frapped margarita - hamburger hamlet * beer - hamburger hamlet * beer - studio * beer - The Palm * Remy Martin with soda and ice - the seduction scene in the Hillcrest * margarita and nachos - Red Onion * beer - Felton's * Kirin Beer - Mandarin (with Mongolian Lamb) * Coors - Hyatt Regency * beer - Candy's house * beer - Candy's house after Brewster * Coors while reading Great Gastsby * Veal Medallions and Graves White Bordeaux at Ma Maison * brandy and soda at Candy's * taco burro - bean and cheese burrito with coffee |
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