 First edition | |
| Author | Robert B. Parker |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Series | Spenser |
| Genre | Detective fiction |
| Publisher | Houghton Mifflin |
Publication date | 1976 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Pages | 182 |
| ISBN | 0-395-24771-3 |
| Preceded by | Mortal Stakes |
| Followed by | The Judas Goat |
Promised Land is the fourth Spenser novel by Robert B. Parker, published in 1976. [1] It won the Edgar Award for Best Novel in 1977. [2] It is notable for introducing the character of Hawk.
Promised Land, Inc. is the name of a real estate development company belonging to Harvey Shepard and Spenser also metaphorically refers to the Cape Cod area as the Promised Land.
Spenser is hired by Harvey Shepard to find his runaway wife, Pam. Spenser soon locates her, but promises not to force her to return to her husband against her will. He begins to suspect that Harvey Shepard has been threatened by King Powers (a big-time loan shark) when he sees his enforcer Hawk at Shepard's house. Harvey fires Spenser because Spenser refuses to disclose Pam's location; Pam is staying with two militant feminists named Rose and Jane. Pam soon becomes entangled in Rose and Jane's bank robbery that resulted in the shooting death of a bank guard and calls Spenser for help. Spenser's dilemma is that he wants to reunite Harvey and Pam while also making sure that Rose and Jane go down for the bank guard's murder while simultaneously setting up King Powers to go to prison. He has to do all this while somehow managing to keep the Shepards (and himself) out of jail and still breathing. He manages to broker a gun deal to between Powers and the militants, while corresponding with the police to arrest the suspects in a sting operation with the intent of keeping the Shepards clean of the affair. Spenser warns Hawk the day of the operation while Powers, his henchmen, and Jane and Rose are arrested. The next day, Powers is bailed out of jail and his associates greet Spenser and Susan at the Shepards' home. After a brief scuffle, Hawk intervenes and leaves Powers to the mercy of Spenser.
Spenser is a fictional private investigator created by the American mystery writer Robert B. Parker. He acts as the protagonist of a series of detective novels written by Parker and later continued by Ace Atkins and Mike Lupica. His first appearance was in the 1973 novel The Godwulf Manuscript. He is also featured in the 1980s television series Spenser: For Hire and a related series of TV movies based on the novels. In March 2020 he was featured in the Netflix thriller film Spenser Confidential.
Spenser: For Hire is an American crime drama series based on Robert B. Parker's Spenser novels. The series, developed for TV by John Wilder and starring Robert Urich, was broadcast on ABC from September 20, 1985, until May 7, 1988.
Robert Brown Parker was an American writer, primarily of fiction within the mystery/detective genre. His most famous works were the 40 novels written about the fictional private detective Spenser. ABC television network developed the television series Spenser: For Hire based on the character in the mid-1980s; a series of TV movies was also produced based on the character. His works incorporate encyclopedic knowledge of the Boston metropolitan area. The Spenser novels have been cited as reviving and changing the detective genre by critics and bestselling authors including Robert Crais, Harlan Coben, and Dennis Lehane.
Crimson Joy is the 15th Spenser novel by Robert B. Parker.
The Godwulf Manuscript is the debut crime novel by American writer Robert B. Parker.
Hundred-Dollar Baby is the 34th Spenser novel by Robert B. Parker. The story follows Boston-based PI Spenser as he tries to help an old runaway prostitute he helped several years earlier, April Kyle.
School Days (2005) is a work of detective fiction by American author Robert B. Parker, the 33rd in his acclaimed Spenser series.
Potshot is the 28th Spenser novel by Robert B. Parker. The story follows the fictional Boston-based PI Spenser as he tries to identify the killer of a widow's husband. As is often the case, Spenser's probing uncovers much more than just a simple—or single—murder.
Bad Business is a detective novel by Robert B. Parker first published in 2004. It features Parker's most famous creation, Boston-based private investigator Spenser, and is the 31st novel in the series. In this novel, Spenser is hired by a wealthy woman to gather evidence on her husband's infidelity. Soon, due to Spenser's investigation, homicides start occurring.
The Judas Goat is the fifth Spenser novel by Robert B. Parker, first published in 1978.
Ceremony is the ninth Spenser novel by Robert B. Parker, first published in 1982. It is the first of three Spenser novels involving the character April Kyle, who returns in Taming a Sea-Horse and Hundred-Dollar Baby. Kyle is a 16-year-old girl who has run away from home and, apparently, turned to prostitution.
A Catskill Eagle is the 12th Spenser novel by Robert B. Parker, first published in 1985. The title comes from a quote from Herman Melville.
Double Deuce is a 1992 novel by American writer Robert B. Parker, the 19th book featuring the private investigator Spenser. The story follows Boston-based Spenser as he and his friend Hawk butt heads against a street gang while attempting to unravel the murder of a teenage mother and her young daughter.
Pastime is the 18th Spenser novel by Robert B. Parker. The story follows Boston-based PI Spenser as he attempts to find a man's missing mother.
Walking Shadow is the 21st Spenser novel by Robert B. Parker.
Thin Air is the 22nd Spenser novel by Robert B. Parker. The story follows Boston-based PI Spenser as he searches for the wife of his longtime associate, Sgt. Frank Belson of the Boston Police Department.
Joe Mantegna portrayed Robert B. Parker's detective "Spenser" in three TV films on the A&E cable network between 1999 and 2001.
Back Story is a crime novel by Robert B. Parker, the 30th novel in his Spenser series. In the novel, private investigator Spenser takes on a 28-year-old cold case murder, but gets pressured by FBI agents and a mobster to drop his investigation, which only increases his curiosity.
A Savage Place is a detective fiction novel by American writer Robert B. Parker, the 8th book in the Spenser series.
Spenser Confidential is a 2020 American action comedy film directed by Peter Berg, with a screenplay written by Sean O'Keefe and Brian Helgeland, and based on characters created by Robert B. Parker. The film stars Mark Wahlberg, Winston Duke, Alan Arkin, Iliza Shlesinger, Bokeem Woodbine, Donald Cerrone, Marc Maron, and Austin Post in his first film appearance, and marks the fifth collaboration between Wahlberg and Berg after Lone Survivor, Deepwater Horizon, Patriots Day, and Mile 22.
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