The Sour Lemon Score

Parker put the revolver away and looked out the windshield.  The bank was half a block away along the sunny street.  Andrews hadn't come out yet.

The Sour Lemon Score begins with a bank heist, that for once goes off without a hitch.  Parker and his three partners, Benny Weiss, Phil Andrews, and George Uhl march in and out, and make their escape with ease.  However, as soon as they take a look at their rather disappointing take, Uhl plugs Weiss and Andrews and Parker barely escapes with his life.  Not pleased by this turn of events, as you can imagine, Parker begins trekking up and down the eastern seaboard, looking for Uhl and his money, but Uhl keeps managing to stay one step ahead of him.

The Sour Lemon Score has the feel of a transitional book, and it is perhaps no surprise that is the last in the series with "score" in the title.  If you read my comments on The Black Ice Score, you are aware that I thought Claire was beginning to hurt the series and the character of Parker had gone through some unwelcome changes as well.  Stark apparently thought so, too, because the old Parker is definitely back.  Claire does not appear, although she does wire Parker money a couple of times when he needs it.

Stark has not, however, entirely reverted to the original Parker formula.  Unlike most of the series, Lemon begins with the heist in progress and the double-cross mere pages later.  While we do spend a fair amount of time following parties other than Parker, it is also not a return to the formula wherein Parker bursts in on the antagonist after several chapters, followed by scenes following how Parker managed to get to that point.  Instead, Parker's and Uhl's actions make other parties interested in the stolen cash, and complications ensue from this.

While not one of the best in the series, it is nice to see the old Parker back after the disappointing Black Ice Score.  It is also nice to see the brightness that had started to creep into the Parker universe disappear completely--here we return to a universe where all people are selfish and will hurt and betray anyone to get what they want.

The movie City of Industry bears several resemblances to The Sour Lemon Score.

To a detailed synopsis of The Sour Lemon Score (lots of spoilers...coming soon).

To The Black Ice Score, the previous book in the series, .

To Deadly Edge, the next book in the series.

Back to The Violent World of Parker.