The Outfit, published in 1963, is the third of Donald E. Westlake’s Parker novels written under the pseudonym Richard Stark.
I’m not going to give away spoilers for the first two novels (although in fact Westlake does so in this novel) but this third book continues Parker’s feud with the organised crime syndicate known as the Outfit.
Parker is not a member of the Outfit (although he did a job for them once). He’s an independent professional thief. That doesn’t mean he’s small-time. His jobs are always major robberies. He’s very successful. He pulls very few jobs because the ones he pulls are very lucrative. In between jobs he lives a life of leisure in Florida.
Now he has a problem. The Outfit seems to have taken out a contract on him. He thought he had resolved his issues with them. Parker is annoyed but far from disconsolate. He has already established his ability to hurt the syndicate badly. Now he will have to hurt them again, to make them see reason.
The Outfit has a weakness. Their security at their various illegal operations is lax. It has never occurred to them that anybody would be crazy enough to try to rob them. That was before they encountered Parker. Parker is crazy enough to do it. Except he isn’t crazy, just stubborn. If Parker has to hurt the Outfit his campaign against them will be meticulously planned and well thought out. He’s a cold calculating professional.
I love the opening of this novel. Parker is in bed with his current woman, Bett. She is not a criminal. He isn’t the slightest bit in love with her but she suits him and she’s good in bed. A gunman breaks into the hotel room and starts shooting. Any normal woman would be terrified. Bett is excited. Parker realises he will have to torture the gunman for information. He finds such things distasteful but he thinks Bett might enjoy it. When he asks her if she would enjoy torturing the gunman she gets very excited. Parker knew there was something about this girl that he liked. We are definitely in Parker’s world.
There’s another early scene, involving two brothers and a woman, which is just so incredibly Parker-ish.
This is not a straightforward heist story. Rather it is a whole series of heists. Parker’s campaign against the Outfit is based on persuading other independent professional criminals to start raiding Outfit operations. Each of these robberies is a perfect heist story in miniature.
Parker comes up against some old foes in the Outfit, foes who might be thinking they have a score to settle with him. They still haven’t quite realised that they’re up against a very smart guy who thinks out his moves well in advance. Parker has survived a long time as a professional criminal. He knows that if you rely solely on being fast with a gun or your fists you won’t last long. You have to play it smart, and not react emotionally. Parker approaches his conflict with the Outfit more like a game of poker than a bar-room brawl. He’s a tough guy but that’s not what makes him such a fascinating character.
Parker is a full-blown anti-hero. He is ruthless and amoral and apparently emotionless. He has been misunderstood as having no redeeming qualities. That’s not quite true. If necessary he will kill without hesitation and without remorse. On the other hand he never kills without a reason and he never kills for pleasure. He is very careful not to kill innocent bystanders.
In this story he has a woman. He knows that eventually he will have to get rid of her, but getting rid of her does not mean killing her. It just means giving her the brush-off as cleanly and painlessly as possible. He has no intention of killing her. That would be cruel. Parker, despite his serious character flaws, is not a cruel man.
And despite those flaws the reader is going to be on Parker’s side. He’s just so super-cool.
It’s a tough cynical book. Very entertaining. Highly recommended.
I’ve also reviewed the excellent first Parker novel, The Hunter (AKA Point Blank) and the second, The Man with the Getaway Face. You do have to read this series in order. You also need to see the 1967 movie Point Blank, based on the first novel.
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