The Handle

Baron is clever perhaps too clever. He sits on the heavily protected island of Cockaigne, a mini Las Vegas forty miles out in the Gulf of Mexico, raking in as much as $250,000 some nights, laughing at the Outfit, who can t collect their cut. Now the Outfit can no longer stand the loss of face not to mention the loss of revenue. That s why they ve sent for Parker, who knows that the line between success and failure on this score would be exactly the length of the barrel of a .38. Double-crosses and double-dealings from the word go, not to mention the arrival of Parker s flamboyant friend Grofield, make this one of Richard Stark s best. "