I often wonder what the reaction of future generations will be when they come across the Mike Hammer books. Time will tell. Time, time enough, time to kill. Which brings me to The Killing Man. It was to be the first of many Spillane books read on lazy days, dark nights and crowded subways. I can easily forgive him for Survival Zero with this book. The first few lines convey an atmosphere of a hostile city, with death lurking around the corner, breathing down your neck with a menacing grin. The action begins when Mike walks into his office only to find Velda near death and a corpse sitting in his chair. A few phone calls are made. Velda is taken to the hospital as Pat, other officers, the coroner and photographers show up. An investigation begins whose only clue is a mutilated body and a note signed by a faceless assassin named ‘Penta’, who’s wanted by the CIA, FBI, the state department, the NYPD and even the English government. No one, including Mike, can figure out the connection between the killer and himself. Caught between a killer out for vengeance

and competing government agencies, Mike has his hands full as he’s attacked at every opportunity. Even the recovering Velda whose hospital room is being guarded 24 hours a day isn’t safe from the killer. When a connection between a billion dollars in cocaine is made to this case, the stakes are raised even further. It’s fast paced action as everything comes together in an explosive ending, leaving one man standing and another dead at his feet. As well as being the first Hammer book I’ve read, it also happens to be one of my favorites. As I wrote earlier, I still recommend reading I, the Jury first, but if you’re stuck for a second choice, this book is the one I suggest. One last note: Mike breaks with tradition and actually says some of those ‘dirty’ and four letter words he only used to hint at in his previous books. I never really noticed this until I had read his other books and reread this one. This doesn’t really bother me, but then again, I don’t speak for everyone. Enjoy.