A new edition, cover based on the film. Parker is aided in a heist by a real estate woman in Florida. The plan goes awry when hitmen from an unrelated problem put him in the hospital. But, as usual, the moral is "don't piss off Parker." Don't try to kill him, don't steal from him.

Parker and the Jewellery Auction
Review of the Blackstone Audio Inc. audiobook edition (January 2013) of the Warner Books / Mysterious Press hardcover (2000)

Richard Stark was one of the many pseudonyms of the prolific crime author Donald E. Westlake (1933-2008), who wrote over 100 books. The Stark pseudonym was used primarily for the Parker novels, an antihero criminal who is usually betrayed or ensnared in some manner and who spends each book getting revenge or escaping the circumstances.

In Flashfire, Parker is shorted on a score by a crew of heisters who are after an even bigger score at a jewellery auction in Palm Beach, Florida. He ends up enlisting the aid of a local real estate agent in order to blend in to the local community. A further complication occurs when his involvement with a provider of false identity documents is compromised and another criminal sends his henchmen to wipe out anyone knowing of his new identity. There is a fun and early (the book was written in 2000) swipe at Donald Trump when the real estate agent is showing Parker around Palm Beach.

"Donald Trump never fit in here," Leslie said, having pointed out Mar-a-Lago, which for many years had belonged to Mrs. Merriweather Post, who definitely did fit in here, and which after her death had been for years a white elephant on the market–nobody’s inherited money, no matter how much of it there was, could afford the upkeep of the huge sprawling place–until Trump had grabbed it up, expecting it to be his entrée to Palm Beach, misunderstanding the place, believing Palm Beach was about real estate, like New York, never getting it that Palm Beach was about money you hadn’t earned.

"I should be pleased Mr. Trump took over Mar-a-Lago," Leslie said, "I think we should all be pleased, because we certainly didn’t want it to turn into Miss Havisham’s wedding cake out there, but to be honest with you, I think a place must be just a little déclassé if Donald Trump has even heard of it."

These final Parker novels from #17 to #24 seem stronger and more complex than the original run which was probably due to Westlake/Stark's development as a writer over the years and during the 23 year hiatus. Several of these are strong 4's to 5's (I've actually read or listened to all of them now and am just parceling out the reviews over time).

Flashfire is the 3rd book of 5 in a book titles arc by Richard Stark where the second syllable in each one-word title provides the first syllable of the next one as in 1) Comeback, 2) Backflash, 3) Flashfire, 4) Firebreak and 5) Breakout.

Narrator Mark Peckham does an excellent job in all voices in this audiobook edition. The narration includes the Foreword by Terry Teachout as read by Peckham.

I had never previously read the Stark/Parker novels but became curious when they came up in my recent reading of The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Sept. 2020) by Nancy Pearl & Jeff Schwager. Here is a (perhaps surprising) excerpt from their discussion with author Amor Towles:

Nancy: Do you read Lee Child?
Amor: I know Lee. I had never read his books until I met him, but now I read them whenever they come out. I think some of the decisions he makes are ingenious.
Jeff: Have you read the Parker books by Donald Westlake [writing as Richard Stark]?
Amor: I think the Parker books are an extraordinary series.
Jeff: They feel like a big influence on Reacher, right down to the name. Both Reacher and Parker have a singular focus on the task in front of them.
Amor: But Parker is amoral. Reacher is just dangerous.
Jeff: Right. Reacher doesn't have a conventional morality, but he has his own morality. Parker will do anything he has to do to achieve his goal.
Amor: But to your point, Westlake's staccato style with its great twists at the end of the paragraphs, and his mesmerizing central character - these attributes are clearly shared by the Reacher books.

The 24 Parker books are almost all available for free on Audible Plus, except for #21 & #22 which aren't available at all.

Trivia and Links
Flashfire was adapted as the film Parker (2013) dir. Taylor Hackford, starring Jason Statham in the Parker role. A trailer on YouTube can be viewed here.

The Flashfire page at The Violent World of Parker website is not as complete as those for the earlier books, but does provide cover images of the different editions.

Unlike many of the 2010-2013 Blackstone Audio Inc. audiobook editions which share the same cover art as the University of Chicago Press 2009-2011 reprints, this audiobook DOES include the Foreword by author Terry Teachout . ( )

Parker pulls off a heist with a new crew, who want to invest the proceeds in a major jewel robbery on Palm Beach Island. When Parker refuses, they keep his share, promising to pay it back with interest after the job. Of course, this infuriates Parker, who immediately starts building a persona to get back at the crew. The daring plan is to steal $12 million from a highly-guarded estate auction to benefit the local library, and the plan works, but Parker and a desperate local real estate agent get the drop on the prize. I was amused by the discussion of how Trump's purchase of Mar-a-Lago had offended the monied local residents because he did not fit in: this book was published in 2000. ( )

Parker reclaims money from fellow criminals

Westlake does a fantastic job keeping these Parker plots fresh book to book ( )