Dortmunder and company get hired to steal the femur of St. Ferghana so that Tsergovia will get the favor of an archbishop and be admitted into the United Nations. Unfortunately, things go south, Dortmunder winds up kidnapped and Andy Kelp leads the charge to steal the bone a second time. Will Dortmunder and company ever get paid?The Dortmunder books are like a visit with a lovable gang of losers. At first, you love them but after a while you just want them to leave you alone. That's why I rated this a three. Even though it was hilarious visiting with Dortmunder, Kelp, Murch, and Murch's Mom, the whole story felt padded, like Westlake was stretching it to a more easily sellable length. The plot was convoluted and the story was at least eighty pages too long.On the plus side, Dortmunder and the rest of the characters were on top of their game, dialogue wise. The planning was as sound as could be for a Dortmunder operation and while I didn't care for the serpentine plot, it was very original.While not my favorite Dortmunder by any means, still a worthwhile read for a reader with a certain sense of humor.
John Dortmunder is back again. He is asked to assist Tsergovia, a small "Slavic" country which is trying to enter the UN. Votskojek, the neighboring country, also wants to be recognized as the country and only one can be selected. The problem arises when each country claims authenticity of a sacred relic, the 600-year old femur bone of St. Ferghana, a 16-year old girl who was murdered and eaten by her own family but later was made a saint.The Votskojek embassy is located in the East River near Queens on a ship. Dortmunder needs to get into the embassy and steal their femur but finds himself held prisoner and in prison in Votskojek (or is he?) This book has art theft, larceny, kidnapping, blackmail, you name it (except murder - no murder in this one).This book is funny and smart. I love Mr. Westlake's books and this one does not disappoint.
What do You think about Don't Ask (1994)?
One of my very favorite Dortmunder novels. A pleasure to re-read, marred only by the sadness of knowing that there will never be another. I am particularly fond of Dortmunder's revenge in this one, especially since he often never gets his revenge. Here, however, the thrills and the laughs are oh so good. Also, I could genuinely see Dortmunder here as a Redford gone slightly to seed. (As everyone knows, or should know, Robert Redford was Dortmunder in the film version of the first in the series, The Hot Rock.)One other note: Westlake here employs a device that presciently harkens to the Wikipedia era in which we now live, with extraneous information presented in half chapters and a footnote (!) or two. Again, we will never see his like pass this way again.
—James
I highly recommend Donald Westlake's Dortmunder series. With each caper, John Dortmunder and his small band of hapless career criminals manage to both fail and win, and they do it just like it's a job. The books are amusing and a bit absurd. Having said that, I don't recommend starting with "Don't Ask" (#9 in the series). The story involves two fictitious countries competing for a seat in the U.N. by proving which is the true owner of a saintly relic, is a little heavy handed in its absurdity. Or maybe the series starts to lose its surprising freshness after awhile.
—Ross Mckeen
My first Dortmunder novel, I found this to be the light-hearted version of Parker from the one Parker novel I've read. I enjoyed the creative turns the plot took and the story gets an A for originality, that's for damn sure. At times though I found myself putting down the book to do something else every 20 pages. What it lacked, I think, was a certain type tension. The story worked best when their various heists were in action, happening in 3 different states at once. The sheer number of characters I think took away from a central thrust to the story that could've added a bit more readability. I'd give this a high '3' though.
—Carl
