Hawk

Hawk is one of the best characters in all my favourite detective novels, and he's just come into the plot in "Bad Business".

I can never quite make up my mind whether Hawk is a good guy or a bad guy, and the author does a great job of keeping me guessing. I mean, he does carry a very big gun -- a Magnum -- and he drives fast, expensive cars and wears expensive, stylish clothes. We're never really told where he gets his money, but dark hints are dropped.

Hawk is always there for Spenser, and whatever his other clients pay him for his work, when he works for Spenser he usually gets paid in donuts!

His dialogues with Spenser are wonderful. Hawk switches between African American hip hop dialect and the King's English with ease, depending on the situation and how he's feeling. The interracial kidding that goes on between him and Spenser makes you wish everyone could get along so well.

What do you think about Hawk?