The Burglar on the Prowl by Lawrence Block
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

"I could have been there in ten minutes on the train, but I'd worked too hard stealing the money I was carrying to risk letting some common thief take it away from me."

Unfortunately, The Burglar on the Prowl (2004) confirms my fears expressed in the review of my previous book by Lawrence Block in the Bernie Rhodenbarr series, The Burglar in the Library . The newer installments of the series are noticeably weaker that the older ones. Gone is the charm of the novels that opened the series (like The Burglar in the Closet and only the conceptual continuity and the comforting thus boring familiarity of characters are left.

Bernie is preparing to burglarize the apartment of certain Crandall Rountree Mapes at the instigation of his friend, Marty. Mr. Mapes has stolen Marty's young girlfriend and the burglary would serve as revenge and punishment. Unfortunately for Bernie, he is unable to resist his addiction: instead of focusing on preparations for the planned Mapes caper he goes on the prowl. He finds a random brownstone, decides it makes a nice target and picks the locks to enter an apartment. Naturally, things don't go as planned and Bernie soon finds himself in a pickle. Not only does he face serious legal trouble but his apartment is burglarized and important stuff is missing. Even worse, there happens a murder and Bernie is involved in the case.

The plot contains such strange components as Joseph Conrad's The Secret Agent and ethnic Latvians. Gentle fun is made of John Sandford, the purported author of a bestseller Lettuce Pray. There are some trademark funny passages by Mr. Block, such as

"I told her not to worry her pretty little head, and she gave me a suggestion which, on the face of it, struck me as physically impossible."

I am not quoting the funniest passage so as not to deprave any under-18 readers. But coincidences in the plot begin piling up mile-high. Even the author himself makes fun of this when he writes "the long arm of coincidence." Neat term but a lame excuse for incoherent plot. And - to sum up - a lame installment in a series that began so promisingly with Burglars Can't be Choosers.

One-and-a-half stars.

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