Parlor Games

by Robert Marasco

Genuine suspenseful read that recalls the Hitchcock-imitator suspense films of the late 1960's and 1970's. If you like Julia or Dressed to Kill--heck, even if you were a fan of Dallas and Falcon Crest--you'll probably enjoy reading this. It moves very, very quickly. I finished it in a day

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Mystery

Paperback

First published January 1, 1979

About the author

Robert Marasco was born in the Bronx in 1936 and educated at Regis High School in Manhattan and Fordham University. A classical scholar, Marasco taught at Regis before turning to writing, with Child’s Play, an eerie melodrama about incidents of evil at a Catholic boys’ school. The play was a surprise success in 1970, running for 343 performances on Broadway and earning a Tony Award nomination for best play of the year, and was adapted for a 1972 film.

Marasco also wrote two novels: Burnt Offerings (1973) and Parlor Games (1979). Burnt Offerings was a bestseller and spawned a 1976 film adaptation directed by Dan Curtis and starring Oliver Reed, Karen Black, and Bette Davis.

Marasco died of lung cancer in 1998.

Reviews

[Addy · Rating 3 out of 5]

God, what a confusing book. More later when i can get my thoughts organized.

This book was basically about a guy who murders his girlfriends because of his sick twisted relationship with his sister. I didn't get it. It was engaging in the beginning but fell flat towards the end. I was expecting more from Marasco.

[Roxana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read the spanish edition of this book, translated as "Juego homicida. From the start and almost to the end, the question that kept me reading was, how did Susan, Peter's previous girlfriend died? Did she really killed herself or is her mother right and not crazy when she said that Peter killed her? And what had Gail, Peter's sister to do with everything? What bizzare bond keep together this two people besides being brother and sister.
Is a book you read without pause and almost without breathing....Only to fall at the end... But I'm not telling you why! No,no,you must read it.

[Ray · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very disappointing after enjoying his other book so much. Not a good mystery and the “twist” or “reveal” was a pretty obvious one.

[Bonnie Morse · Rating 3 out of 5]

After reading Marasco's classic horror novel Burnt Offerings seven times and loving it more with each reading, I was excited to finally have access to his second book, a straight-forward suspense mystery. And straight-forward is the best term I can think of for Parlor Games. Marasco has a good, if extremely basic, idea here, but he has a lot of trouble fleshing it out. He manages to tell us what the characters look like but that's it. There's no personality or emotional depth beyond what's required for the story--sexual attraction, jealousy, confusion. Even the crazy woman, whose insanity should be easy to draw the reader into, being the result of her child's death, manages to seem both clear-headed and wrong.

The story centers on the relationship between Peter, head of Playcraft Toys, and Maggie, who works for their advertising company. But the first date we see them have feels like their first date. Almost as if they've only just met. So it seems hasty and strange when they're suddenly exchanging declarations of love and their relationship is perceived by Peter's sister to be the same level of threat as his last relationship, where he was with the woman for three years. We never know for sure how long they've been together or where they're going, because it's not really part of the plot and he doesn't waste time on anything that's not moving the plot forward. The plot moves forward so fast that the story is mostly New York traffic references, drink mixing, and whole conversations about where whom should be spending the night for maximum safety condensed into two sentences or less. More than once Peter and Maggie have sex, make drinks, and argue in a single sentence. I don't know what the huge rush was with the writing, but it wasn't hugely fun to read. I stuck it out because it was short and I really wanted to know who killed Susan. Fortunately the ending isn't as subtle and strange as Burnt Offerings so I won't have to read it again.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

This was dark. This was the type of thriller that I rarely read, but was almost the textbook definition of the genre. It had some twists to it, nothing ground breaking, but I wouldn't say predictable. The ending did surprise me. A good thriller overall.

[Signor Mambrino · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not great. Maybe if you like incest.

[Cristiana · Rating 1 out of 5]

I cannot but agree with those readers who loved Burnt Offerings and Child's Play, but just couldn't spare a good word about this novel which is a long boring sequence of idiotic exchanges between cardboard characters. Even Marasco's typical sense of dark humour is missing here. Terrible. And sad. It is always sad that the last published work by an accomplished writer be a complete failure. Luckily, the book is out of print and Marasco won't be remembered for it.

[Bob Box · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read in 1980. Mystery thriller.

[James S. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Couldn't get past the dull opening chapter. A textbook example of how an opening chapter can immediately sink a book.

[Heather Eason · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book.... Didn't age well? Was never a good idea? Just got worse as I kept reading? I don't know, not good don't recommend.