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Dortmunder #13
Watch Your Back!
In his classic caper novels, Donald E. Westlake turns the world of crime and criminals upside-down: the bad get better, the good get worse, and God save anyone caught between a thief named John Dortmunder and his most improbable plans.
It's a long way from the island of Manhattan to the island resort where Preston Fareweather has his hedonistic hideout-avoiding the legal prosecutions of five embittered ex-wives and enjoying the attentions of the prettiest gold diggers who happen to come his way. A terrible human being, Preston makes the terrible mistake of getting friendly with an equally dyspeptic personality: a New York fence named Arnie Albright.
Arnie went to the island paradise to become a happier man. It worked. After a week with Preston, Arnie comes home to New York with a whole new attitude and a proposition for his associate John Dortmunder: a can't miss, million-dollar robbery-of Preston's nearly unguarded, art-filled Fifth Avenue penthouse.
But when Dortmunder and his clean-up crew get together to plan the heist, they quickly get distracted and suddenly a billionaire from Fifth Avenue and a would-be Tony Soprano from New Jersey have one thing in common: John Dortmunder is after them both at the same time...and disaster can't be far behind.
It's a long way from the island of Manhattan to the island resort where Preston Fareweather has his hedonistic hideout-avoiding the legal prosecutions of five embittered ex-wives and enjoying the attentions of the prettiest gold diggers who happen to come his way. A terrible human being, Preston makes the terrible mistake of getting friendly with an equally dyspeptic personality: a New York fence named Arnie Albright.
Arnie went to the island paradise to become a happier man. It worked. After a week with Preston, Arnie comes home to New York with a whole new attitude and a proposition for his associate John Dortmunder: a can't miss, million-dollar robbery-of Preston's nearly unguarded, art-filled Fifth Avenue penthouse.
But when Dortmunder and his clean-up crew get together to plan the heist, they quickly get distracted and suddenly a billionaire from Fifth Avenue and a would-be Tony Soprano from New Jersey have one thing in common: John Dortmunder is after them both at the same time...and disaster can't be far behind.
320 pages, ebook
First published January 1, 2005
71 people are currently reading
465 people want to read
About the author
Donald E. Westlake
432 books970 followersDonald E. Westlake (1933-2008) was one of the most prolific and talented authors of American crime fiction. He began his career in the late 1950's, churning out novels for pulp houses—often writing as many as four novels a year under various pseudonyms such as Richard Stark—but soon began publishing under his own name. His most well-known characters were John Dortmunder, an unlucky thief, and Parker, a ruthless criminal. His writing earned him three Edgar Awards: the 1968 Best Novel award for God Save the Mark; the 1990 Best Short Story award for "Too Many Crooks"; and the 1991 Best Motion Picture Screenplay award for The Grifters. In addition, Westlake also earned a Grand Master Award from the Mystery Writers of America in 1993.
Westlake's cinematic prose and brisk dialogue made his novels attractive to Hollywood, and several motion pictures were made from his books, with stars such as Lee Marvin and Mel Gibson. Westlake wrote several screenplays himself, receiving an Academy Award nomination for his adaptation of The Grifters, Jim Thompson's noir classic.
Some of the pseudonyms he used include
• Richard Stark
• Timothy J. Culver
• Tucker Coe
• Curt Clark
• J. Morgan Cunningham
• Judson Jack Carmichael
• D.E. Westlake
• Donald I. Vestlejk
• Don Westlake
Westlake's cinematic prose and brisk dialogue made his novels attractive to Hollywood, and several motion pictures were made from his books, with stars such as Lee Marvin and Mel Gibson. Westlake wrote several screenplays himself, receiving an Academy Award nomination for his adaptation of The Grifters, Jim Thompson's noir classic.
Some of the pseudonyms he used include
• Richard Stark
• Timothy J. Culver
• Tucker Coe
• Curt Clark
• J. Morgan Cunningham
• Judson Jack Carmichael
• D.E. Westlake
• Donald I. Vestlejk
• Don Westlake
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 108 reviews
May 9, 2009
This is probably the most intricately plotted of the Dortmunder novels; happily, the various plot strands do nothing to interfere with the laughs. The most compeling facets are the Gang's heroic efforts to save the O.J. from the predations of the Jersey Mob, and the introduction of Judson Blint, who features in later Dortmunder novels as "the Kid". Needless to say, things tend to go wrong.
February 2, 2020
The last of the Dortmunder's for me (I read the final book out of order) and this penultimate volume is actually better than the capstone. Technology intrudes on the gang, but not in such a discordant fashion. A new member is introduced distinct enough to hold his own. The only real let-down is the structure of the coda - shoving information at the readers through newscasts to tie up all the threads is rather lazy.
January 6, 2009
In my opinion, this is a standout among the later Dortmunder novels. That doesn't make it nearly as good as the classics - Don't Ask, What's the Worst That Could Happen? - but it definitely means that this is a fun light read.
Westlake handles the plot much better in Watch Your Back! than in the earlier The Road to Ruin - here, he's up to his old tricks, knitting several plotlines together so that they are one joyous snarl by the end of the book. He's got the same old characters, and I for one am always happy to spend more time with Dortmunder, Kelp, Tiny, and Murch. He also introduces a new character on the criminal side; I found him interesting enough to want to read more about him. And, of course, Westlake's got his latter-days obsession: the vile, scheming, absolutely unredeemable rich guy target, who is probably the most vivid character in the book.
All in all, the ingredients for Dortmunder heaven are here. What's missing is the - I don't know, verve of the earlier novels. Somehow, this manages to be amusing without ever quite becoming truly funny. Still, I'll settle for amusement. This is worth reading for anyone who has read all the earlier Dortmunder books and loved them.
Westlake handles the plot much better in Watch Your Back! than in the earlier The Road to Ruin - here, he's up to his old tricks, knitting several plotlines together so that they are one joyous snarl by the end of the book. He's got the same old characters, and I for one am always happy to spend more time with Dortmunder, Kelp, Tiny, and Murch. He also introduces a new character on the criminal side; I found him interesting enough to want to read more about him. And, of course, Westlake's got his latter-days obsession: the vile, scheming, absolutely unredeemable rich guy target, who is probably the most vivid character in the book.
All in all, the ingredients for Dortmunder heaven are here. What's missing is the - I don't know, verve of the earlier novels. Somehow, this manages to be amusing without ever quite becoming truly funny. Still, I'll settle for amusement. This is worth reading for anyone who has read all the earlier Dortmunder books and loved them.
February 15, 2011
It's the score of a lifetime: easy access to a lavish New York City apartment, hordes of valuables, and an absentee owner avoiding the lawyers of his unhappy ex-wives.
lots of sub-plots going on.
including the MOB of jersey.
I like the "fence" who, no one says it, but he is autistic and a real character. I read this while home sick, in one day. lots of good comedy.
Then
very pleasant commute cd in the car.
different when read to.
lots of sub-plots going on.
including the MOB of jersey.
I like the "fence" who, no one says it, but he is autistic and a real character. I read this while home sick, in one day. lots of good comedy.
Then
very pleasant commute cd in the car.
different when read to.
November 26, 2025
I liked “Put a Lid on It” and was in the mood for another heist book, so I figured I’d give Westlake another try. Can’t remember why I chose this one, but it didn’t do the trick for me. Westlake’s language continued to be fun, but the chaotic, over-complicated plot had too many half-baked moving parts, even by the standards of this genre.
July 29, 2019
These are always a fun read. Westlake is great at mixing plots, humor, characterizations and observations.
April 20, 2012
It’s a Dortmunder book! What do I have to tell you? You know there is a perfect set-up for a crime. You know that by the time Dortmunder executes the plan, it is no longer going to be perfect and a most non-fortuitous circumstance will gum up the works. In this case, it seems like a simple burglary where no one is at home—an embarrassment of riches from the art world that should satisfy any gang. Imagine an absentee owner and a huge collection of expensive objets d’ art Yet, there are complications. Each step in the plan seems to be accompanied by a delay and even the planning itself is delayed by a delay that introduces another delay. How’s that for a non-spoiler spoiler?
Watch Your Back introduces a new character to the ensemble, a young runaway full of entrepreneurial larceny. Indeed, his contribution to the caper provides a profitable counterpoint and humorous irony to the (let’s call it) more altruistic endeavor that pits Dortmunder against “dose guys” against which you don’t want to be pit against. I laughed at the smooth way our protagonist called in favors and then, at how the feces proceeded to be spread by the rapidly rotating device.
There was one particular conversation that amused me. In the conversation, one interlocutor protests that communications technology has undermined honesty since the beginning. “You see, with smoke signals, that was the very first time in the whole history of the human race that you could tell somebody something that he couldn’t see you when you told him. You get what I mean?” When Dortmunder didn’t, he explained, “Sure, people still lied to each other back then, and got away with it, but it wasn’t so easy. Once smoke signals came in, you can’t see the guy telling you the story, he could be laughing behind his hand, you don’t know it.” And goes on to say, “Every step up along the way, every other kind of way to communicate, it’s always behind the other guy’s back. For thousands of years, we’ve been building ourselves a liar’s paradise.” (p. 135) The point is probably well-taken, but native drums probably provided the same effect in other parts of the world (as readers of James Gleick’s The Information will know.). But my favorite line in the entire book was the typical lawyer joke. The automotive “fence” for Stan Murch (the regular driver in these things) said, “You know, when a lawyer talks to you, the natural thing to do is not listen.” (p. 186) I know a lot of people who aren’t criminals who think that.
So, you ask yourself what’s going to happen in Watch Your Back. Will this be one of those rare capers where the gang succeeds? Will this be one of those capers where they succeed with moderate success? Whether the gang succeeds or not, I can definitely tell you that the pages where J.C. trains her new recruit, Tiny (his appearance in no way resembling his name) complains about inevitable change in his life, Stan Murch deals with his taxi-driving mother, and where Andy and Dortmunder deal with Arnie the fence are all entertaining moments—just not as entertaining as the parts I’m not telling you about.
Watch Your Back introduces a new character to the ensemble, a young runaway full of entrepreneurial larceny. Indeed, his contribution to the caper provides a profitable counterpoint and humorous irony to the (let’s call it) more altruistic endeavor that pits Dortmunder against “dose guys” against which you don’t want to be pit against. I laughed at the smooth way our protagonist called in favors and then, at how the feces proceeded to be spread by the rapidly rotating device.
There was one particular conversation that amused me. In the conversation, one interlocutor protests that communications technology has undermined honesty since the beginning. “You see, with smoke signals, that was the very first time in the whole history of the human race that you could tell somebody something that he couldn’t see you when you told him. You get what I mean?” When Dortmunder didn’t, he explained, “Sure, people still lied to each other back then, and got away with it, but it wasn’t so easy. Once smoke signals came in, you can’t see the guy telling you the story, he could be laughing behind his hand, you don’t know it.” And goes on to say, “Every step up along the way, every other kind of way to communicate, it’s always behind the other guy’s back. For thousands of years, we’ve been building ourselves a liar’s paradise.” (p. 135) The point is probably well-taken, but native drums probably provided the same effect in other parts of the world (as readers of James Gleick’s The Information will know.). But my favorite line in the entire book was the typical lawyer joke. The automotive “fence” for Stan Murch (the regular driver in these things) said, “You know, when a lawyer talks to you, the natural thing to do is not listen.” (p. 186) I know a lot of people who aren’t criminals who think that.
So, you ask yourself what’s going to happen in Watch Your Back. Will this be one of those rare capers where the gang succeeds? Will this be one of those capers where they succeed with moderate success? Whether the gang succeeds or not, I can definitely tell you that the pages where J.C. trains her new recruit, Tiny (his appearance in no way resembling his name) complains about inevitable change in his life, Stan Murch deals with his taxi-driving mother, and where Andy and Dortmunder deal with Arnie the fence are all entertaining moments—just not as entertaining as the parts I’m not telling you about.
February 9, 2025
RATING: 3.75
The O.J. Bar & Grill has long been the meeting place for John Dortmunder and his cohorts. It's a place where you're known by what you drink and not by your name. After hanging out with this crew for 11 books, I feel like I can slide right in at the table – I'm the Pepsi straight up – and argue about having furniture in heaven or chime in on how to handle the latest mission that Dortmunder has cooked up.
An acquaintance by the name of Arnie Albright has undergone an intervention to cure his obnoxiousness. He went into rehab at an island resort in Florida, where he ran into Preston Fareweather, a horrible rich guy who is hiding out from his four ex-wives, who have banded together and are trying to get him into court. Fareweather has a nice gig going, seducing various gold diggers who vacation in the area. Albright, who by profession is a fence, discovers that Preston has a penthouse in New York that houses millions of dollars worth of art. Since Fareweather is never there, it presents a golden opportunity for Dortmunder and gang to get some of that art back on the streets.
But the team has a terrible problem. The O.J. Bar & Grill has been taken over by the mob, and they can no longer meet there. Dortmunder, Andy Kelp, Tiny, Stan Murch and his mother find that they just can't plan a heist in someone's living room. It's got to be the O.J. A large part of the plot deals with how to resolve this problem. That actually proved to be the major weakness in this book for me, for unlike the rest of the series, the focus was more on regaining entry into the O.J. than the actual caper.
Finally, the gang is ready to clean out Fareweather's apartment. However, unbeknownst to them, Preston has returned to New York in an effort to escape the ex-wives who have managed to get on his trail. Even though the heist doesn't go off as planned, the gang does end up in better shape than when they started.
Although I enjoyed WATCH YOUR BACK!, I felt that it was a lesser work in the series. In addition to the fact that the caper was not the centerpiece of the book, I felt that the "valuables in the unoccupied apartment" plot was derivative of some of the other books in the series. That being said, it's always a pleasure to spend time with Dortmunder and crew, a group of characters that jump off the page in every book that they're in.
The O.J. Bar & Grill has long been the meeting place for John Dortmunder and his cohorts. It's a place where you're known by what you drink and not by your name. After hanging out with this crew for 11 books, I feel like I can slide right in at the table – I'm the Pepsi straight up – and argue about having furniture in heaven or chime in on how to handle the latest mission that Dortmunder has cooked up.
An acquaintance by the name of Arnie Albright has undergone an intervention to cure his obnoxiousness. He went into rehab at an island resort in Florida, where he ran into Preston Fareweather, a horrible rich guy who is hiding out from his four ex-wives, who have banded together and are trying to get him into court. Fareweather has a nice gig going, seducing various gold diggers who vacation in the area. Albright, who by profession is a fence, discovers that Preston has a penthouse in New York that houses millions of dollars worth of art. Since Fareweather is never there, it presents a golden opportunity for Dortmunder and gang to get some of that art back on the streets.
But the team has a terrible problem. The O.J. Bar & Grill has been taken over by the mob, and they can no longer meet there. Dortmunder, Andy Kelp, Tiny, Stan Murch and his mother find that they just can't plan a heist in someone's living room. It's got to be the O.J. A large part of the plot deals with how to resolve this problem. That actually proved to be the major weakness in this book for me, for unlike the rest of the series, the focus was more on regaining entry into the O.J. than the actual caper.
Finally, the gang is ready to clean out Fareweather's apartment. However, unbeknownst to them, Preston has returned to New York in an effort to escape the ex-wives who have managed to get on his trail. Even though the heist doesn't go off as planned, the gang does end up in better shape than when they started.
Although I enjoyed WATCH YOUR BACK!, I felt that it was a lesser work in the series. In addition to the fact that the caper was not the centerpiece of the book, I felt that the "valuables in the unoccupied apartment" plot was derivative of some of the other books in the series. That being said, it's always a pleasure to spend time with Dortmunder and crew, a group of characters that jump off the page in every book that they're in.
November 29, 2015
I am a Richard Stark reader. I have read nine of the Parker novels, and return to them when in the mood for great crime fiction in a dark register. Stark is one of the several pseudonyms of Donald Westlake, author of around a hundred novels before his death in 2008. As Westlake he is best known for the Dortmunder series. Whereas Parker is a master thief who take on only major, complex heists, Dortmunder’s crew are small timers, picking up whatever comes their way. I say that having read only this one Dortmunder novel, and I have to admit that what comes their way this time around is a chance at upwards of ten million dollars worth of art and antiques.
Westlake is the master of the comic caper, and this makes the dark, implacable drive of the Parker novels if not an anomaly then certainly a counterpoint to bulk of Westlake’s work. I will always prefer the Parker series, but this first foray into Dotmunder’s world is satisfying entertainment with a plot that you know, despite its complications and potential disasters, will turn out was well as Twelfth Night.
Westlake is the master of the comic caper, and this makes the dark, implacable drive of the Parker novels if not an anomaly then certainly a counterpoint to bulk of Westlake’s work. I will always prefer the Parker series, but this first foray into Dotmunder’s world is satisfying entertainment with a plot that you know, despite its complications and potential disasters, will turn out was well as Twelfth Night.
July 28, 2010
Westland set up the best capers in the business, (RIP), with pay offs in belly laughs. I just finished listening to Watch Your Back, in which the Back Room Boys not only plan a burglary, but fight to save the bar where they hatch their heists.
If you can, listen to this and the other Dortmunder novels. I feared that I couldn't possibly enjoy William Dufris' narration as well as Michael Kramer's, but both gentleman do justice to the understated, wry style of an author who always pulled it off.
If you can, listen to this and the other Dortmunder novels. I feared that I couldn't possibly enjoy William Dufris' narration as well as Michael Kramer's, but both gentleman do justice to the understated, wry style of an author who always pulled it off.
December 10, 2012
Dortmunder! Gosh I love these books. The tropes are nothing new. Perhaps it is in their familiarity that I find such fun an comfort.
This book in particular is one of my favorites thus far (I am reading them decidedly out of order). In a break from my typical reading I was more and more excited to watch the plot (well...plots) develop. Of course this doesn't change my ultimate affection for the characters and what they do I was just more breathless than usual finding which plot would pay off when.
This was a great diversion.
This book in particular is one of my favorites thus far (I am reading them decidedly out of order). In a break from my typical reading I was more and more excited to watch the plot (well...plots) develop. Of course this doesn't change my ultimate affection for the characters and what they do I was just more breathless than usual finding which plot would pay off when.
This was a great diversion.
August 18, 2014
Watch Your Back! belongs at the bottom of the top tier of Dortmunder novels. Lightweight but exquisitely plotted, the novel concerns, in large part, the fate of the O.J. Bar and Grill, where Dortmunder and his crew often meet. The more affection that you feel for the O.J., the more you will care how things turn out, so Watch Your Back! is best read in its proper sequence (12th novel in the series, not counting one story collection), by which time, if you are still reading the series, you ought to care a great deal.
June 22, 2022
A Dortmuder Novel
This time the gang has a lead on a great place to rob. The apartment of a very wealthy man who just happens to be living out of the country to aviod his ex-wives and some financial obligations. But, before they can really plan, they discover that the OJ Bar is the target of the New Jersey mob and going to be run out of business. No other place will do for our group’s meetings so they have to save that. By the time they get back to the crime it is just about too late.
This time the gang has a lead on a great place to rob. The apartment of a very wealthy man who just happens to be living out of the country to aviod his ex-wives and some financial obligations. But, before they can really plan, they discover that the OJ Bar is the target of the New Jersey mob and going to be run out of business. No other place will do for our group’s meetings so they have to save that. By the time they get back to the crime it is just about too late.
August 4, 2015
#13 in the John Dortmunder series.
John Dortmunder and his band of thieves are enticed by a fence to ransack the penthouse apartment of a multi-millionaire the fence has met at club Med. A parallel story follows the plan to rescue the bar containing their normal meeting room from the clutches of a NJ wiseguy.
John Dortmunder and his band of thieves are enticed by a fence to ransack the penthouse apartment of a multi-millionaire the fence has met at club Med. A parallel story follows the plan to rescue the bar containing their normal meeting room from the clutches of a NJ wiseguy.
Want to read
September 14, 2009AKA: Alan Marshall, Alan Marsh, James Blue, Ben Christopher, Edwin West, John B. Allan, Curt Clark, Tucker Coe, P.N. Castor, Timothy J. Culver, J. Morgan Cunningham, Samuel Holt, Judson Jack Carmichael, Richard Stark, Donald E. Westlake
March 19, 2024
I read the entire Dortmunder series years ago. I was looking for something with humor so I decided to read this one again. I think it was funnier this time than the first time I read it. I'm going to read them all again. Great entertainment.
March 21, 2021
Ordinarily, I love this series. Westlake is, as we all know, a talented writer with a diverse collection of characters inhabiting his various series. Dortmunder is a solid member of said collection, and these novels typically are both clever and funny.
This one was just a bit off, however. I think what brought it down to 3 stars was, for this reader anyway, too much emphasis on the side-stories. Sure, these elements all serve to support the main heist which, as it should be, is the centerpiece of any Dortmunder novel. But too much time is spent with some incompetent mobsters who have interfered with O.J.'s bar, where Dortmunder and company frequent to plan their heists and at a Club Med, where a beautiful woman is working her magic to facilitate revenge on the rich jerk (on behalf of his many ex-wives) who will be the target of the heist. And after so much time spent on the wiles of the femme fatale, she disappears from the story just as abruptly as she appeared.
Whew. Confusing? Well, perhaps not, but it just seemed a bit distracting in a story that could use a lot more of Dortmunder, Tiny, and the rest of the merry gang, and a bit less of these ancillary folks. None of this prevents Watch Your Back from being a fun diversion. However, the bar is high when it comes to anything written by Donald Westlake, so perhaps I held this to a more rigorous standard than I might have otherwise. New to the series? Jump in elsewhere. Already a fan? Then by all means, include this one, just remember to watch your back!
This one was just a bit off, however. I think what brought it down to 3 stars was, for this reader anyway, too much emphasis on the side-stories. Sure, these elements all serve to support the main heist which, as it should be, is the centerpiece of any Dortmunder novel. But too much time is spent with some incompetent mobsters who have interfered with O.J.'s bar, where Dortmunder and company frequent to plan their heists and at a Club Med, where a beautiful woman is working her magic to facilitate revenge on the rich jerk (on behalf of his many ex-wives) who will be the target of the heist. And after so much time spent on the wiles of the femme fatale, she disappears from the story just as abruptly as she appeared.
Whew. Confusing? Well, perhaps not, but it just seemed a bit distracting in a story that could use a lot more of Dortmunder, Tiny, and the rest of the merry gang, and a bit less of these ancillary folks. None of this prevents Watch Your Back from being a fun diversion. However, the bar is high when it comes to anything written by Donald Westlake, so perhaps I held this to a more rigorous standard than I might have otherwise. New to the series? Jump in elsewhere. Already a fan? Then by all means, include this one, just remember to watch your back!
November 24, 2025
“Watch Your Back” features another unpleasant rich man for Dortmunder et al. to rob, but this plot is starting to get old: there’s only so many ways to write a rich asshole. Sensing this, just when we think we know where the book is going Westlake pivots, demoting the heist angle to second fiddle and turning the book into a contest between organized crime — the New Jersey mafia — and Dortmunder’s disorganized version over the fate of the O.J. Bar and Grill. And it turns out a new plot was all that Westlake needed to snap the series out of its rut, even though this book shares the late-series fault of being over-long and occasionally meandering. Also helping to keep things fresh are a new character, the apprentice crook Judson Blint, and a couple of J.C. Taylor’s rare appearances. I would still have read the rest of the series even if this book had turned out to be a variation on “Road to Ruin”, but I’m glad that it wasn’t.
July 31, 2025
Always a great pleasure to read one of Westlake's Dortmunder novels and this doesn't disappoint. In this case the reformed Fence (in terms of personality, not occupation) has found a perfect unoccupied NYC penthouse for Dortmunder to plunder of this utter bastard he met in the Carribbean island where he did his reforming. Most of it came by observing the rich bastard's behaviour, and wanting to hit him were it hurts. So back in NYC, as Dortmunder works towards the plundering, the bastard is very unexpectedly making his way back to NYC. Sadly it's the second last hilarious Dortmunder I have left to read.
January 19, 2018
I'm in...first time I've picked up a Dortmunder novel. I made 2 mistakes, both of which involved putting the book down for more than one day at a time. Each time, I had to re-read everything to get back up to speed on where I left off. Best advice: read it in one weekend. There are a lot of plot threads, and you have to be able to hold them all.
That aside, great read, very enjoyable. I pictured the author giggling as he developed some of these characters. The last author who developed characters so much might have been Charles Dickens.
So I'm on to What's So Funny for the weekend.
That aside, great read, very enjoyable. I pictured the author giggling as he developed some of these characters. The last author who developed characters so much might have been Charles Dickens.
So I'm on to What's So Funny for the weekend.
April 13, 2020
It's been a long time since I've read any of these wonderful Dortmunder capers, but I'm glad to get back to them. Right now our libraries are closed, but e-books are still available, and these are old enough that they've fallen off in popularity, so I can instantly get one to my Kindle. This one made me laugh out loud at one point (which I never do when I'm reading), and after the fact I realized how carefully Westlake had set up the joke without my being aware of it. As always with Dortmunder, everything finally comes out all right, after many unexpected twists and turns.
March 25, 2021
I hate reviews that compare the book to previous work as I may not have read the previous work but I am going to do such a thing. If you haven't read the early Donald Westlake, do that, it is a treat. Comedy with mystery done extremely well in an area that is hard to do. This book had little humor but was pleasant enough. I didn't go to bed at night sorry I couldn't read one more chapter but it wasn't a chore to pick it up the next day. Donald Westlake under his many names (Richard Stark & Tucker Coe being my favorites) has written many excellent books. This just wasn't one of them.
January 6, 2023
John Dortmunder, an experienced thief, gets a call from an old friend Arnie Albright whom no one likes. Arnie has a proposition for Dortmunder. So he calls Andy to go with him to Arnie’s apartment. While Arnie was at Club Med he met Preston Fairweather, a rich, egotistical venture capitalist who liked to talk too much. Preston’s luxury apartment in East Manhattan was the proposition. In the meantime, the OJ Bar & Grill was in serious trouble and Dortmunder didn’t like it. He figured there must be a way to save the OJ. Um, not one of my favorite Dortmunder adventures. Three.point.five.
May 30, 2020
I love and recommend the Dortmunder novels, most of which can be enjoyed in no particular order. This one is a slight exception to that rule, as it somewhat relies on you having some baseline familiarity with the characters. It’s not my favorite in the series, its plot a little too sprawling and long-winded. But it still has a ton of charm, including a great first line and a number of classic Westlake jokes. Can’t go wrong with Dortmunder, even lesser entries like this one.
September 23, 2022
The first chapter is a perfect example of why I like this series so much! The bar, the regulars, the conversations, and the drink orders all just make me smile and feel at home! I’ll be sad when I read them all…
And one of the plot lines in this book is the gang trying to save that bar! Fun stuff! In fact, the whole book was just a fun read! I loved the kid, J.C., learning the ropes with the gang! Very humorous! The main 'job' in this story doesn't go as they planned it, but does it ever with Dortmunder and the gang?
Wanna have fun? Count how many times the ‘f’ word is used in chapter 25!
And one of the plot lines in this book is the gang trying to save that bar! Fun stuff! In fact, the whole book was just a fun read! I loved the kid, J.C., learning the ropes with the gang! Very humorous! The main 'job' in this story doesn't go as they planned it, but does it ever with Dortmunder and the gang?
Wanna have fun? Count how many times the ‘f’ word is used in chapter 25!
December 8, 2024
Honestly, this basically peaks in the first chapter when all of the barflies discuss how weird it is that heaven doesn't seem to have any furniture - I really enjoyed the idea that there should be a bunch of lazy boy recliners up there in the clouds. But it doesn't really matter that the rest of the book never really matches the high of that first chapter because the rest of it is still pretty fun (albeit less theologically minded)
June 19, 2016
Donald Westlake takes his time. One of the mos renowned contemporary American crime writers, Westlake slowly but surely builds his plot, introduces his characters, and brings them together in a riotous, enjoyable, comic crime novel that concludes driving the reader right to the end, after wondering, for a while, if reading this book would be worth the time and effort. In Watch Your Back!, Westlake introduces Dortmunder, the central character in this series of fourteen novels and eleven short stories running from from 1970 - 2009 (published posthumously). Watch Your Back! (Grand Cenntral Publishing, 2006, 360 Pages, $27.00/6.99), is the twelfth, first published in 2005, leaving me with plenty of room to get caught up.
With practically the same sentence book-ending Chapter 1 and final chapter, number 55, Westlake manages to weave one of the most complex plots I've ever read while bringing the whole construction to a completely satisfying ending and leaving me, as the reader, hungering for more. With most of the story built on character and plot rather than action, containing almost a complete absence of violence, and with numerous chuckles and a few outright laughs, Donald Westlake, though he's been deceased for nearly a decade, has promised me hours of further reading, and many opportunities to tap the local libraries and used book web sites for further grist.
John Dortmunder, the central character among this unlikely crew of small-time crooks, enters the O.J. Bar & Grill one day in July for a meeting with his associates in the back room, only to discover the back room is closed, the bar-stool regulars quiet, Rollo, the bartender, behaving unlike his usual welcoming self, and two threatening thugs overseeing it all from a booth in the rear. The back room is no longer available. Soon there emerges an unlikely crew of thieves, mobsters, a billionaire hiding from his many wives at a Club Med in the Caribbean, a fence who's identified a likely site for a heist, and a young wannabe crook named Judson. How the sad closing of the back room at the O.J. brings this unlikely cast of characters together and into conflict creates the sense of fun and suspense. Dortmunder appeared in Westlake's writing when a Parker novel he was writing (under the pseudonym of Richard Starke) seemed too funny to fit Parker's darker, more violent persona.
Most of the crew of small-time crooks who are recurring characters in the series, are involved in the intricate Watch Your Back!. Andy Kelp, a resourceful crook and Stan Murch, a cab driver, are the only two characters besides Dortmunder appearing in the entire series. Tiny, the muscle of the crew, and the fence , Andy Albright, appear in this novel, too, along with a number of other semi-regulars. It's a testament to Westlake's skill as a writer, that the characters are sharply enough etched that they need no particular back story to be included. Even though this is the twelfth novel in the series, I came to know the essentials of the characters quickly. I'm sure they'll be filled in for me as I read further books in the series, a task I look forward to undertaking. I won't, however, be exploring the plot of this novel any more here, since Westlake's work is so strongly plot driven. Have fun!
Donald Westlake (1933 – 2009) was a prolific and highly regarded writer of genre fiction, mostly crime, who won nearly every award available to crime and thriller writers. According to his son, Paul, who's the caretaker of the extensive Donald Westlake web site, Westlake wrote more than 100 books under a variety of pen names as well as numerous articles, film scripts, and too much more to mention. He wrote in a variety of genres, including crime, science fiction, biography, history, and children's stories. For further information about prolific and interesting writer, check out the web site.
I heard about Donald Westlake when his name was mentioned in an Amazon.com review comparing Timothy Hallinan's writing to Westlake's. Every writer develops a different and, if they're good, idiosyncratic style. Westlake's writing, at least in the Dortmunder series, seems somewhat emotionally detached as he adopts a light, unhurried, but crisp and compact style. As the setup begins to clarify the relationships and coincidences which comprise the bulk of this book, it takes on an increasing drive while never sacrificing the wry good humor hovering over this gang which never seems to get things quite right. I bought Watch Your Back! (Grand Central Publishing, 2006, 360 Pages, $27.00/6.99) from Thriftbooks, which has become my go-to web site for used paper back books. They deliver quickly, and almost every book I've bought from them has arrived in good condition with no shipping costs. I highly recommend Watch Your Back!
With practically the same sentence book-ending Chapter 1 and final chapter, number 55, Westlake manages to weave one of the most complex plots I've ever read while bringing the whole construction to a completely satisfying ending and leaving me, as the reader, hungering for more. With most of the story built on character and plot rather than action, containing almost a complete absence of violence, and with numerous chuckles and a few outright laughs, Donald Westlake, though he's been deceased for nearly a decade, has promised me hours of further reading, and many opportunities to tap the local libraries and used book web sites for further grist.
John Dortmunder, the central character among this unlikely crew of small-time crooks, enters the O.J. Bar & Grill one day in July for a meeting with his associates in the back room, only to discover the back room is closed, the bar-stool regulars quiet, Rollo, the bartender, behaving unlike his usual welcoming self, and two threatening thugs overseeing it all from a booth in the rear. The back room is no longer available. Soon there emerges an unlikely crew of thieves, mobsters, a billionaire hiding from his many wives at a Club Med in the Caribbean, a fence who's identified a likely site for a heist, and a young wannabe crook named Judson. How the sad closing of the back room at the O.J. brings this unlikely cast of characters together and into conflict creates the sense of fun and suspense. Dortmunder appeared in Westlake's writing when a Parker novel he was writing (under the pseudonym of Richard Starke) seemed too funny to fit Parker's darker, more violent persona.
Most of the crew of small-time crooks who are recurring characters in the series, are involved in the intricate Watch Your Back!. Andy Kelp, a resourceful crook and Stan Murch, a cab driver, are the only two characters besides Dortmunder appearing in the entire series. Tiny, the muscle of the crew, and the fence , Andy Albright, appear in this novel, too, along with a number of other semi-regulars. It's a testament to Westlake's skill as a writer, that the characters are sharply enough etched that they need no particular back story to be included. Even though this is the twelfth novel in the series, I came to know the essentials of the characters quickly. I'm sure they'll be filled in for me as I read further books in the series, a task I look forward to undertaking. I won't, however, be exploring the plot of this novel any more here, since Westlake's work is so strongly plot driven. Have fun!
Donald Westlake (1933 – 2009) was a prolific and highly regarded writer of genre fiction, mostly crime, who won nearly every award available to crime and thriller writers. According to his son, Paul, who's the caretaker of the extensive Donald Westlake web site, Westlake wrote more than 100 books under a variety of pen names as well as numerous articles, film scripts, and too much more to mention. He wrote in a variety of genres, including crime, science fiction, biography, history, and children's stories. For further information about prolific and interesting writer, check out the web site.
I heard about Donald Westlake when his name was mentioned in an Amazon.com review comparing Timothy Hallinan's writing to Westlake's. Every writer develops a different and, if they're good, idiosyncratic style. Westlake's writing, at least in the Dortmunder series, seems somewhat emotionally detached as he adopts a light, unhurried, but crisp and compact style. As the setup begins to clarify the relationships and coincidences which comprise the bulk of this book, it takes on an increasing drive while never sacrificing the wry good humor hovering over this gang which never seems to get things quite right. I bought Watch Your Back! (Grand Central Publishing, 2006, 360 Pages, $27.00/6.99) from Thriftbooks, which has become my go-to web site for used paper back books. They deliver quickly, and almost every book I've bought from them has arrived in good condition with no shipping costs. I highly recommend Watch Your Back!
October 15, 2017
Formulaic but it's a good formula; 3.5 stars. I would like to have seen Dortmunder get a big score but that would have defeated the formula of the decently competent crook who is beset by bad luck. Lots of moving parts in this one. I do get a bit tired of the routine at the OJ Bar and Grill.
May 20, 2021
A crew of jolly larcenists in NYC are planning to loot a rich man’s penthouse. At the same time, the crew’s hangout is overrun by mafiosos. This story featured Westlake’s Dortmunder character. Funny and clever. I liked it a lot.
July 30, 2021
An absolute delight. LOL funny, the most convoluted and suspenseful of the Dortmunders. The timing, interplay and irony are masterfully entwined, the characters sharp and the dialog terse. It's a thriller with an attitude.
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