Pale Kings and Princes vs The Judas Goat: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Spenser, Massachusetts, Boston, Private investigators, Fiction
Pale Kings and Princes
“The sun that brief December day shone weakly through the west-facing window of Garrett Kingsley's office.”
Spenser is hired to determine whether a reporter was killed by dope dealers or by an irate husband.
vs
The Judas Goat
Private eye Spenser returns to take on the terrorists who killed his client's wife and daughters in a London bombing, chasing them across Europe to the Montreal Olympics and a devastating climax.
The verdict
- Readers rate The Judas Goat highest: The Judas Goat 4.4 · Pale Kings and Princes 4.0.
- The Judas Goat is the quickest read — about 3 hours vs 5 for Pale Kings and Princes.
- The Judas Goat has the widest readership — 377 ratings behind its score.
- Pale Kings and Princes reaches further in scholarship and criticism — cited 2 times.
How to choose
Scores by source
| Pale Kings and Princes | The Judas Goat | |
|---|---|---|
| Hardcover | 3.6 (14) | 4.0 (22) |
| Apple Books | 4.0 (258) | 4.5 (377) |
Reception
| Pale Kings and Princes | The Judas Goat | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 258 | 377 |
| Editions | 5 | 5 |
| Citations | 2 | 1 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Wikipedia attention | 102 | 120 |
| Pages | 312 | 181 |