Matt Scudder is the detective who began in the hard-boiled tradition of hard-drinking loners outside the establishment, here the law-enforcement establishment. In the first mystery of the series, Scudder has already resigned from the police force after a little girl was killed by one of his ricocheting bullets in a shoot-out on the street. He has been divorced from his wife and in effect from his two sons. In subsequent writings, Scudder has joined Alcoholics Anonymous, and going to meetings is part of his routine, as well as an indication that there is a gravity to his life. Even the Wicked refers to recurring characters in earlier books of the series: his second wife, Elaine; his assistant, T. J.; his A. A. sponsor; and Mick Ballou, bar-owner and gangster (who is only mentioned). Elaine is a former prostitute, who invested her money in real estate. Now retired from...