#jesse stone series

Jesse Stone #10

by Michael Brandman

This is Michael Brandman’s first book in his attempt to carry on Parker’s series featuring Paradise Police Chief Jesse Stone.

One would expect Brandman to continue in the direction in which Parker has taken his lead characters.  Instead, Brandman moves Jesse Stone out of his condo and into a rental cottage in a different area of town and sends Stone’s serious girlfriend away to Europe. Also, the dialogue between Chief Stone and his officers isn’t quite right.  Officer Molly Crane has developed a different personality and her relationship with Chief Stone is now confrontational instead of good-humored. Everything is just a bit off.  And he repeats an entire scene, word-for-word, 30 pages later.  Did anyone edit this?

I’ve concluded that Michael Brandman may be a perfectly fine screenwriter, but he is no Robert B. Parker, and so I won’t be reading any more of the Jesse Stone series.

Jesse Stone #7

by Robert B. Parker

As you may have surmised by the cover art, this installment features notorious Apache hitman, Wilson Cromartie, aka Crow.  Ten years ago, Crow made off with millions of dollars, but has found a life of wealth boring.  Now that the statute of limitations has run out, he’s decided to return to Paradise. He’s been hired by a Miami gangster to find the gangster’s runaway wife and daughter.  However, when he does, he balks at the gangster’s orders to kill the wife and force the girl to return to her father.  Crow may be a hitman, but he doesn’t harm women.  So he pays a visit to Police Chief Jesse Stone to enlist his help in protecting the girl.

Parker’s books contain too much booze and recreational sex for my taste, but they’re action-packed thrillers that keep me turning the pages.