We took the author’s word for it, and having enjoyed well enough her first in the Miranda’s Rights five-book series (“Someone Else’s Daughter”), we thought we’d similarly try Lanier’s first in her Miranda and Parker Mystery set, “All Eyes On Me.” Firstly, we resent the author’s “numbering” and titling scheme, as “Eyes” is just a mere continuation of the earlier set (in which she was a new PI working for Parker); thus this novel had some horrible spoilers about issues left over from the first series. Moreover, at a mere 180 or so pages, with like 30 blank pages due to some 59 chapters (many of which were a single page), this new tale is really just a novella. The plot involves the murder of a popular Las Vegas-based female singer, but when the police immediately hired Parker’s firm to investigate, CEO Parker lets Miranda take the lead on the case, an unlikely development. Naturally she does manage to stick with it to a fairly trivial resolution.
Having now read two full-length novels and three short stories about these two protagonists, we agree with many other reviewers that these stories are best regarded as amateurish and mediocre knockoffs of J.D. Robb’s superb Eve Dallas prolific set of “In Death” novels. Lanier has a lot of catching up to do to even approach the quality and suspense of those works. And by now, we totally get that Parker and Miranda form the world’s deepest mutual admiration society, about which we’re already tired. Sorry.