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Jesse Stone #3
Death In Paradise
Robert B. Parker is back in Paradise, where Detective Jesse Stone is looking for two things: the killer of a teenage girl—and someone, anyone, who is willing to claim the body…
294 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2001
1010 people are currently reading
2025 people want to read
About the author
Robert B. Parker
492 books2,311 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database named Robert B. Parker.
Robert Brown Parker was an American writer, primarily of fiction within the mystery/detective genre. His most famous works were the 40 novels written about the fictional private detective Spenser. ABC television network developed the television series Spenser: For Hire based on the character in the mid-1980s; a series of TV movies was also produced based on the character. His works incorporate encyclopedic knowledge of the Boston metropolitan area. The Spenser novels have been cited as reviving and changing the detective genre by critics and bestselling authors including Robert Crais, Harlan Coben, and Dennis Lehane.
Parker also wrote nine novels featuring the fictional character Jesse Stone, a Los Angeles police officer who moves to a small New England town; six novels with the fictional character Sunny Randall, a female private investigator; and four Westerns starring the duo Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch. The first was Appaloosa, made into a film starring Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen.
Robert Brown Parker was an American writer, primarily of fiction within the mystery/detective genre. His most famous works were the 40 novels written about the fictional private detective Spenser. ABC television network developed the television series Spenser: For Hire based on the character in the mid-1980s; a series of TV movies was also produced based on the character. His works incorporate encyclopedic knowledge of the Boston metropolitan area. The Spenser novels have been cited as reviving and changing the detective genre by critics and bestselling authors including Robert Crais, Harlan Coben, and Dennis Lehane.
Parker also wrote nine novels featuring the fictional character Jesse Stone, a Los Angeles police officer who moves to a small New England town; six novels with the fictional character Sunny Randall, a female private investigator; and four Westerns starring the duo Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch. The first was Appaloosa, made into a film starring Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 502 reviews
July 31, 2015
The police chief of a small town, Jesse Stone, is just trying to enjoy a beer with the fellas after a softball game when one of his teammates finds the murdered body of a teenage girl floating in a nearby lake. Don’t you just hate it when you can’t get away from work?
Trying to identify the dead girl and figure out who killed her will lead Jesse to a variety of people including terrible parents, a pretty school principal, a dangerous gangster, a drunken novelist, and a nun running a shelter for teenage runaways. As Jesse tracks the girl’s history and movements he begins to feel a deep empathy for her as he learns how she was ill-used by her family, her schoolmates, and the people who took advantage of her when she was on the streets.
As usual though, Jesse’s problems at work take a backseat to his on-going and increasingly tedious issues with his ex-wife, Jenn. The two of them are unable to let each other go, and yet Jenn can’t commit to Jesse and sleeps with other guys even as he too is carrying on with one gorgeous woman after another. The two of them understand that this is dysfunctional but justify their actions by the ‘deep bond’ they have. The limbo of being together but apart is not helping Jesse’s drinking, and he reluctantly lets Jenn coax him into seeing an alcohol counselor.
The bit of saving grace with that sub-plot is found in Jesse seeing some of him and Jenn in domestic violence case he works in which he ultimately realizes that the husband is beating his wife in an effort to control her out of fear of losing her. Jessie likes to act like his refusal to love anyone but Jenn is what makes them special and sets their drama apart from the common failings that destroy other couples, but dealing with the fall out of an abusive relationship hits a nerve with Jesse. It’s at least a nod towards acknowledging that Jesse and Jenn aren’t so much romantic star-crossed lovers as just two people who really should get the hell away from each other although Robert B. Parker could never entirely abandon similar themes of unhealthy ideas of true love in all his later books.
It ends up being a pretty typical RBP novel on the mystery side of things, but it also seems like he was stretching a bit to give Jesse some depth and make him a touch more self-aware so that probably makes it the best of the three in the series so far.
Trying to identify the dead girl and figure out who killed her will lead Jesse to a variety of people including terrible parents, a pretty school principal, a dangerous gangster, a drunken novelist, and a nun running a shelter for teenage runaways. As Jesse tracks the girl’s history and movements he begins to feel a deep empathy for her as he learns how she was ill-used by her family, her schoolmates, and the people who took advantage of her when she was on the streets.
As usual though, Jesse’s problems at work take a backseat to his on-going and increasingly tedious issues with his ex-wife, Jenn. The two of them are unable to let each other go, and yet Jenn can’t commit to Jesse and sleeps with other guys even as he too is carrying on with one gorgeous woman after another. The two of them understand that this is dysfunctional but justify their actions by the ‘deep bond’ they have. The limbo of being together but apart is not helping Jesse’s drinking, and he reluctantly lets Jenn coax him into seeing an alcohol counselor.
The bit of saving grace with that sub-plot is found in Jesse seeing some of him and Jenn in domestic violence case he works in which he ultimately realizes that the husband is beating his wife in an effort to control her out of fear of losing her. Jessie likes to act like his refusal to love anyone but Jenn is what makes them special and sets their drama apart from the common failings that destroy other couples, but dealing with the fall out of an abusive relationship hits a nerve with Jesse. It’s at least a nod towards acknowledging that Jesse and Jenn aren’t so much romantic star-crossed lovers as just two people who really should get the hell away from each other although Robert B. Parker could never entirely abandon similar themes of unhealthy ideas of true love in all his later books.
It ends up being a pretty typical RBP novel on the mystery side of things, but it also seems like he was stretching a bit to give Jesse some depth and make him a touch more self-aware so that probably makes it the best of the three in the series so far.
November 12, 2024
3 Stars. The character Parker has created in Jesse Stone continues to grow on me. I'm doing my best not to binge read five or six in a row. This one didn't catch me as much as #2, 'Trouble in Paradise,' in which a gang of cutthroats take out the bridge to an exclusive island just off-shore in Paradise, Mass., and proceed to loot every house on the island and the bank. Here Jesse is finishing off a great game in the local men's softball league with a beer in the parking lot and exchanging stories about baseball and women, what else, when a teenage girl's body is found in the nearby lake. It's back to work for Chief Stone. Tracking down her identity proves difficult; it's only with the help of her younger sister and a former boyfriend, that he finds success. Sadly it's Eleanor 'Billie' Bishop. Her strict parents actually deny her existence because of her bad reputation at high school. They had given her the boot from the family home. I truly enjoy the Chief's process of investigation, from one lead to the next, often tough slogging. Some of Spenser's Boston friends show up - Gino Fish and Vinnie. Of course, Jesse and his former wife Jenn are still not settled. I am so hooked. (Ap2022/No2024)
September 23, 2017
3.5 stars, best in the Jesse Stone series so far, but definitely room for improvement.
Warning: The dead girl was 14, and there are troubling scenes with other young teenagers. Parker handles this carefully and with respect. Still, it's hard for me.
The reality here is that the Jesse Stone series, at least books 1 - 3, are Parker's analysis of himself and why his marriage to Joan failed in the early 1980s. Since this book was written more than 15 years later, he has done some thinking about the why, and he presents it here. Jesse's difficulties with Jenn comprise perhaps 1/4 of the book, but it's not bad stuff. Both Joan and Parker had their faults at the time, and made a pretty good effort at redemption and restoration of a marriage that worked, albeit a bit unconventionally.
-
Parker's wit and humour are better in this book than in the previous Jesse Stone series. The main plot is good but the pacing is a bit slow, but the other plots allow supporting characters to express themselves. Not bad.
And, finally, there is some very good humour! (And it lasts! Good dog!)
“What kind of dog is it?” Molly said.
“Dalmatian. They’re not all that common.”
“Male or female?”
“Male,” Jesse said. “For crissake, you’re a cop. You’re supposed to be observant.”
“I’m an Irish Catholic girl,” Molly said. “I don’t look at penises.”
“Not even human?”
From the cell block in the back, they could hear the dog begin to howl.
“Especially not human.”
“Always in the dark,” Jesse said.
Molly grinned at him. “Always. With my eyes tight shut, thinking of Saint Patrick.”
Parker's prose really is eloquent at times...
He felt the familiar smooth curve as he ran his hand up her thigh. The familiar soft slope of her belly. He had done this often. This time, like each time, it was brand-new. He could hear her breathing, felt the pressure of her hips, she was skillful and fully engaged. The part of him that was not making love smiled.
There are some nice quotes
The talk was of double plays, and games played long ago, and plays at the plate, and sex. Talk of sex and baseball was the best of all possible talk.
Because Spenser was not a policeman, he had the freedom to kick the shite out of anyone. Often, usually. It seemed we'd miss that freedom with Stone, but he proves he's got some level of the Spenser-like, thug-hero in him. Well done.
And we've had some very snappy dialogue, finally. Books 1 & 2 we're short on Parker snap! Further books in this series might get pretty good.
-
The central mystery and events of the book are very difficult for me, concerning the sexual abuse of children. Who are we that we allow this?
1 in 5 girls and 1 in 20 boys is a victim of child sexual abuse.
Parker is sensitive to the subject matter, makes the horror felt, but does not browbeat you with it.
Cops see kids like Billie too often. Town pump. Kids so desperate for affection or connection or whatever it was that sex became their handshake. They were joyless encounters as far as he knew. For certain, it was not pleasure that drove girls like Billie to flop for anybody.
The other female characters read like fragments of Joan/Jenn/Susan as well.
Interesting: She's sitting like Susan, perhaps like Joan in RL:
Jenn got up and poured herself a half a glass more wine. Then she sat back down on the couch and tucked her feet under her.
All-in-all, I enjoyed this book, even though I almost abandoned it about 1/4 the way in. I'm glad I didn’t, as the character development was pretty good.
The ending is satisfying, without any villains getting off scott-free as in some Parker books.
The word "maroon" does not appear at all in this book. Amazing!
.
Warning: The dead girl was 14, and there are troubling scenes with other young teenagers. Parker handles this carefully and with respect. Still, it's hard for me.
The reality here is that the Jesse Stone series, at least books 1 - 3, are Parker's analysis of himself and why his marriage to Joan failed in the early 1980s. Since this book was written more than 15 years later, he has done some thinking about the why, and he presents it here. Jesse's difficulties with Jenn comprise perhaps 1/4 of the book, but it's not bad stuff. Both Joan and Parker had their faults at the time, and made a pretty good effort at redemption and restoration of a marriage that worked, albeit a bit unconventionally.
-
Parker's wit and humour are better in this book than in the previous Jesse Stone series. The main plot is good but the pacing is a bit slow, but the other plots allow supporting characters to express themselves. Not bad.
And, finally, there is some very good humour! (And it lasts! Good dog!)
“What kind of dog is it?” Molly said.
“Dalmatian. They’re not all that common.”
“Male or female?”
“Male,” Jesse said. “For crissake, you’re a cop. You’re supposed to be observant.”
“I’m an Irish Catholic girl,” Molly said. “I don’t look at penises.”
“Not even human?”
From the cell block in the back, they could hear the dog begin to howl.
“Especially not human.”
“Always in the dark,” Jesse said.
Molly grinned at him. “Always. With my eyes tight shut, thinking of Saint Patrick.”
Parker's prose really is eloquent at times...
He felt the familiar smooth curve as he ran his hand up her thigh. The familiar soft slope of her belly. He had done this often. This time, like each time, it was brand-new. He could hear her breathing, felt the pressure of her hips, she was skillful and fully engaged. The part of him that was not making love smiled.
There are some nice quotes
The talk was of double plays, and games played long ago, and plays at the plate, and sex. Talk of sex and baseball was the best of all possible talk.
Because Spenser was not a policeman, he had the freedom to kick the shite out of anyone. Often, usually. It seemed we'd miss that freedom with Stone, but he proves he's got some level of the Spenser-like, thug-hero in him. Well done.
And we've had some very snappy dialogue, finally. Books 1 & 2 we're short on Parker snap! Further books in this series might get pretty good.
-
The central mystery and events of the book are very difficult for me, concerning the sexual abuse of children. Who are we that we allow this?
1 in 5 girls and 1 in 20 boys is a victim of child sexual abuse.
Parker is sensitive to the subject matter, makes the horror felt, but does not browbeat you with it.
Cops see kids like Billie too often. Town pump. Kids so desperate for affection or connection or whatever it was that sex became their handshake. They were joyless encounters as far as he knew. For certain, it was not pleasure that drove girls like Billie to flop for anybody.
The other female characters read like fragments of Joan/Jenn/Susan as well.
Interesting: She's sitting like Susan, perhaps like Joan in RL:
Jenn got up and poured herself a half a glass more wine. Then she sat back down on the couch and tucked her feet under her.
All-in-all, I enjoyed this book, even though I almost abandoned it about 1/4 the way in. I'm glad I didn’t, as the character development was pretty good.
The ending is satisfying, without any villains getting off scott-free as in some Parker books.
The word "maroon" does not appear at all in this book. Amazing!
.
June 17, 2020
Death in Paradise, the third Jesse Stone adventure, is not memorable, but it serves to pass the time.
Jesse, chief of police of the small community of Paradise, is called away from the weekly softball game: the body of a teenage girl has washed up on the inlet shore. The search for her identity and her murderer eventually leads to the nearby city of Boston, and it begins to seem as if there may be a connection between the murdered young runaway and the world of the powerful gay crime lord Gino Fish.
As a Spenser fan, I enjoyed seeing Gino—and even more his “shooter” Vinnie—again, but the mystery itself, although well conceived and executed, isn’t sufficient to hold the attention. There is, however, the usual amusing interchanges between Stone and his loyal staff, including young patrolman “Suitcase” Simpson and sassy Irish Catholic policewoman Molly who runs the day-to-day operation f the sheriff's office while her boss takes care of the major crimes. There is also a subplot involving an alcoholic batterer and his long-suffering wife which is not only interesting in itself, but also gives Chief Stone a clue to his feelings about his relationship with his ex-wife Jenn.
Speaking of Jenn: I’m tired of the woman after only three books. In fact, I dislike her more than Spenser’s SusanSilverman. At least Susan is on her man’s side, intelligent, occasionally capable of useful insights. Can’t say the same for weathergirl Jenn.
Still, it’s a Robert B. Parker book, written in his inimitable, breezy style. I’ll be back to read the fourth book eventually. (But I’ll read another Sunny Randall first. I think I like Sunny Randall better.)
October 28, 2025
The small town 40ish police chief solves a homicide and underage prostitution ring. But the more interesting story for me is his relationship with his ex-wife who he still loves and his new girlfriend who is very understanding. The problem is his ex wasn’t and still isn’t satisfied with their life together. But they still have a strong bond.
April 15, 2012
This is a serviceable detective thriller about the police chief of a small coastal town near Boston. The protagonist is an alcoholic who blew his career as a homicide detective in L.A. and his marriage, too. He's not a complete loner; he still meets his ex-wife frequently and starts a relationship with the head of the local high school...which interested me: The parts of the book where it is demonstrated that Stone has a life beyond his job mostly distract from rather than advance the plot. It's more realistic than a complete loner but slows things down. So maybe that's why the loner is such a cliche of detective fiction; having a real life gets in the way of solving crimes which is what people who read detective fiction (presumably) want to read about.
October 19, 2019
Read 2013
June 8, 2015
I so enjoy reading Jesse Stone books. What I most like about them isn't necessarily the mystery (which is always superbly plotted), or the adventure (which is often knuckle-biting), it's the character of Jesse.
Jesse is a human with a lot of human mistakes. He is an alcoholic, not recovering, and has real issues with his on-again, off-again ex-wife. I love that Parker doesn't make any excuses for Jesse's behavior and that Jesse doesn't make any for himself. Usually, in a book, the character is recovering from some addiction. In this book, and the others in the series so far, Jesse isn't recovering. He fights his demons in front of the reader and it's so refreshing to read about a "real" person with problems who isn't always successful in dealing with them.
In this series installment, Jesse is hot on the trail of a murder. A local teenager is found floating in the lake and Jesse and his not-so-crackpot team of police dive in to the mystery only to discover the waters are a lot deeper than they look. Soon, the tiny police force is mixed up in the gang, prostitution, and child molestation. As always, the plot is so tightly written. It's a pleasure to see Jesse's mind at work and I love that he is changing man, book by book. Can't wait to read the next one!
Jesse is a human with a lot of human mistakes. He is an alcoholic, not recovering, and has real issues with his on-again, off-again ex-wife. I love that Parker doesn't make any excuses for Jesse's behavior and that Jesse doesn't make any for himself. Usually, in a book, the character is recovering from some addiction. In this book, and the others in the series so far, Jesse isn't recovering. He fights his demons in front of the reader and it's so refreshing to read about a "real" person with problems who isn't always successful in dealing with them.
In this series installment, Jesse is hot on the trail of a murder. A local teenager is found floating in the lake and Jesse and his not-so-crackpot team of police dive in to the mystery only to discover the waters are a lot deeper than they look. Soon, the tiny police force is mixed up in the gang, prostitution, and child molestation. As always, the plot is so tightly written. It's a pleasure to see Jesse's mind at work and I love that he is changing man, book by book. Can't wait to read the next one!
November 21, 2024
Another enjoyable entry in this series. Jesse Stone is an interesting character in whom Parker was apparently exploring his own emotional paradoxes (at least, that seems to be a consensus among many GR members).
The mystery in this book is pretty well crafted but the conclusion seemed to be a bit abrupt. The most engaging elements of this story centered on Jesse trying to control his drinking addiction and gain some insight into his dysfunctional relationship with his ex-wife, Jenn. I’m beginning to fear another “Susan Silverman” experience in this series and can only hope that this doesn’t come to pass. Frankly, if Parker was striving to gain clarity in his personal life via the Jesse-Jenn connection, I’d have recommended a good psychologist— more effective and less likely to cause his reading audience aggravation with the interminable and unhealthy relationship between these two.
Onward to #4. Fingers crossed.
The mystery in this book is pretty well crafted but the conclusion seemed to be a bit abrupt. The most engaging elements of this story centered on Jesse trying to control his drinking addiction and gain some insight into his dysfunctional relationship with his ex-wife, Jenn. I’m beginning to fear another “Susan Silverman” experience in this series and can only hope that this doesn’t come to pass. Frankly, if Parker was striving to gain clarity in his personal life via the Jesse-Jenn connection, I’d have recommended a good psychologist— more effective and less likely to cause his reading audience aggravation with the interminable and unhealthy relationship between these two.
Onward to #4. Fingers crossed.
March 29, 2016
This is book #3 in the Jesse stone series. I had not planned on reading this book at all for this month but I wanted a nice quick read to finish off my month and this was the perfect choice. This one was much better than the first 2 were, still a little subdued but more was going on than in the other ones. I was glad to see that.
Synopsis
Robert B. Parker is back in Paradise, where Detective Jesse Stone is looking for two things: the killer of a teenage girl—and someone, anyone, who is willing to claim the body…
The plot of this story covers a rather tough subject of pedophilia wrapped up in prostitution, fortunately though it does not get over the top in depth on the subject. Even though the story still lacks a lot of the excitement that I enjoy I still found it to be pretty entertaining. The story itself is pretty gritty and I think the build up to the mystery was good from the start and it gets readers to start questioning things, which is always good. I wished that it would have had more twists to the story, but I am hopeful that each book in this series will get better and better as I read them.
I find that I really like Jesse Stone a lot and he has some real struggles in this series with his alcohol and break up with his wife, who of which he still loves and cherishes. I think he is developing very well throughout the story, and I like the rawness of his character and all of his flaws. I look forward to much more of him.
I would recommend this series so far to anyone who likes more of a laid back mystery. The stories are really good they just aren't adrenalin rushing action, which I love, but there is something about this one that keeps me going. Must be the characters. I look forward to the rest of this series. I am rating this book 3.5 stars.
Synopsis
Robert B. Parker is back in Paradise, where Detective Jesse Stone is looking for two things: the killer of a teenage girl—and someone, anyone, who is willing to claim the body…
The plot of this story covers a rather tough subject of pedophilia wrapped up in prostitution, fortunately though it does not get over the top in depth on the subject. Even though the story still lacks a lot of the excitement that I enjoy I still found it to be pretty entertaining. The story itself is pretty gritty and I think the build up to the mystery was good from the start and it gets readers to start questioning things, which is always good. I wished that it would have had more twists to the story, but I am hopeful that each book in this series will get better and better as I read them.
I find that I really like Jesse Stone a lot and he has some real struggles in this series with his alcohol and break up with his wife, who of which he still loves and cherishes. I think he is developing very well throughout the story, and I like the rawness of his character and all of his flaws. I look forward to much more of him.
I would recommend this series so far to anyone who likes more of a laid back mystery. The stories are really good they just aren't adrenalin rushing action, which I love, but there is something about this one that keeps me going. Must be the characters. I look forward to the rest of this series. I am rating this book 3.5 stars.
August 5, 2012
This book was actually my first meeting with Jesse Stone in the guise of Tom Selleck. Yes indeed I saw the tv-movie and found it highly enjoyable. And indeed the film stays largely faithfull to the book, with the exception of Stone's exwife who plays a larger part in the books than the movies. I still think that the books did that far better than RB Parker ever did.
The story is about a murdered girl found and she is NOT MISSING because her family threw her out because she did not fit their ideal family. While Jesse and the Paradise police crew search for a murderer we get to meet Lilly Summers, highschool principal and squeeze. A nun that cares for runaways, a gay Boston gangster and his receptionist, a drunk and his wife that do have different ideas about love & a ex policeman/ ex alcoholic / psychologist.
It all is part of one tale which is written in no particular sense of urgency or hurry. And in the end become one coherent story as only Parker can write. His Stone novels however speak much more too me mostly because of the character of Jesse Stone who is searching for something. But Parker does seem to love his therapist approuch towards most of his written hero's like Spenser, Stone and Randall.
If you like me saw the movie first I can only add that the book is well worth the time it does add different layers to the personality of Stone and other lead characters.
The story is about a murdered girl found and she is NOT MISSING because her family threw her out because she did not fit their ideal family. While Jesse and the Paradise police crew search for a murderer we get to meet Lilly Summers, highschool principal and squeeze. A nun that cares for runaways, a gay Boston gangster and his receptionist, a drunk and his wife that do have different ideas about love & a ex policeman/ ex alcoholic / psychologist.
It all is part of one tale which is written in no particular sense of urgency or hurry. And in the end become one coherent story as only Parker can write. His Stone novels however speak much more too me mostly because of the character of Jesse Stone who is searching for something. But Parker does seem to love his therapist approuch towards most of his written hero's like Spenser, Stone and Randall.
If you like me saw the movie first I can only add that the book is well worth the time it does add different layers to the personality of Stone and other lead characters.
September 19, 2017
I'm enjoying this book and series more than I thought I would! It's a pretty simple read with an entertaining mystery.
Sheriff Jesse Stone is ready to relax with the guys after a baseball game, when someone finds a dead teenager girl floating in the water. Jesse needs to find out who killed the girl, however he is finding lots of challenges, including who the girl even is.
I really liked the pace of the novel. I felt that there was always something happening and I never got too bored. The mystery isn't too surprising or shocking, but it's was a fun ride to get there.
I really don't like how the author has the same scenes over and over again. Jesse and his ex-wife are really good friends, and have the same conversation every time they meet about how they want to get back together, but can't. It's really annoying, I wish the author would just make a decision, instead of dragging this out over 3+ books.
Sheriff Jesse Stone is ready to relax with the guys after a baseball game, when someone finds a dead teenager girl floating in the water. Jesse needs to find out who killed the girl, however he is finding lots of challenges, including who the girl even is.
I really liked the pace of the novel. I felt that there was always something happening and I never got too bored. The mystery isn't too surprising or shocking, but it's was a fun ride to get there.
I really don't like how the author has the same scenes over and over again. Jesse and his ex-wife are really good friends, and have the same conversation every time they meet about how they want to get back together, but can't. It's really annoying, I wish the author would just make a decision, instead of dragging this out over 3+ books.
September 12, 2016
After finishing all of the non-deceased Robert B. Parker's "Spencer" series, I thought I would try some of his other books. I like protagonist Jesse Stone as a character, the setup and setting, but found his relationship with his ex-wife tedious. Like the Spencer series, the Jesse Stone series is also into "shrinks" and self-analysis as the Jesse and his ex work to deal with their personal issues and Jesse's apparent alcoholism. Despite this, there is a crime to solve - the murder of an adolescent girl whose parents have disowned her - and Jesse Stone has his own dogged way of investigating.
September 10, 2020
I’m so sick of Jesse and Jenn, I could barf.
November 21, 2017
I love Jesse Stone! He’s a very down to earth police chief who has problems of his own to solve. While solving the crime of murder he is also trying to fight the demon of alcoholism. He knows when he needs help and is man enough to ask for it. Maybe he can regain his life with his ex wife.......maybe not......on to book 4......
July 22, 2020
I listened to the downloadable audiobook and it was a quick listen. The reader was good. I'm not sure why I enjoy this series. Jesse Stone has his problems: booze and his ex-wife, whom he's still in love with. I guess I like the character because of his sense of justice and because he's an unpretentious straight shooter. The mystery in this story was sad and sordid, which I guess is pretty much what one can expect from murder..
April 26, 2016
This is Parker’s third book in the Jesse Stone series.
Jesse and his friends are relaxing after a baseball game when a young girl is found face down in a lake. She only has one shoe on and it appears she has been in the water for a while. When Jesse initially checks out the body, he finds a bullet hole behind her right ear that has exited on the other side of her head. Such a bullet would have been made by a gun fired at close range. It looks like she was shot and then dumped in the lake. There is only one clue: an engraved ring with a blue stone on a broken gold chain. It looks like a high school ring and it is marked by an engraving.
Jesse must find out who the girl is and why she was killed. With the ring the only clue, he heads to the local high school where he meets the principal, Dr. Lily Summers. She is smart, good looking and likes baseball, so the initial meeting leads to a second meeting and another romantic liaison in Jesse’s confused social life. Lily helps Jesse identify the murdered teenager as Elinor Bishop, a young girl known to her friends as Billy. When he visits her parents he is faced with a difficult problem. They refuse to acknowledge she exists.
In a parallel investigation, Jesse is faced with the Snyders, a feuding couple who have been arrested several times for being drunk and disorderly. They have a well known routine which keeps repeating itself. They begin by drinking together, an activity which soon deteriorates into arguing and at that point, the husband beats the wife. Each time this happens, she ends up in the emergency room with multiple injuries. When questioned about what has happened, she denies her husband has hit her and says she has had a fall or an accident of some kind. And despite a continuing array of cuts bruises and fractures, her husband denies ever hitting her. This is the third time they have been in the police station and Jesse wants to stop this cycle of abuse and bring the wife to her senses. He places the outraged husband in a jail cell, determined to give the wife an opportunity to begin thinking sensibly before she is killed. But Jesse’s plan is a little shaky and he is not sure it will work.
Meanwhile Jesse’s complicated personal life continues. Jenn has moved to Paradise and is working at the local TV station. The couple have been divorced for four years now but they still see each other about once a week. They agree that despite the strong bond they have with each other, they should move on, but they don’t. They still haven’t really figured things out. And Jenn is worried enough about Jesse’s drinking that she refers him to a cop named Dix who was an alcoholic and provides counselling as a way to keep himself on the straight and narrow road to sobriety. Dix makes some interesting observations about Jesse’s drinking, questioning Jesse’s own understanding of his problem with alcohol. Jesse gets some very simple but important advice and he needs it, as he is still dancing on the edge of that difficult problem.
Jesse remains a complicated character, a man who has a messy personal life but who is confident and self-assured in his work. As a former L.A. cop, he is not a crack murder investigator but is dogged and perseveres. He tracks down every clue he uncovers and follows the trail that leads him to the murky underworld of Boston and a shady mob boss we met in the first novel. Jesse provides strong leadership to the police force he has in this small town who are more accustomed to dealing with rowdy teenagers and traffic violations than murder.
This book is filled with Parker’s short chapters, choppy sentences, and his quick, witty paced dialogue. He continues to use words sparingly, considered a marked characteristic of his writing style.
This is a quick, but enjoyable read and a well written mystery.
Jesse and his friends are relaxing after a baseball game when a young girl is found face down in a lake. She only has one shoe on and it appears she has been in the water for a while. When Jesse initially checks out the body, he finds a bullet hole behind her right ear that has exited on the other side of her head. Such a bullet would have been made by a gun fired at close range. It looks like she was shot and then dumped in the lake. There is only one clue: an engraved ring with a blue stone on a broken gold chain. It looks like a high school ring and it is marked by an engraving.
Jesse must find out who the girl is and why she was killed. With the ring the only clue, he heads to the local high school where he meets the principal, Dr. Lily Summers. She is smart, good looking and likes baseball, so the initial meeting leads to a second meeting and another romantic liaison in Jesse’s confused social life. Lily helps Jesse identify the murdered teenager as Elinor Bishop, a young girl known to her friends as Billy. When he visits her parents he is faced with a difficult problem. They refuse to acknowledge she exists.
In a parallel investigation, Jesse is faced with the Snyders, a feuding couple who have been arrested several times for being drunk and disorderly. They have a well known routine which keeps repeating itself. They begin by drinking together, an activity which soon deteriorates into arguing and at that point, the husband beats the wife. Each time this happens, she ends up in the emergency room with multiple injuries. When questioned about what has happened, she denies her husband has hit her and says she has had a fall or an accident of some kind. And despite a continuing array of cuts bruises and fractures, her husband denies ever hitting her. This is the third time they have been in the police station and Jesse wants to stop this cycle of abuse and bring the wife to her senses. He places the outraged husband in a jail cell, determined to give the wife an opportunity to begin thinking sensibly before she is killed. But Jesse’s plan is a little shaky and he is not sure it will work.
Meanwhile Jesse’s complicated personal life continues. Jenn has moved to Paradise and is working at the local TV station. The couple have been divorced for four years now but they still see each other about once a week. They agree that despite the strong bond they have with each other, they should move on, but they don’t. They still haven’t really figured things out. And Jenn is worried enough about Jesse’s drinking that she refers him to a cop named Dix who was an alcoholic and provides counselling as a way to keep himself on the straight and narrow road to sobriety. Dix makes some interesting observations about Jesse’s drinking, questioning Jesse’s own understanding of his problem with alcohol. Jesse gets some very simple but important advice and he needs it, as he is still dancing on the edge of that difficult problem.
Jesse remains a complicated character, a man who has a messy personal life but who is confident and self-assured in his work. As a former L.A. cop, he is not a crack murder investigator but is dogged and perseveres. He tracks down every clue he uncovers and follows the trail that leads him to the murky underworld of Boston and a shady mob boss we met in the first novel. Jesse provides strong leadership to the police force he has in this small town who are more accustomed to dealing with rowdy teenagers and traffic violations than murder.
This book is filled with Parker’s short chapters, choppy sentences, and his quick, witty paced dialogue. He continues to use words sparingly, considered a marked characteristic of his writing style.
This is a quick, but enjoyable read and a well written mystery.
November 29, 2016
First of all let me say that I love Jesse Stone, I love how he listens, I love how he responds, I love how thoughtful he is. Inside his head is a peaceful place, oh, unless he's thinking about work or Jenn or alcohol, unless.
Jesse once again has a murdered teenage girl on his hands, no identification and no missing person's report. A search for her parents leads to the high rent district and two people who deny any relationship whatsoever. But they are her parents, what went so wrong that they deny their child and don't mourn her death? Jesse is very disturbed by the whole incident, not the least of which is the trail he follows to determine the murderer. He is lead down paths that cross mafia and high society lines without connection. The murderer is a surprise, though not a good one.
Meanwhile Jesse continues to see Dix, his counsellor to determine the source of this dependence on alcohol and his inability to walk away from Jess, his former wife. Thankfully he does have baseball to normalize his life and his dalliance with the local school principal adds a lighter touch.
Jesse once again has a murdered teenage girl on his hands, no identification and no missing person's report. A search for her parents leads to the high rent district and two people who deny any relationship whatsoever. But they are her parents, what went so wrong that they deny their child and don't mourn her death? Jesse is very disturbed by the whole incident, not the least of which is the trail he follows to determine the murderer. He is lead down paths that cross mafia and high society lines without connection. The murderer is a surprise, though not a good one.
Meanwhile Jesse continues to see Dix, his counsellor to determine the source of this dependence on alcohol and his inability to walk away from Jess, his former wife. Thankfully he does have baseball to normalize his life and his dalliance with the local school principal adds a lighter touch.
February 28, 2010
Watched one of the Jesse Stone movies with Tom Selleck, and that reminded me I had several of the Jesse Stone books moldering on my Ipod. Opened up Death in Paradise, started listening and became enthralled.
I really enjoyed this. I've read a lot of Parker and liked the early Spenser very much. Once Susan entered the picture, they became less interesting. Jesse Stone is understated, his problems with booze real but not overly dramatized, and his relationships with girlfriends real. There is an undercurrent of humor in the terse language that I find quite appealing.
You can find plot summaries all over the place. If you like Ed McBain, you'll like the early Parker and Jesse Stone series.
BTW, the DVD series staring Selleck is really good too.
I really enjoyed this. I've read a lot of Parker and liked the early Spenser very much. Once Susan entered the picture, they became less interesting. Jesse Stone is understated, his problems with booze real but not overly dramatized, and his relationships with girlfriends real. There is an undercurrent of humor in the terse language that I find quite appealing.
You can find plot summaries all over the place. If you like Ed McBain, you'll like the early Parker and Jesse Stone series.
BTW, the DVD series staring Selleck is really good too.
Read
October 8, 2016Imagine my surprise when I found there was a Robert B Parker novel I had not read. I learned quite by accident I had "skipped" Death in Paradise. A quick trip to my local library and a few solid hours of reading remedied that. This novel was full of the snappy dialogue and action I remember. Parker was a treasure.
January 3, 2008
Jesse Stone is never going to straighten up! In his personal life he is a total loser that can't let go of his horrible ex wife. But the mystery part is entertaining and it's a quick read. I enjoy a quick read after a 600 page thriller and this fits the bill!
March 13, 2021
Parker's usual dialogue falls into a he said, she replied format. Is this deliberate? This haunting mystery has characters woven seamlessly to the end.
Second reading the topics are pretty depressing and the he said she replied is tiresome.
Second reading the topics are pretty depressing and the he said she replied is tiresome.
April 18, 2016
A blah book that was a lot too formulaic for my taste. It was very easy to read with simple thoughts and simple characters. The male lead was stereotypical and idiotic but still got all the ladies. Oy vey.
March 31, 2024
Jesse is a very smart cop but a complete idiot when it comes to his ex-wife. Move on. You definitely need to. She’s a toxic narcissist.
Example:
“It’s all there is to hold us,” Jenn said. “Maybe it shouldn’t,” Jesse said. “Maybe we should move on.” “We should,” Jenn said. “But we don’t,” Jesse said. “We can’t,” Jenn said. “But we don’t get married.” “I can’t,” Jenn said. “And we’re not monogamous.” “When I think of it,” Jenn said. “You and me, till death do us part . . . I feel claustrophobic.”
Epic eye roll 🙄.
The mystery of the story kept me reading but the “romance” part sucked. The school principal was the next casualty of his passive aggressive relationship with his wife. 🫣😵💫😵💫
Jesse has a case with a dead teenager. Her parents are beyond indifferent. They probably should have been charged with neglect. I hope in future books it has one of their murders. They were that bad of people.
We get character call backs from book 1. Gino Fish and his entourage. The methodical pace of police work that it takes to solve a murder case is on full display. Side case: Jesse gets sucked into a marital feud where a husband beats his wife. Has for years. That ends in a sharp lesson for Jesse but will he really learn. 🤔
The teenager murder gets solved and it clears out some really awful people in the process. Way to go Jesse Stone… off to read the next one…
Example:
“It’s all there is to hold us,” Jenn said. “Maybe it shouldn’t,” Jesse said. “Maybe we should move on.” “We should,” Jenn said. “But we don’t,” Jesse said. “We can’t,” Jenn said. “But we don’t get married.” “I can’t,” Jenn said. “And we’re not monogamous.” “When I think of it,” Jenn said. “You and me, till death do us part . . . I feel claustrophobic.”
Epic eye roll 🙄.
The mystery of the story kept me reading but the “romance” part sucked. The school principal was the next casualty of his passive aggressive relationship with his wife. 🫣😵💫😵💫
Jesse has a case with a dead teenager. Her parents are beyond indifferent. They probably should have been charged with neglect. I hope in future books it has one of their murders. They were that bad of people.
We get character call backs from book 1. Gino Fish and his entourage. The methodical pace of police work that it takes to solve a murder case is on full display. Side case: Jesse gets sucked into a marital feud where a husband beats his wife. Has for years. That ends in a sharp lesson for Jesse but will he really learn. 🤔
The teenager murder gets solved and it clears out some really awful people in the process. Way to go Jesse Stone… off to read the next one…
April 11, 2019
Parker’s hero here has a different style of dialogue that Spenser, and the story is more to the point.
July 20, 2011
Jesse, Jesse, Jesse...
his personal life - weekly dates with Jenn - getting him nowhere... 'hookups' with Lily Summers, a school principal he meets during a case... beginning sessions with Dr. Dix - and ex policeman, dry alcoholic, psychologist... one subplot involves a man who hits his wife when he drinks... Jesse intimidates him to stop hitting her - & he does, and the wife leaves him... and it ends with the husband taking his wife hostage at the grocery store because she left him and he has nothing - he wants to talk to jesse - explains himself, and as he is about to shoot his wife, Jesse kills him... and then Jesse sees some parallels between himself & Jenn, and this couple - and the drinking, and the control issues, and the potential loss issues... hmmmm
and the main case is a teenage girl floats up in the lake - and with only a class ring as a clue, Jesse tracks down her family (where the mother disowned her), the shelter she stayed at, a phone number to the local mobster (Gino Fish), the mobsters' lover's (Alan Garner) underage prostitute ring, a local writer's (Norman Shaw) habit of hiring young prostititues - and his subsequent confession of killing Billie when she said she didn't like some of the things he did and was going to report him...
the storylines crisscross in Parker's style...
his personal life - weekly dates with Jenn - getting him nowhere... 'hookups' with Lily Summers, a school principal he meets during a case... beginning sessions with Dr. Dix - and ex policeman, dry alcoholic, psychologist... one subplot involves a man who hits his wife when he drinks... Jesse intimidates him to stop hitting her - & he does, and the wife leaves him... and it ends with the husband taking his wife hostage at the grocery store because she left him and he has nothing - he wants to talk to jesse - explains himself, and as he is about to shoot his wife, Jesse kills him... and then Jesse sees some parallels between himself & Jenn, and this couple - and the drinking, and the control issues, and the potential loss issues... hmmmm
and the main case is a teenage girl floats up in the lake - and with only a class ring as a clue, Jesse tracks down her family (where the mother disowned her), the shelter she stayed at, a phone number to the local mobster (Gino Fish), the mobsters' lover's (Alan Garner) underage prostitute ring, a local writer's (Norman Shaw) habit of hiring young prostititues - and his subsequent confession of killing Billie when she said she didn't like some of the things he did and was going to report him...
the storylines crisscross in Parker's style...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 3, 2014
The Paradise Men's Softball League has wrapped up another game, and Jesse Stone is lingering in the parking lot with his teammates, drinking beer, swapping stories of double plays and beautiful women in the late summer twilight. But then a frightened voice calls out to him from the shore of a nearby lake. There, two men squat at the water's edge. In front of them, face down, is something that used to be a girl.
The local cops haven't seen anything like this before, but Jesse's LA past has made him all too familiar with floaters. This girl hasn't committed suicide, she hasn't been drowned: she's been shot and dumped, discarded like trash. Before long it becomes clear that she must have had a taste for the wild life: her own parents can't be bothered to report her missing, or even admit that she once was a child of theirs. All Jesse has to go on is a young man's school ring on a gold chain, and a hunch or two.
The local cops haven't seen anything like this before, but Jesse's LA past has made him all too familiar with floaters. This girl hasn't committed suicide, she hasn't been drowned: she's been shot and dumped, discarded like trash. Before long it becomes clear that she must have had a taste for the wild life: her own parents can't be bothered to report her missing, or even admit that she once was a child of theirs. All Jesse has to go on is a young man's school ring on a gold chain, and a hunch or two.
August 31, 2019
Jesse Stone is brought in to investigate the body of a girl found beside a lake, gets involved with a wife batterer, and fights his own drink demons.
When I read books of this genre (hardboiled crime) I don't want too much faff and overly convoluted plots (of which many are guilty). This novel breezes along, is straightforward and easy to read, and has a likeable, easily identifiable main character. It's typical of the Robert B.Parker books that I've read, in that it may well be set in modern times (there are just a couple of references to computers and the internet) but it feels very much like the past. There's not a mobile phone in sight! Along with this blurring of time and the absence of any detailed police procedural (which suits me), Parker's books (like Lawrence Block's) exist in their own worlds.
An easy, witty, and atmospheric world to spend a few hours in.
When I read books of this genre (hardboiled crime) I don't want too much faff and overly convoluted plots (of which many are guilty). This novel breezes along, is straightforward and easy to read, and has a likeable, easily identifiable main character. It's typical of the Robert B.Parker books that I've read, in that it may well be set in modern times (there are just a couple of references to computers and the internet) but it feels very much like the past. There's not a mobile phone in sight! Along with this blurring of time and the absence of any detailed police procedural (which suits me), Parker's books (like Lawrence Block's) exist in their own worlds.
An easy, witty, and atmospheric world to spend a few hours in.
February 19, 2017
I am beginning to really like almost everything about Jesse, the almost being Jenn. I could do with a little less of her. Parker has created great characters, good setting, plausible plots....this one relationship he has with Jenn tries my patience as I read the books. I hope this isn't going to be a pattern throughout the series.
November 10, 2016
Enjoying this authors clever character! Entertaining and good mix of adventure, humor and intrigue.
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