Death in Paradise
 Robert B. Parker
 (Sr. Staff Reviewer - D. H. BROWN)
 2001 G. P. Putnam's Sons
  ISBN: 0399147799


A Jesse Stone Novel -- in which this erstwhile Los Angeles cop, now Chief of Police in a little New England town, must investigate the murder of a troubled teenager.

When the Paradise Men's Softball League players come upon the gruesomely decaying body of a teenager in the lake near their playing field, the quiet, country town becomes frantic with fear. Who is she? Why was she so brutally killed? How long ago was she murdered? Why is there no Missing Person's report?

Then Jesse Stone follows the leads to the teenager's family & an even more troubling question arises, why do the parents say they do not have such a daugher?

As Jesse struggles with his own life, fighting alcoholism & his yearning for his ex-wife who keeps lingering just out of reach, he must pull together the fragments of this young girl's life, sift through the harsh rumors about her, of the messy spiderweb of abuse & exploitation, even if it means he has to confront a celebrity & the town's leading citizens.

Senior Staff Reviewer D. H. BROWN writes:

As any reader of my mystery reviews will know, I am a huge fan of Robert B. Parker. From Spenser to Sunny Randall & now to Jesse Stone, he never ceases to satisfy.

The Denver Post says: "Parker may be the finest prose stylist in the genre." & I whole-hearted agree. He boils a story down to its essence. There are no loose threads when he finished weaving, it is completely wholecloth, & you find yourself enmeshed with his lyrics.

The first Jesse Stone novel Trouble in Paradise was absorbing, & even though I felt Parker lost his way a bit with his character in Night Passage, I still did not put it down until I'd finished it.

With Death in Paradise, Parker has hit a stride with Jesse Stone that keeps you fairly trotting along from page to page until you finish & have to take a deep breath & say Wow!

If you like a good mystery, if you like characters that live & breath & bleed, pick up Death in Paradise. It will definitely satisfy you.

More reviewed from Robert B. Parker: Gunman's Rhapsody; Potshot; Hugger Mugger; Family Honor; Perish Twice; Night Passage Trouble In Paradise; All Our Yesterdays; Sudden Mischief & a host of Spenser novels.
(07/07/02)

D. H. BROWN
A RebeccasReads.Com Sr. Staff Reviewer

Reviewer's Bio:
D. H. BROWN is the author of the critically acclaimed HONOR DUE and the Citizens Warrior Series. The son of missionary parents and with the help his Uncle Sam, he has touched base in more than 40 countries.  In 1986 he produced the independent children's film Lessie's Rainbow.  During the late 80s and early 90s, he wrote the book Common Sense and delivered the seminars of the same name for the Community Action Network of Seattle (CAN).  While doing his early Vietnam recovery work, he counseled Veterans and spoke widely to men's groups in Washington state, and was a founder of The Lodge of the Wolf.

D. H. BROWN has worked as a Logistics and Weapons Specialist in Viet Nam; day laborer; Director of Security; Armored Car Driver; Police Officer; Professional Hunting Guide; Trapper; Dog Sledder; Homesteader; Truck Driver; General Contractor; Minister; Editor; Writer; Speaker; Restaurateur; Movie Producer; Antique Restoration Specialist; Personal Care Worker; PC Repair Specialist; Computer Instructor; Webmaster and Web Designer. "I write about what I know."

He lives deep in the Pacific Northwest rainforest with his wife, author and editor Rebecca and Buddy Dog, working on his next book.
Visit him at: www.dhbrownbooks.com