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Searching... Lyons Public Library | M PARKER | Searching... Unknown |
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Searching... Dayton Public Library | PARKER | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Jefferson Public Library | MYSTERY PARKER, B. SUNNY RANDALL BOOK 3 | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
Melanie Joan Hall is a bestselling author in a bind. Her publisher needs her to tour on behalf of her newest blockbuster, and Melanie Joan needs a bodyguard-cum-escort to protect her from an overbearing ex-husband whose presence unnerves her to the point of hysteria. Sunny's cool demeanor, cop background, and P.I. smarts are an instant balm for the older woman. She begins to sense that Melanie Joan's ex-a psychotherapist-is not your basic stalker, and when an incident at a book signing leaves the ex bloodied and the author unconscious, it's clear the stakes are high. Deciding that the only way to crack the case is from the inside, Sunny enters therapy herself, only to discover some disturbing truths about herself . . . while putting her life on the line. Gripping, nuanced, and filled with Parker's signature dialogue and psychological insight, Shrink Rapis a winner.
Summary
Sunny Randall is hired to protect a bestselling novelist from her ex-husband. He's not only a stalker...he's a shrink. And when Sunny becomes his patient, she discovers as much about herself as she does about the criminal mind...
Author Notes
Robert Brown Parker was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, on September 17, 1932. He received a B.A. from Colby College in 1954, served in the U.S. Army in Korea, and then returned to receive a M. A. in English literature from Boston University in 1957. He received a Ph.D. in English literature from Boston University in 1971.
Before becoming a full-time writer in 1979, he taught at Lowell State College, Bridgewater State College and Northwestern University.
In 1971, Parker published The Godwuff Manuscript, as homage to Raymond Chandler. The character he created, Spencer, became his own detective and was featured in more than 30 novels. His Spencer character has been featured in six TV movies and the television series Spencer: For Hire that starred Robert Urich and ran from 1985 to 1988.
He is also the author of the Jesse Stone series, which has been made into a series of television movies for CBS, and the Sunny Randall series. His novel Appaloosa (2005) was made into a 2008 movie directed by and starring Ed Harris. He has received numerous awards for his work including an Edgar Award for Best Novel in 1977 for The Promised Land, Grand Master Edgar Award for his collective oeuvre in 2002, and the Gumshoe Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008. He died of a heart attack on January 18, 2010 at the age of 77.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Robert Brown Parker was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, on September 17, 1932. He received a B.A. from Colby College in 1954, served in the U.S. Army in Korea, and then returned to receive a M. A. in English literature from Boston University in 1957. He received a Ph.D. in English literature from Boston University in 1971.
Before becoming a full-time writer in 1979, he taught at Lowell State College, Bridgewater State College and Northwestern University.
In 1971, Parker published The Godwuff Manuscript, as homage to Raymond Chandler. The character he created, Spencer, became his own detective and was featured in more than 30 novels. His Spencer character has been featured in six TV movies and the television series Spencer: For Hire that starred Robert Urich and ran from 1985 to 1988.
He is also the author of the Jesse Stone series, which has been made into a series of television movies for CBS, and the Sunny Randall series. His novel Appaloosa (2005) was made into a 2008 movie directed by and starring Ed Harris. He has received numerous awards for his work including an Edgar Award for Best Novel in 1977 for The Promised Land, Grand Master Edgar Award for his collective oeuvre in 2002, and the Gumshoe Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008. He died of a heart attack on January 18, 2010 at the age of 77.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (8)
Publisher's Weekly Review
As if responding to his new status as an MWA Grand Master, Parker turns in his strongest mystery in years with Boston PI Sunny Randall's third outing (after Family Honor and Perish Twice), a particular relief after this spring's flaccid Spenser offering, Widow's Walk. The setup lacks originality Sunny is hired to bodyguard a bestselling author, Melanie Joan Hall, who pens "high-end bodice rippers," just as years ago in Stardust, Spenser was hired to bodyguard a famous TV newscaster but by focusing on an author's plight during her book tour, Parker writes about experiences close to his own, delivering sharp portraits of publishing types and fans. Melanie Joan's former husband, John Melvin, a psychopathic psychiatrist, is stalking her. To learn about and discredit him, Sunny consults another psychiatrist, then enters incognito into therapy with Melvin, which adds tremendous resonance to the narrative as, inadvertently, she must confront her own neuroses during sessions, complexes involving her relationships with her parents and estranged husband. Soon Sunny sniffs out that Melvin has been raping and, occasionally, killing members of his all-female clientele by injecting them with a date rape drug. To nab Melvin, she submits to his using the drug on her, in an intense finale. With layers of psychological revelation, plenty of action, the welcome return of Sunny's supporting crew (most notably Spike, a gay counterpart to Spenser's Hawk) and, as usual, prose as tight as a drumhead, this is grade-A Parker. National author tour. (Sept. 16) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Kirkus Review
Not even a first printing of 750,000 and a ten-city tour can protect romance novelist Melanie Joan Hall from John Melvin, MD, the ex-husband who's stalking her, harassing her at a signing in Cleveland and leaving bloody smears on a window in Cincinnati. But money and her publisher's solicitude for a $10-million property about to become a movie franchise can buy Melanie Joan some quality time with Sunny Randall, despite Sunny's insistence that "I'm not really suited to bodyguard anyway. I'm a detective." Well, maybe, but she actually thinks like a proactive avenger. When the women return to Boston, Sunny decides that it's not enough to protect her client from a menace that could go on forever; she needs to dig up something on Melvin, a psychiatrist whose practice seems limited to attractive women, that will put him away throughout Melanie Joan's peak earning years. Unfortunately, one of the good doctor's clients she approaches has just died; a second soon follows; and Melvin's male friends respond to Sunny's inquiries-framed in Parker's trademark killer dialogue-by sending her threatening photos and painting her windshield black. The only way to get the goods on Melvin is to stake herself out as bait; but Sunny, who let men do the heavy lifting for her in Perish Twice (2000), frets endlessly whether she should accept help from her own ex, mobbed-up Richie Burke, on this dangerous assignment. Despite Sandy's profession, none of her adventures has been marketed as a mystery. Good thinking. File her third under self-help. Author tour
Booklist Review
Parker, of Boston private eye Spenser fame, added a female Boston private eye to his repertoire in 1999. Ex-cop Sunny Randall is unlike Spenser in not being domestic and in not having a passionate love interest (the now-divorced Randall has an on-again, off-again relationship with her ex). She is passionate, however, about her dog, a device that is meant to be endearing but comes off as strange. The other unsettling thing about Randall is that she sounds and often moves exactly like Spenser; his fans will feel like their wisecracking, punch-throwing hero is being channeled by Randall. Still, if you can ignore the overly cute business with the dog and the fact that Randall has swallowed Spenser's speech patterns, you're in for an extremely entertaining ride. In this third Randall novel^-following Family Honor (1999) and Perish Twice (2000)^-best-selling romance novelist Melanie Joan is being stalked by her ex-husband, Dr. John Melvin, a control freak of a psychiatrist. Joan hires Randall as a bodyguard for her book tour. On the tour, Joan's ex keeps appearing in sudden and scary ways. Randall investigates the bad doctor by seeing two shrinks at once and contrasting the manipulative Dr. Melvin's style with that of a psychiatrist whose motives aren't tainted. An intriguing look at the psychology of manipulation combined with a knockout plot that builds to a truly creepy, hair-raising climax. --Connie Fletcher
Library Journal Review
In the third of a series featuring Boston P.I. Sunny Randall, Sunny is hired to protect a woman from her stalker husband. As a bodyguard, Sunny soon realizes that the best way to get rid of this slimy psychiatrist is to investigate him and find out what other crimes he has committed that will actually put him behind bars. Suspecting that the husband is at least guilty of unethical professional behavior, Sunny dons a disguise and is soon in therapy. What she learns about herself will hopefully bring her to some resolution with her marriage; what she learns about Dr. Melvin will endanger her life. Deborah Raffin gives an excellent reading, becoming the tough but cute thirtysomething detective whose doubts, enthusiasms, and courage are reflected by Raffin's well-paced narration and expressive voice. Sunny solves her case, but she still hasn't reached a mature understanding of herself. Most listeners will be eager for the next installment. Recommended for all mystery collections.-Juleigh Muirhead Clark, John D. Rockefeller Jr. Lib., Colonial Williamsburg Fdn., VA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
As if responding to his new status as an MWA Grand Master, Parker turns in his strongest mystery in years with Boston PI Sunny Randall's third outing (after Family Honor and Perish Twice), a particular relief after this spring's flaccid Spenser offering, Widow's Walk. The setup lacks originality Sunny is hired to bodyguard a bestselling author, Melanie Joan Hall, who pens "high-end bodice rippers," just as years ago in Stardust, Spenser was hired to bodyguard a famous TV newscaster but by focusing on an author's plight during her book tour, Parker writes about experiences close to his own, delivering sharp portraits of publishing types and fans. Melanie Joan's former husband, John Melvin, a psychopathic psychiatrist, is stalking her. To learn about and discredit him, Sunny consults another psychiatrist, then enters incognito into therapy with Melvin, which adds tremendous resonance to the narrative as, inadvertently, she must confront her own neuroses during sessions, complexes involving her relationships with her parents and estranged husband. Soon Sunny sniffs out that Melvin has been raping and, occasionally, killing members of his all-female clientele by injecting them with a date rape drug. To nab Melvin, she submits to his using the drug on her, in an intense finale. With layers of psychological revelation, plenty of action, the welcome return of Sunny's supporting crew (most notably Spike, a gay counterpart to Spenser's Hawk) and, as usual, prose as tight as a drumhead, this is grade-A Parker. National author tour. (Sept. 16) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Kirkus Review
Not even a first printing of 750,000 and a ten-city tour can protect romance novelist Melanie Joan Hall from John Melvin, MD, the ex-husband who's stalking her, harassing her at a signing in Cleveland and leaving bloody smears on a window in Cincinnati. But money and her publisher's solicitude for a $10-million property about to become a movie franchise can buy Melanie Joan some quality time with Sunny Randall, despite Sunny's insistence that "I'm not really suited to bodyguard anyway. I'm a detective." Well, maybe, but she actually thinks like a proactive avenger. When the women return to Boston, Sunny decides that it's not enough to protect her client from a menace that could go on forever; she needs to dig up something on Melvin, a psychiatrist whose practice seems limited to attractive women, that will put him away throughout Melanie Joan's peak earning years. Unfortunately, one of the good doctor's clients she approaches has just died; a second soon follows; and Melvin's male friends respond to Sunny's inquiries-framed in Parker's trademark killer dialogue-by sending her threatening photos and painting her windshield black. The only way to get the goods on Melvin is to stake herself out as bait; but Sunny, who let men do the heavy lifting for her in Perish Twice (2000), frets endlessly whether she should accept help from her own ex, mobbed-up Richie Burke, on this dangerous assignment. Despite Sandy's profession, none of her adventures has been marketed as a mystery. Good thinking. File her third under self-help. Author tour
Booklist Review
Parker, of Boston private eye Spenser fame, added a female Boston private eye to his repertoire in 1999. Ex-cop Sunny Randall is unlike Spenser in not being domestic and in not having a passionate love interest (the now-divorced Randall has an on-again, off-again relationship with her ex). She is passionate, however, about her dog, a device that is meant to be endearing but comes off as strange. The other unsettling thing about Randall is that she sounds and often moves exactly like Spenser; his fans will feel like their wisecracking, punch-throwing hero is being channeled by Randall. Still, if you can ignore the overly cute business with the dog and the fact that Randall has swallowed Spenser's speech patterns, you're in for an extremely entertaining ride. In this third Randall novel^-following Family Honor (1999) and Perish Twice (2000)^-best-selling romance novelist Melanie Joan is being stalked by her ex-husband, Dr. John Melvin, a control freak of a psychiatrist. Joan hires Randall as a bodyguard for her book tour. On the tour, Joan's ex keeps appearing in sudden and scary ways. Randall investigates the bad doctor by seeing two shrinks at once and contrasting the manipulative Dr. Melvin's style with that of a psychiatrist whose motives aren't tainted. An intriguing look at the psychology of manipulation combined with a knockout plot that builds to a truly creepy, hair-raising climax. --Connie Fletcher
Library Journal Review
In the third of a series featuring Boston P.I. Sunny Randall, Sunny is hired to protect a woman from her stalker husband. As a bodyguard, Sunny soon realizes that the best way to get rid of this slimy psychiatrist is to investigate him and find out what other crimes he has committed that will actually put him behind bars. Suspecting that the husband is at least guilty of unethical professional behavior, Sunny dons a disguise and is soon in therapy. What she learns about herself will hopefully bring her to some resolution with her marriage; what she learns about Dr. Melvin will endanger her life. Deborah Raffin gives an excellent reading, becoming the tough but cute thirtysomething detective whose doubts, enthusiasms, and courage are reflected by Raffin's well-paced narration and expressive voice. Sunny solves her case, but she still hasn't reached a mature understanding of herself. Most listeners will be eager for the next installment. Recommended for all mystery collections.-Juleigh Muirhead Clark, John D. Rockefeller Jr. Lib., Colonial Williamsburg Fdn., VA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.