Stranger in Paradise (Jesse Stone Novels) | Robert B. Parker

Stranger in Paradise (Jesse Stone Novels) | Robert B. Parker | Spenser has Hawk, Jesse Stone has Crow

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Stranger in Paradi...

	Stranger in Paradise (Jesse Stone Novels) Robert B. Parker Putnam Adult, 2008 - 304 pages average customer review:based on 57 reviews view larger image
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Parker's best Jesse Stone novel

I was surprised to read so many reader reviews that objected on moral grounds to some of the sexual adventures (never explicitly described by Parker) in Stranger in Paradise. To me, this is a novel about moral ambiguity, about how what is usually wrong can be right, at least in the circumstances and for the character involved.

The Stranger in the title is Crow, presented at first as an evil man who kills people for fun and money. But Crow works out a truce with Police Chief Jesse Stone (the hero), and the two of them operate sometimes independently and sometimes together to rid Paradise of some evil characters. Just as Jesse decides it's worth taking the risk to create some good out of evil, some of the other characters, including police officers, make decisions in sexual matters that some forbidden sexual pleasures might be indulged, even if just once.

So there is on one level a sense of amorality and immorality that pervades the novel. But some of the basically good characters take some risks, and violate vows, in the hopes of either bringing about greater good, or sometimes just to have fun. And some of the less good or at least less complex characters make similar choices, but solely because it pleases them, and there is no guilt involved in their choices.

The ultimate amoral character is Crow, the Stranger, who may or may not be a descendant of Indian warriors, who has little sense of right and wrong, except when he makes surprising decisions not to kill one woman or to put another in harm's way, even though he has accepted payment for doing just that.

This is a wonderfully readable book, and the moral ambiguity adds some complexity that makes this, in my view, one of Parker's best.

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Spenser has Hawk, Jesse Stone has Crow

It is easy to dismiss this style of fast paced, adventure novel.

More like a novella than a full blown novel, Parker has to take some liberties with plot and character development to create a product that can be quickly and enjoyably consumed.

That's why "Stranger in Paradise," a Jesse Stone novel is the perfect companion for a weekend at the beach and not required reading for a college, literature course.

If you are a fan of the Spenser series, you gotta love Hawk. A rough, tough character that always helps get the job done.

Jesse Stone, now appears to have Crow, an Apache hitman who upholds his own sense of honor. Like Hawk, Crow fulfills our need for a little less law and a little more justice.

Hawk - Crow. I am sensing a theme.

"Stranger in Paradise" is filled with witty dialogue and some very clever insight into the human condition. Sadly, the incidental characters are poorly developed and plot is contrived. Despite those shortcomings I finished it in 2 days.

Like it for what it is - don't hate it for what it's not.

Caslo

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Typical Robert Parker fare

I started reading Parker's Jesse Stone novels a couple of years ago, and find myself drawn to them. The only other Parker novels I've read were "Appaloosa" and "Double Play".

For me, Parker is a peculiar novelist---he writes in clipped, staccato sentences; he's not heavy into character development; and, his plots are not particularly intricate. However, I find myself attracted to the Jesse Stone series. I like Police Chief Jesse's laconic, self-deprecating style. Molly Crane, one of his assistants, is a funny, wise-cracking woman who, as you find out in "Stranger in Paradise" has feelings/sentiments not befitting a married mother of four children. Jesse's other assistant, "Suitcase" Simpson seems to be an amiable dunce. Then, in this novel, the enigmatic Wilson "Crow" Cromartie, purportedly an Apache Indian hit man, reappears in Jesse's town of Paradise, Massachusetts, for reasons not readily apparent.

Frankly, Parker's novels are mind candy, but addictive, and this novel is no exception. What I find irritating in the Jesse Stone novels is the angst that Jesse suffers in his relationship with his ex-wife, Jenn. The relationship seems contrived, and I simply wish that Jesse would dump Jenn once and for all and move on with his life. Anyway, "Stranger in Paradise" is a fast and entertaining read.

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Not up to Parker's usual standards

I usually like Parker's books quite a bit, but this one was so unrealistic, I just couldn't buy into its premise.

A self-styled Indian warrior, who had been involved in a deadly, $10,000,000 heist in Paradise several years earlier, comes back to Paradise and persuades Police Chief Stone to look the other way while said Indian warrior kills a couple more people?

Sorry, but with a storyline like that, the book should have been called "A Bridge Too Far."

reviews: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, page 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12

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