Rating: 
Summary: A fun read!
Review: A friend gave me this book, and I really had no idea what to expect. When I opened it and found out it was the first book for a new character, I was pretty excited. Sometimes it's difficult when you pick up a book in the middle of a series, but here I was coming in on the ground floor. Yay!Although I'm used to a bit more action in the books I read, I have to say that it only took me a couple of days to read it -- it was VERY fast, very enjoyable, and also quite funny. Not necessarily laughing out loud funny, but there were so many times Sunny brought a smile to my face! As others have said, it sure would be nice to have a friend like her around. The book is light reading, but even so, at the end of every chapter you feel compelled to just see what's going to happen next. Mr. Parker, I salute you, and I'm certainly going to be looking for your other books. I can't wait to read them! If you're looking for some funny, caring characters you might want to know better (or might not want to!), this is a good place to start. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Rating: 
Summary: Brave try
Review: A good effort by Parker but not as well executed as his other books featuring non-Spenser characters. Jesse Stone, by comparison, really seems like his own man. Maybe it's the Boston setting (complete with Spenser super pimp Tony Marcus) but I kept thinking I was reading a Spenser novel with occasional mind blows about skirt-wearing and diatribes on how hard it was to carry a gun if you weigh 115 pounds. - rob
Rating:
Summary: Audio Reading by Andrea Thompson
Review: Andrea Thompson, the pretty actress who was on NYPD BLUE for a season or two, does a worthwhile read. I just finished it--the abridged audio version--and wanted to send her a compliment. So this obscure review place will immortally do it. Her urban voice is pure sexiness, and complements Mr. Parker's intriguing composition. **The plot is interesting private "pussy" fodder, rather than private "dick" shtick, and Andrea makes this P.I. Sonja Randall voice acting opportunity maximally entertaining. The novel contains an interesting take on "what is manliness?" and "what is womanliness?" I would say the uncensored work is appropriate reading for both teenagers and adults THANKS for the fun fantasy. **Don't dis me for originating the above un-witticism: I recently heard it in an audio version of a detective novel entitled "Family Honor."
Rating:
Summary: A Not Bad First Outing for PI Sunny Randall
Review: As a long time fan of Parker's Spenser novels I was curious to see how he would handle writing with the voice of a female protagonist. I found this book to be quite entertaining with the trademark Parker dialogue which always make his books such an easy read. Let's face it, Parker's books are wonderful brain candy not The Name of the Rose or The Celestine Prophecy and I'm about to commit heresy on Amazon by saying I was hesitant to buy this book in hardcover so I got it out of the library. I think Parker books are always best savored in paper back because you're talking about a mere 2-3 day commitment. I think we're in the Getting to Know Sunny Randall stage of the game in terms of this character as well as her sidekicks. I'm hoping that Parker has plans to flesh out these characters in subsequent outings. I thought Parker scored with Sunny's dilemmas over whether or not to ask for male assistance in some of her confrontations. I thought that a very realistic touch but are we going to be treated to Felicity-like agonizing over Richie vs. Brian vs. God Knows Who in the next book? With a so-so movie you wait for the video, with a so-so book you wait for the paperback. Wait for the paperback or visit your library on this one but once you get it in your hands sit back and escape, you'll enjoy it.
Rating:
Summary: Great reading by Andrea Thompson, good story too
Review: As a reader with only a passing knowledge of the Spencer series, I found Family Honor to be a refreshing, fun read. I give much of the credit to Andrea Thompson, the perfomer of the unabridged tape who does a terrific job of maximizing the impact of Parker's one liner's and other humorous (if sometimes cynical) asides. Thompson and Parker combine to create Sunny, a nice addition to the ranks of the female P.I. As a detective, she's not all that unusual. It's as a person that Parker has created a person that I'd really like to spend time with. She's smart but has just the right levels of vulnerability. I could live without the dog, but I'm not much a of dog person. The underlying mystery (and it's solution) isn't exceptional but is interesting enough to keep this reader involved. A fifteen year old has run away from home. Finding out why she's run is ultimately more of a mystery than finding the girl herself. It brings in a mix of Boston high society, state politics and some local mob wars. Sunny's ex-father-in-law proves handy. There's a bit of romance too. Bottom-line: May be redundant for long time Spenser fans but a very enjoyable read for this new fan of Parker's work.
Rating:
Summary: Parker is a one-note writer
Review: As it turns out, when Parker finally turns away from writing about (and in the voice of) Spenser, and creates a new character...that new character is Spenser, reincarnated as a small blonde woman. I don't like Sunny or the other characters in this book much, and I think they talk much more like men than women, BUT that said, I am still and always a pretty big Parker fan. Spenser was so much a favorite that I had a cat named after him (the detective, not the poet). As proved by Susan Silverman, the therapist who should be hospitalized for fulminant anorexia (and any patient in their right mind who would visit a shrink with an untreated psychological disorder...well, it's a book, so we won't get into that!), Parker isn't so hot at writing women. But he's great at crisp, clean dialogue and witty, sarcastic protagonists. Sunny's apparently (haven't finished the book yet) another in the EXACT (I mean, cookie-cutter exact) same mold as Spenser. In one sense, that's good; Parker writes better than a lot of people. In another sense, I wish he'd just stick with Spenser and his neurotic, self-satisfied shrink Susan. It's kind of eerie to read Spenser's voice attributed to Sunny Randall.
Rating:
Summary: Yes, Sunny's saga does sound a lot like Spenser
Review: But, to borrow from the Beatles, "you know that can't be bad." Sure, Sunny is a wiseacre like Spenser and, like Spenser, she lives in Boston and loves both Charlie Parker and the bar at the Ritz. And Julie the shrink bears a passing resemblance to Susan the shrink. Rosie eats off chopsticks, just like Pearl. Sunny's ex-husband provides extra muscle, underworld connections, and makes people uncomfortable by remaining menacingly still, just like Hawk. And Millicent is a mix between April Kyle and Paul Giacommin. So I guess if you wanted to brand this work as derivative, I wouldn't be able to convincingly defend it. BUT I adore the Spenser books and have feared that as Parker's original PI grows older (he's in his 60s now) and retires, there would be no new Parker character to take his place. Now there's Sunny. I enjoyed this tale of sex, mystery, love and redemption. The plot was interesting, the characters comfortable and compelling, and the performance by Andrea Thompson was exceptional. (OK, she said "Betty Hutton" instead of "Betty Patton" once, but I thought that was funny.) I've heard that Sunny was created for Helen Hunt, but Parker has hit the jackpot with Thompson. If there's ever a Sunny film, she certainly deserves a crack at the title role.
Rating:
Summary: Great summer fun
Review: Had to check the book jacket to make sure the author was of the male pursuasion,since he understands the female mind of his protagonist so well. No question, Parker is always a fun read, but this time around (you male readers may not understand this) he truly proves his skill. To step out of one's own skin and speak for a fictional character is the test and job of an author,but to accomplish this while stepping out of one's gender as well, shows extraordinary ability. Plus..it's a fun read,good story..let's hope for sequels.
Rating:
Summary: This new character (Sunny Randall) has potential.
Review: Hopefully after these characters are developed more we'll see a Spenser, Sunny Randall, Jesse Stone team-up. The pages of a book with these chracters and they're sidekicks would explode with ACTION!!!!!!!Just the interaction between Hawk and Spike would be worth the read. Mr. Parker did a great job with developing these new characters in Family Honor. I just hope you'll be able to give us enough of all of these great characters from this book and Jesse Stone and lets-not-forget Spenser. Because once again I'm hooked and anxiously awaitng for all of the above. I don't know if I should love you or hate you Mr. Parker for doing this to me. Long live Spenser, Jesse Stone, and Sunny Randall.
Rating:
Summary: Great Read!
Review: I am probably the only person on this planet who has not read Parker, though I know Spenser from TV and enjoy the character. I picked up this book because I like to read series from book #1 and I enjoy female protagonists; this one filled the bill. I thoroughly enjoyed Parker's style and the characters, especially the dog, since I have one just like him at home. I truly hope this is the beginning of a new series and that it isn't a one-time only for Parker's friend, Helen Hunt.
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