Rating: 
Summary: Needs to Climb out of this...
Review: I've been a huge fan of Leonard for years, even going so far as to read his Western novels and short stories (which are excellent). However, the last couple of novels seem to have been written without care, passion, humor or the kind of dialog Leonard has exhibited in past works.His characters in this latest novel are ho-hum, and I didn't care about any of them or what happened to them. The novel's twist at the end was fine, but his characters seem to have lost the quirky charm they once exhibited, and the protagonists are flat out dull. Leonard seems to be coming politically correct, and no author who does that can expect to write a decent story.
Rating:
Summary: Wait for the paperback
Review: Elmore Leonard's characters and plot lines are often a bit wierd and in this latest effort, wierdness rules. A contract murder by a couple of bungling hit men sets in motion a whole scenario of sub plots which are mildly entertaining, but never compelling.If you are an EL fan, wait for the summer and buy it in paperback for a beach read.
Rating:
Summary: I'm still waiting for the book to deliver
Review: Mr. Paradise never really hits a high note. The plot is unexceptional and the characters, while interesting enough by any other author's standards, fall short of expectation for an Elmore Leonard novel. There's no suspense in the story at all, and that's probably the biggest disappointment. The Amazon.com review notes that the budding romance between the witness and the detective characters removes any element of suspense that could have attached to her character, and the same holds true for the contents of the safe deposit box, which is the McGuffin of the book. There was a chance to blow the reader away with the reveal of the McGuffin, but ultimately, it ended up being just what everyone thought it was going to be. The dialogue is typically tight and hard boiled. Leonard is a master at capturing the feeling of authenticity by writing the dialogue of lowlifes and cops just right. Unfortunately, that's probably the only highlight to the book.
Rating: 
Summary: Enjoyable
Review: With precision writing on the same level as McCrae's BARK OF THE DOGWOOD and a story equal to Leonard's TISHOMINGO BLUES, MR. PARADISE is one great read. Witty and fast-paced, this wonderful romp is set in gritty Detroit. Reminiscent of GET SHORTY (at least for this reader) but with more humor and feeling, this makes for a very enjoyable read.
Rating: 
Summary: Yawn...
Review: This novel is, at best, mediocre. I kept having the feeling that Mr. Leonard was just cranking it out to satisfy a contract obligation. He spends more effort playing with verb tense than on character development. The result is a clumsy read about some basically one-dimensional people. The plot is just silly. The whole has the general characteristics of an Elmore Leonard book, but it seems a half-hearted effort. If you must read it, check the public library. Save your money.
Rating:
Summary: Paradise Lost
Review: Elmore Leonard's usual deft touch is missing from "Mr. Paradise". While the characters are familiar and the dialog reminiscent of his other work, the novel feels more like a collection of scenes than a cohesive work. The story meanders along, then seems to lose its way and eventually comes to a flat conclusion. As is customary in Leonard's work, "Mr. Paradise" entwines the lives of various mismatched characters, adds some hidden agendas, some dumb moves and lets the plot unfold. In this case, the formula produces something more like an episode of "Cops" with unrelated events, people who come-and-go and a wish for more answers. More than once I could not suspend my disbelief, asking myself "why doesn't he (or she) just...?". The purpose and relationship of several characters eluded me often. And I still don't know what the "chainsaw" subplot was for. Mr. Leonard has written many superior crime and caper novels. This time he lost his touch.
Rating:
Summary: Didn't meet my hopes or expectations...
Review: I keep picking up Elmore Leonard novels thinking I should like them for their quirky nature. And nearly every time I finish one I'm disappointed. His last one, Tishomingo Blues, was a *huge disappointment*. Ever the optimist, I just finished Mr. Paradise in the last day or so. And like normal, I'm sitting here going "eh, so-so". It's a "Detroit crime novel", which is different than his last few books. The story revolves around a pair of high-priced escorts/fashion models that end up at the house of an old guy who has purchased their "services" on an ongoing basis. The guy and one of the girls is murdered, and the guy's main "servant" is apparently in on the crime. He wants the remaining girl to assume the identity of the dead girl so that he can get the contents of a safe deposit box that is supposed to contain his "inheritance". The head detective on the case is falling for the girl but has to watch himself because she is a material witness to the crime. He has to solve the crime and keep her alive from the two hitmen that pulled off the original murder. It's not a bad novel, and infinitely better than his last one. But at the end, I just didn't get any feeling of excitement or anticipation. The story just moved along, but I never got caught up in it. If you're looking for something to read and this one's available, it's better than nothing. But don't expect to get your socks blown off.
Rating: 
Summary: Leonard's in top form
Review: Leonard is at his snappy, not-a-word-wasted best in this crime-gone-wrong page-turner. The crime is the murder of the title character, a rich, elderly Detroit crime boss. His resentful assistant, Montez Taylor, who has been written out of the old man's will, organized the hit. When he learns that Mr. Paradiso's "girlfriend," high-priced call girl Chloe, is making an unexpected visit, Montez tries to call it off, but fails. Chloe brings along her friend Kelly, a model, who agrees to help out with a titillating cheerleading routine, and Kelly is upstairs when two gunmen burst in, killing both Chloe and Paradiso. Montez intimidates Kelly into pretending to be Chloe - there's a safety deposit box scam involved - but the nice policeman on the scene, quickly smitten Frank Desla, sees through that pretty quickly. That's the set-up and from there it's just one thing after another in turn after subplot after switchback after double cross in gritty Detroit. Tightly plotted, but character driven, this is as zany, comic and smart as we've come to expect.
Rating:
Summary: The Master's Touch
Review: Don't miss this one. EL is doing his full-tilt boogie and he's doing it in Detroit. Great, Runyonesque thickie characters, unlikely but delicious romantic subplots and a plot that is tighter than a drumskin in July. The Master is back and he's in his comic mode. GET SHORTY remains his masterpiece but this comes very close. Buy. Read. Enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: Forgettable Leonard
Review: Over the years I've read a few Elmore Leonard stories and I've noticed a fair bit of inconsistency in quality. This isn't a huge surprise considering the sheer number of books he's written, there are inevitably going to be some good 'uns and some bad 'uns. The good ones (such as FREAKY DEAKY and OUT OF SIGHT) have been excellent, quirky hardboiled stories that are very memorable mainly due to the off-beat characters and unexpected twists that keep you off balance. Then there are the not so good ones that are noticeable due to their instant forget-ability. MR PARADISE falls into the second category. Tony Paradiso, called Mr Paradise by his two employees, is an eighty-four year old millionaire who enjoyed watching taped Michigan University football games (their wins only) while cheerleaders performed topless next to the television. All harmless fun and he paid well. His favourite cheerleader is a high priced call girl named Chloe. She's so favoured that he has promised to look after her with a little present when he dies. One evening Paradiso requests an impromptu performance from Chloe, but he insists that he wants two cheerleaders, not just one. So Chloe talks her room-mate, a fashion model named Kelly, into joining them for the night. The timing was poor for Chloe and Kelly because it just so happens that Paradiso's right-hand man, Montez Taylor had ordered a hit on his boss for that night. Even worse luck for Chloe because she gets caught up in the hit and is taken out along with Paradiso. Montez Taylor is one of those typical Elmore Leonard characters who comes up with the most outlandish of plans and then sells it well enough to seem plausible - right up until the moment it fails dismally. You see, Chloe wasn't supposed to die. Montez was planning on sharing in her windfall after she claimed it. So a quick change of plans is required. He convinces Kelly to pretend that she's Chloe, sell it to the police and claim the "inheritance" for them. The flimsiness of his plan is not the only thing working against Montez. The other fly in his ointment comes in the form of the team performing the hit. Art and Carl are a couple of fifty year old hoods who were introduced to the hit man business by their lawyer. Their stupidity is only matched by their ruthlessness. Making no effort to hide their tracks after each job, the only mystery surrounding them is how on earth they managed to stay out of prison for so long. Frank Delsa is the detective working the case and the eventual protagonist who is faced with Montez's preposterous story. As a character, he is the most normal character in the book and acts as the straight man to the bunch of idiot criminals who are trying to out-think him. His cool, calm thinking was an excellent counterpoint to that of the bad guys. The only downside to the Delsa character is a very unlikely, very clichéd romance that Leonard involved him in. I felt it was out of place and ended up serving no real purpose. I thought he would be a stronger character if he were left on his own. It's really surprising that this book actually dragged out beyond the 300 page mark. There really isn't a lot to the story and, once the initial premise has been set up, there is only one logical conclusion and that's exactly the way it pans out. I've enjoyed Elmore Leonard's books in the past, not only for the gritty storylines that provide more than their fair share of surprises but also for the off-beat humour that manages to make the characters just skewed enough to be amusing rather than straight out scary. I found MR PARADISE lacked any of the qualities that would make it more than a moderately interesting story.
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