Rating: 
Summary: Stone may not be Spencer, but he's not bad!
Review: Parker writes some of the best dialog in the business. Stone's "short answer" style of conversation is still clear and reveals more of the man than you might think. This book is a definite "Winner"!
Rating: 
Summary: Couldn't Put It Down
Review: Robert B. Parker can say more in one paragraph than other writers can say in a chapter. TROUBLE IN PARADISE is not one of his greatest books, but even his less inspired novels stand miles above many of his contemporaries' works.Jesse Stone is a good cop. He is tough, but his sensitivity and and his desire to do what he believes is right--sometimes contrary to the harsh definition of the law--makes him one of the most genuine and likeable lawmen in today's fiction. I read this book in one night. Just couldn't put it down. Sure, the book was short. With smaller type and margins, it could have been a 250-pager. But to me, quality wins out over quantity any time. Keep 'em coming, Mr. Parker. More Jesse Stone, please!
Rating:
Summary: A crime story
Review: The content of this novel has been pretty much covered by other reviewers. It is a crime novel, not a mystery. Details of the criminals and their planned robbery are known from the start. The story is in the action. I would note that the cover art on the dust jacket has no relevance to the story. The story concerns Jesse Stone, chief of police of Paradise, Massachusetts, his ex-wife, various women he is sleeping with, his problem with alcohol, his interactions (good and bad) with local residents, and a gang of criminals planning the robbery of the century. The criminals are a cold blooded, take-no-prisoners, lot who kill people out of hand. Crow, a contract killer, turns out to be one smart Apache.
Rating: 
Summary: too much heavy emotional problems - one nighters or exwife
Review: The crime solving was secondary to the main character's women problems. His quandry about wondering if he can love and get back with his exwife and his sleeping with others is too heavy. Spenser and Susan it ain't.
Rating:
Summary: An outlaw gang comes to Paradise to rob the bank (and more)
Review: The end of "Night Passage," the first Robert B. Parker novel featuring his new hero Jesse Stone, came across as an epic old West confrontation between the new sheriff in town and a mob. Well, at the beginning of "Trouble in Paradise" Parker pretty much makes the western metaphor explicit and within that context this second novel has an outlaw gang ride into town to rob the bank (and a whole lot more). In the Massachusetts coastal town of Paradise where we lay our scene, Stiles Island is a wealthy and exclusive enclave whose only link to the mainland is a bridge. James Macklin sees this as the heist of this career and has brought a group of ex-cons who plan on making a million each off of this big score. Meanwhile Stone's job is in jeopardy because he had the audacity to arrest some rich kids for burning down the house of two gays. His romantic entanglements with his ex-wife Jenn and local attorney Abby Taylor are further complicated by his attraction to realtor Marcy Campbell. When the bridge to Stiles Island blows up, two of those women will be at risk in what happens next. Stone continues to be the anti-Spenser, a police chief rather than a private detective, trying to salvage a workable relationship with his ex-wife rather than enjoying the love of a very good woman, dealing with the rich and powerful who are out to get him rather than doing whatever he wants and answering only to himself. The main problem with "Trouble in Paradise" is that the payoff is not worth the set up. The criminals are more interesting than the hero for most of the novel (especially "Crow") and they contribute more to the failure of the grand scheme than does Stone. What I most appreciated about the novel is that the growing supporting cast of women have more active roles in the action this time around; they are much more than romantic interests for our hero. Parker is still establishing characters and relationships, but you certainly get the feeling he is in for the long haul. He is not there yet, but he certainly has stuff to work with here. Final Note: Pay attention and I think you will find a veiled reference to Susan Silverman.
Rating:
Summary: A brilliant work
Review: The fast-paced story, tightness of character setting, and the manner Parker describes these characters through the simple conversation. Even Parker's expressions are used too much for a quarter of the century; the dialog is still lively. Maybe Stone is a dull guy about his way for getting along with his girlfriends, and maybe his selfish ex-wife confuses him. But there is no problem if boring guy behaves tough enough, especially when the troubled cop faces a crime. Compared with Spenser, Stone's standards seem to be affected by alcohol and gender. Maybe he is a faltering man, just like most of us.
Rating:
Summary: Not as good as the first book in the series
Review: The only thing that really bothered me about this book was how quickly the villian was defeated. RBP developed these characters (Macklin, Crow) with style. But the way they exited from the story was very weak. There should have been more interaction between Jesse, Macklin, and Crow (who may possibly return in one of RBP's other books because he got away???). There was way too much interaction between Jesse, Jenn, and Abby, RBP could tone that down a little bit as far as I'm concerned. Overall this book is a decent read, but the first book (Night Passage) in this series was much better.
Rating:
Summary: Read the book! - Don't listen to the Audiobook!
Review: The story and characters were entertaining enough for a communte to and from work. But Richard Masur's narration was abysmal. I literally screamed everytime he attempted to read a female's dialog. Does he really think women sound like that?
Rating:
Summary: Read the book! - Don't listen to the Audiobook!
Review: The story and characters were entertaining enough for a communte to and from work. But Richard Masur's narration was abysmal. I literally screamed everytime he attempted to read a female's dialog. Does he really think women sound like that?
Rating:
Summary: Story content is good, but Jesse Stone is boring!
Review: The story was great...fast, easy reading, but Jesse Stone is boring, too laid back, and just isn't an interesting person. How many times do you need to hear that Jenn loves him, wants him, but wants every other guy she dates! PLEASE bring Spenser and Hawk back!!!!!!!
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