Rating: 
Summary: Been there, read that.
Review: Let's face it, folks, Sunny Randall is just a female Spenser, and this book is just another Spenser book with the names changed.Same characters, same dialogue, same PLOT, for God's sake! If I didn't know better, I'd swear that this was a cynical attempt on Robert B. Parker's part to cash in on the current popularity of female sleuth novels. Hey, and just so you know where I'm coming from, I've read and enjoyed every Spenser novel from The Godwulf Manuscript on. AND I think that Parker has shown that he CAN write something other than Spenser books by creating the Jesse Stone series, which is markedly different, although just as satisfying, as the Spenser series. Just my two cents.
Rating: 
Summary: I like Sunny!
Review: Yes, there's similarity to Parker's "Early Autumn" in that the detective sort of adopts a teenager who's aimlessly floating around, and yes, bits of the dialogue are identical to Spenser dialogue, but that's not really sufficient to take away from the enjoyment of this book. Sunny isn't really a female Spenser. She's less comfortable dealing with the gangster connections than Spenser is. While she's a good shot, she doesn't seem to be a true physical match for the bad guys. In this first outing, she's hired to find a missing 15 year old daughter, but on finding her also discovers that she'll be in considerable danger if she's returned to her family. The story goes on from there. We meet Tony Marcus who we know from Spenser books. And a flip remark is made at one point which indicates that Sunny knows of Spenser and his reputation. Parker likes to throw in little teasers. When we realize that the girl and her mother will each likely be visiting psychologists, we can't help wondering if one of them won't end up with that lady counsellor we know so well. After all, this is set in Boston. There's bound to be a bit of a tie-in with other Parker series and therefore, I recommend reading all Parker stories in sequence.
Rating: 
Summary: Family secrets
Review: Sunny and Richie were married for nine years. They had had a house in Marblehead. Richie refused the house. Sunny wrapped her paintings in order to move her things. Her mother said she was disappointed. Her father offered to help with a divorce or with whatever she needed. Families offer protection to their members. Protection is the theme of Parker's story. Sunny was a cop, her father was a cop. Richie resembled her father although he came from a crime family. Sunny moved to investigation and then to private investigation. She is hired to find a teenage runaway. The mother seems too perfect. Sunny is pursuing an MFA nights. She still paints and lives in a loft. The missing girl, Millicent, attended a girls school. The school provided a classical education. Millicent had been missing for ten days. At the school she had no friends, no interests, no achievements. Sunny discovered that Millicent had been to a youth shelter. The person running the shelter said that the kids seemed to have equal measures of defiance and guilt. Sunny needs her ex-husband's help to get her into areas of activity to find Millicent, (Milly). Sunny finds the girl through the connections that Richie Burke makes available to her. Since Milly isn't talking convincingly, Sunny has the the girl move in with her. It develops that others are looking for the girl. They have to go to the mattresses and move to a friend's apartment in the South End. An interesting subtext in the story is that families teach its members how to function, and that no one seems to have taken any time to teach Milly how to function. Parker writes that in Boston organized crime is an oxymoron. There are loose groups. When Sunny returns to her loft, she finds that it had been tossed. The insurance company sends a clean up team to the loft. Sunny is able to identify her primary interest as keeping the girl safe. Through the intervention of Richie Sunny could return to her loft and begin to solve the mystery. This is a strong and enjoyable effort by Robert Parker, writing from his strengths such as knowledge of the Boston environs and police networking.
Rating:
Summary: Spenser, Jesse, now SUNNY???
Review: I was a bit reluctant at first to pick this one up, but in the end I am glad I did. It's a quick read, some humorous moments and references to a 200lb boxer with a broken nose. The only thing wrong with the book is the lack of an original plot. If you're a fan of Robert Parker, by all means you must have this one in your library. If you're a first time Parker reader, after reading this book, pick up either "Night Passage" or if you want the same plot different main character, try "Thin Air". All in all, I look forward to see how Mr. Parker will develop Sunny Randall further.
Rating:
Summary: Family Honor
Review: I have read all of Robert B. Parker's novels except the Sunny Randall novels. I wasn't sure that I would enjoy Parker's writing about a female P.I., so I was pleasantly surprised when I finished "Family Honor". Sunny Randall is 35, divorced from her ex-husband whom she still loves, and paints. She also owns a bull terrier named Rosie. Sunny is hired by Brock and Betty Patton to find their daughter, Millicent, who has run away from home. Sunny locates Millicent, but she refuses to return home. It seems that there are some other people who are looking for Millicent as well. Sunny hides Millicent in a friend's home while she investigates. I like the character of Sunny Randall and plan to read the next two novels while awaiting more Spenser and Jesse Stone novels from Robert B. Parker.
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: Nobbad!! Not Spencer, but a good read.
Review: I will follow the series for another novel or two at least.
Rating:
Summary: First Time Parker Reader...I'll be back
Review: This is the first book I have read by this author and I really enjoyed it. I see a large number of people who have read his other titles were a little disappointed in Family Honor so I am looking forward to reading the other titles that are supposed to be better.
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: Ouch this was bad
Review: I have read all of Parker's Spenser and Jesse Stone novels - I am a big fan. With reluctance I picked up Parker's first Sunny Randel novel. On the plus side I can see Helen Hunt playing Sunny in the movie, on the down side I fear the movie will stink as much as the book.
After reading "Family Honor" I asked myself is Parker biting off more than he can chew? The book was poorly researched, and appears to be quickly written. The characters were one-dimensional and in many respects unlikeable.
Nevertheless, if you are a Parker fan this will probably be a must read, hopefully this will be his last Sunny Randel novel.
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