August 30, 2004
The title refers to two characters: Boston college student Sarah Markham, convinced that her parents adopted her, and Boston PI Sunny Randall, hired by Sarah to certify her parentage. Sarah is melancholy because her parents refuse to take a DNA test to settle the issue and seem furtive; Sunny, because her ex-husband, Richie, has just remarried. In this excellent fourth Sunny Randall PI tale (after Shrink Rap
), Sarah's sadness leads to murder, as Sunny's questioning of the parents results in one of their deaths at the hands of the person who would suffer most if the truth comes out. Sunny's own blues lead her to Dr. Susan Silverman and sessions on the couch that, however well observed, will have fans of Parker's PI Spenser who are terminally tired of Susan (Spenser's longtime girlfriend) gritting their teeth at her intrusion into another series. Still, Sunny's own regulars, particularly tough gay pal Spike, hold their own in the tale. There's little here that Parker hasn't done before, like his protagonist's side trip to New York and her tangling with venal lawyers and reptilian celebrities as well as Parker's sensitive exploration of the meaning of family and maturity and of the tension between self-reliance and love for another, but he does it so well here, with his impeccable prose and charismatic heroine, that fans will tremble with delight. Agent, Helen Brann.
June 1, 2004
What to do when your ex-husband is about to marry? If you're Boston P.I. Sunny Randall, you jump into a new case: that of college student Sarah Markham, desperate to track down her birth parents.
Copyright 2004 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
September 1, 2004
A Boston private eye who is both tough and literate and very, very witty and who has both a female shrink and a really mean muscle guy in the background--if this were a parlor game, the answer would instantly appear to be "Spenser." But Parker has crafted a mystery series (this is the fourth installment) around a female Boston private eye who is the mirror image of Spenser. Both Spenser and new heroine Sunny Randall work virtually the same turf; they talk alike and think alike; Sunny even has a shrink, Dr. Silverman, who may very well be Susan Silverman, Spenser's longtime love. It's a mystery why Parker is fooling around with yin and yang here, and readers may rankle at a woman mouthing Spenserian wisecracks and striking tough-guy poses, but in spite of all that, this is still a fun series. In the latest, Sunny, upset over being upset about her divorced (at her instigation) husband's remarrying, seeks psychological help. At the same time, a confused 20-year-old who believes she is adopted seeks Sunny's help. The plot seems a little forced at first, with the conjunctions of screwed-up detective trying to solve another screwed-up person's problems feeling a bit strained, but Parker's gift for plot construction quickly comes to the fore, delivering a tantalizing mix of standard mystery fare (threats, murders, suspense) and some intriguing shards from the characters' pasts. Very odd, almost teasing, but riveting nonetheless.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2004, American Library Association.)
September 15, 2004
Boston P.I. Sunny Randall is unhappy to learn that the ex-husband she still loves is getting married to someone else. Her life seemingly a mess, Sunny seeks the help of psychiatrist Susan Silverman. In between sessions that probe her relationship with her insufferable mother and beloved father, Sunny works on the case of Sarah Markham, a distraught 21-year-old woman who wants to track down her biological parents. The only trouble is that the couple who raised her claim she's theirs but refuse to take a DNA test to prove it. Sunny soon learns that Sarah's parents have lied about their past. The deeper she delves into their lives and her own mind, the more dangerous her situation becomes. But when things get too rough, she has her bull terrier Rosie to ground her and her gay friend Spike to defend her. In his fourth Sunny Randall novel (after Shrink Rap), Grand Master Parker, as always, leavens his story with sly wit while relying on dialog to advance the plot and develop character. Recommended for all popular fiction collections. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 6/1/04.] Ronnie H. Terpening, Univ. of Arizona, Tucson
Copyright 2004 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.