These books (and the allied series) are so steeped in background that they're staples of the modern police procedural and PI canon. This series focuses around small town recovering alcoholic and Chief of Police Jesse Stone and his ensemble of supporting players. The plots are labyrinthine and tightly written with several disparate plot threads which intertwine more tightly as the book goes along until they resolve into a satisfying denouement.
The continuation of the series after the author's sudden passing in 2010 first filled me with trepidation, and therafter delight. The series has been respectfully and masterfully continued by a stable of capable writers in Parker's voice (to an almost spooky degree, honestly). I'm a keen reader for pleasure, not a literary professional by any means, but I can't easily tell what's cobbled together from Parker's notes and partially finished manuscripts and what (or if all of it) is completely new.
This was a really engaging story, well told. It's tightly plotted, the characters live and breathe, and it's really well written. It's just a solidly entertaining book. The language is average for a modern procedural/PI story (rough language, used in context with a fair number of "f-bombs" and lesser curses as well as implied consensual sex). The book also has major plot threads involving sexual and physical assault, substance abuse (alcohol), and infant abandonment which could be distressing to some readers.
This would make a perfect summer read. With all the weirdness and uncertainty in real life these days, it's comforting to know there's something we can count on to pull us out of our reality for a few hours.
Five stars, a worthy addition to the series.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
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