Review of "Robert B. Parker’s: The Hangman’s Sonnet," by Reed Farrel Coleman

Review of

Robert B. Parker’s: The Hangman’s Sonnet, by Reed Farrel Coleman ISBN 9780399171444

Four out of five stars

 While it is pleasing to experience Jesse Stone in action once again, in this book, his faults are emphasized a bit too much. The chronology is after the death of his fiancé and Jesse has once again crawled into the bottle, getting extremely drunk on a regular basis. So frequently and so deeply that his colleagues on the force as well as professional friends find it necessary to risk at least some of their careers in covering for him. Jesse is in such bad shape that he struggles through the wedding of his protégé, Suitcase Simpson.

 The story opens with the house of an elderly woman in Paradise being invaded so that two thugs can tear the place apart looking for something. Since she is extremely frail, their act of tying her up leads to her death and when a delivery man arrives with a package, the thugs knock him out and tie him up.

 At the same time, a gala seventy-fifth birthday party for folk singer Terry Jester is to be held in Paradise, he is a singer that was once quite significant but has faded from view. However, there is the persistent rumor of a lost tape, where some of the biggest stars in music made cameo appearances. However, none of the people named in the rumor will admit to being on the tape.

 When one of the thugs is killed in what is clearly an assassination, Jesse is put under great political pressure to solve the case, which is a common thread in the Jesse Stone stories. His pursuit of the clues leads to some interaction with some of the best characters in the Parker stories. Vinnie Morris and Spenser provide a bit of assistance in acquiring key bits of information that take Jesse down the path to solution.

 While Parker fans will enjoy the story, it takes a bit of lowering of the bar of expectation. The person behind the conspiracy is not that difficult to identify fairly early in the story. While Coleman does capture much of the literary magic of Parker, he is not Parker and veteran followers of the prose of Parker will recognize the differences.