Shrink Rap

Rating:
Summary: Good News and Bad News
Review: Shrink Rap is the Sunny Randall novel where the potential of this character starts to become clear. Prior to this book, she seemed merely to be a writing exercise by Mr. Robert Parker to see what a female Spenser would be like. If you enjoyed either of the previous two books in the Sunny Randall series, Perish Twice or Family Honor, you should definitely read this one. That's the good news.

The bad news is that Mr. Parker seems to have decided what Sunny's final scene was to be before he started the book . . . and had a horrible time making a believable plot lead up to that scene. Many people have commented that a plot element about being able to disguise herself for extended periods of time at close range from someone she has had confrontations with at close range seems a little hard to take. I thought that problem was one of the minor plot issues. The whole decadent act with regard to what the villain, Dr. John Melvin, has been doing just seems unbelievable. I couldn't take his character or his actions seriously. I also found that reluctance of his ex-wife, Ms. Melanie Joan Hall, to be candid about him more than a little surprising . . . because her lack of candor just increased her danger.

Here's the story in a nutshell: Sunny is hired to escort Ms. Hall on a book tour because she's concerned about being stalked by her ex-husband, a psychiatrist, who really knows how to yank her chain. He shows up, and she reacts. Sunny decides to investigate him, and goes so far as to go into analysis with an objective therapist . . . and with the creep. In the process, she makes some startling self-realizations: She's stuck in her relationship with her ex-husband, Richie, in part because she wants Richie to act like her take-charge father . . . while she doesn't want to become her passive mother. Along the way, circumstances with Richie get more complicated because he develops a serious relationship with another woman. Sunny finds herself trying out a fling with a Hollywood type, and liking the taste.

The writing about Sunny's relationship with Richie and her feelings about Richie's new girl friend are superb. It's hard to imagine that a man can write what sounds so true about what a woman in the situation might say.

The book opens this way: "I always loved Richie's hands . . . They were still. Richie was always still. It was one of the things that had made it hard to be married to him."

Sunny later visits Richie's condo to pick up Rosie, the dog they share. Sunny finds herself face to face with Richie's new girl friend. "She was great looking, for a floozie, and she looked nothing like me." After they chat, Sunny thinks, "I could shoot her. I had my gun in my purse. Or I could shoot me. I hated how good-looking she was. How good her legs were. I especially hated how nice she seemed." Later, in the car, Sunny growls at Rosie, "You little round heels. You'll roll over for anyone that will pat your belly and give you a cookie."

Writing like this is what makes the book worth reading.

So take a big pinch of salt whenever you get into a plot element you cannot stand, throw it over your shoulder and wish for luck. And plow forward looking for the next beautiful section of writing within the thorns of this plot's many unpleasant thickets.

After you finish the book, think about where your ambivalence about what you really want is keeping you from moving on with your life. What's behind the door you are inclined to select: The lady or the tiger? If it's the lady, get acquainted. If it's the tiger, be prepared to defend yourself. Either way, you're better off moving ahead. Otherwise, you'll never learn to hesitate to procrastinate, as Dr. Richard Bandler would say.

Rating:
Summary: Sunny's fun to be with
Review: So far, I can't say that any of the Sunny Randall books have hit the high point that some Spenser novels have. But I find the three of them consistently good.

SHRINK RAP does differ somewhat from your basic Parker story. It's one of the few that doesn't bring in organized crime figures. The principle bad guy is believingly creepy enough that he doesn't need gangster help. He does have a couple of confederates, and again, they are sleazy enough, and somehow more menacing than any of Joe Broz' or Tony Morris' hoods.

As others point out, the disguise element doesn't convince. This evil character sure isn't going to be convinced by Sunny's disguise, and I'm afraid I'm not either.

However, this book delivers what one expects from Parker...a quick entertaining straight-line read which while mainly diversion still has enough thought provoking elements to satisfy the intelligent reader.

Rating:
Summary: Spenser without the spice
Review: Sunny Randall is a Boston PI with guns in the closet, an ex who isn't really an ex who has bad connections, a pit bull named Rosie who ranks only slightly higher than world peace on the scale of importance, and, in fine Parker style, a bodybuilding gay hunk for a sidekick. In, SHRINK RAP, Sunny has been hired as bodyguard by a novelist who's being stalked by her ex, Dr. John Melvin, a psychiatrist. In order to discover more about the good doctor, Sunny assumes a disguise and shows up as a supposed patient seeking advice about her ex ... not so far off point. In the process of bagging the bad guy, Sunny learns some interesting truths about herself. Supposedly, anyway.

The really good thing I have to say for SHRINK RAP is you can read it in one sitting without eyestrain, since the pages are filled with so much of Parker's characteristic dialogue that one doesn't need to worry about stumbling into any description along the way. The really bad thing I have to say is that Parker seems to have discovered a wonderful new technique whereby all his characters are interchangeable. Simply alter the name and slap them into different books. Sunny talked so much like Spenser that at times I forgot she wasn't Spenser. And as for the dog ... when the dog starts getting whole chapters of her own in which to fetch balls and take walks, you know the plot has foundered. Sunny did have a couple of good scenes with the shrink, but after she has explained to her friends and cohorts six or seven times why it is she doesn't need their help, my eyes start rolling.

If you love Parker no matter what, SHRINK RAP will give you a good dose of more of the same. But otherwise, I suggest you reread the early Spenser novels and leave Sunny on the shelf.

Rating:
Summary: THE BEST ROBERT PARKER IN YEARS
Review: Sunny Randall is back in a prototypical Robert Parker book; an investigation to be conducted, a mystery to be solved, characters to be developed, spare restrained dialog to be enjoyed, and good to triumph over evil by the conclusion. Even the title is a perfectly minimalist description of the events which we will watch unfold.

In this fast paced and quick read, Sunny is hired to "babysit" Melanie Joan Hall by her book publisher as the author embarks on a book tour for her new bestseller. The reason for the bodyguard is that Melanie Joan is terrified of her ex-husband, the "shrink" identified by the title. He does in fact soon begin to stalk her, and the pace quickens when a bloody incident during a book signing leaves Melanie Joan unconscious on the floor. We only very gradually learn the reasons for her terror as we and Sunny get to know her through their conversations while they are on the road together.Meanwhile, the characters that provide the continuity in Sunny's life - her own "ex" Richie, Spike, her friend Julie, her family, and of course Rosie, her companion bull terrier - are all woven into the story as appropriate in typical Robert Parker fashion by an author who both understands and enjoys delving into the complexity of human relationships.

When Sunny is threatened with physical harm,she decides that she needs to investigate Dr. Melvin (the "ex") or Melanie Joan will never feel safe. As she and Melanie Joan have traveled together she has come to understand that the author is both likeable and intelligent, not at all a shallow writer of superficial romance novels. Thus, she soon finds herself visiting two shrinks, both Dr. Melvin and a background resource to aid her investigation. At that point she realizes how interconnected her feelings about her complex relationship with Ritchie are to this case, and despite her best intentions gets drawn into her developing own theraputic insights.

Since Sunny is still a relatively new acquaintance of Robert Parker fans rather than a old friend like Spenser, we are only gradually learning about her and perhaps that is part of the reason why this book is so enjoyable. In fact, her therapy and the nature of the plot are a wonderful way to make sure that the reader cares what happens next in her relationship with Ritchie. And it is hard not to want to see Spike and Rosie again. Of course, she is not as physical as Spenser, and there is very litle actual violence in the book although two murders and several other violent acts are integral to the plot. However, psychological suspense and tension due to potential violence are almost omnipresent. It is an incredibly fast read, I bought it to start on a two hour flight and finish on the way home but because of a delay due to engine trouble I actually finished the book before we landed, which was probably good since I quickly got swept up in the story and would have gotten aggravated if I had to interrupt it to attend my meeting. The only suggestion that I might make is to read the three books in this new series in order if you have the time; this will let you get a better feel for the nuances of Robert Parker's gradual development of Sunny's character. But if you only have time for one and like intricate psychological thrillers, read this one since it is the best!

Rating:
Summary: Mildly amusing
Review: Sunny Randall must spend her time reading Stephanie Plum mysteries. There is no whacky grandmother in this story, but other than that it is pretty much a Janet Evanovich [clone]. Parker's novel read like a movie script in that they are almost all diologue. They also have more white space than a serious writer should be willing to foist on the public. There is really no mystery in this novel just a story of bringing a known stalker to a form of justice by your basically neurotic woman private detective.

Rating:
Summary: Another I Just Couldn't Put Down
Review: Sunny Randall, Parker's female detective, is no Spenser or even Jesse Stone (the former being his famous private eye who with his sidekick Hawk has been successful in both books and a television series, the latter is a small town police chief of considerable personality).

Yet Parker's ability to tell stories and his inventiveness in having those stories evolve in unpredictable ways always makes me buy the latest book as soon as it hits the shelves. Once I start I find a Parker novel impossible to put down.

In Shrink Rap Sunny is hired to protect a famous novelist whose ex husband is stalking her. The stalking gets more bizarre and the novelist's psychological problems causes Sunny to seek a psychologist to help with the case.

However, the conversations seem to keep coming back to Sunny and her former husband, but of course only in the line of helping her client because she would not go to a 'shrink'herself.

The plot thickens, the dialogue is unfailingly interesting and you can't help but become engrossed in the personalities.

If you read Parker you know what I mean.

If you haven't read Parker now is the time to start.

Rating:
Summary: Several Recognizable Alter-Egos
Review: Sunny Randall, the Spenser female alter-ego is hard at work protecting famous author Melanie Joan from a stalking ex-husband. The dialogue, as ALWAYS, is smart and terse and fun. If you know (and love) the Spenser books, you'll recognize several alter-egos along with the Boston/Cambridge setting. Parker creates a cute female character, but he still doesn't quite get into the female thing (though I think he does try). The romance is pretty rocky in the normal Parkeresque way, the bad guys really, really sick, and the reading a pure joy!

Rating:
Summary: Dueling Identities
Review: Sunny Randle, Robert B. Parker's irrepressible female private eye, returns in SHRINK RAP. Still struggling with her own issues regarding her marriage and divorce to Richie Burke, who has family ties to organized crime, Sunny finds herself hired as a bodyguard. As Sunny takes care to point out in the novel, she's not a bodyguard by trade. She can do the job, but she prefers detecting. However, Melanie Joan Hall, a best-selling romantic suspense writer, draws Sunny's interest. Melanie Joan's ex-husband, John Melvin, has a career as a psychotherapist, but he also has a lot of issues he's carrying around. While bodyguarding Melanie Hall on a ten-day whirlwind book signing event, Melvin puts in an appearance, upsetting Melanie Joan horribly. At another signing event, Melvin makes threats to Sunny. At a third, Melvin wipes blood across the front windows of the bookstore. Knowing that the ex-husband is a full-blown stalker and that getting rid of him in any way that will involve Melanie Joan testifying against him and setting herself up to be a media event is impossible, Sunny sets herself to uncovering the full extent of the darkness that Melvin harbors. Under her married name, Sunny signs on as a client of Melvin's, while at the same time putting pressure on the man as Sunny Randle, PI. In the middle of balancing the dual identities, Sunny also finds herself opening up to the man more than she wants to, trying to heal herself over her own confusion about her relationship issues.

Perennial NEW YORK TIMES bestseller, Robert B. Parker has written two previous novels about Sunny Randle, including PERISH TWICE and FAMILY HONOR. Parker is best known for his series of detective novels about wisecracking tough guy, Spenser. A third series that Parker writes involves Jesse Stone, the police chief of a small town, Paradise, Massachusetts. He's also written two novels featuring Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe. His Spenser books served as inspiration for the ABC television series SPENSER: FOR HIRE starring Robert Urich, and a handful of A & E movies featuring Urich as well as Joe Mantegna.

SHRINK RAP is Robert B. Parker near the top of his game. The plot is engaging enough, though perhaps a little light, but the dialogue sings. He has one of the best ears in the business for real people and the way they really talk. At the heart of all his novels, Parker continually delves into the relationship dynamic between couples and with self. SHRINK RAP definitely deals with those issues. Besides the rescue of Melanie Joan, Sunny also deals with her own rescue, involving a number of scenes with her ex-husband, friend, and family.

Despite the ease of reading and the feeling of camaraderie with the main character, the plot lags a little. The final scenes of the book play out well, but the build-up was almost understated. John Melvin came across as a bad guy, but the reader never got the chance to really see him as a character. Also almost invisible except as threats were his two partners-in-crime. Parker books usually have more violence in them than what is presented here, as well as more of a cat-and-mouse game.

Sunny Randle's latest book stands as a good beach read, or as single-sitting read that will keep the reader turning pages until the final card has been played. Fans of Kinsey Milhone, Carlotta Carlyle and V. I. Warshawski may well find a new tough, female detective to read if they try this series.

Rating:
Summary: 2 1/2 Stars -- Diversity Is Not Better!
Review: The story is plausible but if you can catch a murderer this way you must believe in the Tooth Fairy. Parker should stick to his Spenser series. The character development in Shrink Rap is good but the plot is mediocre. I cannot believe this book made the NY Times Bestseller list unless most of the purchases were made by Parker himself.

Rating:
Summary: Possibly the most painful book I've ever read/heard
Review: There are really no words to describe this book except possibly awful. Or terrible. Or downright painful. Not only were the writing and dialogue completely mediocre, but the plot was so ridiculous and boring, I was stunned. The blurb about the book caught my attention, and well essentially, that was the only interesting thing about the entire experience. The ending (which I suffered to get to) must have been phoned in, because the author completely stopped trying by that point. The only reason I continued to listen to this book was because I just couldn't believe that it could get any worse. And yet, it did.

Additionally, I don't think that I've ever been more shocked with a narrator. My five year old sister would have done a much better job. Didn't anyone give this woman an audition before you let her further destroy a really bad novel? Soooo much exagerrrration, soooo much inflecccction, and soooo much over-acting. So much for subtlety.

I read many, many books on CD, and I've never written anything about them, but I feel it is my duty to warn all of you out there about this disaster. I've heard some pretty poor narrating and listened to some not-so-great stories, but this one was so over the top, I just couldn't believe it. I sat there iin amazement that someone not only chose to publish this, but decided it should be an audio book, and then let Raffin narrate it. The only positive aspect was that I rented it from the library, and didn't waste any money.