So Much to Talk About

Lupica's second Spenser sees our hero investigate when high-powered attorney Rita Fiore is shot. Evoking Parker's Small Vices (1997) and Cold Service (2005), which saw Spenser and Hawk gunned down respectively, Lupica imperils Rita to shock readers, but also to honor and increase her standing in the Parker canon. Book design by Katy Riegel An interviewer once asked Parker's widow Joan how she felt Ace Atkins would fare writing Spenser. She answered that Atkins' voice would become part of Spenser's. She and Putnam didn't wish Atkins leave himself out and strictly mimic Parker. In the same way, Lupica's voice blends better with Spenser's in Hot Property than in 2023's Broken Trust . Hot Property benefits, too, from Lupica's time writing Rita's old flame Jesse Stone, as Spenser and Stone call on each other. Thanks again to Putnam Books for the NetGalley. Robert B. Parker's Hot Property goes on sale November 26. Want to chat furth

In her second Sunny Randall sequel, Gaylin turns the spotlight on the powerful Welch family. When poor little rich kid Dylan Welch goes missing, Sunny passes up the case until Dylan's mother Lydia makes a personal plea and pays her an ungodly sum. From the first chapter, Gaylin's writing sounds more like Parker's, but there's more plot continuity between books than Parker typically featured. The plot is also more deceptive and intricate than quintessential Parker. The novel is the right mix of familiar and new to keep things interesting. Robert B. Parker's Buzz Kill goes on sale September 10. Thanks again to Putnam Books for the NetGalley. Want to chat further? Join Fans of Robert B. Parker , my public Matrix room.

Debuted last year as side characters in Gaylin's first Sunny Randall, the powerful Welch family—Bill, Lydia, and their son Dylan—are at the center of her second . Bill and Lydia hire Sunny when Dylan goes missing. Robert Parker's series became more one-off adventures, less related as he aged. I'm glad to see Gaylin revisit the Welches while potential is high and interest is hot. Read my advance review . Want to chat further? Join Fans of Robert B. Parker , my public Matrix room.

According to the Penguin Random House website, Mike Lupica's second Spenser sees our hero investigate when high-powered attorney Rita Fiore is shot. Book design by Katy Riegel The synopsis makes Rita sound more important to Spenser than she is. Debuting in the novels a few years before TV's Spenser: For Hire , Rita was written into the show's second season as a love interest played by Carolyn McCormick after Susan Silverman actor Barbara Stock was let go. The change backfired. Stock was rehired for the following final season, McCormick and Rita forgotten. Canonically Spenser admires Rita but has only ever rebuffed her advances. While her taking a bullet might've made a better fiftieth anniversary mark than last year's Robert B. Parker's Broken Trust , it would hit harder as the hook of a Jesse Stone novel, she and Jesse former sex partners. Want to chat further? Join my public Matrix room Fans of Robert B. Parker .

In 2010 Memphis, Tennessee, with her husband Dean out of touch a week and counting, Addison McKellar decides to visit his construction office. She not only finds the office vacant, but also no one in the building has heard of Dean's business. When several others downplay or dismiss her concern, her father recommends legendary P.I. Porter Hayes. Together Addison and Porter begin retracing Dean's whereabouts across the globe. As you might expect, they're not the only ones in pursuit. Following Atkins' Quinn Colson series and additions to Robert B. Parker's Spenser, Don't Let the Devil Ride is a suspense thriller that alternates varied viewpoints and shows the author's facility getting into character. I also appreciate that, free of series obligations, the novel shows how Addison and others change from beginning to end as a result of their dealings with Dean. Thanks again to Jessica Cozzi at William Morrow for the NetGalley. Don't Let the Devil Ride w

In April 2022, Ace Atkins' move to William Morrow was announced with the first of a two-book deal being Free Falling , a suspense thriller about a woman who discovers her husband runs a mercenary firm. Stopping by Atkins' Facebook page , I saw the book had been retitled Don't Let the Devil Ride . Here's my advance review .