The Hangman's Sonnet by Reed Farrel Coleman. A Jesse Stone book.I am so grateful Coleman is continuing the J.S. series. He captures the essence of Jesse and the banter between Molly and the Chief. Let's not forget suit! A wonderful addition that R.B.P. would be smiling about. Read by James Naughton and thanks for a superb job.It's the 75th birthday of Terry Jester and a gala event is being planned. Jester, although a recluse, is still well known for his success 40 years ago that equaled Dylan's

During the course of this story, I felt it was on its way to 4-stars. However, the less than satisfactory ending and alcoholism easily cost a star. 6 of 10 stars

Been TOO long since I have finished a Jesse Stone novel - Great reminder of why I like this series so much. Mr. Reed Farrel Coleman has done an amazing job carrying on Robert Parker's vision and legacy. Excellent (as always) episode!

A good read for fans of the Jesse Stone novels!

Welcome to the 16th installment of the Jesse Stone series! Although the books no longer are written by the late, great Robert B. Parker (he of Spenser fame), the legacy is being carried on admirably by Reed Farrel Coleman, who has been tagged to keep the series alive. And this is one of the best so far, IMHO.The rather sleepy town of Paradise, Massachusetts, is about to get the mother of all wake-up calls: Plans are in the making for a mega-star-studded 75th birthday party for folk singer Terry

Although I was entertained for a quarter of the book, the plot was not well constructed. The main character is deteriorated to the point where...

Mr Peepers has done his damage to Jesse Stone and he drowns himself in sorrow and mostly whiskey. While Jesse does his best to destroy himself the women still in his life around him desperately try to get him to function again. The Mayor of Paradise wouldn't mind if Jesse went under so she could replace him.This time the trouble in Paradise is a mythical recording from a once great musical artist, of the likes of Bob Dylan, whose return to fame would be a record based upon a poem called "The han...

Too much time and the number of pages were spent on alcoholism on the part of Jesse and his friends. The story did not develop until 2/3 of book was read. Alcoholism and the loss of girl friend is a continuous theme in Jesse's life story.

If you like morose protagonists, this is a good book for you. If you don't, it's a long stagger with an uninteresting drunk.The ending somewhat redeems the slow journey so I gave it two stars, but I'd give it one-and-a-half stars if that were an option.

(3 1/2). After the first 75 or so pages, I wondered what had happened to one of my bulletproof, must read authors, Reed Farrel Coleman. I am glad to say, from that point on, I got my answer. He is alive and very well, thank you. This book takes off with a vengeance and does not let go. The Jesse Stone franchise has flourished with Coleman, reaching heights that Parker never attained. This story just spins and spins and spins. Lots going on and with Jesse reaching new highs and lows all along the...

Reed Farrel Coleman's continuation of Robert B. Parker's Jesse Stone series just gets better and better.Stone is battling the bottle, still trying to recover from the death of his fiancee, and working as little as possible. He is spending his time with Johnnie Walker and his Ozzie Smith poster.But he gets sober for the first time in weeks for the wedding of his protege, Luther "Suitcase" Simpson. And that's the day an elderly woman is murdered and an aging rock star's plans are revealed for a ma...

I have been reading Robert B. Parker’s Jesse Stone series since its beginning. Jesse is the Chief of Police in the small town of Paradise, outside of Boston. Jesse’s background includes a once promising baseball prospect until suffering a career ending injury. He became a dedicated police officer in the Los Angeles Police department who developed a drinking problem that cost him his job. Jesse’s role as Police Chief in Paradise has been his second chance at making life work, which has been full

This is the fourth Jesse Stone novel Reed Farrel Coleman has written in the series begun by the late Robert B. Parker. And he has kept the faith. Moreover, he has done something the master never did. He brings in Spenser to play a minor role in solving the mystery which begins with the death of an old woman, a member of the founding family of Paradise, and the ransacking of her home.Jesse, still reeling from the death of his beloved Diana in his presence, is slowly drinking himself into oblivion...

Robert B. Parker’s The Hangman’s Sonnet is the 16th book Robert Parker’s Jesse Stone series and is written by Reed Farrel Coleman. Mr. Coleman’s writing style is a mirror image of the late Robert Parker. The writing style flows smoothly and the book is an easy read. This book combines humor, suspense, and tension, and Mr. Coleman has blended them perfectly. The storyline is well thought out and there is excellent character development. The author has woven together intriguing characters, unexpec...

★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2 (rounded up)This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.--- On the one hand, I know that Coleman is a pro, and that he's going to approach each series, each character from a different angle. But he's so effective at writing a broken, grieving Gus Murphy, that you have to expect a grieving Jesse Stone to be written as effectively and with a similar depth. Which gave me a little pause when it came to cracking this one open -- how much of a mess would Jesse be?Big. A big mess.S...

First a little factual history, and some opinions on that history, strictly my own. Robert B. Parker published the Godwulf Manuscript, the first Spenser novel, in 1973. By around the 10th or 12th Spenser novel (mid-80’s), Parker was phoning them in. I don’t mean I didn’t love the later Spenser novels. I did. I mean they came too easy to Parker, so he didn’t put as much depth into them. He needed to have his literary fire re-lit, and he knew it. So he published the first Jesse Stone novel, Night

The first half of this book was definitely a 1 or 2 star story as Coleman turned Jesse from a man who was fighting a drinking problem into a man who was a falling down, shaking with tremors drunk. No way he could possibly hide that from the people who disliked him and were looking for a reason to fire him. Just totally unrealistic. Coleman still doesn't have all the relationships between Jesse and his deputies correct, but at least he got closer this time. But he finally gives Jesse a reprieve a...

***Moderately Recommend***. Rating 4/5Genre: Mystery, Police Procedural, Whodunnit Protagonist: Jesse Stone. Police Chief. Ex-Pro Baseball Player. Ex-LAPD detective. Tortured and battling his own personal demons.About: This is the 16th book in the Jesse Stone series created by gifted storyteller Robert B. Parker (also recognized for the Spenser, PI series). Michael Brandman continued the series after Mr. Parker’s death in 2010 for three books, and then Reed Farrel Coleman picked up and has writt...

Reed Farrel is doing a bang up job of continuing the Jesse Stone series. The character of Jesse Stone is being maintained at a satisfying level. Hope it continues..