Shrink Rap

Sunny Randall once again, despite her own problems, saves the day. Her clever rescue of several women from a sadistic psychiatrist takes a lot of courageous well as help from her ex-husband. As usual, a fast reading book, as are all of Rober Parker's books.Shrink Rap (Sunny Randall)

Romance author Melanie Joan Hall hires Private Investigator Sunny Randall to help guard her against the the author's stalking ex-husband. Sunny wants to do more than guard--but as she begins to investigate the ex-husband, psychiatrist John Melvin, she begins to discover hints that Melvin is doing more than stalking. A psychiatrist whose practice seems to consist solely of beautiful women has plenty of opportunities to do evil. Sunny's investigations soon lead her to trouble--and danger. Sunny's personal problems form a reverse image of Melanie Joan's. Like Melanie Joan, Sunny can't get over her ex-husband and, as she investigates Melvin, she starts to work on her own issues. Author Robert B. Parker delivers an enjoyable mystery. Fans of Parker will be familiar with the issues of being unable to live with, or without, a particular relationship, but here Sunny's problems and their mirror image problems with Melanie Jone add rather than detract from the story. Parker does a good job showing the positive as well as dangers of psychiatry, avoiding a fall into cliche. Sunny's dialogue doesn't pack the impact of Parker's more famous Spenser series but this character remains fresh and interesting. Her mix of toughness and vulnerability makes Sunny sympathetic even when she doesn't make the most logical decisions.

I for one am not a reviewer, but this book shook me just enough to express my opinion on Robert Parkers experience with this central theme. I cannot reveal the story line, this would not be in good character, but the mind of the male stalking the writer doesn't really seem to fit well into the story especially being a shrink and ex spouse. Other than that I found this to be a real page turning capturing read that is superbly written. The character in the book Mad Light by Maddox is much more real and is designed not only to entertain but is for victims as such and for potential offenders as this, as well. I do recommend reading Mad Light.

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 mi