muggle not Posted November 30, 2012 Share Posted November 30, 2012 I discovered a writer this year who I I enjoy very much, in fact, he may be one of my favorites in the Crime/Mystery/Thriller category. What is funny is that he is one of the "old" writers who wrote many books in the mid 1980's. I am captivated by him and cannot stop reading his works which are many. So far this year I have read 15 of his books, actually 14 as I am reading number 15 now. His books are not lengthy but the stories are very, very, good. If anyone tries to give him a try I recommend reading them in sequence to fully understand the series. The Earlier books are good but they keep getting better further along in the series. Each book can stand on its own but reading in sequence gives a better understanding of the characters. Oh yeah, the writer is "Robert Parker". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muggle not Posted January 11, 2013 Author Share Posted January 11, 2013 I didn't get any takers on my first post, so I will try again. I feel like I am in heaven to have discovered Robert B. Parker. He truly was the "Dean" of crime fiction writers in the U.S., none better. I have read over 25 of his novels in less than 12 months and simply cannot stop reading him. He also wrote a few westerns that are outstanding (around two characters named Cole and Hitch). Appaloosa was made into a movie. There is no doubt in my mind that anyone that likes crime fiction novels will love Parker. Biography Robert B. Parker (1932-2010) has long been acknowledged as the dean of American crime fiction. His novel featuring the wise-cracking, street-smart Boston private-eye Spenser earned him a devoted following and reams of critical acclaim, typified by R.W.B. Lewis' comment, "We are witnessing one of the great series in the history of the American detective story" (The New York Times Book Review). In June and October of 2005, Parker had national bestsellers with APPALOOSA and SCHOOL DAYS, and continued his winning streak in February of 2006 with his latest Jesse Stone novel, SEA CHANGE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saintmark Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 Robert B Parkers output has its ups and downs. The Spencer books have the tendency to jump up and down when it comes to quality. I found his Jesse Stone books of a far more steady quality and more enjoyable. The Sunny Randall mysteries are not that great imho and the western series is one I have yet to read, even though I own a 1st edition version of Apaloosa. But he is an enjoyable writer for travel reading or on the beach. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muggle not Posted March 5, 2013 Author Share Posted March 5, 2013 (edited) Robert B Parkers output has its ups and downs. The Spencer books have the tendency to jump up and down when it comes to quality. I found his Jesse Stone books of a far more steady quality and more enjoyable. The Sunny Randall mysteries are not that great imho and the western series is one I have yet to read, even though I own a 1st edition version of Apaloosa. But he is an enjoyable writer for travel reading or on the beach. The Western series are his best IMHO. There are only four that he wrote and I enjoyed them all very much. the fifth book in the Western series was written by a different author after Parker's death and was not very good reading. I enjoy parker far more than I do James Patterson. Edited March 5, 2013 by muggle not Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saintmark Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 The Western series are his best IMHO. There are only four that he wrote and I enjoyed them all very much. the fifth book in the Western series was written by a different author after Parker's death and was not very good reading. I enjoy parker far more than I do James Patterson. I found the first books by Patterson enjoyable but his recent output is far more written by comitee, so I agree that I like Parker better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muggle not Posted March 9, 2013 Author Share Posted March 9, 2013 I found the first books by Patterson enjoyable but his recent output is far more written by comitee, so I agree that I like Parker better. I have read 31 of the Parker books to date and enjoyed tham all, some much more than others though. Yes, the Jesse Stone books are good but I still like the Spencer series and some in that series are really great. I wish that he had written more Westerns as I couldn't put those books down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pontalba Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 Muggle, I'm still working on Robicheaux. lol I wanted to read them in order, so have still only gotten to the Electric Mist one. Love them. I have a few of the Parker on the shelves, unread at the moment. With your rec I'll def get to them. Patterson I have found too violent for my taste. At least the one with violets in the name. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muggle not Posted March 17, 2013 Author Share Posted March 17, 2013 (edited) Muggle, I'm still working on Robicheaux. lol I wanted to read them in order, so have still only gotten to the Electric Mist one. Love them. I have a few of the Parker on the shelves, unread at the moment. With your rec I'll def get to them. Patterson I have found too violent for my taste. At least the one with violets in the name. I have found with the Robicheaux Series by James Leee Burke that his writing improves significantly from the first few books in the series. Yes, I still really like Burke's writing. Most of the Parker books in the "Spencer" series are not near as violent as Patterson. I just downloaded another (Sudden Mischief) of the Spencer series by Parker last night. I need a breather after finishing Clash of Kings by RR Martin before I continue with his series. The Clash of Kings was over 1000 pages long and the previous book "A Game of Thrones" was over 900 pages long. Fortunately our library has most/many of the "Spencer Series" by Robert B. Parker on Kindle and I am very fortunate to be able to simply download a book when I want. Edited March 17, 2013 by muggle not Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Little Pixie Posted July 4, 2013 Share Posted July 4, 2013 Love Robert B Parker. I`ve never tried his Westerns, but I have his last five or six Spenser, Jesse Stone and Sunny Randall books in my TBR pile and am rationing them out. I was excited to see that Silent Night , the book he was working on when he died, has been finished by his agent. I haven`t tried the ` in the style of` books which are continuing his series, but may give them a go when I`ve finished the books that I do have of his. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookmonkey Posted July 5, 2013 Share Posted July 5, 2013 I'll have to check out Robert Parker. Always on the look out for new mystery writers. Someone mentioned James Lee Burke. What's he like? I've seen his books in the library but never looked at them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrsmac Posted July 5, 2013 Share Posted July 5, 2013 The Jesse Stone 'made for telly movies' are great, always enjoy them. Also have enjoyed all the Parker books I've read. Sorry that he's no longer with us. James Lee Burke is a very popular writer, I believe his books are mostly set in Louisiana in the U.S. Pontalba on the forum would be able to tell you a lot more about him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Little Pixie Posted July 5, 2013 Share Posted July 5, 2013 The Jesse Stone 'made for telly movies' are great, always enjoy them. Also have enjoyed all the Parker books I've read. Sorry that he's no longer with us. Ditto - I think Tom Selleck was terrific casting for those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pontalba Posted July 5, 2013 Share Posted July 5, 2013 (edited) I'll have to check out Robert Parker. Always on the look out for new mystery writers. Someone mentioned James Lee Burke. What's he like? I've seen his books in the library but never looked at them. James Lee Burke is one of my favorites. His prose is beautiful, and depicts the Louisiana landscape both beautifully and accurately. His stories are part New Orleans/Louisiana, part noir, part police procedural. All good. Above muggle not mentioned that Burkes writing improves as he goes along, and I'd somewhat agree, however the second one, Heaven's Prisoners has one of the most beautiful opening paragraphs, describing the Gulf of Mexico, off the Louisiana coast that I've ever read. The Jesse Stone 'made for telly movies' are great, always enjoy them. Also have enjoyed all the Parker books I've read. Sorry that he's no longer with us. James Lee Burke is a very popular writer, I believe his books are mostly set in Louisiana in the U.S. Pontalba on the forum would be able to tell you a lot more about him. Hey mrsmac...yup, he's pretty darned good. I haven't read many of the Parker books, but enjoyed the films made for the Jesse Stone character, for sure. Ditto - I think Tom Selleck was terrific casting for those. Oh, yeah! Edited July 5, 2013 by pontalba Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muggle not Posted August 1, 2013 Author Share Posted August 1, 2013 I'll have to check out Robert Parker. Always on the look out for new mystery writers. Someone mentioned James Lee Burke. What's he like? I've seen his books in the library but never looked at them. James Lee Burke is one of if not "the" favorite crime/mystery writer of mine. I am currently reading his new book "Light of the World". I think I have read all of his many books. my favorites are those from the Dave Robicheaux series. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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