Sea Change (Jesse Stone Novels) (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "The bouncer at the Dory was holding a wet towel against his bloody nose when Jesse Stone arrived..." (more)
Key Phrases: harbor boat, squad room, Kelly Cruz, Florence Horvath, Lady Jane (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Filled with tawdry sexual shenanigans, bestseller Parker's fifth Jesse Stone novel (after 2003's Stone Cold) finds the former L.A. cop, now the police chief of Paradise, Mass., tentatively reunited with his ex-wife, Jenn, and approaching a year since his last drink. The murder of a woman aboard a sailboat leads Stone into a world of wealth and depravity centered on a couple of yacht owners from Florida and their crowd. Drugs, pornography, rape and underage sex provide a degrading framework for the murder investigation. Stone gets a valuable assist from Kelly Cruz, a Fort Lauderdale cop, as he traces the backgrounds of victims and suspects. The laconic Stone with his uncertain relationship with Jenn, his struggle with alcohol and his visits to a therapist presents a striking contrast to Parker's primary hero, Spenser. But much of the dialogue is interchangeable: witty, flirtatious, droll and sexually charged. The outcome manages to be both surprising and depressing. Stone is a work in progress whose following is likely to increase as he continues to grow.
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From Booklist

The body of an unidentified woman is found in a cove off the village of Paradise, Massachusetts, during the annual Race Week for sailing vessels. This is a particularly bad time for an unidentified body to surface, since the tiny populace is swollen with thousands of boat enthusiasts. Former LAPD cop and current Paradise police chief Jesse Stone, appearing in the Stone series' fifth entry, begins his investigation by inquiring if any boat-rental agencies have any boats missing. One rental owner comes forward, providing a driver's license of a Florida woman who never brought her boat back. After this promising lead, the case morphs from forensic identification into a disturbing morality play, as Stone digs deeper and deeper into the victim's past. This is a case that would intrigue Stone's private-eye counterpart, Spenser (who appears in a tantalizing cameo here). Parker is dead-on here when it comes to police procedure and plotting, as the seemingly simple case eddies into all kinds of ugly complications, and the story swirls from whodunit into an absorbing whydunit. On the down side, Parker's signature smart-ass dialogue is beginning to sound stale, even weak; why must all his characters talk in the same tough-guy way, heavy on the sexual innuendo? Similarly tired is the cutesy relationship between Stone and his ex-wife (punctuated by other women throwing themselves at him), which draws heavily on Spenser's relationship with Susan Silverman. Shortcomings aside, though, Parker's setting and plotting are enough to make most readers forgive the unrelenting Guy Noir style. Connie Fletcher
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Adult; First Edition edition (February 7, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399152679
• ISBN-13: 978-0399152672
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (71 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #175,983 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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• This is item 5 in The Jesse Stone Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My first Jess Stone novel, but not my last!!, February 9, 2006

By	Colby Tustin (California) - See all my reviews

This was my first Parker novel, my dad was reading it and when he finished it I picked it up. I am glad I did as I have a new favorite author! The hero is Jess Stone a former Los Angeles cop who is now police chief in a small Massachusetts town. The chief has some problems, a recovering alcoholic who has lost his wife Jenn. But then a badly decomposed floater washes up on the beach. The dinning crabs make identification of the body difficult, but the cops soon figure out the body is that of Florence Horvath a wealthy divorcee from Fort Lauderdale. Florence's yacht the Lady Jane is docked at the local marina. Stone is plunged into the lives of the rich jets set crowd to attempt to learn what happened to Ms. Horvath?

Stone makes for a great anti-hero. The mystery plot is balanced by Stones personal struggles, that gives the story a realistic edge. The writing is crisp and the dialog snappy yet believable. I also liked the fact that all of the action and plot devices seemed reasonable and probable, something lacking in much of this genre. Though over 300 pages it is a quick read. I now look forward to going back and reading Parker's other novels.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars PARADISE LOST or THE SAGA OF TWISTED SISTERS, March 2, 2008

By	Bookworm (St. George Utah) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Sea Change (Jesse Stone) (Paperback)

After seeing some of the positive reviews about this book and the gushing praise for Parkers writing, I am beginning to wonder if I am just being too critical or if part of my problem with this book might lie in the fact that I listened to it on compact disc.

First let me say that it was very difficult to keep my mind focused on the plot because I was so annoyed by the repetitious dialogue. When it came to any lengthy verbal exchange between the characters all I heard was "Jesse said", "Molly said", "Kelly Cruz said", "Healy said", etc. I believe that most readers (as well as folks listening ) could figure out who was saying what once any given exchange between the characters began. Also, why was it necessary to keep identifying the Florida detective as " Kelly Cruz"? I knew her last name the first 20 times I heard it. Was it really necessary to keep repeating it......after all she was the ONLY Kelly in the story.

Okay, now that I have vented let me say that I did enjoy certain aspects of the story. The laid back demeanor of the Jesse Stone character is appealing, his assistant Molly is likable, but the star of this caper is the Kelly Cruz character. She is one smart cookie who could probably keep Jesse on his toes, both professionally and personally, if Jesse would just get over Jenn, his ex.

Most of the other characters that pepper the pages of Sea Change can be summed up in three words, shallow, spoiled and self-indulgent. As for the overall content and plotline.........well let's just say that in this humble reviewers opinion, Sea Change has run aground.

16 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars SEA CHANGE: FASCINATING AND ENGROSSING PAGE TURNER, February 8, 2006

By	RBSProds "rbsprods" (Deep in the heart of Texas) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Five INTRIGUING Stars!! Jesse Stone, former LA cop is now chief of police in Paradise, Massachusettes. On the wagon, in analysis, and trying to get his woman back, he's carrying more baggage than a police chief should. Then a murdered "floater" plunges him, a man in therapy, into the seedy underbelly of the rich, to analyze the case and find the killer. And he gets alot of help along the way from internal and external sources, one big surprising source in particular.

The redoubtable Robert B. Parker gives us tons of detailed police procedure and forensic investigation, which is just the kickoff, then he takes Jesse down the lurid rabbit-hole to a surprising climax in a wide ranging investigation. Snappy dialogue and intriguing, disturbing characters and situations abound. In some places it was like I wanted to cover my eyes and peek through the parted fingers: we shouldn't look but can't look away. Do people really live like that? Caution: there are two disturbing scenes conjured up by Mr Parker. An amazing read by one of our most talented mystery writers. Five Big Stars!!!

(Note: Eminently readable book with short three to five page chapters that are sparely written, but chock full of information on the page and between the lines. A fascinating, engrossing approach to writing.)