Death in Paradise.

Robert B. Parker. 2001. Read by Robert Forster. 5 tapes, 7 hrs. New Millennium Audio. 1-59007-071-2. $.29.95. Cardboard; plot, author, reader notes. SA*

Jesse stone, Chief of Police of the small town of Paradise on the seacoast above Boston, Massachusetts, plays softball, runs a 12-person police department, and thinks a lot. A young teenage girl turns up dead in a Paradise lake from a gunshot wound to her head and he wants to find out why. Stone, who left what could have been a successful career with the LA police because he would have been fired for drinking on the job, feels lucky to have found the position he holds in Paradise and he plods along, methodically seeking and finding all the clues that add up to family tragedy, child prostitution, and sadness all around. Along the way Jesse explores marriage, the sources and effects of alcoholism, spouse abuse, child neglect, and the trappings and pitfalls of fame.

Parker is a master of pithy, smart dialogue and characterization. We care about all these characters and I for one look forward to more Jesse stone stories. Beautifully read by raspy-voiced actor Forster, who subtly differentiates all characters. Outstanding even with a few mispronunciations that only a fussy native New Englander would wince at. Jean Palmer, KLIATT