“You know what I think, Chief Stone?”“What’s that?”“Most of the time he loses, but sometimes the devil wins.” (Page 243)It isn’t a point Police Chief Jesse Stone can argue. First with the LAPD and now with the Paradise PD, Stone has seen things that prove to him that evil does exist in the world whether or not one wants to specifically ascribe such things to the devil. It is especially true currently with the discovery of the recent bodies in Robert B. Parker’s The Devil Wins.The Nor’easter that...

The Devil Wins – An excellent crime thrillerRobert B. Parker died in 2010 and is literary estate has allowed a few authors to continue some of his writing. Reed Farrel Coleman has taken on his voice and style with the Jesse Stone novels and has continued these excellent stories and developing the character of Jesse Stone.Jesse Stone is making sure the town of Paradise has taken all the necessary precautions as a massive storm is heading the towns way. Stone has been police chief now for ten year...

This is Coleman’s second book since he has taken over the Jesse Stone Series. In this installment, Coleman picks up where his last book left off and begins to focus more on the supporting characters in the police department in Paradise, giving us a better sense of the town and its people. Luther Suitcase Simpson who was gut shot last spring as he helped Jesse out of a tight spot with a hired assassin known as Mr. Peepers, is now back at work on light duty assigned to Molly Crane’s job at the de...

I have mixed emotions about this book. I loved Robert Parker's writing. Anyone trying to carry on the series would have a hard time. I'm generally not a fan of other writers trying to continue a series. Add to that I received an ARC. I'm generally not a fan of continuations but I thought I'd give it a try.It was all right. I don't think he quite got the characters' voices. The plot was convoluted but not that engaging. Two girls had been murdered years before but their bodies never found until a...

It's my own fault for wanting another story with the lead character. This author takes Parker's dark style and makes it depressing. The plot was fine but the characters were Coleman's not Parkers.

(3 1/2) I rounded this one uo to four stars because I am just so thrilled with the way that Coleman has taken this franchise and grown it. Not only is this an interesting story, Jesse just gets better and better. There is barely a cliche in the entire book. We have good character development, especially for Molly and Suit, and a terrific old and new, back and forth deal that keeps you turning pages until the very end. Good stuff!

"The Devil Wins, a Jesse Stone Novel" is a continuation of the series by the late Robert B. Parker, and is written, in this effort, by Reed Farrell Coleman.I did not know of Mr. Coleman's other works, which include the " Moe Prager" series of crime novels, but after reading this book, I will be reading more of Mr. Farrell's novels.In short, Mr. Coleman has taken the character of Jesse Stone and lifted the series to a higher level.There was greater insight and depth to This book than in any of th...

I went into this one expecting nothing and found my first Favorite Read to add to my shelf for the year. If you like books with strong female characters you most likely would love this. Maybe it would be best to start with #1 in the series, but I had no difficulty without having done it. If only my digital library had the whole series in audio.

A Little DisappointedI love all the Jesse Stone books I’ve read so far, but I guessed the bad guy way too early. It was an interesting plot, about a murder of two teenagers 25 years earlier, and how it affected Molly, the policewoman who worked for Jesse. It was an okay read.

I truly couldn't put this book down. I enjoyed it from start to finish. Paradise x 7 murders. The first two murders took place twenty-five years ago and now due to a nor'easter a body was found alongside the remains of two missing girls. The body is beyond recognition to include dental identification. The killer has every intention of keeping his identity a secret until the mother of one of the victims come to claim her daughter's body & becomes murder victim number four. While Jesse is trying t...

Bravo for continuing the series and giving voice to Jesse once again. Is this a darker Jesse Stone with more drinking demons, or simply the view of a twenty-five year old cold case from someone who sees life in relation to the next drink, or the last bottle? Either way a contemporary killing spree in Paradise, seemingly tied to the old case has Jesse on the hot seat for his job again and provides a taut resolution. More please. (view spoiler)[ just how many of the selectmen in town are crooked /...

Parker’s 9-book Jesse Stone series is one of our favorites. We heartily welcomed the 3-book continuation to feature the Paradise Mass. Police Chief by Michael Brandman, who was particularly well qualified as playwright of the eight (with a ninth in the offing!) made-for-TV Stone movies. We weren’t about to skip the 13th book, “Blind Spot”, despite the switch to author Reed Coleman. However, we did not enjoy his first attempt, as he shortchanged the characters, especially Jesse as mostly a drunk,...

The second Reed Farrel Coleman attempt at Jesse Stone still does not feel like the Robert B. Parker version as it lacks his laidback style with a witticism in this book once more. Coleman does spend a lot of time on Jesse's alcoholism and which at times is annoying and his thriller aspects of this book like the previous one seem a tad more intricate than I am used with the average Stone novel. He does like to write a complicated story again with some serious roots into the city of Paradise's pas...

Any similarity between the writing of Robert B. Parker and this book is purely coincidental. If you love Parker's stuff the way I do, don't even bother with this.

Reed Coleman did an excellent job with Jesse Stone trying to solve two 25 year old murders after a series of apparently related murders rock present day Paradise. A handful of irritating firearm related descriptive errors but most people probably won't notice. Jesse's relationship with Suit is front and center in this adventure, and Molly plays a significant part of the backstory. The teasing love interest is a terrific touch that makes Jesse all the more human! Very well done story!

Once again I confess to an addiction. I will read all of these books.

Reed Farrel Coleman continues the Jesse Stone series begun by Robert B. Parker, taking the characters in slightly new directions as they deal with their pasts.Paradise, MA is rocked when three bodies are uncovered following a violent storm. The man was recently murdered, but the two girls disappeared decades ago. As usual, Jesse uses his wits - inspired by late night drinking - more than his brawn to discover the perpetrators.The blend of Jesse's side of the story with cryptic chapters about the...

I think Reed Farrell Coleman and Ace Atkins come closest to emulating Robert B. Parker's style and wit.

From the publisher: In the wake of a huge nor’easter, three bodies are discovered in the rubble of an abandoned factory building in an industrial part of Paradise known as the Swap. One body, a man’s, wrapped in a blue tarp, is only hours old. But within feet of that body are the skeletal remains of two teenage girls - - soon discovered to be the bodies of girls who went missing during a Fourth of July celebration twenty-five years earlier. Not only does that crime predate Jesse Stone’s arrival

Another home run in the legacy of Robert B. Parker. The author, who passed on five years ago, created a cast of compelling central characters. He told their stories in a witty and unique style. A handful of select authors have been retained to carry the characters forward, adopting Parker's style, voice and skillful plotting. Usually, this approach simply doesn't work (in the case of Tom Clancy, for example). Coleman, however, hits all the right notes in this thriller about murder in a small coa...