I've read many of Parker's books and used to be an avid fan. This book seems to be one where Parker lost interest after writing the first page. Many details are utterly superfluous and seem to be fillers to enlarge the book. The plot is silly, and the characters are inane. I know Parker can write well. I wish he would do so all the time and forget about putting out books en masse without serious editing.

I enjoy a good mystery, Robert B. Parker does a good job of entertaining the reader. Sunny is hired to serve as bodyguard for a book author on tour who is being stalked by her psychotherapist/ex-husband. Sunny must find a way to get the low-down on him and find a way to remove him from being a threat to herself and her client. Along the way you meet Sunny's quirky family and friends that try to help her and provide a bit of personal drama.... including Rosie, Sunny's English bull terrier.

The Sunny Randall series of books are "a lighter fare", but still quite interesting. With the love-interest thread in the series I have gotten my wife interested in reading them. I enjoy the characters he has created. Shrink Rap is as good as the rest of the series that I have read. It is a fast read, funny and predictable. Give it a try!

Robert B. Parker's Sunny Randall makes her third appearance. The first two are, in order of publication, Family Honor and Perish Twice. In this novel, private investigator Randall is hired as the bodyguard of Melanie Joan Hall, a famous romance novelist who has a series of appearances and book signings. The problem is that her ex-husband, Dr. John Melvin, a psychiatrist, seems to be stalking her. Sure enough, he shows up at her signings. When he makes a scene at one by pulling his blood-covered hands along a store window, we know he's a bit unbalanced. So does Sunny.

Sunny decides to do more than just protect Melanie Joan, and she goes undercover as Dr. Melvin's patient. At the same time, she hires another shrink so that she can discuss her investigation of Melvin. However, in both sessions, she finds, to her chagrin, that she has a variety of emotional issues regarding her own ex-husband, her former police captain father (retired), and her mother. Worse yet, as she investigates Melvin further, she discovers that he might be guilty of a great deal more than stalking.

"Shrink Rap" is one of Parker's better detective novels and bears his hallmarks. (In fact, snippets of dialog seems identical to dialog in the Spenser novels.) The suspense builds slowly at first but picks up significantly about half way through the book, so anyone planning to get a good night's sleep should make sure he or she does not start the second half right before bedtime. Among the Sunny Randall novels, this one ranks up there with Spare Change as the best.

I'm a first time reader of Robert Parker. Maybe it was just what I needed at the time which was a light and breezy, very predictable little novel that I was able to jump right into within 3 pages. Over a span of less than 24 hours, I was able to pick it up, put it down, a few pages here, a few pages there and then it was over, a neatly wrapped package of a pleasant diversion, not one I'm going to remember for sure but entertaining nevertheless.

However, as I read other people's reviews, it appears that some of you Parker readers kind of feel cheated. I might venture to read a few more of his books since I feel there's no where to go but "up" with this author and I appear to have caught a "dog" according to most.

The one thing I must mention is that our villain is introduced as a "stalker" but it doesn't appear that he would have any time to stalk Melanie Joan (the author Sunny is hired to protect). Our villain also employs other sexually deviant behavior that just doesn't fit it with his portrait of a stalker. Another words be a stalker or be the other deviant. To call this is a mystery or any type of thriller is a joke. Just take it for what it is, a pleasant diversion.

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)