Shrink RapRobert B. ParkerPublished 2002 |
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Reviewed and Researched by Lisa Shea
Sunny is now on her 3rd book, and the focus has suddenly changed. Instead of unbelievable situations with Tony Marcus, we now have Sunny set in a far more realistic and gripping situation. An author is being stalked by her controlling ex, and hires Sunny as a companion / bodyguard. Sunny also has to deal with her ex hooking up with a new girlfriend. The writer's ex is a therapist, and Sunny finds that the therapist has been using his clients. She sets herself up as a client in order to prove this is happening, and she also uses a second therapist as a 'mentor' to make sure she is handling her undercover job properly. Unlike the previous 2 books where the storylines were each unbelievable and merged together to form a massively stereotyped, girly world, in this one Sunny is far more believable, and the situations are as a result far more involving and enjoyable to read. In the end, you do get a great sense of satisfaction and a feeling that the characters have really grown and changed.
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Lisa Says: Given as much as I disliked the first two books, I was really cringing as I began to read this one. In fact it begins in the first paragraph with Sunny saying "I knew that I was guilty of gross gender stereotyping" which was exactly my complaint with the first two books. Maybe that was Parker's way of saying he was going to try to better this time around. I really do feel that the book is volumes better than its two predecessors.
For one thing, one of my HUGE pet peeves in every single Parker book (up until this one) is the way the girl is always running off, the guy is always sitting there like a pet goat blindly waiting for her to return to him. We FINALLY get a guy that draws a line. Sunny's ex is dating a new woman, and is thinking of marrying. Sunny of course goes insane, because she figured she could just string Richie along forever. It was the Parker way, how could she know it wouldn't work this time? There are still the incessant references to how looks-oriented and female-centric Sunny is. When a group of women and one men are talking together, the women can talk all they want without it being commented on. But when the guy adds a perfectly valid comment, it is that he "needed to reassert himself". I have to also comment that Spike, the big polar bear gay friend, is incredibly obnoxious. He's treated as being 'cute' because he's gay. But if a gay OR straight guy I knew managed a restaurant like he did, treating customers like dirt because it amused him, I wouldn't care to hang around with him. We get a number of "good looking babes" comments, the "I would have killed for that hair", and the icky "It's hard to imagine that a beautiful girl like you would be a PI" that she agrees with. What, beautiful women are only good for hanging on a guy's shoulder, or being a model? Because you're lovely on the outside, it cuts down your choices on what your passions might be? Jane Goodall was lovely and chose to persue her scientific career. She got this kind of jerk-comment back in the 60s. I should think we're past all of that now, never mind that *women* would be spouting it. As much as Sunny keeps whining about wanting to do things on her own, the complaint about these books is that she NEVER does, she always uses her boyfriends even when she could have at least tried. The whining is still here in this one - she uses her ex-lover cop to track down all sorts of information. But at least by the end she comes to grips with it and actually DOES the main part herself. So that is a real breakthrough. There are some pet peeves in here. She was a cop, is a Private Eye, and on a stakeout at night she keeps the car running and a CD playing music?? That's sneaky. Not. She tells Copeland (the mentor) who she is after so that he can give her advice, and when he says nothing, she just gets annoyed and drops it?? I liked a lot of the therapy scenes, they were well written. It seems after years and years of writing about Susan S that Parker has this part down. The whole drawing out of Sunny's family, its effects on her current relationships and how it related to the author's situation were quite intriguing. But at the end of the book, Sunny decides to go off with the jerk who used-and-abandoned her from Hollywood, for "fun". I'm sorry, but if a guy is that much of a complete *ass* to a woman, he doesn't deserve a second time around. There are plenty of guys out there who are available and caring - for the ending message of this book to be that Sunny does this soul searching, reaches some great new levels and then jumps in the arms of a selfish jerk is a pretty sad statement. |
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Traveling in Sunny's Footprints Four Seasons Hotel Stouffer's Tower Plaza - Cleveland Regal Bookstore - Shaker Heights Cincinnati Mall Cuchi Cuchi in Cambridge with Julia Barnes & Noble in Burlington MA John's house - big Victorian in Chestnut Hill, white siding / green shutters Fresh Pond Circle - Bread & Circus New Area D Station - Harrison Ave Merritt Parkway Hotel Carlyle Blu in Tremont/Boylsto corner in Sports Club / LA Lucy's El Adobe on Melrose Ave Beverly Wilshire Spago - N Canyon Drive Client - condo on rte 2 in West Concord Beals - townhouse in Mt Vernon Raleigh Terrace - Rte 3 - nobody home Groveland - small grey shinged home Full Moon - Huron Ave Richie's condo - recycled warehouse on Commercial Street Wharf Elizabeth's (sister's) summer home - Gloucester 6 room colonial - family home |
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Sunny's Menu and Drinks Burger with Richie Toasted Bagel at 4 seasons salad with spike cosmopolitans ("I drank them because they look so pretty") Martini at Richie's grapefruit gimlet / skewered shrimp Mediterranean sandwich and water grilled cheese sandwich at coffeeshop Boba on Boylston Street - Pina Coladas glass of wine in apartment Margaritas in LA cocktails, wine, Baileys on Ice bloody mary white wine in apt coffee - skim, 2 equal juice and coffee in apt egg salad on wheat, coffee wine at family gathering |
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