First of all I have to say that it's only because of the wide margins and line spacing that this novel runs to 271 pages. If it was typeset properly we'd be talking about a 100 page novella here.
I loved Robert Parker's novels, particularly the Jesse Stone and the Sunny Randall series. Unfortunately, since his death, Parker's heirs and his publishers seem determined to milk his reputation for all it's worth, as they have published additional titles in several of his series written by other authors. I can't comment on the Spenser novels by Ace Atkins but I can say that this is the third Jesse Stone novel by Michael Brandman (he collaborated with Parker on various film screenplays and the scripts for the Jesse Stone made-for-television films starring Tom Selleck).
This could be made to work, but unfortunately with each successive iteration Parker's original work has been watered down to a pale and predictable imitation going through the motions. Sometimes good things should be allowed to come to an end.
