Trouble in Paradise (Parker novel)
First edition
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| Author | Robert B. Parker |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Jesse Stone |
| Genre | Crime novel |
| Publisher | Putnam |
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Publication date
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1998 |
| Pages | 324 |
| ISBN | |
| Preceded by | Night Passage |
| Followed by | Death in Paradise |
Trouble in Paradise is a crime novel by Robert B. Parker, the second in his Jesse Stone series.
In Parker's second Jesse Stone novel we find Chief Stone settled into his new life after the events that marked his arrival in Night Passage. Jesse’s ex-wife, Jenn, has also relocated to Massachusetts in nearby Boston. There she finds work, and minor celebrity status, as the weather girl for the Channel 3 news. Although Jesse and Jenn are seeing each other again, Jenn refuses to commit solely to him, and they both continue to see other people. Jenn is seeing the lead news anchor, while Jesse juggles relationships with her, local real estate agent Marcy Campbell, and Abby Taylor. Throughout the novel Jesse’s sexual prowess is the subject of office wisecracking, which he doesn’t mind at all.
The main plot of the novel concerns ex-con Jimmy Macklin. After being released from prison, Macklin hatches a plot to rob the entire community of Stiles Island. The island is accessible from Paradise by a bridge, and one boat port. Entrance to the island is guarded by private security, ensuring safety for its wealthy residents and island bank. Macklin puts together a crew with his partner Wilson "Crow" Cromartie, an American Indian. The rest of the crew consists of a demolitions expert, a boatman to pilot their nautical escape, and one other to cut the telephone lines and provide muscle.
To fund their criminal enterprise, Macklin and Crow commit several violent crimes. Macklin rips off a local poker game and murders the man running it in the process. Crow murders two Chinese drug dealers and steals a large amount of poor quality cocaine. He then sells the cocaine to other drug dealers.
Macklin, and his girlfriend Faye, using the aliases Mr. and Mrs. Harry Smith, use Marcy Campbell to gain access to the island by posing as prospective home buyers. They also set up a meeting with Chief Stone to inquire about local crime. Macklin uses the meeting to size up Chief Stone. However the meeting ends up working against him as Jesse finds him suspicious and begins to investigate him. He discovers that Harry Smith is really ex-con Jimmy Macklin, and begins staking out his apartment. During the stakeout he runs the plates of their van and discovers it belongs to Crow. A phone call to a friend and fellow police officer in Arizona where the van is registered confirms that Crow is a dangerous criminal, and Jesse is warned not to confront him alone.
The final third of the novel details the Stiles Island heist. Macklin and his crew drive onto the island and storm Marcy Campbell’s office which they intend to use as headquarters during the operation. They then murder the security guards and place one of their own at the bridge which they previously wired with explosives. Macklin and Crow begin going door to door, stealing safe deposit box keys for the island bank from island residents and then locking them in their bathrooms. When a police cruiser tries to cross onto the island on patrol, they blow up the bridge before it reaches the other side. Chief Stone is immediately notified, and they attempt to take a boat to the island, but before they reach the dock the criminals blow that too.
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