Night Passage

The First Jesse Stone MysteryAfter a busted marriage kicks his drinking problems into overdrive and the LAPD unceremoniously dump him, 35-year-old Jesse Stone's future looks bleak.So he's shocked when a small Massachusetts town called Paradise hires him as their police chief.Once on board he doesn't have to look for trouble in Paradise – it comes to him.For what is on the surface a quiet New England community quickly proves to be a crucible of political and moral corruption – replete with triple homicide, tight Boston mob ties, flamboyantly errant spouses, maddened militiamen and a psychopath-about-town who has fixed his violent sights on the new lawman.He finds he must test his mettle and powers of command to emerge a local hero – or the deadest of dupes.'as richly novelistic as anything Parker has ever written …light, shade, texture, and complexity'Richard Dyer,

The Boston Globe'The spare style of Parker's third-person narrative cleans the air' Marilyn Stasio,

New York Times'A novel as fresh as it is bold … Stone is a complex and consistently interesting new protagonist'Newsday'Parker has always been a master of razor-sharp and witty dialogue, hard-driving suspense and memorable characterization. His Jesse Stone series promises to match if not excel the Spenser novels.

Night Passage is a stunning debut.'

Houston Chronicle