Sunny Randall Books in Order: Boston’s PI from Parker to Gaylin
Sunny Randall is a Boston private investigator created by Robert B. Parker, best known as the author of the Spenser novels. Sunny has some similarities to Spenser, including her Boston setting, sharp dialogue, police connections, and willingness to confront dangerous criminals, but she has her own complicated history, relationships, and voice. Parker originally created Sunny for a planned film project, but the film never happened and the character became a successful book series instead.
Parker wrote six Sunny Randall novels between 1999 and 2007. After his death in 2010, the character returned in 2018 when Mike Lupica was selected by the Parker estate to continue the series. Alison Gaylin subsequently took over with Bad Influence in 2023.
Sunny Randall Books in Order
1. Family Honor
Published: 1999
Author: Robert B. Parker
Family Honor introduces Sunny Randall as a Boston private investigator and former police officer. Her first major assignment is to find Millicent, a wealthy family’s teenage daughter who has run away and fallen into a dangerous situation.
The case quickly becomes much larger than a missing-person investigation. Sunny encounters organized crime, murder, and a criminal conspiracy while also becoming unexpectedly involved in the teenager’s life. Her ex-husband Richie Burke, whose family has Mafia connections, and her best friend Spike also become important parts of Sunny’s world.
This is the essential starting point because it introduces Sunny’s professional life as well as the personal relationships that continue throughout the series.
2. Perish Twice
Published: 2000
Author: Robert B. Parker
Sunny is drawn into three different problems involving three very different women. What initially appear to be separate cases gradually reveal connections that put Sunny in increasing danger.
The novel gives more attention to Sunny’s instincts and her relationships while establishing the blend of private investigation, personal loyalty, and Boston criminal life that defines the early series.
3. Shrink Rap
Published: 2002
Author: Robert B. Parker
Bestselling novelist Melanie Joan Hall needs protection from an increasingly disturbing ex-husband, and Sunny takes the job. But protecting Melanie soon becomes more complicated than simply keeping an unwanted man away from her.
To understand what is really happening, Sunny enters therapy and begins uncovering secrets that force her to examine her own life as well. The case combines psychological suspense with Parker’s trademark quick dialogue and character-driven investigation.
4. Melancholy Baby
Published: 2004
Author: Robert B. Parker
Sunny agrees to help a young woman locate her biological parents. What begins as a relatively straightforward search for family history develops into a much darker investigation.
The case also forces Sunny to confront questions about her own past, making Melancholy Baby particularly important for readers interested in Sunny beyond her work as a PI.
5. Blue Screen
Published: 2006
Author: Robert B. Parker
Sunny is hired as a bodyguard for a young woman whose privileged lifestyle is surrounded by the entertainment industry. The job takes her into Hollywood’s world of producers, celebrities, money, and hidden motives.
The novel also features Jesse Stone, another of Parker’s major detective characters, giving readers one of the notable connections between Parker’s fictional worlds.
6. Spare Change
Published: 2007
Author: Robert B. Parker
Sunny joins forces with her father, Phil Randall, to investigate a decades-old serial murder case. The killer known as the Spare Change Killer has resurfaced after years of silence.
As the investigation progresses, Sunny discovers that the new victims bear disturbing similarities to her. Her personal connection to the case makes this one of the more dangerous investigations of Parker’s original Sunny Randall novels.
Spare Change was the sixth and final Sunny Randall novel written by Parker himself. The character then disappeared from the series for more than a decade.
The Mike Lupica Sunny Randall Books
Mike Lupica was selected by the Parker estate to continue both the Sunny Randall and Jesse Stone series. His four Sunny Randall novels revived the character in 2018 and continued many of the relationships established in Parker’s original books.
7. Robert B. Parker’s Blood Feud
Published: 2018
Author: Mike Lupica
Sunny’s ex-husband Richie Burke is shot and nearly killed, pulling her directly into the dangerous world of his Mafia-connected family.
Sunny has never been completely comfortable with Richie’s criminal connections, but she cannot simply walk away when his life is threatened. As she investigates the shooting, she becomes caught in a potential mob war and discovers that the person behind the violence may have a deeply personal motive.
8. Robert B. Parker’s Grudge Match
Published: 2020
Author: Mike Lupica
Tony Marcus, a longtime gangster associated with Sunny, asks her to find his missing girlfriend and business partner. Sunny has good reason not to trust Tony, especially after their complicated history, but the missing woman has become too important to ignore.
The investigation takes a darker turn when someone connected to Sunny’s inquiries is murdered. What initially looks like a missing-person case becomes a much larger criminal investigation.
9. Robert B. Parker’s Payback
Published: 2021
Author: Mike Lupica
Sunny takes on two seemingly unrelated cases. Her friend Spike’s restaurant has been caught in a predatory loan arrangement, while a young college student has reported being the victim of a crime but appears unwilling to tell police everything she knows.
As Sunny investigates both situations, she discovers that the cases are connected. The investigation places her between financial criminals, personal loyalties, and people who have very good reasons to keep the truth hidden.
10. Robert B. Parker’s Revenge Tour
Published: 2022
Author: Mike Lupica
Sunny’s landlord and former client, novelist Melanie Joan Hall, is being threatened and blackmailed. At the same time, Sunny’s aging father becomes the target of a lawyer seeking revenge for an old grievance.
Sunny therefore has two personal cases to solve at once. Protecting Melanie forces her to question how much she really knows about her friend’s past, while her father’s situation brings Sunny face-to-face with another dangerous enemy.
Revenge Tour was Lupica’s fourth and final Sunny Randall novel before Alison Gaylin took over the series.
The Alison Gaylin Sunny Randall Books
Alison Gaylin became the third writer to continue Sunny Randall after Robert B. Parker’s original six novels and Mike Lupica’s four-book continuation. Her books bring Sunny into contemporary cases involving social media, technology, business, and modern celebrity culture while retaining the character and world created by Parker.
11. Robert B. Parker’s Bad Influence
Published: 2023
Author: Alison Gaylin
Sunny is hired to protect Blake, a popular social media influencer whose glamorous online life hides increasingly serious threats.
When Blake’s manager disappears and the danger escalates, Sunny has to look beyond carefully constructed social-media images to understand who these people really are. The investigation also brings old friends and ex-husbands back into Sunny’s life.
12. Robert B. Parker’s Buzz Kill
Published: 2024
Author: Alison Gaylin
After a near-death experience, Sunny is considering taking fewer cases when billionaire media executive Bill Welch asks her to investigate his missing son, Dylan.
Dylan is the cofounder of a popular energy-drink company and has a reputation for reckless behavior. Sunny begins tracing his relationships and business dealings, only to discover that the company itself may be connected to serious danger. When people begin turning up dead, the missing-person case becomes a murder investigation.
13. Robert B. Parker’s Booked
Published: May 12, 2026
Author: Alison Gaylin
Sunny is hired by bestselling novelist Melanie Joan Hall to investigate Book Babe, an influential online book reviewer whose brutal criticism has caused problems for Melanie’s publishing career.
The investigation takes a dramatic turn when Book Babe is found dead. Melanie becomes a possible suspect, and Sunny discovers that the relationship between the author and the reviewer goes much deeper than a bad book review.
Booked is currently the latest published Sunny Randall novel and is officially listed by Penguin Random House as Book 13.
The Next Sunny Randall Book
14. Robert B. Parker’s Long Gone
Expected publication: May 18, 2027
Author: Alison Gaylin
The fourteenth Sunny Randall novel is already announced by Penguin Random House. Sunny’s old friend Julie returns after years away, hoping to reconnect, but the reunion turns into a crisis when Julie’s adult daughter calls Sunny to report that her mother has been kidnapped.
Sunny takes on the case and soon discovers that someone has made a serious mistake by targeting her old friend. Long Gone is currently scheduled for May 18, 2027.
Who Wrote the Sunny Randall Books?
The authorship of Sunny Randall is an important part of the reading order.
Robert B. Parker
Robert B. Parker created Sunny Randall and wrote the first six novels:
- Family Honor
- Perish Twice
- Shrink Rap
- Melancholy Baby
- Blue Screen
- Spare Change
Parker died in January 2010. He was also the creator of the Spenser and Jesse Stone series.
Mike Lupica
Mike Lupica continued the series from 2018 through 2022 with four novels:
- Blood Feud
- Grudge Match
- Payback
- Revenge Tour
Lupica was a longtime friend of Parker and was selected by the Parker estate to continue the Sunny Randall and Jesse Stone characters.
Alison Gaylin
Alison Gaylin took over the series with Bad Influence in 2023. She has since written:
- Bad Influence
- Buzz Kill
- Booked
- Long Gone forthcoming
Penguin Random House currently lists Long Gone as Sunny Randall #14.
Do Sunny Randall Books Need to Be Read in Order?
Yes. The individual mysteries are reasonably self-contained, but publication order is the best way to read the series.
Sunny’s relationships with Richie, Spike, her father Phil, and other recurring characters develop across the books. The change from Parker to Lupica and then Gaylin also makes the chronological progression important if you want to see how the character and her world evolve.
Readers can technically begin with a later mystery, but Family Honor gives the best introduction to Sunny Randall and the supporting cast.
Sunny Randall and Spenser: Are They Connected?
Yes. Sunny Randall and Spenser exist in the same fictional universe created by Robert B. Parker. Both are Boston private investigators and both have connections to the city’s criminal and law-enforcement communities.
The connection is particularly visible in Blue Screen, where Jesse Stone appears alongside Sunny. Parker’s fictional characters often crossed between his different series, creating a larger shared world.
Sunny Randall Books FAQ
How many Sunny Randall books are there?
There are 13 published Sunny Randall novels as of October 2026. A fourteenth novel, Robert B. Parker’s Long Gone, is scheduled for May 2027.
What is the first Sunny Randall book?
The first Sunny Randall novel is Family Honor, published in 1999. It was written by Robert B. Parker and introduces Sunny as a Boston private investigator.
What is the latest Sunny Randall book?
The latest published book is Robert B. Parker’s Booked, written by Alison Gaylin and published on May 12, 2026. It is Sunny Randall #13.
Who writes Sunny Randall now?
Alison Gaylin currently writes the Sunny Randall series. She took over from Mike Lupica, who had continued the series after Robert B. Parker’s death.
Did Robert B. Parker write all the Sunny Randall books?
No. Parker wrote the original six books, ending with Spare Change in 2007. Mike Lupica wrote four continuation novels from 2018 through 2022, and Alison Gaylin has written the next three published novels.
Is Sunny Randall related to Spenser?
Sunny Randall and Spenser are separate characters who exist in the same Robert B. Parker fictional universe. They share the Boston setting and some connections, but Sunny has her own series and supporting cast.
Should I read the Sunny Randall books by author?
No. The best approach is to read them in publication order, not by author. That means reading Parker’s six books first, followed by Lupica’s four, and then Gaylin’s books. This preserves Sunny’s character development and the progression of her relationships.
Final Verdict
The Sunny Randall series is unusual because it has survived three authors while retaining the same central character. Robert B. Parker established Sunny as a tough, witty Boston PI with Family Honor, Mike Lupica revived the series after a long gap, and Alison Gaylin has brought Sunny into a more contemporary world of social media, publishing, business, and modern crime.
For a first-time reader, start with Family Honor and continue straight through Booked. The later books make more sense when you understand Sunny’s history with Richie, Spike, Phil, and the other recurring characters. And with Long Gone already announced for May 2027, Sunny Randall’s story is still continuing.
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