Title: Stuart Woods’ Smolder

Author: Brett Battles

Genre: Suspense/Thriller

Publication Date: June 4, 2024

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ (3/5)

Brett Battles has officially taken over the reins of the Stone Barrington series from the late Stuart Woods. The two co-authored a few books before this, but Smolder is Battles first time taking on the series alone. One thing I noticed almost right away was that, as someone who has read almost every book in the series, I could not tell that Smolder was written by someone other than Mr. Woods. The dialogue, in particular, is done in the same truncated style that Woods’ used. 

This time around, Barrington and company (the usual suspects – Dino, Viv, Herb, Teddy, the Lee’s, and any good-looking, available woman), start out by traveling to Santa Fe, before ending up in Los Angeles. Stone has been targeted by a man who lost in court to Woodman & Weld a few times, and holds Stone personally responsible for the trouble, and money, this has cost him. He decides to take his revenge in a way that he believes will not trace back to him, and will be as harmful to Stone as possible; by finding and destroying as much of Matilda Stone’s artwork as possible.

The story moves quickly, and while descriptive details are slim, the story is engaging in the way readers of the series have become accustomed to. Stone and his friends are always caught up in some sort of nefarious plot, Stone finds a new woman to roll around with (who may or may not return, albeit briefly, in a future storyline), his friendship with Dino is a highlight, and things turn out alright in the end. Overall, Smolder is a good addition to this long-running series, and will satisfy its readers.

Thank you to NetGalley, PENGUIN GROUP Putnam, and G.P. Putnam’s Sons for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.