Mr. Monk and the Two Assistants
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| Mr. Monk and the Two Assistants | |
 1st edition 2007 hardback cover |
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| Author | Lee Goldberg |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Monk mystery novel series |
| Genre(s) | Mystery novel |
| Publisher | Signet Books |
| Publication date | July 3, 2007 (hardcover) January 2, 2008 (paperback) |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover and Paperback) |
| Pages | 280 |
| ISBN | 0451220978 |
| Preceded by | Mr. Monk and the Blue Flu |
| Followed by | Mr. Monk in Outer Space |
Mr. Monk and the Two Assistants is the fourth novel in the Monk mystery book series by writer Lee Goldberg. It is the first Monk novel to debut in a hardcover edition. The hardcover edition was released on July 3, 2007. The paperback edition was released on January 2, 2008.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
The story revolves around the brilliant and legendary San Francisco detective Adrian Monk, who is overcome with OCD after the murder of his wife, Trudy. Monk, now with the assistant Natalie Teeger, who provides the narration for the books, is shocked to discover that Mr. Monk's first assistant, Sharona Fleming has returned to San Francisco after her husband has been arrested on murder charge. Natalie, fearing for her job, asks Mr. Monk to look into it. More than a few inconsistencies stand out in Monk's eyes. Monk is assisted on the case by Captain Leland Stottlemeyer and Lieutenant Randy Disher. Natalie and Sharona are accompanied by their children Julie Teeger and Benjy Fleming.
Initially, Monk was too happy with the idea of having two assistants. But his stingy nature wanted them to split what he was paying for one assistant, and expected them to work things out themselves. Lacking the professional qualifications and pioneer status of Sharona, Natalie was horrified as she believed if Monk had to choose between them, Sharona would be selected.
Using her own money, with help from Stottlemeyer, Natalie arranged a trip to LA to visit Sharona's husband, Trevor, in jail. Trevor initially thought Natalie came because Sharona enlisted the help of Monk, only to despair when he realised how disillusioned Natalie was with him. Nonetheless, Natalie thought Trevor was innocent.
Returning to LA, Natalie and Sharona had it out, venting their emotional frustrations at each other until exhausted, they came to a mutual understanding - to get Monk to investigate if Trevor was innocent.
Both had to drive Monk to LA as he refused to fly, though Sharona was surprised that Monk did fly to Hawaii to follow Natalie as recounted in the novel Mr. Monk Goes to Hawaii. In LA, they were introduced by the investigating officer, Lieutenant Dozier, to the mystery writer Ian Ludlow, who also assisted local police in solving crimes, a la Jessica Fletcher from the TV series Murder, She Wrote. It was Ludlow who found the evidence incriminating Trevor, trying to sell on eBay the stolen items from the murder victim's residence.
When they met Ludlow, he declared himself a fan of Monk and would review his own investigation if Monk could find doubts to Trevor's guilt. Having viewed the murder scene, Monk was certain it was a deliberate murder plot, while Trevor was only suspected of committing the murder when caught surprise in a burglary attempt.
Unable to stand the LA smog, Monk returned to San Francisco while Sharona remained to follow up on other related parties to the victim. Joe Cochran, the firefighter from the Monk episode Mr. Monk Goes to the Firehouse looked up Natalie to ask for Monk's help to investigate a missing hydraulic from one of their fire engines, but Natalie wanted Monk to focus on clearing Trevor.
Despite her efforts, Stottlemeyer called Monk in to investigate a strange death on a local nude beach. Monk declared the deceased had been bitten by an alligator.
Though Monk managed to solve a few cases in between in LA and San Francisco, he got no closer to clearing Trevor or finding the culprit of the alligator bite death. Things took a turn for the worse when Ludlow reported his own investigations pointed to Sharona being responsible for the murder in LA, and Natalie for the alligator bite death in San Francisco, leading to both women locked up in jail together.
[edit] Characters
Adrian Monk The main character. A brilliant detective who consults the SFPD on their hardest cases. He has solved more than 104 cases for them to date. Although brilliant, he struggles dealing with simple, everyday tasks from his OCD, which first afflicted him after his wife, Trudy Monk, played on the series by Melora Hardin, was murdered by a car bomb. Played on the series by actor Tony Shalhoub
Natalie Teeger The narrator for the Monk books, Natalie is a single mother of one and is the current assistant of Mr. Monk. Played on the series by actress Traylor Howard
Sharona Fleming The first assistant of Mr. Monk, who nursed him out of his house after his wife's murder and encouraged him to get a job consulting the SFPD. She left Mr. Monk unexpectedly after leaving for New Jersey to remarry her husband, Trevor. She is a mother of one. Previously played on the series by actress Bitty Schram
Captain Leland Stottlemeyer Mr. Monk's oldest and dearest friend, Captain Stottlemeyer was Monk's partner before he was asked to leave the force due to his OCD after Trudy's murder. Mr. Monk does all his consulting work for him. Played on the series by actor Ted Levine
Lieutenant Randy Disher The "out-there" lieutenant is Captain Stottlemeyer's second-hand man. Played on the series by actor Jason Gray-Stanford
Julie Teeger The 12 year old daughter of Natalie Teeger. Played on the series by actress Emmy Clarke
Benjy Fleming The 12 year old son of Sharona Fleming. Previously played on the series by actor Kane Ritchotte
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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