Stakeouts and Strollers
by Rob Phillips
DETAILS:
Publisher: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: March 17, 2026
Format: eARC
Length: 336 pg.
Read Date: March 2-6, 2026
What’s Stakeouts and Strollers About?
Charlie Shaw, a former investigative reporter, is now a rookie P.I. His boss has him working low-risk cases as he learns the job—and because he’s a new dad. Charlie is besotted with his little girl, Callie. So much so that he does things like wear down his phone battery enough watching her on the monitor so he doesn’t have enough power to take the photos he needs to document his target’s affair.
Soon after, he’s back on the case and tracks the woman to the home of the man she’s having an affair with. Beyond getting the photos he needs to satisfy the client, two significant things happen.
First, he runs into a teenage girl who is seemingly trying to follow the same person. Secondly, he witnesses the man his target was seeing get beaten by a large man and acts to help him.
My summary is getting convoluted—that’s on me, not Phillips. Charlie tracks down the girl—Friday Finley—who didn’t turn out to have anything to do with anyone that was at the scene he met her at. She’s actually trying to track down her father, who ghosted her and her mother years ago, and is now seemingly tied to some criminals working out of a dive bar.
Charlie’s between jobs, thanks to getting the incriminating photos, so he can help Friday track down her dad. This is where things get complicated and dangerous.
Why did I pick this up? Why did I keep reading?
The cover and title caught my eye, and the premise sold me.
I kept reading because Phillips’ text is smooth and engaging, and Charlie is one of those narrators that you can’t help but like immediately, so you want to see how things turn out for him. And I can’t imagine how a reader can’t want to know what happens next for Friday once they’ve met her.
Basically, everything about the book made me want to keep going.
What does this book tell us about humanity?
The big through-line with this book is family. Sometimes we’re talking about found families, but most of this is blood family.
Some of the families are dysfunctional, some are loving and supportive, some are still figuring themselves out, some are falling apart—but this novel is just littered with families. It’s the key to practically every motivation, decision, and goal for these characters.
Family is something many of us take for granted, at least one we can undervalue, given whatever day/stage of life we’re in. But seeing these characters do all these various and sundry things because of family rings so true. When X is doing Y for reason Z, it’s easy to dismiss Z as folly or greed. But as soon as it becomes “for reason Z and family,” both the character X and the action Y become relatable, understandable, and possibly even sympathetic.
This is on just about every page of this novel, and more than any other reason, it’s what grounds this work and draws you in.
So, what did I think about Stakeouts and Strollers?
This is just fun—Charlie’s got all the makings of a decent fictional PI, but Callie is a big distraction for him. Which makes you like him all the more—he’s such a girl dad. When it comes to Friday, he assumes a role between paternal and big brother.
A book that starts with a P.I.’s phone battery dying because he’s watching his daughter starts off with a certain tone—mildly comedic and light. Sure, there are legitimately tense and violent scenes (nothing that couldn’t show up on Prime Time TV), but the book retains that lightness. It’s practically wholesome—particularly any scene that features Charlie’s family.
The investigation itself is full of a bunch of great turns. And Charlie’s investigative chops are pretty evident.
I don’t know if this is the beginning of a series or just a fun one-off. Either way, it’s a satisfying time, and I recommend you pick it up. I’d enjoy watching little Callie grow while her dad tackles more cases. But if this is it, I can imagine that happening anyway. I expect I won’t be alone in hoping we get to see the family again.
Disclaimer: I received this eARC from St. Martin’s Press & Minotaur Books via NetGalley in exchange for this post which contains my honest opinion—thanks to both for this.
This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.
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