The Wolf in Winter by John Connolly

John Connolly is a brilliant author and with his creation Charlie Parker has produced one of the most complete series of books ever published. This is the 12^th outing for our great hero/ private detective and in this taut tale he is drawn to the town or Prosperous in an attempt to find what really happened to Annie Broyer.  Annie’s  estranged father Jude, living on the streets, has amassed the princely sum of $100+ that he hoped would entice the detective to help him....in Charlie’s own words that might have bought some 2 hours of this time. When however Jude is discovered dead, an apparent suicide, our hero knows that he must help discover the truth behind the mysterious disappearance of Annie.

There is a solid and memorable list of characters that we meet as we travel with Charlie on his journey which is fraught with danger and in particular the evil Hayley Conyer the “voice” of Prosperous , her chief of police Morland who is no stranger to killing, and the wonderfully named Ronald Straydeer. If you add in the old favourites of Louis and Angel we have all the ingredients for a cracking story!

It is however the tormented mind of Charlie Parker that always holds the reader’s interest and never fails to draw me back. He is tortured by the death of his wife Rachel and in particular his daughter Samantha who appears to him throughout and always give the impression that she is calling him home. I don’t feel that CP will ever find peace and contentment until he can be with them again....wherever that may be...So once again Connolly has produced a masterpiece of crime combined with just the right amount of dark horror to entice the reader to return for the next instalment. Anything by John Connolly comes highly recommended and this is no exception...