PI Charlie Parker, now on retainer with the FBI, is tasked by his bureau handler to look into the disappearance of another PI, Jaycob Eklund. Parker asks why the FBI can't handle this missing-person case themselves; the answer is not what you'd call helpful. In fact, it's vague enough to make Parker wonder what he's not being told, what secrets are being kept. Turns out Eklund has this crazy theory that a bunch of seemingly unrelated deaths over a period of more than a century were actually connected and that they were paranormal in nature. Well, this explains why Parker, who regularly runs up against the paranormal in his cases, was given this particular assignment; and when Parker realizes Eklund's crazy theory isn't so crazy after all, he also realizes it's too late for him to extricate himself from a dangerous situation without considerable risk to life and limb. Another elegantly written, atmospheric, and surprising entry in the long-running and popular Parker series, which remains high on the A-list of crime-fantasy genre-benders.--Pitt, David Copyright 2017 Booklist

Connolly smoothly integrates moments of humor into the terrifying plot of his fine 15th supernatural thriller featuring Maine PI Charlie Parker (after 2016's A Time of Torment). Parker partners with a shadowy FBI agent, Edgar Ross, to locate "individuals who had made a pact, either knowingly or not, with servants of an old evil." The nature of this pact forms an ominous backdrop to the main action: Parker becomes suspicious when Ross asks him to track down a fellow Maine gumshoe, Jaycob Eklund, who went missing five days earlier. Like Parker, Eklund was an occasional consultant for the FBI. Though Parker is convinced that Ross is lying about the work Eklund was doing, he agrees to look for the PI. On top of all that, he's threatened with the loss of custody of his grade-school-age daughter, Sam, after she survived an abduction ordeal. That plot line complements, rather than distracts from, the fraught search for Eklund. Agent: Darley Anderson, Darley Anderson Literary (U.K.). (July) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

The games begin anew as retired police detective Charlie Parker, along with fan-favorite sidekicks Angel and Louis, bring their special brand of cynicism and expertise to Connolly's latest paranormal thriller.Parker, a private investigator who seems to attract otherworldly baddies, works out of Portland, Maine. An unholy alliance with FBI Agent Edgar Ross helps pay the bills, though it means he gets to ask few questions about his assignments. When Ross tells him to find missing private eye Jaycob Eklund, he does bring in his own backup, Angel and Louis, deadly gangsters with mad skills and a longtime devotion to the injury-prone Parker. The three men find themselves embroiled with a deadly (and apparently mostly dead) clan called The Brethren, whose members track down anyone who might oppose them. After killing a man named Mike McKinnon, they go after his widow, May, and their son, Alex. But those are only three names on their list. They have many other targets, and the living Brethren kill without impunity or conscience. As Parker tries to stay one step ahead of the murderous group, he's also dealing with the possibility that his former girlfriend Rachel may limit his time with his daughter, Sam. Charlie Parker's a tragic hero who's worked through the loss of his wife and first daughter and survived both mental and physical abuse. But readers who've followed the intrepid detective through his many adventures know that, above all, he's a good man who always tries to do the right thing. Although it's best to start at the beginning of the series, Connolly skillfully weaves in enough back story to engage even first-time readers. Connolly creates complicated plots that never unravel. He's just that good. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.