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The Unquiet: A Thriller (Charlie Parker Thrillers) Hardcover – May 15, 2007
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- Print length432 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherAtria Books
- Publication dateMay 15, 2007
- Dimensions6.75 x 1.5 x 9.5 inches
- ISBN-100743298934
- ISBN-13978-0743298933
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About the Author
Product details
- Publisher : Atria Books (May 15, 2007)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 432 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0743298934
- ISBN-13 : 978-0743298933
- Item Weight : 1.35 pounds
- Dimensions : 6.75 x 1.5 x 9.5 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #723,815 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #71,138 in Mysteries (Books)
- #84,419 in Thrillers & Suspense (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
I was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1968 and have, at various points in his life, worked as a journalist, a barman, a local government official, a waiter and a "gofer" at Harrods department store in London. I studied English in Trinity College, Dublin and journalism at Dublin City University, subsequently spending five years working as a freelance journalist for The Irish Times newspaper, to which I continue to contribute, although not as often as I would like. I still try to interview a few authors every year, mainly writers whose work I like, although I've occasionally interviewed people for the paper simply because I thought they might be quirky or interesting. All of those interviews have been posted to my website, http://www.johnconnollybooks.com.
I was working as a journalist when I began work on my first novel. Like a lot of journalists, I think I entered the trade because I loved to write, and it was one of the few ways I thought I could be paid to do what I loved. But there is a difference between being a writer and a journalist, and I was certainly a poorer journalist than I am a writer (and I make no great claims for myself in either field.) I got quite frustrated with journalism, which probably gave me the impetus to start work on the novel. That book, Every Dead Thing, took about five years to write and was eventually published in 1999. It introduced the character of Charlie Parker, a former policeman hunting the killer of his wife and daughter. Dark Hollow, the second Parker novel, followed in 2000. The third Parker novel, The Killing Kind, was published in 2001, with The White Road following in 2002. In 2003, I published my fifth novel - and first stand-alone book - Bad Men. In 2004, Nocturnes, a collection of novellas and short stories, was added to the list, and 2005 marked the publication of the fifth Charlie Parker novel, The Black Angel. In 2006, The Book of Lost Things, my first non-mystery novel, was published.
Charlie Parker has since appeared in five additional novels: The Unquiet, The Reapers (where he plays a secondary role to his associates, Louis and Angel), The Lovers, The Whisperers, and The Burning Soul. The eleventh Charlie Parker novel, The Wrath of Angels, will be available in the UK in August 2012 and in the US in January 2013.
The Gates launched the Samuel Johnson series for younger readers in 2009, followed by Hell's Bells (UK)/The Infernals (US) in 2011. A third Samuel Johnson novel should be finished in 2013.
I am also the co-editor, with fellow author Declan Burke, of Books to Die For, an anthology of essays from the world's top crime writers in response to the question, "Which book should all lovers of crime fiction read before they die?" Books to Die For is available in the UK as of August 2012, and will be available in the US in October 2012.
I am based in Dublin but divide my time between my native city and the United States, where each of my novels has been set.
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This latest volume seems to bookend the one that I found that day in a bookstore that has since closed it doors. This is the sixth novel, of a series of novels, that traces the origins of a character named Charlie Parker (a former New York City police detective and current private eye). There is a seventh novel (Bad Men) but Charlie Parker appears only briefly and so is not really mentioned.
The prologue to The Killing Kind opens with the statement:
"This is a honeycomb world. It hides a hollow heart."
The prologue to The Unquiet contains the words:
"This world, too, is a fragile construct, a honeycomb place...."
And this latest volume continues the journey that began with the brutal murders of Mister Parker's wife and daughter (the brutality of that occurring during the opening scenes of Mister Connolly's first novel: Every Dead Thing).
Having read all of the editions in the Parker series (I say `series'... but each of the novels stand alone, while at the same time furthering the development of the main character) suggests that I should comment on an edition that I find to be even more mature and more complete (and that opinion being rendered by a person judging the other novels as being equally brilliant in theme and execution). Charlie has traveled far and wide and has witnessed evil and been subjected to evil. And his soul has suffered as result. But now he is feeling in control (somewhat) and has arrived at the place where he is questioning the `whole' of it. He is wondering if he himself is really one of the `good guys' or... one of the `bad'. And during that internal monologue, he is drawing us all into some very uncomfortable conclusions.
This is the journey of a man tormented by the passing of time and the festering of personal guilt. And this latest entry involves a mystery stretching from near to distant past and drawing characters further and further into a web of deceit and betrayal. And no one should feel surprise at the villains in this edition. They are no less mysterious or frightening than previous incarnations. Some of these characters have wandered the scenery before and will undoubtedly wander again.
This time around there is a specter of child murder and sexual abuse looming above all and weaving threads of several tales and several characters (with those characters and tales converging at the end).
Merrick is at once enigmatic and interesting; a person with particular failings and even more particular talents; a tormented soul who is brutal to the extreme. That said, he is also faithful to certain ideals and somehow strangely likeable (but that may be just to my particular liking... and maybe because I'm strangely drawn to violence of the sort).
The usual supernatural elements are also present and keep you guessing whether figures really do exist or are drifting between dimensions of reality and super-reality. In any event... the whole of it works and in quite enjoyable fashion.
The Hollow Men is one of my favorite poems, and when Connolly used that allusion, it hit me solidly. Those lost ones become hollow souls of their existence - there but not whole. The story deals with Charlie being hired by the daughter of a child psychiatrist who is being harrassed by a man (Merrick) who wants to find her father - The father, Daniel Clay has been missing and declared dead - but Merrick feels the daughter knows more than she is saying and holds the key to what happened to Merrick's daughter. Behind Merrick's action is The Collector - a being who finds those who are condemned by cosmic justice, and he 'collects' items from his victims.
Parker is still trying to find out where he belongs 'cosmically' - is he doomed to darkness, or can he rise to the light? Even he doesn't know - he is haunted by his first wife and daughter who were brutally murdered long ago. His current wife and daughter, sensing danger, have left him but still love him. He has to come to terms with who he truly is - and those that have stakes in his soul's path will continue to observe and participate in his progress.
This is such an amazing book - dealing with a story of possible child abuse and its effect - it also is a parallel book of spirits.
It is a chilling book, on all its levels. And it is excellent.
That said, I must admit that the last one seemed a bit of departure to me, with its much broader scope and its heavy-duty philosophical and historical bent. I enjoyed it tremendously, but I enjoyed this one even more because it's much more like the earlier ones I loved so much.
We begin this book with Parker separated from Rachel and Sam, a separation that seems to be inching towards permanence, and one that causes Parker great pain but about which he feels relatively powerless, I think. What separates him from Rachel is something that he can't immediately control or maybe even fully understand because doing so would involve digging very deeply into his own psyche.
In this novel, Parker's forced to confront that psyche, the way his own decisions have led to his isolation from some of the people he loves best, from sanity, even. The ghosts of his dead first wife and daughter continue to haunt him, but his understanding of that haunting changes. I won't give away any major plot points here, but I will tell you that it's good to see Parker becoming more self-aware, not just in the sense that he knows he's flawed but in the sense that he has some control over how his experiences shape him and follow him into his future.
Angel and Louis show up, which is a good thing, as I like them both as characters. They're funny even in their cold-blooded murderous moments. But they're also human, and it's good to see them covering Parker's back as they always do.
The Collector returns, and I must admit to being enthralled by this character as well. He serves both as a catalyst for Parker's increased self-awareness and for Parker's self-doubts and even self-loathing. He also helps move the plot along in a logical and compelling way.
Other characters continue to guide the reader over complex psychological terrain. If you thought Louis and Angel were studies in contrasts and grey areas, wait until you encounter Merrick here. This man, a killer who carries with him the reek of the abattoir, has a moral code that makes it hard to consider him the bad guy that he is. So, too, the Collector. You want to run screaming in the opposite direction at the same time that you are thinking, "dammit, I kind of. . .GET where he's coming from."
The themes of child sexual abuse and adults' inability to confront the damage they inflict on children in order to serve their own twisted agendas are as compelling as always, especially when Mr. Connolly weaves in history and the backgrounds of his characters to make more powerful and intriguing connections.
I've been told that consistently rating Mr. Connolly's work with 5 stars may look as though I can't rate very objectively, but here's the thing: Mr. Connolly's writing, in particular the Parker series, is some of the best I've ever read, and so far there's been not one major misstep on the writer's part. I continue to enjoy reading about Charlie, laughing at his wit, learning more about his circle of friends and defenders, and witnessing his struggle to achieve some lasting level of happiness. Perhaps it's that last one most of all that always makes me wait with great anticipation for the next book in the series.
Top reviews from other countries
C'est vraiment un Connolly réussi, un must pour ceux qui aiment le suspense psychologique.
This latest book greets the return of the mysterious Collector who readers of Nocturnes may remember from the short story The Reflecting Eye.
This time Charlie Parker along with various friends and other characters are trying to track down a group of paedophiles guilty of various disturbing acts who have gone to ground for years following the killing of one of their victims, this story has alot less of the supernatural in it than some of the other Parker books and is more thriller based.
All around it is a good book and readers of past Parker books can expect the usual great writing, fast moving plot and intriguing characters. This book may not be so much suited to first time readers of the Charlie Parker series as there is alot of references to past books which may seem confusing or irrelevant to those who havent read the series or at least part of it.
Really is a good book for returning readers of the series but if your a first time reader try some of his other books first and see if theyre too your taste if so you'll enjoy this one all the more.