A cut above….  *****

John Connolly is a superb author.  Comparing him to Stephen King, Dean Koontz, or Lee Child is like comparing a diamond to lumps of coal.  Although he writes thrillers, Connolly’s style is literary.  He weaves a story masterfully and never disappoints.  The Wolf in Winter continues the saga of Charlie Parker and maintains Connolly’s reputation as a great writer.

Through fiction one can sometimes learn new facts about life and at times discover new ways to express what we already know.  Connolly has a distinct way of expressing the plight of the homeless in this story that did not tell me anything I did not already know, but illustrated  it in a way I had not thought about before.  He does the same with discussing domestic violence.  But these are only side bars in the novel.

The story traces Charlie Parker and his effort to follow up on a request from a dead man, who was never able to ask Charlie for his services.  This leads Parker to a confrontation with a town whose foundation is not only evil ,but beneath lies an even greater menace.  Parker’s friends, Louis and Angel, are an integral part of the story, and to say any more might spoil it.

One caveat.  Do not read this book if you have not read the previous Charlie Parker novels.  To gain the full appreciation for how Parker ticks and his relationship with Louis and Angel, you need the background the other novels provide.  To grasp the conflict between Parker and the Collector, the war against the Believers, and the relationship to the Backers without this background is futile.

This is a five star read for sure.