Editorial Content for A River Red With Blood: A Charlie Parker Novel

There may not be another writer working today who combines the supernatural and police procedural/crime genres as deftly and successfully as John Connolly. His stellar series featuring private investigator Charlie Parker has thrilled readers for decades and shows no signs of slowing down.

A RIVER RED WITH BLOOD is the latest entry and features some antagonists who embody the darkest side of the human spirit and possibly might be the most evil individuals Parker has ever come across. That really is saying something! Parker himself rides the fine line between reality and the otherworldly, and he often joins forces with psychics and others who live on the fringe when solving his unique cases.

"A RIVER RED WITH BLOOD is a tireless read that easily might be one of the best Charlie Parker novels that John Connolly has ever written."

Tracking down missing people has always been Parker’s specialty, and now he is committed to finding one of them alive. This time, Parker is introduced to his client by a lawyer colleague. Ward Vose is behind bars for life but needs someone to look into the drowning death of his son, Scott Theriault, who he believes was murdered. Suspicion is immediately placed on Spero, the all-boys reform school that Scott attended, which he snuck away from one night to possibly meet a young lady named Mallory Norton before his body turned up in the nearby Maine river.

We then are introduced to the group of men playing what they refer to as “the Game,” which typically involves abducting, torturing and murdering young women. We are given a glimpse into these people before learning who they actually are in society and the role they may play in the larger picture. They are Kenney, Teal and the Saint. A fourth player had to be eliminated because he violated the rules by risking exposure as he killed outside the boundaries of the game. 

Parker knows that in order to bring justice for Scott, he needs to find out what happened to Mallory. Meanwhile, Kenney and Teal are worried that the Saint may have had something to do with Mallory’s disappearance, and they are not happy about it. It may be time for another culling within their group.

Parker deepens his investigation and always has his ear to the ground when it comes to possible supernatural connections. One name that keeps surfacing is Brightwell, but who or what that refers to will remain a mystery until the very end of the case. I can only state here that it is a surreal moment and presents some imagery that will linger on long after you have read it. When other students from Spero turn up abused and speak of “dead boys” haunting them, it becomes clear to Parker that this place is at the center of the mystery he needs to solve.

To assist in locating Mallory, Parker calls on longtime colleague Sabine Drew, a Native American psychic who utilizes all of her gifts to find and rescue the missing and tormented souls she seeks. Their combined efforts will form a strong bond and the best chance of finding Mallory alive.

The true identities of the remaining members of the Game, as well as others who might be supporting them, will provide for a great plot twist or two. Before all is said and done, Parker will have to come face to face with both human and otherworldly monsters, the significance of which goes way deeper than he ever could have imagined. 

A RIVER RED WITH BLOOD is a tireless read that easily might be one of the best Charlie Parker novels that John Connolly has ever written.