Review: The White Road

John Connolly is quite simply the best thing to have happened to the American thriller genre for years. He has more than proved that with his first books, as each one, excellent although they have all been, have continued to better and better one another. The trend is evident once more in The White Road, his fourth Charlie Parker novel, and his absolute best.

This time, Parker travels to South Carolina to investigate the rape of the daughter of wealthy Earl Larousse. Accused is her black boyfriend, Atys Jones, which of course does not go down well in a community that still feel the scars imposed upon it by slavery and black segregation...

But, unbeknownst to Charlie, the fanatical preacher Faulkner, in his prison cell far away in the north, is planning his horrible revenge on "Bird". It’s a revenge to be wrought by strange killer Cyrus Nairn, and a revenge that will bring the lives of those he holds dear close to the abyss. But, there is something else. Something horrific that resides deep in the swamps, an old evil that lurks, and it, too, wants vengeance…

This novel simply seeps excellence from every pore. The prose is exceptional, it’s wonderfully lyrical and almost like poetry. The book itself is dark and haunting, made even moreso by the wonderful way that Connolly blends subtle elements of horror into the story. The characters are a brilliant bunch, disparate threads all connected by the flawed Parker. Angel and Louis, who are much-needed outlets of tension, are brilliant once again, and this time we even get to learn a little more about them and their past. Faulkner remains terrifying, even while behind bars, and Cyrus Nairn, the released killer that he employs to do his dirty work, is deliciously creepy.

A story of incredible darkness and how we can never truly be free of it, The White Road is another masterpiece of fiction.

Connolly’s books are essentially battles between immensely potent evil and flawed good, and they show us that even in these situations it is possible for good to achieve victory.

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Fiona Walker

Book Review: The White Road