The Reapers (Charlie Parker Series #7)

by John Connolly Narrated by Jay O. Sanders

Overview

Darkly brilliant and intuitive private detective Charlie Parker returns in the next thrilling installment of the New York Times bestselling series by John Connolly about an elite group of killers.

The Reapers are the elite of killers, the best at their trade, and Louis, confidante of troubled private detective Charlie Parker, is one of their number. Now the sins of his past are about to be visited upon him, for someone is hunting Louis, targeting his home, his businesses, and his partner, Angel. The instrument of his revenge is Bliss, the killer of killers, the most feared of assasins, and a man with a personal vendetta against Louis.

But when Louis and Angel decide to strike back, they disappear, and their friends are forced to band together to find them. They are led by Parker, a killer himself, a reaper in waiting...

The harvest is about to begin.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

Connolly's latest commercial thriller is a taut and mysterious nail-biter that offers plenty of corruption and murder with just a twist of the otherworldly. Jay O. Sanders reads with a stern and clear voice, but never really captures listeners' undivided attention as he steers clear of any real, uncharted emotion. Sanders' deep and powerful bass voice seems perfectly suited for this tale, but it's hard to remain interested beyond the first few chapters. There is an underlying, monotonous quality present here and when Sanders attempts to bring a shot of life to the tale, offering a variety of paltry dialectical changes, he falls flat with unrealistic and over the top performances. An Atria hardcover (Reviews, Apr. 28).
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Library Journal

Connolly's latest novel (after The Unquiet) features the enigmatic characters Angel and Louis, introduced in previous books as sometime associates of former detective Charlie Parker. Louis contacts an ex-associate for information when figures from Louis's shady past as a member of an organization of elite killers reappear and target his home and friends. At the same time, his assistance is requested by a reclusive billionaire who seeks revenge against an old enemy who seems to be connected to the attacks against Louis. After Louis's ex-associate is shot, Louis and Angel agree to act on the billionaire's behalf, but the hunters end up being hunted when they find their information is incomplete. The novel flashes back on Louis's life as characters from his past reappear in his present, and readers learn what put him on the reaper's path. This latest offering from Connolly is as dark and convoluted as his previous novels and just as enjoyable. [See Prepub Alert, LJ2/15/08.]
—Lisa O'Hara

From the Publisher

"Connolly has crafted one of the most darkly intriguing books this reviewer has encountered in more than three decades of reading crime fiction. Never less than graceful and assured, his writing is often lyrical, but in his portrait of the Fulci brothers, he employs humor and panache that recalls Trevanian at his snarkiest. To call this a page-turner is to damn it with faint praise. Veteran crime fans will want to savor every note-perfect word." —Booklist (Starred Review)

"A definite nail-biter." —Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

"This latest offering from Connolly is as dark and convoluted as his previous novels and just as enjoyable." —Library Journal

"A lightning strike of a novel. He couldn't write a boring book if you put a gun to his head."—Rocky Mountain News (Grade A review)

" Connolly is as much amaster of probing psyche and motivation as he is in plot construction and language. " —Albuquerque Journal

"A master at the intensely dark thriller with undertones of the western and horror novels....Connolly imbues his novels with a prose so rich that he invests a kind of poetry in his violent tales." —South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale)

"Better than just about anything else out there. His is a name to remember." —The Anniston Star (Alabama)

"Connolly, as befits his Irish heritage, is a fine storyteller and manages to weave his tale in dark and compelling language...The book succeeds as a thriller....Fans of Clint Eastwood or Charles Bronson movies will love it.” — The Tampa Tribune

"Connolly has set the bar high in each of his pitch-dark stories. The Reapers, written in a prose so rich that there is a kind of poetry in the violence, more than lives up to the standard." —Pittsburgh Tribune

"'The Reapers' sets the standard in noir...Connolly imbues his novels with a prose so rich that he invests a kind of poetry in his violent tales." —The Myrtle Beach Sun-News (South Carolina)

"[The Reapers] is as taut and tense as anything John Connolly has served up previously...Connolly accelerates the action in a truly masterful manner." —Evening Herald(Ireland)

"Uncommonly fine,supple, sensuous prose… these dark, violent, volatile books work brilliantly within the genre while consistently provoking and subverting it. An utterly compelling tale of mystery and imagination." —The Irish Times

"The Reapers fairly crackles with menace; the portrayal of serious-minded individuals utterly intent on completing their dark objectives is masterly. The author has adapted and blended elements of both the neo-noir and gothic tradition to produce a stylish piece, from which a darkly laconic sense of humour protrudes like a razorblade from an apple. In Connolly's world, sentimentality gets abducted from outside a porno cinema and mercilessly pistol-whipped in a dank basement.The Reapers is all the better for it." —The Sunday Business Post (Ireland)

JULY 2008 - AudioFile

John Connolly returns to his Charlie Parker series in this vividly imaginative thriller. A particularly deadly assassin—the Reaper—is hunting Louis, and, by association, his partner, Angel. It seems that a crime that occurred in Louis’s childhood is catching up with him. In seeking help, the two are led to P.I. Parker, who is not a totally benevolent force himself. Narrator Jay O. Sanders jumps into character, never failing to increase the stakes and engage listeners. Sanders reads in a firm, powerful tone that invokes tension with every well-conceived plot twist. Sanders sounds completely confident in his delivery. He clearly understands what it takes to transport listeners from their cars or living rooms right into Connolly’s murderous underworld. L.B. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940171062941
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster
Publication date:	05/27/2008
Series:	Charlie Parker Series , #7
Edition description:	Abridged
Sales rank:	1,102,827

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