N O V E L S T H E   B L A C K   A N G E L R E V I E W S (UK) CRIMESPREE MAGAZINE This latest in the Charlie Parker series has a grand and epic feel to the beginning. And it sets the stage for a book that is for lack of a better word, amazing. By the time I got done with this book I felt drained from the emotional state it put me in. Parker's friend Louis needs a favor, his cousin is missing, and the chances of her being found under pleasant circumstances are pretty unlikely. As the search begins Parker finds himself being drawn into the path of an evil even he might not be ready for. Stretching from border towns to Europe, Parker is on a collision course with an evil that has been around possibly longer than man himself. The goal? To bring back THE BLACK ANGEL. Connolly spins this tale so intricately that once you are drawn in you will not get out till you finish the book, and there's a damn good chance you'll do that in one sitting. I am not exaggerating when I say that this could be his best book yet. Connolly's outstanding attention to characters and plot are there, as well as an underlying tension that builds throughout the book. I think I actually might have held my breath for longer than would be considered healthy when it came to the ending. Run, don't walk to get this book, and then don't make any plans once you open it.    —Jon Jordan (US) How do you review a book like The Black Angel? John Connolly takes a tale and forges a story, layering history and imagination so tightly that sometimes it's hard to know where one leaves off and the other begins. If you want a straight up "Should I buy this book," the answer is a hearty YES, and you can stop reading now. Some try to classify Connolly's work as supernatural, and while his books certainly have elements of "unusual behavior", supernatural is almost a misnomer. This is a thriller, the mystery not just a missing woman, but the ambiguity of human nature. Connolly takes the ultimate manifestation of evil and gives it a cause, a name and a face. Connolly weaves historical details from Sedlec, in the Czech Republic, the site of an ancient ossuary made up of the bones of 40,000 people, into modern day New York with a deft touch, teaching as well as entertaining. He tells an ancient tale, steeped in the glory of the unknown. I highly recommend this novel, as well as the others in the series. It takes days to fully assimilate Connolly's words, but it's always worth the trip.    —J.T. Ellison This thriller begins with a perversely nasty crime among seedy people, but soon ratchets up to become the latest chapter in the age-old struggle of fallen angels over a portentous object, a monstrous silver statue of vast significance. We are taken on a hunt-and-chase adventure with its roots in various levels of history and religion. Connections are made with fire-and-brimstone Biblical apocrypha, with the underworld of secret collectors of very rare and very icky artworks, and with crimes as recent as the unsolved murders of hundreds of women near Juarez and the misdeeds of loot-hungry troops in World War II. It's a clever, complex, fast-moving story, perfectly geared to the public's fascination with gruesome serial murders on the one hand and crypto-religious cults and conspiracies on the other. The body count is high, even considering that one of the geographical nodes of the story is the famous ossuary of Sedlec in the Czech Republic (now a tourist attraction), where disarticulated human skeletons were fashioned into grisly and impressive decor in the 16th century. The protagonist's pal Louis—he reminds me of Spencer's equally cold and lethal black sidekick Hawk—is on a mission of personal revenge, and the evil "Believers" and their minions are happiest when fully engaged in lethal torture. The hero himself, ex-cop Charlie Parker, engages in a good deal of brooding over why he seems not only to attract crime victims but feels he must set things right (mostly by blasting legions of bad guys to bloody bits) at the expense of maintaining a fulfilling personal life. Still, it's refreshing that his gloomy self-doubt and dark outsider destiny serves the occult stratum of the story instead of being just the self-indulgent glumness of many protagonists of hard-boiled crime fiction. Charlie's got his reasons, and discovering what they are is the heart of the story's resolution. If you like your plot so dense that it sometimes blurs, your conspiracies Byzantine, diabolical, and mystical, and your violence extreme, you'll love this book.    —Suzy Charnas Connolly returns to the dark world of his haunted hero Charlie Parker, and in doing so produces his most ambitious and intricate work to date. The fifth book to feature the private investigator, The Black Angel is much more than just another entry into the Parker series—it acts as a guide book to its predecessors and the events that have haunted him since the deaths of his wife and daughter, revealing why everything that has happened to him, why all the evil which has been drawn to him, may have done so for a reason. The supernatural and religious undertone of the previous novels are stepped up several notches here, and might not find favour with the casual reader. The villains are as demonic and grotesque as ever, most notably the obese sadist Brightwell, who appears to have walked the earth for centuries. But Connolly's remarkable talent includes an assured ability to tease the reader to the very point where you accept there are creatures and beings other than humans stalking the earth, only to then reel you in, so by the end you can,t be sure if elements of what happens to Parker is reality, or a figment of not just his own scarred imagination, but also of the deluded evil beings he hunts, and who, in turn, hunt him.    —John Quirk, The Manx Independent, Isle of Man Not for the faint of heart, John Connolly's The Black Angel delves into the abyss that lies within each of us. At turns lyrical and poetic, peppered with graphic depictions of violence and cruelty, Connolly guides us on a journey that moves from the here and now into the hinterlands of grief, loneliness and despair. Ex-cop and present day champion of the innocent, Charlie Parker is drawn to help a friend avenge the death of his cousin, forcing Charlie to leave his lover and their infant daughter to return to the streets of New York. Along the way Charlie must confront both his past and his future as he faces the one truth many of us prefer to ignore: that there are no small evils. This was my first experience with a John Connolly novel and while the opening (Charlie and an associate bumble their way through apprehending a bail jumper) prepared me for more of a Elmore Leonard- type of darkly humored noir, the succeeding pages quickly disavowed me of this notion as we were plunged into Charlie's world of wacky but intensely loyal friends, dead loved ones who taint his current relationship, and a past colored by souls both saved and lost. Once I got past these initial expectations and surrendered to Connolly's prose, I found The Black Angel an enjoyable, contemplative read with the adrenalin rush of a thriller combined with the depth and lyricism of a "literary" novel. I look forward to discovering Connolly's other novels and to reading his next one.    —Cathryn J Lyons The unrelenting darkness of The Black Angel (moments of levity can be counted on your fingers) makes it a questionable choice for late night reading, particularly if a gusting wind is tap-tap-tapping branches against the window. Connolly takes the reader on a fast ride, each chapter sinking you deeper into his altogether believable—though not overly pleasant—fictional world. Stylistic, introspective, and occasionally narrative-heavy, this isn't your typical thriller. Written in a lyrical tone reminiscent of James Lee Burke, The Black Angel is a creature formed by a master of the craft.    —Janet Koch BOOKS N BYTES As usual, John Connolly has outdone himself in The Black Angel. He weaves together a fascinating tale bringing together the past and the present in ways no other author is able to do. This is a book one just does not want to put down and yet you just do not want the story to end either. Once again, Charlie must put at risk having a normal personal life in order to fight battles with evil forces that he cannot seem to walk away from. Louis and Angel are right there with him, as usual, to help when the bad guys out number him. I absolutely loved this book, as I have all of John's previous works, and I would highly recommend this novel as it is a fast paced thriller that you have no idea where the next chapter is going to take you.    —Gina Metz This prodigiously researched novel is very dark indeed, albeit leavened regularly with unexpected touches of humor. The author goes back to the 15th century, as well as a period just at the end of WWII, to give us the background of The Black Angel and those who follow him. I must admit to never caring much for books with a heavy woo-woo quotient, although John Connolly was always an exception to that admitted prejudice. The Black Angel came very close to testing that, I must admit, but the writing is so lyrical and the story so intriguing that I came away feeling as I always have after finishing a book by this wonderful author: marveling at his ability to enthrall the reader. Recommended.    —Gloria Feit Connolly's dark world is filled with complex characters whose words ring true. The plot is equally complex and unique. I enjoyed it from cover to cover and recommend the thriller to any reader who enjoys interesting characters and a good yarn.    —Tammy Huber, DorothyL Connolly's writing is tight and literate. He reminds me of Stephen King at his best, with a touch of Dan Brown thrown in. This is a compelling read, pulling you along and not letting you go until you reach the thrilling conclusion. If you are turned off by a lot of supernatural stuff or by quite a bit of gore, this isn't for you. But if you like a lot of angst and action, be sure to give this one a try.    —Kay Muther, DorothyL