We LOVE  books.  We’ve been reading since we were a teenager and one of our all-time favorite authors is bestselling Irish author John Connolly.  John hails from Dublin, Ireland and writes mystery and supernatural fiction. At this point, it’s impossible to quantify how many books we have read in our lifetime but, one of our most beloved series is Connolly’s Charlie Parker series.

Photo by Mark Condren

One of the things that first attracted us to the Charlie Parker series back in 1999 is that it takes place where we grew up, Southern Maine. Connolly has a home in Portland, Maine and often calls out familiar spots including Becky’s Diner, The Great Lost Bear and the Scarborough marshes. Then there is Charlie and his band of ruffian misfits. Former NYPD detective Charlie Parker is a man consumed by violence, regret, and the desire for revenge, who’s haunted by the unsolved slayings of his wife and young daughter, and tormented by his sense of guilt. Parker often calls upon the talents of his quirky friends, Louis, an imposing, enigmatic, hired killer, and his boyfriend, Angel, an ex-burglar. Together, these three face down the worst of the worst and their camaraderie through thick and thin is intoxicating.

Connolly’s Charlie Parker series consists of 21 binge-worthy books, the latest being the newly published, “The Instruments of Darkness.” (We suggest you read all the books from this series in order as Connolly does reference back to past events, BUT each book can be read as a standalone.)

Here is a synopsis for Connolly’s latest thriller.

In Maine, Colleen Clark stands accused of the worst crime a mother can commit: the abduction and possible murder of her child. Everyone—ambitious politicians in an election season, hardened police, ordinary folk—has an opinion on the case, and most believe she is guilty.

But most is not all. Defending Colleen is the lawyer Moxie Castin, and working alongside him is the private investigator Charlie Parker, who senses the tale has another twist, one involving a husband too eager to accept his wife’s guilt, a group of fascists arming for war, a disgraced psychic seeking redemption, and an old, twisted house deep in the Maine woods, a house that should never have been built.

A house, Kit No. 174, and what dwells beneath.

“The Instruments of Darkness” is just over 500 pages long and it took us 3 days to burn through it. (We would have finished sooner but, you know, life gets in the way of simple pleasures sometimes.” From his lawyer Moxie Castin to Angel and Louis, to the gargantuan muscle of Fulci brothers and more, this book captured our imagination and took us on a ride that we would HIGHLY recommend you pursue.