Customer Reviews

The Reapers (Charnwood)

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Though I love John Connolly, especially his Charlie Parker novels, I found The Reapers to be one of his less compelling efforts. Possibly because the character of Charlie Parker is not a main focus of the story and appears only a little. The story focuses instead on his friends, the assasin Louis and the burglar Angel, a rather unusual gay couple who come to Parker's aid in all the previous novels.

Though it's good and offers a lot more background information on these two characters, you do get the feeling that Connolly is setting you up for future books with this one, leading all three characters and the various associated characters who tend to appear in these novel into a larger, more significant storyline. As I understand it, there will be another Parker novel out in 2009.

It does also miss some of the dark, pseudo-mysticism that makes the Parker novels so good. The "honeycomb world" where all things are connected and one action can have a wide-ranging and wide-lasting impact upon many is present, but to a lesser extent that in other Parker novels.

Still, it was an enjoyable book and one I would recommend, but ideally not before reading some preceding Parker novels.

First Sentence: Sometimes Louis dreams of the Burning Man.

Louis and Angel are killers; accustomed to being the hunters. Now they find they are the hunted and the targets of a fellow hitman named Bliss.

I was a huge fan of Connolly's earlier books. Unfortunately, his style seems to have changed and the elements I one loved have been lost, particularly the lyrical style of his writing. That was completely missing in this book. His books have always been dark to the point where I have cautioned those to whom I have recommended his books.

This, however, seemed to be violence for the sake of violence. There were a lot of characters in this book and only one about whom one could really care. Louis and Angel are interesting and I originally liked the idea of learning more of Louis background, but without Parker, of whom very little was seen in this book, there was no balance and I found the two characters without redemption.

Connolly's wonderful dialogue was in evidence, but that wasn't enough to make me like the book. In fact, it's the only book by Connolly I found myself putting down and almost dreading going back to.

Connolly's writing both attracts and repels me, which may be his objective, but I am not certain whether I shall continue reading him.