Oh, how I look forward to reading books in this series - this is the 16th, I believe, so I've had lots of practice. Even though my mystery/thriller tastes don't cross the line into the paranormal, I've made an exception for private detective Charlie Parker, who somehow managed to die three times and return to the land of the living. But that experience didn't leave him unscathed; inexplicably, he remains "connected" to that very dark place in which he narrowly escaped making his forever home. He plies his trade just like any other human, but he's acutely aware of the evil that lurks in the hearts of [non]men.
This one begins as Charlie, an FBI consultant, meets with old friend Louis, whose life partner Angel is recovering from surgery to remove a tumor. As they are leaving, Louis - not known for an accepting attitude - spots a truck tricked out in all manner of fancy including a couple of decals Louis considers offensive. One thing leads to another, and let's just say Louis and the truck's owner will never be friends.
Concurrently, a very bad man named Quayle and his even badder girlfriend are on the hunt, looking for a pregnant woman named Karis Lamb. Clearly, they won't stop till they find her - and woe is anyone they run into who can give them any leads (or not). As the story progresses, a storm in Maine topples a tree in the woods, unearthing the remains of a woman who appears to have given birth before she died. Parker is called in to help with the case, but her identity can't be ascertained, there are no clues as to what happened to the infant and Parker has no awareness of Quayle and his quest (much less why he's so determined to find the woman).
Eventually, though, everything begins to come together - meaning that Quayle now knows Parker and Louis may be major roadblocks in his path. Here and there, Parker's dead daughter Jennifer makes an appearance (occasionally speaking to her father as well, since she's tuned into what happened to and what's happening now with the woman in the woods). Needless to say, getting to the end means wading through some gruesome murders; and to get the full enjoyment out of the book, I'll caution readers to keep an open mind about "other-worldly" matters. As with other books in the series, the ending is mostly satisfying, but a few loose ends will, I assume, be picked up in the next installment.
Of course, I'll be waiting; meantime, many thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for allowing me to read an advance copy of this one. Thoroughly enjoyable!
The Woman in the Woods by John Connolly (Atria/Emily Bestler Books, June 2018); 496 pp.
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