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    A Song of Shadows: A Charlie Parker Thriller
    A Song of Shadows: A Charlie Parker Thriller
    A Song of Shadows: A Charlie Parker Thriller
    Audiobook13 hours

    A Song of Shadows: A Charlie Parker Thriller

    Written by John Connolly

    Narrated by Jeff Harding

    4.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    Still recovering from his life-threatening wounds, private detective Charlie Parker investigates a case that has its origins in a Nazi concentration camp during World War II in this “all-out thrill ride” (Suspense Magazine).

    Parker has retreated to the small Maine town of Boreas to regain his strength. There he befriends a widow named Ruth Winter and her young daughter, Amanda. But Ruth has her secrets. Old atrocities are about to be unearthed, and old sinners will kill to hide their sins. Now Parker is about to risk his life to defend a woman he barely knows, one who fears him almost as much as she fears those who are coming for her.

    His enemies believe him to be vulnerable. Fearful. Solitary.

    But they are wrong. Parker is far from afraid, and far from alone.

    For something is emerging from the shadows…
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSimon & Schuster Audio
    Release dateSep 29, 2015
    ISBN9781442391147
    Author

    John Connolly

    John Connolly is the author of the #1 internationally bestselling Charlie Parker thrillers series, the supernatural collection Nocturnes, the Samuel Johnson Trilogy for younger readers, and (with Jennifer Ridyard) the Chronicles of the Invaders series. He lives in Dublin, Ireland. For more information, see his website at JohnConnollyBooks.com, or follow him on Twitter @JConnollyBooks.

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    Reviews for A Song of Shadows

    4.5/5

    104 ratings14 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Song of Shadows, Michael Connelly, author, Jeff Harding, narratorA small town in Maine, Boreas, recently acquired some new residents on their beachfront. The Parkers and the Winters are new neighbors. Ruth Winters is a single mom with a young daughter, Amanda. They both used to live with Ruth?s mother, Isha, but they had some kind of a falling out and moved away from Pirna, where Isha still lived. Charlie Parker is divorced. His young daughter, Samantha, visits him. He had recently sustained devastating injuries and had moved, temporarily, to this small town to recuperate. Through the children, they make a brief, somewhat troubled acquaintance. When the body of a man washes up on the beach, not far from their homes, an investigation ensues which draws both of them into its snare with devastating consequences.What seems to begin as a strange and confusing murder mystery, soon resolves itself into an intense effort to find Nazi war criminals. Helped by pro-Nazi sympathizers, after the war, these former Nazis have hidden in plain sight in the United States for decades. With their identities and even their physical appearance altered, they remained undiscovered, living far different, often upstanding lives. Soon, even they forgot who they really were, but their hateful deeds could never be forgotten or dismissed, especially by those who continued to search for them.As more and more bodies turned up, seemingly unrelated to each other, in a place where murder rarely occurred, investigators began to wonder if these murders were not random acts at all, but were perhaps all connected by some thread that might link the past with the present. As Charlie Parker, a former detective and private investigator, who thwarted his own death miraculously by being resuscitated a number of times after dying, grows more and more involved in the investigation of these bizarre and violent murders, actually witnessing some of them, he also becomes a suspect. More strangely, as the story plays out, he is visited by visions of his own dead daughter, Jennifer, while his remaining living daughter, Samantha, is also experiencing visions of her own. Amanda Winters, as well, is having odd nightmares about Jennifer. The paranormal overlay in the story is not as effective as it could be as it barely seems credible at times, but it makes for an interesting diversion and creates the plot of future books in this series.As the reader is drawn further and further into this tangled mystery, what once seemed confusing and pointless takes shape and grows engaging, drawing the reader further and further into the web of suspense as more and more of the sadistic nature of the murders and the vicious torture that is inflicted on the victims is discovered. They seem to have no rhyme or reason and no relationship to each other, except in their brutality, and also, in the fact that they are occurring in a place that rarely witnessed such crimes. Why the sudden appearance of so much violence in this previously very quiet small town?There are many sub themes in this story. Many of the characters seem to enter and leave without reason, perhaps existing solely to move the story along, however, they all cleverly connect, in the end, as the investigation into Nazi war crimes and criminals broadens. It is a convoluted path and sometimes it gets tedious with details, but the loose ends all really do get tied up neatly. At one point, I thought that each sub theme could have been developed into a good story on its own, but joining them was a clever and creative, monumental task that finally did work out well.The back story about a concentration camp during World War II, where supposedly all sorts of atrocities were carried out, is interesting, although this is fiction and the suppositions presented are not given as fact, but more as representations of what might have occurred during that historic time of cruelty, destruction and genocide. The theme of anti-Semitism is developed well, without becoming cloying; it is rather more informational and seems authentic, representing the tenor of the times in Europe, during the war, and the nature of the beasts who escaped afterwards.
    • 5/5
      Charlie Parker is a character that I can’t get enough of. This book revels there is something idifferent with his daughter Sam. Can’t wait to read the next book! Love, love, love the reader!
    • 5/5
      Charlie Parker is back, worn and torn, but in one piece. He has come to Boreas, Maine to recuperate from a near death attack in his last book. He just wants to heal, but life has something else in mind for Charlie. Charlie Parker is very gifted detective in more ways than one; Charlie has insights that normal humans do have have into the spirit world.Mysterious happenings abound in this small seaside town and the town?s people include Charlie in those mysteries even though they have taken him in as one of their own. The author, John Connolly, is a master at setting up a mystery with twists, turns, and paranormal elements; this book is one of his best.Charlie has a 6-year-old daughter, Sam; Sam communicates with her dead half sister. His neighbor, Ruth Winters and her daughter Amanda are newly arrived in town, and Ruth has secrets; secrets that require warnings from a mysterious person and he is watching everything. A dead body has washed a shore, was it murder or suicide, a family is killed in their home; their teenage son is missing. Two others in Florida are killed in terrible ways, how are they involved in these mysteries. There are strangers watching, and their intent is evil. How will Mr. Connolly connect all the dots; never fear he has it all in hand as he brings all the dots and plots together to form a cohesive tale of heinous Nazi war crimes and criminals, murder, evil, families torn apart, ghosts/spirits, death and justice. When I discovered the identity of the Jigsaw Man I was floored; I couldn?t believe it. Mr. Connolly created so many twists and turns; the plots just keep coming and your attention will never lag. I was gripped from the first page to the last. This book kept me guessing and I was very wrong in my conclusions.Mr. Connolly created a very enjoyable read you will not want to put down. I highly recommend this book to anyone that likes a well-written crime mystery with paranormal elements.I received this book from the publisher and Netgalley in return for an honest review.
    • 4/5
      This is the 13th Charlie Parker book, but it is only the second one that I've read. I also read "The Wolf in Winter", the 12th book in the series. I'm sure that I would have benefited from having read more of the series, but I thought that this book worked fine as a standalone. Parker has rented a beach house in a small Maine town while he recuperates from serious injuries. However the private detective can't keep from getting involved in a mystery involving a dead body on the beach, a missing boy, a sadistic assassin, war criminals, neo Natzis and Parker's mostly invisible daughter (always referred to as "my dead daughter", which I found somewhat disconcerting). Parker also has a living six year old daughter Samantha who lives with her mother but visits him in Maine. I'm sure that more will be learned about Samantha in future books.I like Parker and I enjoyed this complex story with a hint of the supernatural. The banter of Parker's colleagues was amusing, and I don't usually like banter. These books have a lighter touch than some humorless crime series. I may have appreciated the banter more because the narrator of the audio book, Jeff Harding, was very good.I received a free copy of the e-book from the publisher, however I wound up borrowing and listening to the audiobook from the library.
    • 4/5
      A Song of Shadows by John Connolly is the newest in the fine line of supernatural serial murder mysteries involving one of the better characters in novels today; Charlie Parker."...And his eyes...Had she been on more friendly terms with Bobby Soames, they might well have found common ground in their impression of Parker. She had only ever seen pictures of him before he arrived, but she wondered if his eyes had always been so haunted, and so haunting. They were the eyes of someone who had witnessed events beyond the comprehension of others, and perhaps even his own. She knew that his heart had stopped three times after the shooting, and he had been resuscitated on each occasion. Perhaps the victim of such traumas lost a little of himself every time, and left part of his being behind in the darkness. Or perhaps he brought something of the darkness back with him..."Charlie Parker was ambushed in his home, riddled by shotgun, and left to die. And that is what he did. He died, three times, and three times he came back. Now he has moved to a sleepy little coastal town named Boreas, where everyone knows everyone nothing ever happens. That is until a dead body is brought in by the tide. Now Parker is back. He doesn't want to be, all he wants to do is get better, but he can't shake the feeling that there is much more to this dead body than a suicide. Something dark and evil."...I've been trying to figure out all evening why, when I looked at Steiger, there was something familiar about him. I just now remembered what it was: his face reminds me of one of Galton's composites, as if what was wrong with him inside had seeped through his pores and caused his skull to mutate.''Your job would be a whole lot easier if you could tell the bad folk by the way they looked,' said Angel. 'Or you could just end up putting behind bars a whole lot of ugly people who'd never done anyone any harm, and leave a bunch of beautiful people with dead souls free to walk the streets.'They stood to leave.'Galton had it all wrong,' said Walsh. 'The worst of them, the really foul ones, they hide their badness deep inside. They look just like average Joes and Janes, but underneath they're rotten right down to the core, and we don't find out about them until it's too late..."Parker digs into the mystery of the small town of Boreas and unearths a past as dark and deep as the horrors of a forgotten Nazi Concentration Camp. Now that past is coming back and threatening the innocents around him. With the help of hired killers, Louis and Angel, Parker steps back into the fray. But will it be enough to save the lives and will it put at risk his lone remaining child.Charlie Parker is a contradiction. A father who is haunted by his murdered daughter and fearful of his living one. A husband who has buried one murdered wife and left by the other. His friends fear and love him and their devotion to the Detective is as deep as his is to them. Together they have been through battles that others would not have survived. In Parker, Connolly has created the ultimate flawed hero. He kills. He murders and he goes up against forces that are beyond humanity. But he goes on.What makes the Parker series so enjoyable is the relationships between Parker and all the other characters. Connolly infuses his mysteries with characters that breathe and move on their own. They are not just window dressing and props for the setting as the main character drives the novel. A Charlie Parker novel is not your normal murder mystery. It is not your run of the mill ghost story. It is an intense and deeply detailed hybrid. Each novel stands on its own but the series flows. If you have never read a Charlie Parker you are missing out, but try as you can to start with the earlier ones.A terrific read!
    • 5/5
      I love the writing style of John Connelly. He mixes a little supernatural in with good crime drama and a great lead character, a fearless detective! Really enjoyed this installment with some interesting WW II history as part of the part. I highly recommend!
    • 3/5
      I have two gripes about this book. The first is that the plot is bogged down by pointless dialogue and second, the people in the story are too elderly to do what they do.World War 2 was a long time ago and the people who were old enough to have been either prisoner or captor in the death camps are getting awfully old. Some characters in this story are in their mid-90s. My father's family are long lived people, often reaching into their 90s in pretty good health. Generally speaking, though, they could not manage to do what Mr. Connolly's characters do. Humans get frail as they age and their eyes and hearing get weaker, and their ability to plot murders and, frankly, their interest in plotting anything, wanes. The whole Nazi plot does not ring true.Then there is the pointless dialogue. I skipped page after page of people talking over coffee, or lunch, or drinks. What for?I received an electronic review copy of "A Song of Shadows: A Charlie Parker Thriller" by John Connolly (Atria) through NetGalley.com. It is book 13 in the series.
    • 5/5
      Charlie Parker has come to the quiet town of Boreas Maine to recuperate and his arrival has caused quite a stir. His reputation has preceded him and the citizens of Boreas have reason to worry because trouble seems to follow Parker wherever he goes and in many forms including that of his two best friends, Louis and Angel. In fact, it seems almost before he has time to unpack, a body washes ashore not far from his rented cottage, that of a Florida resident and self-avowed Nazi hunter. Parker becomes interested more at first as something to keep his mind occupied while his body heals. Soon though he discovers links between this death and the murder of a family in Maine as well as another Florida murder. It seems the man had come to see Parker?s new neighbour, Ruth Winter just hours before his death. The only thing linking the two seems to be the fact that they are both Jewish - Ruth?s mother had been the lone survivor of a Nazi death camp. Yet, the woman, although clearly terrified, refuses to discuss their conversation. A Song of Shadows is the 13th installment of author John Connolly?s Charlie Parker but, rather than unlucky, it seems to signal some major changes in the series. In terms of storyline, Parker is finally coming to grips with his grief over the murder of his family and seems ready to move on. He transfers his fears for his dead daughter who still haunts him to his living daughter whose burgeoning powers terrify him. In terms of story style, the most obvious difference to those who have been following the Parker series is the fact that, unlike the other books in the series, this one is told in the third person, not the first. We, the reader, see events not as Parker sees them but as they revolve around him, giving us a much clearer picture of Charlie as he was and as he is changing. And there are suggestions that he is shedding his ?lone wolf? persona for something more, shall we say, formal. But despite the transitional nature of this entry into the Charlie Parker series, it is still as strong, as well-written and well?plotted as the other books. Connolly may no longer be the only one combining noir with the supernatural but he is still the master!4.5
    • 5/5
      The 13th book in the long running Charlie "bird" Parker dark crime series. The great concern about reading the latest offering from John Connolly is to ask the question...is this a step too far? is it not time that Charlie Parker was put into retirement? does the author not run the risk of simply boring the reader with a character, indeed list of characters that quite simply have no more to say or offer? However let it be said here now that "bird" is alive and tweeting! and A Song of Shadows is another remarkable achievement from an author who seems to go from strength to strength.The central theme of this story is the unveiling and uncovering of Nazi war criminals living in the United States. Bruno Perlmans body is washed ashore in the town of Boreas, his family had been interned at a concentration camp called Lubsko. What is the connection between him and Marcus Baulman, Ruth Winter and her mother Isha? This is an exceptionally well researched novel that probes deep into both America and Germany's attitude to war criminals guilty of genocide and how they should be dealt with (or not) We see a very subdued Charlie Parker who is recuperating in Boreas (having almost died in his previous outing) and at first his contribution to the story is incidental making the acquaintance of Amanda Winter (Ruth's daughter) on one of his early morning exercise outings along the beach. "His presence in Boreas was incongruous, given his reputation. It was like having a grenade rolling around, one you had been assured was defused but hadn't had time to check out for yourself". What is remarkable in this story is that John Connolly has kept our interest in Parker very much alive even thought he has tended to dwell more on the central issue, the unmasking of war criminals and by doing this Parker receives the readers utmost sympathy in his battle back to full health with of course the help and guidance of his personal body guards the mysterious and dangerous Louis and Angel together with a welcome appearance from The Fulcis, and a cameo role for ?The Collector of Souls?What sets Connolly?s books apart is the adding of a dark element to Parker?s persona. Parker blames himself for the murder of his wife and daughter Jennifer and you cannot help but feel that he will be relieved when it is time for him to join them. He has many visions and often daughter Jennifer appears before him, is she real or a product of his disturbed mind. In A Song of Shadows we once again meet Parker?s second daughter Sam who appears to have inherited the family trait of talking to the dead and in one memorable scene has an encounter with Jennifer??.?The dead daughter had returned, standing at the end of Sam?s bed, her head bowed so that her hair might conceal the ruin of her face. Sam felt sorry for her, the way she felt sorry for anyone who was forced to endure a form of disability or physical disfigurement. She also understood that it had to be this way for the girl. When she crossed over to this world, she took the last form in which she had inhabited it when she was alive. Her beauty was for another place?So where does Charlie Parker go from here, can we expect a 14th outing? In the final pages surprisingly Parker secures his own future (I will not disclose how but it comes about from an unexpected source) and that for all JC fans can only be great news. This is storytelling of the highest order, intelligent well researched and a joy to read and I highly recommend!
    • 5/5
      Krimi mit Tiefgang und Biss.
      Respekt - wie Connolly neben dem Krimiplot Themen wie Schuld und Sūhne , Leben und Tod, die Frage: “was kommt nach dem Irdischen” - ganz wunderbar behandelt. Für Menschen wie mich, die leider immer den erhobenen Zeigefinger vor sich sehen, wenn Sie sich mit diesem Genre beschäftgen, weil es sich (angeblich !) um “Trivialliteratur” handelt, = perfekt!
    • 5/5
      Grievously wounded, private detective Charlie Parker investigates a case that has its origins in a Nazi concentration camp during the Second World War.

      Broken, but undeterred, private detective Charlie Parker faces the darkest of dark forces in a case with its roots in the second world war, and a concentration camp unlike any other . . .

      Recovering from a near-fatal shooting and tormented by memories of a world beyond this one, Parker has retreated to the small Maine town of Boreas to recover. There he befriends a widow named Ruth Winter and her young daughter, Amanda. But Ruth has her secrets. She is hiding from the past, and the forces that threaten her have their origins in the Second World War, in a town called Lubko and a concentration camp unlike any other. Old atrocities are about to be unearthed, and old sinners will kill to hide their sins. Now Parker is about to risk his life to defend a woman he barely knows, one who fears him almost as much as she fears those who are coming for her.

      His enemies believe him to be vulnerable. Fearful. Solitary.

      But they are wrong. Parker is far from afraid, and far from alone.

      For something is emerging from the shadows . . .
    • 5/5
      Song of Shadows by John Connelly is a 2015 Atria publication. I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher and Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. I kept putting this one off until I was more in the mood for a little supernatural tone with my detective stories, and there's no better time than in the month of October for a good ghost story. So, I settled in on a dark and stormy night, hoping Charlie was still the guy I have come to know and love. I have to say, this story was absolutely incredible. A small community in Maine with a large German community is where Charlie has moved temporarily in order to continue his long physical, mental and emotional healing. It's just his luck that a couple of Nazi war criminals have recently made headlines, and a body has washed up on the shore, a case that is all but screaming at Charlie to get involved. It seems, for Charlie at least, there is no rest for the weary. Charlie's daughter, Sam, is staying with him for a while, and reveals her own talent for seeing dead people, and maybe a little more than that, which has Charlie worried sick. But, thankfully, he has Rachel, and his old friends Angel and Louis are there to watch his back. This story is sort of like a 'time out' for Charlie, who is outside of his usual elements here, and is hampered by his injuries. The plot is intricate and there were some rather long winded passages here and there concerning the history of the town, the war, and the reminder that some people who committed atrocities during world war two managed to escape justice, and have been living quite comfortably to boot. There were several heart stopping twist along the way with some shocking developments I never saw coming. I was completely immersed in the story involving war crimes and the puzzling mystery behind why certain people were now being targeted. But, the storyline with Sam and her 'dead sister' was one that literally had the hair standing up on the back of my neck and chills running down my spine! The dark and sinister undertones here are going to have you on the very edge of your seat. One thing about long running series is that the stories go through peaks and valleys, with some installments either falling flat or just barely managing to break even, while others are simply mind blowing. With thirteen books in a this series, I would say Charlie was due to take stumble, especially after the climatic conclusion of book twelve. But, this was one of the best of the lot, in my opinion. The plot was crisp and fresh, very clever, intense and sharp, offset by some humor and poignancy. I highly recommend this book for fans of this series for sure, but even if you haven't followed the series, you can still enjoy the detective story is this one and I know once you get a taste of Charlie's otherworldly life you will want to know more. Just be sure not read it alone on a dark and stormy night! 4.5 stars
    • 5/5
      If I had to pick a favorite John Connolly book I couldn’t do it. He can never write enough! If there isn’t a new one out, it’s always good to start over. There’s someone’s every time i hear them.
    • 5/5
      This book takes place a few months after Wolf in Winter ends. Charlie is recouperating from his near death experience. His friends found him a home in a small town in Maine close to the hospital where he is doing his physical therapy.A single mom moves into the house next door. Charlie tries to keep his distance but feels that there is something amiss with this new family. When a dead body washes up on the beach and his neighbor starts acting stranger than normal Charlie doesn't seem to be able to help himself and finds himself looking into the investigation.If you have an interest in World War 2, Nazi Germany, and Nazi war fugitives than this Charlie Parker book will have you hooked and turning pages. The information is plentiful and very interesting I think Connolly really put some research into this one. I even learned some things I didn't know or wasn't familiar with that I am now going to have to look into. I am totally in love with this spooky, dark and violent series I can't put them down. Charlies friends Louis and Angel are also some of the best characters I've ever read, I love them. I want to be friends with them and how many contract killers can you say that about? The ending was completely satisfying and leaves me wanting more but not in a cliff hanger way, plus there is a new mystery brewing. Not only can we continue to wonder what Charlie is -because he does seem like an avenging angel...but now we are starting to see more glimpses into his daughter and she has some things going on that even Charlie doesn't understand.