Mysteries are my favorite genre, so I always enjoy finding a new series to read. This is the case with John Connolly's Charlie Parker series. I have another of his books on list to read now. I appreciate Connolly's skillful writing and his obvious enjoyment of using obscure words such as avoirdupois. My only complaint is there seem to be an overabundance of characters in the story which makes it difficult to keep the track of the plot. Like we need to different Kerrigan women in this story?

This installment begins with an event that will throw the story line to become an anthology of the series. We see a young Charlie Parker trying to cope with the huge tragedy of losing his family, by focusing on finding the killer and get justice.
It is a good start for someone new to the series, and definitely will reread the first installment of this amazing series.

A book set in a small, economically depressed Southern county written by a British man using a bunch of unfamiliar words in place of more common ones sounds like it would not work well but it was actually a good read, though not fast. (I loved learning interesting new words too). Quite slowly paced at first but as you read on, you see this was very deliberate. Connolly captured the lengths a power hungry family would go to climb higher by tightly controlling life in a small place, even when it required bribes, threats and the murder of anyone who threatened what they wanted. Toss in one unsuspecting stranger traveling through and suddenly the gears start clogging. Brilliant. Life in a small town is never as idyllic as it appears from the outside.

Being from Arkansas, I had to read this book. This was like reading a book set in my backyard. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in southern fiction or mystery novels. This was my first John Connolly novel, but definitely will not be my last.

What a wonderful book to read!
The characters and plot was written perfect.
The storyline was amazing, With a little bit of twist.
The perfect mystery/Crime novel I've read this summer!

Thank You NetGalley & Publisher for the great ARC!

There are few author's who never disappoint. Connolly is one such author. His use of language and precision of using the exact words to convey a situation, feeling, atmosphere or character voice is a pleasure. Because of his style a situation or character is never explained ad nauseam.
Parker is a fish out of water in a town of darkness assisting in an investigation with Graham and his deputies who are all interesting and likable. The bad guys are bad and the good guys are moral with very little grey. Solving the crimes is involved and the journey is ever changing
I loved seeing Angel and Louis stopping in for the assist. This series is never full and always 5 star
Thank you netgalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for an honest review

I’ve read several books by John Connolly. I always enjoy them. His books are fast paced and easy to read. I highly recommend this book.

I've been a fan and constant reader of John Connolly's Charlie Parker series for damn near twenty years now. With The Dirty South, the eighteenth entry in this series (nineteenth if you count, and you should, The Reflecting Eye, a Parker novella included in 2004's story collection, Nocturnes), I can't help but wonder if I have any superlatives left to throw Connolly's way, but let's see what I can muster up here.

The Dirty South takes us back to 1999, inserting itself into the unfolding narrative of Connolly's debut and readers' introduction to Charlie Parker in Every Dead Thing. Parker is hunting for the serial killer that brutally murdered his wife and daughter, investigating strings of grisly murders across the US that he hopes will link him to the man that took everything from him. In the course of this investigation, he lands in Arkansas, where two young black women have been murdered in similar fashion and a third has just been discovered. Being the stranger in town, and rather unforthcoming with answers when questioned by police, Parker ends up in a jail cell. It doesn't take long for the cops to learn about Parker's history, though, and he goes from suspect to unlikely ally. Originally content to simply leave town, Parker begins to realize that he's the only one who can speak for these dead women and agrees to help.

By taking us back to very nearly the start of Parker's on-going and evolving story, The Dirty South might be the most accessible and new reader-friendly entry in ages. I normally advise readers to start from the very beginning with this series because of the way Connolly's characters and mythology have grown, but for the first time in quite a number of years I actually think somebody who hasn't yet dived into these books yet could very comfortably wade into this entry and not feel lost.

We see here a younger Charlie Parker, one we haven't seen in quite some time, one wracked with grief and eager to die so he can rejoin his family, and he hasn't yet become acquainted with the depth of this honeycomb world or the varied depravity of its inhabitants. The supernatural and horror elements that have become a mainstay of this series over the years are very light here, and act more as a reflection of Parker's moods, casting them in unreliable shadows and shades of metaphor rather than literal, inexplicable events. Parker's sarcasm, thankfully, is still on full display, and Connolly against displays his knack for witty banter a number of times over the course of this investigation.

You don't have to know everything that's been going on lo these past twenty years to dig into and enjoy The Dirty South, but I think you'll be keen to discover those stories, too, once you're finished with this book. And you'll most definitely want to know more about Luis and Angel!

On a side note, I can't help but wonder why the hell John Connolly hasn't won an Edgar or Bram Stoker Award for these books yet. He received a Shamus Award for Every Dead Thing, and deservedly so in my eyes, and an Edgar Award for a short story in 2014, but damnit... he deserves ALL the awards, and I feel like it's a giant oversight that the Charlie Parker series hasn't received more recognition from Connolly's peers in the horror and mystery/thriller communities. He's a masterful mystery author, and The Dirty South illustrates this perfectly with his cast of ne'er-do-wells, red herrings, and dense but not tryingly complex plotting, as well as a leading character that has proved incredibly enduring (and endearing) over the years. John Connolly is, absolutely, positively, hands-down, one of the best in the business. He's gotten plenty of well-deserved accolades. Now give him some statues for these novels, damnit!

"The past shadows us.
The past defines us.
In the end, the past claims us all."

Young black women are being butchered in Cargill, Arkansas. Their murders have been swept under the rug to draw in corporate investors. But the mutilation of their bodies draws the eyes of another, a former NYPD police detective reeling from the murder of his wife and daughter.

The Dirty South is a prequel to the Charlie Parker series. It can be read as a standalone mystery. If you are interested in starting this series, I wouldn't start with this book. It lacks the eccentric characters and the overall strangeness that makes this such a unique series. It shows the beginnings of Parker, of who he is going to come to be, but he’s not yet fully formed. The ghosts are present, but Parker can’t yet fully grasp their presence.

Connolly, always the historian, spends a good amount of time on the history of Cargill, a town rife with corruption. The characters are a reflection of this history. The line between good and bad is quite thin. Parker’s invasion into this tightly knit community throws off this balance, and those who find themselves in between good and bad emerge in full force.

A good portion of the book is told from those who are from Cargill; mainly, the police detectives and the players in town. It takes a while for Parker’s character to fully emerge. I was annoyed by this because I just wanted Parker! Bits of his character are woven in, which kept me reading, and eventually he takes a central role. Young and raw, he is not wholly himself, but there are glimmers of who he will become. Our favorite friends make a short appearance (not until about the 90% mark). I could have used more of this dynamic duo to lighten the mood. Funny, how it takes a thief and assassin to lighten the mood, but this is the way a Charlie Parker novel works!

This was one of those books I didn’t love while reading it. The pacing is slow, and the history of Cargill is not the most exciting. I constantly grappled with my expectations, as I went in thinking that this was going read like a traditional Parker novel. However, when I finally finished, I realized I liked it more than I thought. The characters got under my skin and Connolly brought Cargill to life--the good, the bad, the ugly, and, of course, the evil.

If you are looking for the traditional Charlie Parker novel, you are not going to get it here. What you will get is an intricately plotted, well-written, straight forward mystery with well-developed characters and small glimpses of what's to come.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and Atria Books in exchange for an honest review.

Neither fans of the Charlie Parker series nor newcomers to writer John Connolly’s work will this Parker novel stimulating. It’s touted as Parker’s first case after the major tragedy that made him exit the police force. Set in the section of America where racism and a hatred of outsiders is considered business as usual. Parker is on a cross country trek looking for similarities between a New York murder case and other unsolved cases and annoys the local authorities enough that they throw him in jail before they realize Parker may be able to help them solve a series of suspicious deaths.

Unfortunately, there’s none of the magic mysticism or spectacular character development to this particular story . Connolly appears to have phoned this one in.

Perfectly crafted. Warning: You won't be able to put it down. (You won't want to put it down). You will get to know the characters very well, and you will be sad to let go of this book when you reach the last page. You will feel some sentiment towards the South despite it being the South.

And no, you will not guess who did it.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance reader's copy. Loved it!

Reeling from the loss of his wife and daughter, former NYPD detective Charlie Parker ventures down to Arkansas where he believes the recent murder of a young, black woman may fit the m.o. of his family's killer.  The small town of Cargill doesn't exactly roll out the red carpet for Mr. Parker as he quickly lands inside a jail cell.  Once word travels  about exactly who Parker is and why he's visiting the town, common sense prevails and he's released from the slammer.  Despite reservations from the county sheriff, Parker is enlisted by the Cargill PD to assist in bringing the killer to justice.  In typical Parker fashion, things go pear-shaped rather quickly as members of the town struggle to keep secrets that have long since been buried deep underground.

Although it's no secret that the majority of the Parker novels take place in Maine, it is a welcome change when Parker can get out on the road and venture to different parts of the US (or the world for that matter).  Using an Arkansas backwater town straddling the line between financial oblivion and success added a sense of urgency to solving the crimes.  The disposition of the townsfolk heavily tied to Cargill's make-or-break situation begin to simmer like a pot on the verge of boiling over when Parker arrives.  For the lack of a better phrase, the skeletons in these closets become threatened when an outsider begins poking around. So, as much as the town itself is a central character, the supporting cast make this one an all-timer.  This is a community with one foot in the grave after all.  As events begin to unfold and backs are up against the wall, Parker will have to deal with folks as they lash out in unpredictable ways.  Not only does he have to fight those closest to the crime, but those on his side of the law as well.  Cargill has essentially been run by a powerful family for decades and they don't take kindly to having to ride backseat to an outlander.  Their power and influence cannot be rivaled and they'll do anything to keep it that way.  Luckily for Parker, he has an ace in his back pocket in the form of two professional criminals charged with keeping Parker alive and well.

As with many of Connolly's Parker novels, there are a few choice standout scenes I'll keep to myself for fear of spoilers  Two in particular have Parker facing off against adversaries both expected and unexpected.  The dialogue here is excellent and I couldn't turn the pages fast enough - well, as fast as you can on a Kindle, anyway.  This is one lean, mean thriller.  As much as I love Connolly's epic Parker novels that thrust the detective deep into centuries of mythology and ritualistic evil, this is a straight-up cat and mouse white-knuckler that had me sucked in from start to finish.

Having just written a research-heavy door stopper of a novel in Book of Bones, author John Connolly wanted to write something a little less beholden to such hefty R&D.  What better way to do that than to revisit Parker's past - a time before the detective would get tangled up in the supernatural while carrying the weight of continuity over seventeen books.  Instead you get a story with a man living off the raw emotion of rage and determination that comes with losing your whole life.  A little more naive and careless, but still maintaining those traits we've come to know and love over the past seventeen books, this is a Parker perfect for new readers.  Although I would still recommend reading the entire series before venturing into this book - The Dirty South offers a perfect jumping on point for new readers or those looking for a standalone Charlie Parker novel (although, I don't know how you could just read one of these books and not want to devour the whole series).

I received an advanced copy from the publisher in exchange for a review.

Readers now have the chance to meet Charlie Parker when he was “created”, literally forged in fire after the death of his wife and child. Parker knows that a serial killer is targeting young women in Arkansas, even if no one else wants to admit it. The former NYPD detective is torn apart by the death of his wife and child, but instead of shutting him down, and his investigation with him, Parker is about to go on a no holds barred journey for justice

Full review to be published online in late October.

THE DIRTY SOUTH is an introduction ‘prequel’ to John Connollys long running @Charlue Parker” series, and is somewhat different from most thrillers I have read, mainly because of the sophistication of the language and plotline. The author inserted some philosophical ponderings, and the descriptions were dense and heavy. I found myself looking up some new vocabulary words as I read. Personally, I enjoyed this, but if you are looking for one of those mysteries you can fly through without putting much thought into it, this probably isn't the book for you.

If you enjoyed the other CP books, you’ll enjoy this one also. This is also a good place to jump into this series.

I first found this a surprising geographical choice for this Irish author in this particular series, usually set in New England or New York City and environs. THE REAPERS, of course, has a backdrop of Mississippi as Louis' backstory, but primarily the series is set in New England. THE DIRTY SOUTH, obviously, is not. Where I expected, from the title, somewhere in the Deep South (U.S.), instead the story is firmly set in Southern Arkansas; and, like THE REAPERS, a sad, sad, tale it is.


My second thought, which continued throughout, was how apropos to the immediate cultural/social/political climate. Although set, for necessity, during the Presidency of Arkansas's Favorite Son Bill Clinton, the backdrop might as well be in 2020, amidst the counterculture protests against police brutality and violence against Black citizens. Yes, victims are black; yes, the murders are horrible [and the Denouement is mind-blowing in its multiple perverseness], but the story is highly character-driven and setting-laden, so that I almost think the victims could have been of any ethnicity, and the story would be only a little different.


THE DIRTY SOUTH is #18 in the Charlie Parker Series, but in effect it serves as a sort of prequel, occurring several months after the horribly gruesome murders of Parker's wife Susan and daughter Jennifer, in Brooklyn.