Rating: 
Summary: Quite simply wonderful
Review: This is the best of the four. Every Dead Thing was a good read, but overcomplicated with too many characters and plots. Dark Hollow was much better. ANd even that warranted five stars. Then came The Killing Kind which was stupendously excellent. The best thriller of 2001. Even better than Dark Hollow. But now comes The White Road. And it's even better. John Connolly's prose is simply wonderful. It is superbly lyrical, and his descriptions are superbs. I was in awe when he described a world as being "painted on glass". He has many sentences like that, which stop you in your tracks and make you realise how truly [darkly] beautiful his writing is. Charlie Parker is back, and fighting for his life, and thst of his lover and unborn child. the demonic preacher Faulkner is out for revenge, the instruments of which will be horrfying killer Cyrus Nairn, who keeps his secrets buried by the riverside. At the same as Parker is investigating the rape of the young daughter of the wealthy Earl Larousse. Accused is her black boyfriend, Atys Jones. But deep in the nearby swamps something lurks...something connected to a long ago crime, and it wants vengeance... This is a stunning novel. The darkness of it is haunting, and its complexity astounding, but JOhn COnnolly manages to tell you the tale in an easy to undderstand way. It is truly chilling. The way Connolly blends subtle elements of horror in with a crime novel is awe-inspiring. And with this book he has created his most dark plot yet, yet it seems to contain a tiny snub of light shining through at points. At times the darkness becomes too much, and the light disappears as if gone forever, but at others, it reappears, burning brightly anew, and you can hold out some hope for Charlie Parker and his quest. I cannot praise this novel highly enough. The resolution, and the way in which it is all brough together is brilliant, and the final solution shocking. Connolly, with this book and the last created possibly the most chilling villain in the religious fanatic Reverend Aaron Faulkner, and in this book he is even more chilling than before. He simply oozes evil. This time, he is out to get Parker, and he is going to use killer Cyrus Nairn, recently released from the wing of his prison, to execute that revenge. It is a truly chilling book, with a wonderful plot, and a colourful cast of characters, including Angel and Louis, who are back in full force. This time we learn a little about why they are who they are. From the excellent prologue to the epilogue this book is a sucess on every level. Connolly just gets better and better. If you haven't read him yet, you're missing out.
Rating: 
Summary: Is White Road the end of the road?
Review: This, the fourth in Connolly's Charlie Parker series, does not have the all-pervading miasma of the earlier novels, despite what others have said, and the images of ravens as angels of death is a bit awkward, but this is still an incredibly compelling novel. In tone, I would say it is more like Ross MacDonald as compared to the James Ellroy feel of the earlier novels. Is Parker finally laying his demons to rest? It is hard to say, but it appears as if Connolly is tying up some loose ends, though I personally would like to see the series continue if it can keep up the level of quality. Readers unfamiliar with Connolly should be forewarned that there are characters from earlier novels, and that they made need to keep a notepad handy to keep track of the labrynthine plot and numerous characters.
Rating:
Summary: A Bit Complicated But Very Good!
Review: While The White Road has many characters to keep track of, which at times makes the story a bit hard to follow without a scorecard (so to speak), Connolly again proves himself to be among the best of the contemporary suspense writers. Connolly is a not only a master in providing compelling plots featuring his dark, somewhat tormented hero, Charlie "Bird" Parker, his even stronger abilities are in developing vivid and very credible characters and in providing very graphic,compelling and emotionally-charged narratives and images. The basic plot of The White Road involves Parker going to South Carolina to help an old friend and attorney defend a young black man facing the death penalty. It's a case that nobody wants to be involved in and one deeply rooted in old evil. If you're interested in a very good, well-written story and one that will keep you glued to your seat, I'd highly recommend The White Road to you (as well as each of Connolley's other books).
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