Wednesday, August 19, 2009

The Unquiet by John Connolly

From the author's website: Daniel Clay, a once-respected psychiatrist, has been missing for years following revelations about harm done to the children in his care. Believing him dead, his daughter Rebecca has tried to come to terms with her father's legacy, but her fragile peace is about to be shattered. Someone is asking questions about Daniel Clay, someone who refuses to believe that he is dead: the revenger Merrick, a father and a killer obsessed with discovering the truth about his own daughter's disappearance. Private detective Charlie Parker is hired to make Merrick go away, but Merrick will not be stopped. Soon Parker finds himself trapped between those who want the truth about Daniel Clay to be revealed, and those who want it to remain hidden at all costs. But there are other forces at work. Someone is funding Merrick's hunt, a ghost from Parker's past. And Merrick's actions have drawn others from the shadows, half-glimpsed figures intent upon their own form of revenge, pale wraiths drifting through the ranks of the unquiet dead.

The Hollow Men have come . . .


Spooky stuff here. The topic - child sexual abuse is horrific enough without adding the "Hollow Men". The first time the Hollow Men appeared I was uncertain whether or not they were real men - were they characters in the story, figments of the main character's imagination, or actual ghosts? - and I pretty much stayed in that foggy state throughout the book. There was just enough question left each time to make you wonder what was really going on. On a different note - Oops, I've done it again! - I jumped into an established series by picking up this particular book before reading any of the ones that have come before but, no fear, the story was complete enough to stand alone and still be captivating. This book made me glad I work, and thus do my driving/listening, during daylight hours - creepy!

I've finished up the audio book challenge but I'm adding the extras as I finish them.

1 comment:

SueFitz said...

Congrats on your blogoversary.

Also congrats on completing the audio challenge also. I finished about a month ago.