The Black Angel

A Thriller

By: John Connolly

Narrated by: Jeff Harding

Length: 17 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

To those who have been forsaken, hell has no geography.

The Black Angel begins with the disappearance of a young prostitute from one of New York City's seamiest neighborhoods. Like so many tormented souls before her, the girl's mother is inevitably drawn to Charlie Parker's doorstep desperate for redemption and revenge. Despite the danger that his chosen profession imposes on his wife and newborn daughter, Parker knows that the woman and her troubles cannot be ignored. As always, he is driven as much by the evil that simmers in the hidden honeycomb world as he is by the ties of friendship and blood.

As Parker gets closer to the girl's captors, he discovers that her disappearance is linked to a church of bones in Eastern Europe, to the slaughter at a French monastery in 1944, and to the myth of an object known as the Black Angel - an object considered by evil men to be beyond priceless. But the Black Angel is not a legend. It is real. It lives. It dreams. And the mystery of its existence may contain the secret of Parker's own origins.

©2005 John Connolly. All rights reserved. (P)2014 Simon & Schuster

my favorite narrator for the Charlie Parker Series

Connolly is incredibly literary in in his writing style. I love it. His powerful style and storytelling is bright to life by this narrator, head and shoulders above the rest.

More horror than mystery

Catholic depiction of the age old struggle between good and evil. There is no good without evil and vice versa. If you like the TV show Evil, you will like these stories. The protagonist is not a priest but he maybe an angel - a fallen one in the currently popular "bad" good guy tradition. The books are good, well written with lots of background on subject matter. The narrator(s) have added depth. I recommend!!! But these are not Mystery of the Week material. They are dark, bloody, full of death and have a supernatural bent.

cool

my friend gave me this book as a hardback years ago. it came with a music cd. that's why I jumped into it. I never had a book that had come with its own soundtrack before. it was my first Connolly book and I have read every one since then.

now that I've read them all, I will say this one is not my fave but I rarely read books more than once and this is one that I have read 3 times. I think if u like stories with a supernatural element without being all cute like twilight and if u don't mind a couple of detours away from the storyline (it will all circle back around) then this is a fun romp through New England and Europe without the breakneck pace or self importance of the da Vinci code.

it is important to note that while this is not book 1 of the Charlie Parker series and it is helpful to read them in order, it is not absolutely necessary especially in the first five books.

I try to write myself (blogs not books) but as an aspiring writer I can really respect the duality and dimension of the protagonist. he is not a good guy with a vice it aggravating nature. he is more than that. unfortunately, his mate is drawn a bit flat but his complexity is refreshing.

I've been an audible customer forever. there were times I winced when the narrator spoke and times I thought it was ok. I seem to feel differently about performances of books that I have read myself that's why I gave him 4 stars to be fair. I will speak no more on that subject.

if you are still not sure about this book, read White Road.

Loving this series!!

great story, told at the perfect pace. this was my third Charlie Parker and will keep going!

great as always

having read the stories already Jeff Harding's voice brings a deepiness to them that is just wonderful to experiance.

realistically creepy

I am so glad I didn't read this book. I am also glad that Jeff Hardy is narrating the book. I don't know how much what is in this book is because of research or because John Connolly has a demented imagination. I do know that this book went deeper than the previous book. By the way, one of the books is missing from audible.com. This is a disturbingly good book.

Great book

loved the book it helped clear up some questions in the series . Great narration

Good read!!

Dark, as are all the Charlie Parker stories. but behind to introduce the complex characters that haunt him.

As always AMAZING!

I am so glad that this was narrated by Jeff Harding. so much better. However regardless who reads narrates, You lose yourself in the adventure. Of course there are parts that seem to drag but only for a moment and it all evolves and ties in. Just a great series. Well worth the time. If you have not read The Charlie Parker thrillers You can pick up and read in any order but I recommend beginning at The first in the series. Just as each story evolves Charlie, Angel and Louis all evolve. Plus in this you book you get more of Louis back story. As usual Angel provides the humor that plays off Louis and Charlie's sarcastic whit. Another must read!

I'm hooked with this story!

Not particularly a fan of the supernatural and the angels vs demons turn is taking the story, but I like how the events of the previous books are still part of the chain. Jeff Harding is a voice is really great of this character