• The Dirty South

  • A Charlie Parker Thriller, Book 18
  • By: John Connolly
  • Narrated by: Jeff Harding
  • Length: 15 hrs and 22 mins
  • 4.8 out of 5 stars (24 ratings)

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The Dirty South  By  cover art

The Dirty South

By: John Connolly
Narrated by: Jeff Harding
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Publisher's summary

It is 1999, and someone is slaughtering young black women in Burdon County, Arkansas.  

But no one wants to admit it, not in the Dirty South. 

In an Arkansas jail cell sits a former NYPD detective, stricken by grief. He is mourning the death of his wife and child and searching in vain for their killer. He cares only for his own lost family. 

But that is about to change.... 

Witness the becoming of Charlie Parker. 

©2020 Bad Dog Books Limited (P)2020 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd

What listeners say about The Dirty South

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I love Jeff Harding

At first the book took a time to grow on me, but it did. It feels we got back to the roots of the series we were solving a misery again. I love the narration and the way John Connolly tells this story.

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  • Overall
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    4 out of 5 stars

As usual, a very good Charlie Parker story.

I'm a big fan of John Connolly and Jeff Harding. In my opinion, "The Dirty South" isn't the best in the series, but I enjoyed it a lot. Jeff Harding's performance is outstanding, as usual. The story gives us an interesting insight of Charlie Parker before is appearance in "Every Dead Thing".

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Fantastic! One of the best in the series

Just what Charlie Parker needed. A reminder of who he was, where he came from and why he has been doing, throughout all the books, what he does

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  • sharon keogh
  • 08-25-20

Amazing

Another Amazing story that takes you on a journey to Charlie Parkers past . .

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3 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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  • Koz
  • 08-20-20

excellent as expected

A brilliant prequel to the Charlie Parker saga and regular readers wont be disappointed. Its good to get a look at what forces created the character we've all come to love with the subtle presence of the supernatural hanging around him like a cloak. very enjoyable and finished in two sittings.

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3 people found this helpful

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  • C. Whitson
  • 04-03-21

Fabulous throwback for Charlie Parker

The Charlie Parker books are amongst my absolute favourites and this one has made me love them even more. A brilliant insight into Charlie in the months following the death of his wife and daughter. Really opens up his mindset. Also great to see an early appearance from Angel and Louis. If ever I’m in trouble, these are the guys I want on my side. Narrator was excellent and no silly accents to ruin my listen on this one. First class.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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  • Colin Andrews
  • 02-04-21

loved it

Thoroughly enjoyed this one. Gives a little more on Parker and his growing relationship with Louis and Angel.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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  • Amazon Customer
  • 09-03-20

Enjoyable audiobook

I thoroughly enjoyed the audiobook, I have read and listened to all the Charlie Parker series, I did think John Connolly was about to retire the detective but he is back to his best, read by Jeff Harding who is superb as usual, I’m sure everyone who follows the series will enjoy this book, looking forward to the next; seem to be growing older together

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2 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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  • WightWriter
  • 09-01-20

Not the best Charlie Parker story

I was so excited to order this book but have to say I'm a little disappointed with it. The book was enjoyable enough and as ever it's beautifully read, but I felt cheated out of knowing the next part of the Charlie Parker story, I want to move forwards not backwards.

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  • Fee
  • 06-10-21

Overly long

Because it’s about another loner searching for justice and both are narrated by Jeff Harding it occasionally feels like you’re listening to a Jack Reacher novel, except more trouble seems to meet Reacher. Entertaining none the less.

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1 person found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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  • Karen r.
  • 06-04-21

fantastic read, and not just for Parker fans

funny, dark, violent and moving... it has everything the best of the Charlie Parker series has, and imho is the best Parker book in a while! fantastic reading too.

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1 person found this helpful

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  • Paul Penny
  • 04-06-21

Connolly at his best

This is the first Parker book I’ve listened to but I’ve read all of the rest.

I was concerned that I wouldn’t like the narrator after listening to him on a Jack Reacher novel but he was actually very good once you got going.

The story and more particularly the storytelling was as good as ever.

Normally I just listen to books on my commute but this one had me rushing to listen whenever I had the chance.

Well worth the 1 credit!

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    3 out of 5 stars
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  • charles fitzpatrick
  • 01-26-21

Just to long.

Good story but very long,far to long. Fifteen hours twenty two minutes.I was fed up with it long before the end.It went over things again and again and was boring at times.

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  • Fear Glic
  • 12-25-20

Brilliant in Scope and Execution

Enjoyed this, my first book of John Connolly, hugely. It is Dickensian in ambition, presenting what appears to be an accurate depiction of a poor county in Arkansas in America's South with the interplay of power, poverty, race amid day-to-day living.
John Connolly, a Dubliner, lived in Arkansas for a while to do the background research and it shows in the many authentic details inserted.
He writes well-crafted English, and does dialogue smoothly with a lovely sarcastic touch. The story is constructed tightly and moves along at a rapid pace. The whole book is a page-turner but I found the large crowd of characters hard to commit to memory. Listened more than once - fortunately the enjoyment was just as great the second time around. This is a top-class work in its genre.
Outstanding narration by Jeff Harding. Overall, a great listening experience and introduction to John Connolly. I want more.

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  • Amazon Customer
  • 07-27-21

Another good book in the series

I enjoyed this addition to the series but not as much as the most of the others in it.
Im still happy with my purchase though and not every book by Connolly can be a five star but its still a solid 4

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  • Len
  • 08-29-20

Absolutely terrible

Even Jeff Harding does a terrible job on this load of drivel, he sounds sarcastic throughout the entire book, cant say I blame him, it goes back and forth between uninteresting characters, I wrote a scathing review about the previous book and this one is even worse. Appalling book, dont waste your credit. Too disappointing to even bother going further indepth with this review.

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  • peta tempelman
  • 08-26-20

team work

love listening to Jeff Harding and the stories of the South always keep me interested....

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