Books are the ever burning lamps of accumulated wisdom

[michael draper]

John Connolly eligantly describes life in a small town in Maine and how it changes when a teenage girl goes missing.

 

Randall Haight lives in the town and served eighteen years for murdering a girl when he was age fourteen. He was given a new identity after his release from prison and now is getting pictures showing the barn door where the murder he was involved with, took place.

He doesn't want to go to the authorities because he feels he'll be the scapegoat for the girl who is missing now so he hires PI Charlie Parker to make the harassing go away.

Since Charlie had lost a child himself, he doesn't want to take the case but does when he considers that the person harassing Haight might be the real kidnapper.

 

Connolly writes in a fine literary style that is delicious to read. "...there are other places that speak of the ferocity of the sea, of communities sheltering behind butresses of black rock and shingle beaches against which the waves throw themselves like beseiging armies..."

 

There are a number of parallel story lines that merge together to create a tidy conclusion with some interesting plot twists and surprises that add to the reader's interest.

 

Although not one of Connolly's best, it is still a fine read and Connolly is Connolly, hard to beat.

 

A giveaway of this novel is presently being offered at

http://mikedraperinguilford.blogspot.com