The Wolf in Winter

Finished January 25
The Wolf in Winter by John Connolly, read by Jeff Harding

This is the 12th book in the series featuring private investigator Charlie Parker, but the first one I've read. Charlie lives in Maine, and his work sometimes takes him away from there, but this book is focused on that state. Charlie learns that a homeless man was looking to hire him to look into the disappearance of his daughter. As he begins to trace the girl and her father's search for her, he finds himself led to the small town of Prosperous. Prosperous takes pride in its history, tracing its founding families back to England. Those founders brought their church with them, yet the town strictly limits access to this church and its grounds. The selectmen of the town consider their role as protectors of the town, but what they get in return is more nebulous.
This is a story of dark forces, people that believe in the end justifying the means, and closely guarded secrets. Charlie is no stranger to any of this and he does his research and chooses his moves carefully, but perhaps not always carefully enough. Two of the men that work closely with him, Angel and Louis, also have roles to play, as does a man Charlie has been hunting. This is a book with both a strong detective mystery plot, and a horror plot entwined together. It also has many interesting characters, touches of humour, and has interested me in reading more in this series.