From the Bookshelf of Bookmarks Subscribers …

Although critics could not decide whether Brownlaw's synesthesia was a gimmicky element or not, they agreed that The Fallen is a riveting read__perhaps, claimed a few, not as good as the Edgar Award?winning California Girl and Silent Joe, but nearly so. This stand-alone classic police procedural, replete with its portrait of big-city crime and power-hungry politicians, follows a recognizable storyline. However, its lively writing, well-paced plot, rounded characters (from call girls to shady pol

Although critics could not decide whether Brownlaw's synesthesia was a gimmicky element or not, they agreed that The Fallen is a riveting read__perhaps, claimed a few, not as good as the Edgar Award?winning California Girl and Silent Joe, but nearly so. This stand-alone classic police procedural, replete with its portrait of big-city crime and power-hungry politicians, follows a recognizable storyline. However, its lively writing, well-paced plot, rounded characters (from call girls to shady politicians), and twists stand out. Though he hasn't achieved the fame of Michael Connelly or George Pelecanos yet, Parker belongs "in the first rank of American crime novelists" (Washington Post).

This is an excerpt from a review published in Bookmarks magazine.