Darkness Falls

Detective Nathan Parker, #5

by

James L’Etoile

Parker is thrust into a riveting personal battle to save his family.

Darkness Falls is the fifth book in author James L’Etoile’s riveting Detective Nathan Parker series, and its main character is locked in the ultimate battle to save his loved ones. Called to a remote drug lab and the scene of a double homicide in an unsavory corner of Maricopa County known to law enforcement as “Tweaker Heights,” Nathan and his partner, Barry Johns, discover one of the bodies is that of ‘The Birdman,’ a mysterious and, until now, elusive drug supplier, whose product has been all the rage among the more affluent college students and clubgoers in the greater Phoenix area. But smack in the middle of the crime scene, Nathan finds a familiar blue backpack, filled with the college textbooks and cellphone of his foster son, Miguel. 

The underlying political goals driving the action make for a shocking motive. A county outsider with ties to an out-of-control private militia, the Night Watch, wants to win the coming election for sheriff, and drugs, migrants, and illegal immigrants are hot topics, both locally and nationally. The story is an absolute page-turner as Nathan and Barry try to get in front of the plans of the manipulative candidate and his cronies, who have infiltrated not only their own department but also the local offices of critical federal agencies. From the start, the partners can’t be sure who to trust or who is leaking vital information to the bad guys. The plot has shocking twists and turns, and I was quickly and deeply drawn in by both the suspense and the relatable concerns of a parent with grown sons. 

While all the series books have been cases with deadly personal ties for Parker, this one manages to up the ante, involving both Miguel and Linda, Nathan’s pregnant love interest. This story hits on so many parents’ nightmares with Miguel becoming the target of powerful but hidden forces, his son’s complicity in the danger, and the senseless deaths of several young students barely into their teen years. Nathan doesn’t want to believe Miguel is involved, but the clues are not adding up in his favor. It is up to Barry Johns to be the more detached, uninvolved investigator, leaving Nathan to do what he can to find who and what are really behind the murders and the influx of deadly contaminated drugs into their community. Nathan has been a target before, but with his son in the crosshairs and a new baby on the way, the stakes are so much higher than ever before. 

I recommend DARKNESS FALLS to readers of thrillers, mystery, suspense, and especially fans of the previous novels in the series. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours.