The Charlestown Connection: A Dermot Sparhawk Thriller (Dermot Sparhawk Series) - Hardcover

"MacDonald deftly juggles all the plot balls he throws in the air in his solid thriller debut." --Publishers Weekly

"Brisk pacing and plenty of bad guys keep the pages turning in MacDonald's art heist tale. The jump into art forgery is a big leap, but MacDonald keeps all his plays moving in a winning style. He introduces intriguing, flawed characters and atypical neighborhoods, making for a highly entertaining read." - Library Journal

"Don't expect to figure out the ending until you actually reach it. Few novels have provided so many unexpected turns with constantly new information revealing yet another facet of the mystery. It is so entertaining that you may want to read it more than once." - Portland Book Review--Portland Book Review

Dermot Sparhawk, a former All American Boston College football hero, is stacking cans in a parish food pantry in Boston's Charlestown, when his godfather, Jeepster Hennessey, shows up with a knife in his back and dies at Dermot's feet. Once slated for a professional football career, now a recovering alcoholic, with a torn-up knee, Dermot sets out to solve the murder of his godfather with the help of his Micmac Indian cousin, his paraplegic tenant, and a former teammate. Dermot's investigation has him tangling with members of the IRA, FBI, and the Boston mob. He also is forced to contend with Charlestown's code of silence and the norms of the neighborhood where he grew up. Feeling like he did at the height of his game, Dermot uses his Native American intuition and Irish good looks to help him uncover clues. Dermot stumbles upon bits and pieces of information that he cobbles together into an unlikely theory which leads him on an unexpected trail and to a new mystery that could cost him his life.