John Connolly is a very busy man. He unfailingly publishes a new book every year, alternating between his long-running Charlie Parker PI series as well as novels that can only be described as departures, or other creative endeavors such as “He” which he published in 2017, or his collections of short fiction, his collaborations and occasional pieces of journalism.
John has recently completed his Master’s Degree from University College Cork, Ireland. He hosts his own Radio show ABC to XTC with John Connolly Saturdays on RTE at 17:00 - 18:00 and he happily travels the world to promote his books and entertaining his readers and fans.
He has just completed a tour to promote THE CHILDREN OF EVE in the UK and Ireland [read the Shots review HERE]. In fact, you can follow John on Instagram HERE where he reviews all the hotel rooms he stays in while on tour. You are always guaranteed a chuckle.
So just before taking a well-earned break from the UK and Ireland leg of his promotional tour, John found time to answer a few questions about his latest work, including links to his previous work such as The Black Angel which predates The Children of Eve by a quarter of a century; how the Charlie Parker series is progressing, and early word about a new book set against the backdrop to the Watergate Affair……
John Parker: I was intrigued by the title of the novel, especially as you take it from the Salva Regina, a prayer well-known to Catholics, lapsed or not.
“…poor banished children of Eve / to thee do we send up our sighs/Mourning and weeping in this vale of tears:” Can you comment on that?
John Connolly: I was raised Catholic, and still have some vestiges of faith, so that prayer has always stayed with me. The novel never had any other title, but I suppose I liked the idea of those words being directed towards an entity that was about as far removed from the Virgin Mary as one could get…
John Parker: Where did the idea of mother and the children come from? I researched a bit and came across information about Inca mythology and the Capacocha ritual where children were chosen for sacrifice. Am I on the wrong track?
John Connolly: It arose from a road trip I took while in Argentina about fifteen years or so ago, when I stumbled across a curious, macabre, and poignant piece of archaeological history and stored it away for use someday, as writers will do. I’m reluctant to go into too much detail, as one of the mysteries that Parker is trying to solve in the novel concerns the nature of the children. It’s a difficult book to discuss without giving too much away!
John Parker: Charlie is now middle-aged and seems to be noticing it more. There’s not a lot of running around these days. Hardly surprising, I know. Tell us about how you see the evolution of the man.
John Connolly: He’s in his late fifties, and his closest colleagues are older still. He’s in a certain amount of physical pain, he prefers to avoid physical confrontations when he can, and his reactions are not what they once were. In other words, he is, like many of us, getting on a bit. But he’s also more at peace with himself than he once was, and his rage has abated. He, like the books, is moving towards a conclusion – or a revelation, perhaps.
John Parker: Charlie’s late daughter plays an important role and perhaps you are changing tack and heading towards the grand finale of the saga? I say this because of the appearance of figures in that “unreal lagoon” who are perturbed by her presence.
John Connolly: I’ve said for a long time that I felt Parker’s story required a conclusion, and the novels are moving in that direction. The difficulty for me is that I still love writing about him, and have no shortage of ideas that I’d like to explore, so I’m trying to balance one imperative against a desire to continue in that universe. The Children of Eve offers a suggestion as to how that might be accomplished, but then there are other books I’d also like to write, some in other genres. I guess I’m dealing with the issue of what kind of career I envisage for myself in a decade, or two decades, should I live that long.
John Parker: What a surprise to see the return of Martin Reid from 2005’s The Black Angel. Can you talk about that? Has his return always been part of your plans?
John Connolly: I plan in general terms – I know where the series is going – but I’m always open to whatever ideas or characters pop up along the way. I was writing that section and Martin emerged from the woods, bless him. I think my unconscious must have been quietly preparing the way for him.
John Parker: What’s in the future for Charlie Parker? And for John Connolly?
John Connolly: Next year’s book is my first mystery to move away entirely from the Parker universe. It’s called The Castle and is set against the backdrop of the Senate Watergate hearings in 1973. After that, I’ll return to Parker for 2027’s novel, which I’m working on at the moment, and then I have a hankering to return to historical fiction for one book.
John Parker: Here’s a question I always ask you; what are you currently reading?
John Connolly: I’m working my way through Bernard Cornwell’s Sharpe novels, along with Ian Leslie’s John & Paul: A Love Story in Songs and Lucy Mangan’s Bookish: How Reading Shapes Our Lives. I tend to alternate between fiction and non-fiction.
John Parker: And as you are a music lover with your own radio show and a big fan of the podcast Word in your Ear, can you remember the first record you ever bought?
John Connolly: The first album was ABBA’s Arrival, and the first single was Wuthering Heights by Kate Bush. Both were hugely expensive relative to my income. I think I put less thought into buying my first car than I did that first single…
John Parker: That’s great! Thanks for giving us your time, John.
John Connolly: And great to talk again, stay well John and all at Shots Magazine.
Shots Magazine would like to thank Laura Sherlock, and from Hodder and Stoughton Publishing - Rebecca Mundy and Francesca Russell – for their help in organizing this short chat with writers John Connolly and John Parker.
More information on the work of John Connolly is available HERE and from Shots Magazine’s Archives HERE
THE CHILDREN OF EVE
