Gone to Darkness

Sydney Rose Parnell, Book 4

By: Barbara Nickless

Narrated by: Emily Sutton-Smith

From a Wall Street Journal bestselling author. Newly minted homicide detective Sydney Parnell faces a savage killer whose endgame is to capture her. And keep her.

Iraqi war vet and former railway cop Sydney Parnell is now the youngest homicide detective in Denver's Major Crimes Unit. In the past, gut instinct has served her and her K9 partner well. But it's not a trait Len Bandoni, her old nemesis turned reluctant mentor, admires. Not until Sydney's instincts lead to their first case: a man tortured and beaten to death, then left in a refrigerated train car with cryptic messages carved into his body.

The victim is a well-liked member of an elite club called the Superior Gentlemen. At first glance, the club appears harmless. But beneath its refined surface swim darker currents.

As Sydney; her K9 partner, Clyde; and Bandoni investigate the grisly murder, the three develop a bond that carries them through a shocking series of crimes and a horrifying conspiracy that threatens the detectives’ lives and promises to bring their beloved city to its knees.

©2020 Barbara Nickless (P)2020 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“A gritty, hard-boiled crime novel with breathless action and deep, sturdy characters. Detective Sydney Parnell and her partner Clyde, a police dog, are a tantalizing duo, and the story’s narrative and dialogue are authentic and witty and demand compulsive reading. Gone to Darkness is everything you want in thriller fiction.” —Robert Dugoni, #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author of the Tracy Crosswhite Series

“Nobody does atmosphere better than Barbara Nickless. With deft strokes, she draws impending doom within bleak settings and then colors them with vivid action and brilliant characters, both human and canine. Gone to Darkness is mystery and suspense writing at its best!” —Margaret Mizushima, award-winning author of the Timber Creek K-9 Mysteries

“Barb Nickless’s Gone to Darkness is another stellar entry in the Sydney Rose Parnell series. Even though she’s now a Denver police detective, Sydney and Clyde catch a case involving trains, a unique milieu that Nickless masterfully evokes. Readers who enjoy an atmospheric setting, a kick-ass yet vulnerable heroine, solid police procedurals, fast-paced yet lyrical writing, and/or the closeness of a human-dog partnership should immediately buy or borrow every book in this series. (I stop short of suggesting stealing a copy, but if that’s your only option…)” —Laura DiSilverio, award-winning and national bestselling author of The Reckoning Stones

This case was one that could happen in any town

The growth of the characters in the series is wonderful to see. The evil they fight this time is one that is horrible, taking victims that many don't see coming and many feel they can't fight.

Amazing Book Amazing Series

If you haven't discovered Barbara Nickless' books featuring ex-marine now railroad cop Sydney Rose Parnell and her Belgian Malinois Clyde you are in for a treat. The author knows how to move her stories along without being redundant and has a lot to say about the world we all live in. However, I recommend you begin with book #1 as there are threads that start there that weave through all the books. I don't think you will be disappointed.

Emily Sutton-Smith is my favourite narrator and she was outstanding in the delivery of this story

Still love Sydney

I enjoyed this installment of Sydney's story and appreciated the differences from the previous books.

Enjoy the uniqueness and the main characters!

Love the uniqueness of the main character originally coming from the Railroad Cop/Marine perspective. This one had a little too much of the current/authors-“political bias and crazed religious bad guys” references for me. Is my only criticism. It seems that just about every author I like starts to push their political and religious beliefs about the 4 th or 5 th book. I understand but it would be just as good a story if it was left out. Other than that I love the characters and enjoy the authors books.

Series started good and the fourth book is fab!

I just finished the 4th book in this series and I went back to the first book to leave a review that this is worth your time. The first book had quite a bit of background on the railroad system and it took some time to understand the culture, etc. The author covers some of this in the other books in the series but you get the meat of it in book 1. There are many people that will review the plot, so I just wanted to drop in to say the character development, background and plot is totally worth the investment in this series. I hope you enjoy as well! I thought the 4th book was the best of all and I loved the addition of the cousin that specializes in criminal writing interpretation.