Nick Stone — Mr. Clarinet

Penguin Books Ltd 2006 Paperback, 576pp. Winner of the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger for Best Thriller of the Year Pied piper. Soul stealer. Serial killer. Who is Mr Clarinet? It was a job Miami private investigator Max Mingus found hard to refuse: $10 million to locate billionaire's son Charlie Carver - missing now for over three years. Young Charlie disappeared on the island of Haiti, where over the decades scores of children have vanished. In a country dominated by voodoo, rumours abound of black magic and a mythical figure called 'Mr Clarinet', who for years has been tempting children away from their families. But could the truth be even more shocking than the legend? To find out, Max will have to succeed where previous detectives have not only failed - but where some have died. And suddenly, this job isn't all about finding Charlie or his killers for the money - it's just about staying alive. (ISBN: 9780141021089). Good.