Crime Novelist Brad Parks Coming to Madison

The last time we checked in with Brad Parks—former Star-Ledger reporter turned crime novelist—he was just about to embark on his . That was December 2009.

Since then, Parks has sold thousands of books and garnered —a Shamus and a Nero—for his first effort "Faces of the Gone."

Now, Parks will be appearing in Madison Sunday at to read and sign his second book, "Eyes of the Innocent" from 2 to 4 p.m. He's still the same nice, no-nonsense guy we spoke with in 2009. Parks' self-deprecating approach to himself and his work is evident from the moment you open his second book "Eyes of the Innocent."  The dedication recounts how his infant daughter was the first to hear the book read aloud—and how she slept through all of it.

Like "Faces of the Gone," "Eyes of the Innocent" follows the smart and dedicated, but hopelessly WASPy, somewhat bumbling and accidentally celibate Carter Ross as he reports on major crimes for the fictional Eagle-Examiner in Newark. (Granted we haven't made it to the end of "Eyes" yet; Ross may finally get some satisfaction from either his sexy city editor Tina or the babbling blonde intern "Sweet Thang.")

Last time, Ross was on the trail of a heroin ring. This time, it's 2008 and Ross is investigating the death of two young boys in a suspicious fire. Parks keeps the prose as light and snappy as the topic will allow, but folds in layers about subprime mortgages, the death of print newspapers, the collapse of the economy, immigration and some history lessons on Newark.

Still, it never feels like a lecture. The book bounces along, much as Ross bounds through the potholed streets of Newark in his beat-up Malibu.

"It's not high literature," Parks said in a phone interview. "I take my work very seriously. I don't take myself very seriously. I try to write a book that works on multiple levels for multiple people."

"One of the things that has struck me—I've learned just how much people bring their own stuff to reading. A good book needs a good reader."

Parks shines the spotlight on local towns and in "Faces of the Gone," Nutley, Summit and Livingston got some shout-outs. Parks says Bloomfield plays a role in the third Carter Ross novel and Westfield in the fourth.

Yes, Parks has four novels already completed. He's got the potential to be as prolific as Livingston native Harlan Coben, Stephen King and, ahem, Danielle Steele.

Being prolific isn't a problem, according to Parks. "Writing is painful but not as painful as other parts of publishing."

"The really draining part is drafting." Once he has a draft, Parks said, editing is a relative breeze.

And he's getting good at this. Besides his Shamus Award and Nero Award, Parks is racking up the glowing testimonials from the likes of Coben, Michael Connelly and The Wall Street Journal.

 "This book is better," Parks said, comparing "Eyes" to "Faces" (what's next? "Ears of the Damned?"). "It's tighter. The pacing is better. There are more layers."

But before you think success is going to his head, the self-deprecation comes roaring back:

"It's a good read for airplanes. For most people, it takes six hours."

Parks will be reading and signing "Eyes of the Innocent" Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m. at Sages Pages, 250 Main Street in Madison.