Every Dead Thing

I'd read three other books by this author: 2 for the YA market that were very good, and a fantasy called The Book of Lost Things which I liked very much. So, I thought, hey, why not try out the author's series of gritty crime novels featuring protagonist Charlie “Bird” Parker, an ex-cop haunted by the brutal killings of his wife and child. It's well-written stuff but man, oh, man, was it dark. And well, I read the whole thing, but not in a rush. I wasn't that much into it and I wouldn't classify it as a page-turner. The ending had some nice twists and was exciting enough but... I expect more of page-turner for crime stories.