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BREAKING SILENCE (AUDIO)
by Linda Castillo, read by Kathleen McInerney
Macmillan Audio, June 2011
Unabridged pages
$39.99
ISBN: 1427212333


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

In the sleepy Ohio community of Painter's Mill young men kill four sheep in the pasture of an old Amish woman. Then word comes that three Amish people are dead. The Slabaugh children have lost their mother, father, and uncle. It seems to be a horrible accident; asphyxiation by methane gas from a manure pit. But the father was hit on the back of the head, probably with a shovel, and murder it was.

Kate Burkholder, chief of police, investigates. Is this another hate crime against the Amish or is someone else to blame? Kate grew up Amish herself so she is well-suited to investigate. A state agent, John Tomasetti, is sent to investigate the hate crimes. One of the problems the two face is that the Amish prefer not to involve the authorities in their lives so they will tell the police nothing. Together they unravel the secrets hidden inside what appears to be an innocent Amish community.

The plot has twists and turns that will keep the reader glued to her chair. The mystery is fascinating and complex. Tomasetti and Kate have a relationship already and their romance becomes part of the story. The denouement is shocking and unsettling but believable.

The characters are well-done. The reader, Kathleen McInerney, does a outstanding job of portraying each of them with just a slight change in voice. Kate is confident on the outside, but beneath the surface she doubts herself and she questions her actions. We learn about an event when she was a teenager that helps to explain her now. Tomasetti is gruff and capable and very supportive of Kate. The villains seem very believable also.

The first chapter was written in third person, past tense. Then the rest of the story is told by Kate in first person and in present tense. That seemed a little awkward at first but it did make the listener feel the immediacy of the actions. It is unclear to me why the author chose to write the first chapter in past tense however. It could have been told as the rest of the story was, by Kate discovering the dead sheep or being called by the Amish woman.

There is very explicit violence in this book and it may have seemed more disturbing because I was listening to it. When one listens to a book, one can't skip over the parts that upset. There is also some language which surprised me a little bit. This is by no means a cozy book and not one I would want my grandmother reading.

However it is exciting and the action draws the reader in. The mystery is perplexing and the discovery of the villains very surprising and yet logical. This book is the most recent of a series and I am be tempted to go back and find the earlier books. It is possible, however, to read it without knowing any background and learn everything one needs to know to enjoy the book.

§ Sally Fellows is a retired history teacher with an MA in history and an avid reader of mysteries.

Reviewed by Sally A. Fellows, November 2011

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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


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