Silent Scream by Angela MarsonsMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Time taken to read - over 2 days
Pages - 406
Publisher - Zaffre
Source - I bought 3 copies of this lol, Amazon (ebook), The Works and I think the other was part of an online deal
Blurb from Goodreads
Even the darkest secrets can’t stay buried forever…
Five figures gather round a shallow grave. They had all taken turns to dig. An adult sized hole would have taken longer. An innocent life had been taken but the pact had been made. Their secrets would be buried, bound in blood …
Years later, a headmistress is found brutally strangled, the first in a spate of gruesome murders which shock the Black Country.
But when human remains are discovered at a former children’s home, disturbing secrets are also unearthed. D.I. Kim Stone fast realises she’s on the hunt for a twisted individual whose killing spree spans decades.
As the body count rises, Kim needs to stop the murderer before they strike again. But to catch the killer, can Kim confront the demons of her own past before it’s too late?
My Review
Welcome to book one in a series, introducing D.I. Kim Stone investigating the murder of a seemingly upstanding member of the community. Soon another murder happens and the police have to consider is their a link between the two. When the body count continues and remains are found at an old children's home Stone and her team need to work hard to catch the killer before they strike again. The discovery of the bones not only throws a new light onto the investigation but causes Stone to revisit her own past and demons.
Before I even start on the book we need to talk about a major geek moment. The book takes place in Black Country, I had never heard of it before reading this book. There is a reference, in one conversation between one cop to another with a reference to the place and it being the inspiration for a very famous place in another book. I was actually geeking and will leave you to discover it for yourself (or if you are too nosey you can look at my Instagram as I popped a piccy up on there with the passage).
Stone is a fantastic character, she is work orientated, honest, strong sense of what is right and will get justice now matter what. She has a past, some issues but isn't flawed as so many detectives with a penchant for booze, drugs or risky sexual encounters. She is a fantastic creation, her team respect her, she doesn't bow down to office politics, she is for the victims, she will get them justice!
There is lots of action, we open in 2004 with five adults around a grave, burying an innocent, binding them all together with a horrific secret. We go to present day and the first murder kicks off so we are right into the action straight away. Relatively short chapters, which I personally love, following the investigation, the murders and even have a few wee chapters dottered in the book from the killer giving an insight into their history and mind set.
If I wasn't so knocked off just now I would have read this in one sitting, it is a great introduction to what I am told is a fantastic series. I have the next three in the series already and absolutely will be buying the rest. If you are looking for a new series (well new to me, originally published in 2015 by Bookouture) with a strong female who isn't perfect but isn't plagued with booze reliance or anything of that ilk, this is for you. 4.5 out of 5 for me, refreshing, engaging and hooked from the first page!
