M. R. Mackenzie

Anna, who has returned to her native Glasgow after an absence of 10 years to celebrate the birthday of her best friend Zoe. Left alone temporarily in a nightclub she bumps into her schoolgirl crush Andrew. When she later finds him stabbed and dying in the street, it is the start of her nightmare as she becomes involved in the murder investigations when the police are convinced, she is either involved in some way or knows far more than she is letting on. Then when another victim is found, Anna decides that she wants to know the truth about what happened and why, bringing her into the firing line of the less than happy police detectives. It took me a little while to warm to Anna as she comes across as being quite cold and doesn’t seem to find it easy to relate to other people, including her best friend, but it was this character flaw that enabled her to dig around for the truth as she was unconcerned if her questions and digging upset or offended anyone. in fact, if that someone was in the police force, she almost seemed to take some pleasure in it. The more they pushed the more she went from wanting to escape Glasgow and get back to her life in Rome, to poking around in the investigations, determined to find the truth. Anna’s friend Zoe seemed a little self-centered especially when Anna’s life seemed to be crashing around her, but they both seemed to be desperately clinging to their close friendship of the past, despite having grown apart. The two detectives in charge of the case seemed to desperately want to link Anna to the murders. I hope to never come across any like them in real life as one of them seems to take great pleasure in humiliating Anna at every opportunity. This is the first book in this series and I look forward to more from this author in the future.… (mehr)

In the Silence by M.R. MacKenzie

Amateur sleuth and feminist criminology professor working in Italy heads to Scotland for her best friend Zoe’s birthday. Little did she know that going back to what once was her home, after a decade away, would open doors to rooms she had tried to lock behind her. What Anna saw and experienced her first night home triggered memories, made her need to find out who killed the man she talked to in the bar and lead her to eventually share secrets she had not shared before.

Anna and Zoe were childhood friends through thick and thin but over the decade she was away they grew apart. Staying with Zoe and her brother Victor was like going home in some ways. Talking to Andrew at the pub that first night was interesting and allowed her to talk to a boy, now man, she had a crush on in high school. Wondering who killed Andrew later that night took her down twisty trails that lead to the unearthing of a dirty secret party life some participated in during high her teen years…a party some enjoyed much more than others.

As the story unfolds we learn more about Anna and why she left and how she has changed over the years. We find out more about the parties held when all were teens and how they impacted those who attended. We find out the motivation for murder. We meet some people caught up in or harmed by the evil of others. We see how police can be either good or bad and how some bend their positions to do as they will. We learn how family guards those they love. And we also see how choices made can impact people in good ways or bad.

There were times I could not understand the thinking of Anna and wondered where her mind had gone. There were times I wanted to smack Anna and tell her to wise up. There were times I wanted to give some of the policemen she encountered more than a talking to. There were times I felt sad and wondered “what if” this or that had happened instead of what did happen in the story.

This is a book that is dark and twisted but also one that is not farfetched in regard to what can and does happen at times in real life. It tells of those trying to correct and improve the universe as well as of those that want to enjoy hedonistically the time they are on earth. At the end of the book I wondered if Anna will be getting a series of her own and if so whether or not she will be more grounded in the next book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloodhound Books for the ARC – This is my honest review.

4 Stars… (mehr)