Ten months ago, Samantha Hunt set off for work...and was never seen again.
Despite the statistics of cold cases, Dylan Scott wants to believe the young woman's alive—and not just because her father, his client, is desperate to find his missing daughter before he dies of cancer. By all accounts Sam was a lovely girl, devoted to her younger stepsisters, well-liked at her work, in love with her boyfriend.
But as usual not everything is as it seems in sleepy Dawson's Clough. Sam's boyfriend has a violent past. She may have been having an affair with her boss. And Dylan can't shake the feeling that her stepfather is hiding something. Meanwhile, someone is trying to scare Dylan off the case.
Who wanted to silence Sam, and why? The truth turns out to be worse than anyone expected...
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The Reader's Roundtable
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With a wide variety of startling twists and turns, Shirley Wells brings Dead Silent to a stunning and unanticipated conclusion that is guaranteed to shock her readers.
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Reviewer: IvyD
With Dylan’s success in the Anita Champion case he’s acquired the appellation of miracle worker in the Dawson’s Clough area of Lancashire. It is this reputation that leads to his next case. Samantha Hunt left for work one morning, ten months ago, and hasn’t been seen since. Her father, Rob Hunt hired Dylan to find Samantha at the behest of his ex-wife Marion. Dylan is again dividing his time between Dawson’s Clough and his broom closet flat in London with his mother, Vicky, who seems to have taken up permanent residence.
It was such a pleasure to see a new Dylan Scott mystery. He’s still in the smallest flat in the world being bedeviled by his mother, Vicky. It behooves him why Bev, his wife, thinks they need to be separated. They love each other, right? He should be home with his family, sleeping in the marital bed.
Bev is wondering whether love is enough when her friend hits the nail on the head; giving Bev just what she needs. My friends would do that; give me a pinch when I need it. It’s these little details that make for such good reading. Even Vicky helps in her own inimitable fashion…camel rides through the desert for vacation anyone?
Before Dylan even gets to Dawson’s Clough he’s warned off the case with a roughing up in a men’s room. Typically, this makes him more curious about Samantha and her disappearance. What about this case has some one that worried? The more Dylan learns about Samantha the more he likes her. Niggling bits about her disappearance and the stories he’s told keep gnawing at him, taking him in a direction that even his friend Frank thinks is a dead end. Dylan not only considers the facts he listens to his instincts. The search for Samantha leads Dylan to something even bigger and uglier than a simple missing person case.
I love Dylan and the characters surrounding him. He has a strong moral compass and acute sense of justice. I easily identified with his views. The honesty, realism, excellent characterization, and growth play a huge part in the lure of this series for me.
Dead Silent kept me reading late into the night and has whetted my appetite for more of Dylan and crew. If you’re looking for a tightly plotted, delightfully cast, well written mystery look no farther than the Dylan Scott series by Shirley Wells. I’m impatiently awaiting the next one.
* Disclosure: Reviewers are compensated for book reviews.
