The Silent Wife

May 18, 2020
In bestseller Slaughter’s macabre 10th thriller featuring Georgia Bureau of Investigation agent Will Trent (after 2019’s The Last Widow), Will and his partner, Faith Mitchell, are investigating a prison murder when inmate Daryl Nesbitt extends an offer. Nesbitt will tell them who the killer is if the GBI will look into eight incidents—one recent—that he believes are connected to the rape of Beckey Caterino eight years earlier. Nesbitt is serving time for child pornography discovered on his computer during the cops’ investigation of the Caterino case, but Nesbitt maintains that Chief Jeffrey Tolliver—the now-deceased husband of Will’s girlfriend, medical examiner Sara Linton—framed him, and that a sadistic serial attacker remains at large. Will’s scrutiny of Jeffrey’s detective work sends Sara on a wistful trip down memory lane, leaving Will uncertain of their future. Will and Jeffrey’s inquiries, unfolding through frequent flashbacks, add nuance and complexity to an already intricate plot. Slaughter delivers an unflinching, deeply empathetic exploration of the stigma surrounding rape and the enduring trauma suffered by its survivors. Agent: Victoria Sanders, Victoria Sanders & Assoc.

A series of horrific rapes has authorities mystified. Investigator Will Trent and Medical Examiner Sara Linton dig deep into the case, examining clues as well as their love life. Kathleen Early delivers the story, which is set in the South and jumps between two timeframes. She shines mostly with the accents of several secondary characters. A medical examiner is given a slow, kindly drawl, and a woman in charge of investigators has a wonderfully creative gruff voice. Sara's sister has a slightly different cadence, which helps when the siblings are talking. The author's graphic descriptions of heinous acts bring home the seriousness of sexual crimes. M.B. � AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine