Splinter the Silence: A Tony Hill and Carol Jordan Novel

by Val McDermid Narrated by Gerard Doyle

Overview

Widely recognized as one of our finest crime writers, with numerous accolades and legions of devoted readers worldwide, internationally bestselling author Val McDermid is back with the latest installment in her much beloved series featuring psychologist Tony Hill and former police detective Carol Jordan. Splinter the Silence is an adrenaline-fueled roller coaster guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat: a masterful novel centered on the mysterious deaths of several women who were the victims of vicious cyber bullying. Is it violence if it's virtual? The outspoken women targeted by the increasingly cruel internet trolls and bullies would probably say so. For some of them, the torrents of bile and vicious threats prove too much. They begin to silence themselves in a series of high-profile suicides. Or do they? Tony Hill isn't convinced. But he's the only one. Former cop Carol Jordan is too busy messing up her life to care. Until she gets an unexpected second chance. Now it's game on, and the stakes have never been higher. Unpredictable and un-put-down-able, Splinter the Silence is a must-read that cements Val McDermid place as one of the best crime writers in the business. Val McDermid is the best-selling author of twenty-nine previous novels, which have been translated into over forty languages. She lives in Scotland.

Editorial Reviews

Kirkus Reviews

2015-09-23
An Internet bully decides to take the next step to actual violence in the latest Tony Hill and Carol Jordan thriller. The killer is targeting outspoken advocates for women's rights and making their deaths look like suicides. His goal is not only to silence them, but to make it appear as if the online bullying and threats directed at these women were so powerful that they crumbled under a sustained show of male force. Hill can't make the suicide of one victim jibe with the strength the woman showed in her public appearances. The seed of doubt planted in his mind provides the opening for the investigation, as Jordan is facing a battle with booze brought on by recent violent trauma. The book has hold of a great subject: the chauvinist pig-pile of online misogyny. The problem is that the killer's motivation—his belief that his mother's feminist beliefs led to her separation from the family and her death when he was just a child—feels strained. As a character, he lacks the horrifying individuality of the murderers in past Hill-Jordan outings like The Mermaids Singing (1996) and The Wire in the Blood (1997), the first two, and still the best, in the series. Also, too often the dialogue reads less like talking than like characters staking out an editorial position. There's a stroke of inspiration in imagining how easily the murderous impulses of online trolls might be unleashed, but neither that premise nor the duo who've won fans to the series are well-served by this entry.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940170184941
Publisher:	HighBridge Company
Publication date:	12/15/2015
Series:	Tony Hill and Carol Jordan Series , #9
Edition description:	Unabridged

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