Kathryn’s life is secrets and lies. A CIA operative who regularly breaks the rules and conducts investigations within US borders. She wakes up every morning to look in the mirror at a woman that isn’t her, she is truly two women trapped in one body. When her sister is kidnapped, she’ll use the US government, Securities International and even the one man who ignites her body. The man that hates her, for her lies.
Tony will do anything to build his career back to where it was before his father destroyed it. As a deep cover CIA operative, he will annihilate the man that fathered him while using the one woman he denies himself of. The one woman that brings his dominant desires to the surface. He knows there is more to her than a runaway model, but he can’t crack her.
They embark on a journey to destroy one man and find her sister, but instead, they find death and destruction. When an act of selflessness turns into the ending, another rises from the ashes to make herself known.
Paige has waited years to be seen. She’s ready to step forward, but are they ready to get to know her?
After the truths are revealed and the explosions die down, will Tony find his future with Paige or will his heart always belong to Kathryn?
A good crime thriller should give the reader
the feeling that they are solving the crime right along with the police. There
should be ties between characters, and conflict that impacts the effectiveness
of the officers/detectives (because that is true to real life). Clues should only
come to light as characters discover them, but it’s okay to give the readers a
few red herrings along the way to keep them off balance.
Given these parameters, I am pleased to say
that Silent Night by Geraldine Hogan qualifies as a terrific crime thriller!
I will admit, the beginning was very slow, and
I did sometimes feel like there was too much exposition. But I quickly realized
that the author was setting a complete and detailed scene for the reader because
once the action picked up, it was vital to have the information from the
beginning.
As always, you will not find any significant
plot points or spoilers here. I will say that I got the definite feeling that
the author either was personally familiar with law enforcement or did a bang-up
job researching because she hit the nail on the head with her descriptions of
both methods and relationships between members of the squad, as well as
investigative techniques.
Every reviewer has their pet peeves, and this
is one of mine. I get frustrated at crime novels that don’t get those aspects
correct; it ruins the book for me. Not the case here.
I also particularly enjoyed the way the author
crafted the plot. There were times that I thought, “Oh, it must be this” (not
revealing anything here, sorry) or “Aha, I thought so!” I love it when I am
right sometimes and wrong others. Being kept off-balance keeps me engaged. There
is little that is more annoying than a predictable crime thriller. Again, you
won’t find that problem here; instead, you will find twists and surprises
throughout the book.
Silent Night is the first in the new Detective Iris Locke series, and it is a stellar read. Just make sure that you have time to devote to this one because reading carefully is a must. If you skim, you will miss important information. I do hope that future books move a little bit faster, now that we have been introduced to many of the characters (or have we?), but I will be looking forward to the next in the series.
About the author Geraldine Hogan was born in Ireland. She gained an Honors Degree in English Literature and Psychology from Dublin City University and a Postgraduate Degree in Training and Management from University College, Galway. She is an Irish award-winning and bestselling author of four contemporary fiction novels under the pen name Faith Hogan. Silent Night is her first crime novel, her second is due out in December 2019. She is currently working on her next novel. She lives in the west of Ireland with her husband, four children, and a very busy Labrador named Penny. She’s a writer, reader, enthusiastic dog walker, and reluctant jogger – except of course when it is raining!
Many crime thrillers claim to be “absolutely gripping,” but sometimes don’t live up to the hype. I’m happy to say that Silent Night by Geraldine Hogan does live up to the phrase. There is a lot to wade through at the beginning, but once the characters and setting are established, the action takes off. The reader is taken on quite a ride through the twists and turns of the murder investigation. I thought the author did a great job of keeping the action taut because it kept me hooked to the end. For more thoughts on what was so right about this five-star read, please visit my blog at Fireflies and Free Kicks Fiction Reviews. Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture, and the author for a complimentary, pre-release, digital ARC of this book.
