“The Silent Hour” by Michael Koryta

REVIEW: Though I felt that this book certainly seemed to be intricate, I felt that it was in no way a “lightning paced thriller” as it is described in the book’s jacket.  I found it to be a rather slow moving mystery novel that was more of a psychological character study of its primary character, private detective “Lincoln Perry”.  This is Koryta's fourth book in the Lincoln Perry series.  Having read and enjoyed the last one, I was a disappointed with this one. In this novel Perry’s character seems to be at a major crossroads in his career as a private detective. Guilt and fear have become increasing burdens and Perry spends much of this book in contemplation regarding the human costs of his actions. For some reason I felt I was missing something.  Maybe it was because I had not read the first two books of this series.  I suggest starting with the first novel, “Tonight I Said Goodbye” and continue with the series before reading this book. Though I started out reading this in hard cover, I ended up listening to the last half as an audio book. The audio version was very well done and made it much easier to finish. However, in the end I felt that it was rather contrite and only give it [2.5 Stars]. Click here to see the audible books I have listened to Audible Reviews

SYNOPSIS: The home was called Whisper Ridge, a multimillion-dollar piece of architectural majesty that once housed the beginnings of a unique program for paroled murderers. It was the passion of Alexandra Sanabria, the daughter of a deceased Mafia don, but the program never got off the ground. Uninhabited for twelve years, the home now remains as a strange monument to dangerous secrets. Private investigator Lincoln Perry's first involvement with the house and its legacy comes when Parker Harrison—a convicted killer and former tenant of Whisper Ridge—asks him to find Alexandra, who disappeared with her husband after the failure of the program. Disconcerted and embarrassed by his own immediate mistrust of Harrison, Perry decides to take the request at face value until he discovers that the bones of the Alexandra's husband were discovered at the exact same time Harrison began his quest to locate her. Now the investigation is active again and decade-old threats are circling, confronting Perry with a sordid family mystery that will challenge both his abilities as a detective and his commitment to that calling.