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I received this book for free from a book tour, NetGalley. This review is voluntary. My opinion is not influenced in any way.

Series: Detective Amanda Steele #3
Also in this series: The Little Grave, Stolen Daughters
Published by Bookouture on September 24, 2021
Genres: Mystery, Suspense, Thriller
Pages: 305
Format: eARC
Source: a book tour, NetGalley
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Also by this author: Eleven,It’s 4 a.m. when her mom shakes her awake. “Get up baby, we’re going to play hide and seek.” The little girl presses back into the dark space, holding her breath as she hears the shots ring out. She knows she’s next…
When the bodies of a local family are discovered on a quiet street in the small town of Dumfries, Virginia, Detective Amanda Steele takes charge of the case. Brett and Angela Parker were shot three times each, leaving no hope of survival, and their tidy suburban home has been ransacked. But there is no sign of their beloved six-year-old, Zoe.
Zoe is the same age as Amanda’s daughter was when she died, and Amanda can’t bear the thought of another little girl in danger. She’s organizing a search for the child, when she notices something strange about the ottoman at the foot of the Parkers’ bed. She opens it to find Zoe, mute and traumatized, but alive.
With Zoe completely uncommunicative, Amanda must find another way to untangle what destroyed this seemingly perfect family. It’s clear that the killer is searching for something the Parkers had, and until she has this monster behind bars, Amanda fears that he may return for Zoe. When she learns that Brett Parker cut short the family’s recent lakeside vacation, she wonders why. What happened at that lake house, and did it ultimately get them killed?
Amanda heads out to Lake Chesdin on the feeling it might be key to the case, and when she finds a cell phone in the murky waters next to the Parker cabin, she knows she’s made a breakthrough. But then terrible news reaches her from Dumfries; Zoe has been taken from her school playground.
Someone wants to silence the Parker family for good, can Amanda catch them before the little girl she’s desperate to protect pays the price?
The Silent Witness is the third book in the Detective Amanda Steele series. It pulls you in right away and has you having to turn the pages until you find out what happens next. Ms. Arnold has a gift for writing taut, suspenseful police procedurals that keep you guessing. This series is a must-read if you like shows like CSI or Criminal Minds.
I love how Amanda tries to stay emotionally detached from her cases but because of her personality and what she’s been through, she can’t help but feel a connection. That raw emotion often helps her find just what she is looking for. The drama and the mystery had my adrenaline pumping. As much as I wanted to stay in the story, I couldn’t wait to finish and find out how the case was solved.
One of my favorite things about this series is how real it feels. It is believable every step of the way. Solid writing + a fabulous mystery make this another wonderful story in this series and I can’t wait for more!
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