Scream in Silence: A Marti Macalister Mystery

By Eleanor Taylor Bland

Book Overview

Beloved for both her complex mysteries and her fascinating main character, African-American female cop Marti MacAlister, "Eleanor Taylor Bland" is "one of today's most talented mystery writers" ("Booklist)." Now Marti is newly married, juggling domestic bliss and a blended family, when an arsonist/bomber shatters the peace of their sleepy Chicago suburb. Suddenly Marti and her partner Matthew "Vik" Jessenovik are working overtime to investigate a series of crimes that appear victimless--until a woman's charred body is discovered in the smoking ruins of a vacant house. There's no time to lose as they race to find a sociopath who has them in his sights--as he graduates from backlot blazes to wholesale homicide, in search of the ultimate thrill....

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312974949
• ISBN13: 9780312974947
• Release Date: February 2001
• Publisher: Minotaur Books
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.36 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 4.2" x 6.7"

Customer Reviews

MOTHERS AND SONS

It is hard being a mother especially if you are old and helpless. Your only child, a son, becomes your keeper. At times he appears mean, just like his father, but that's okay. You do wonder what he does as he leaves you in your home alone, tired and frightened. Detectives Marti and Vik find themselves on the trail of an arsonist and bomber whose unleashed anger begins to terrorize their community. A dead body found at one of his fires unfolds a mystery involving Vik's past loves and a series of corrupt land deals. As the detectives methodically unravel the evidence they encounter mothers and sons whose relationships set off a time bomb of abuse, deceit and dependency. Eleanor Bland once again does a great job in exploring the psychological and emotional forces that lead sons to commit acts that only a mother would forgive. Through the investigation Marti begins to examin the relationship with her own son while Vik explores a teenage relationship long dead. Join with these two detectives as they attempt to make sense out of incidents that hit to close to home in their personal lives.

Marti and Vic, the dynamic duo

I read this book in a day. It was superb. I enjoyed it as well as her previous books. I kept waiting for Isaac the wino, one of her previous characters to turn up and give some clues as to something he had witnessed by accident. I can hardly wait for the next book to be written!