Silent Witness (Detective Amanda Steele #3) by Carolyn Arnold {Book Review}

Silent Witness is book 3 in the Detective Amanda Steele series, and will tug at your heart strings as you join Amanda and her partner, Trent, to find those involved in their newest case.

Disclosure: I received a complimentary e-book copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are 100% my own unless otherwise noted.

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?

A completely gripping and addictive crime thriller that will keep fans of Rachel Caine, Lisa Regan and Robert Dugoni entertained into the early hours.

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Silent Witness was such a good read! It was a fresh new case that tied in previous books in various ways. The case was also much bigger than anyone could have originally imagined.

Zoe made the book have an emotional touch as a lot of the case was surrounding Zoe, finding out who killed her parents, why they were killed, and keeping Zoe safe (along with the consequences of the trauma the little girl was going through). Just this one character added so much to the storyline and really put a whole new spin on the book.

I felt the “action” per se, was a little slower than past books, but that did not make me enjoy it any less. In fact, I am looking forward to another book in the series to see how the end of Silent Witness plays out.

I loved chasing this case with Amanda and Trent. There were other parts of the book that I loved as well, but I can’t share (you know, spoiler alert!) If you haven’t read any of the Detective Amanda Steele books, you could pick this one up and not be lost, but I highly recommend grabbing all of them and reading them in order. I think you will find it even more enjoyable, but this one just might be my favorite!

Silent Witness will definitely provide you breath holding, heart pounding mystery with just a touch of heart and humor to make it an incredible read!

About the Author

CAROLYN ARNOLD is an international best-selling and award-winning author, as well as a speaker, teacher, and inspirational mentor. She has four continuing fiction series—Detective Madison Knight, Brandon Fisher FBI, McKinley Mysteries, and Matthew Connor Adventures—and has written nearly thirty books. Her genre diversity offers her readers everything from cozy to hard-boiled mysteries, and thrillers to action adventures.

Both her female detective and FBI profiler series have been praised by those in law enforcement as being accurate and entertaining, leading her to adopt the trademark: POLICE PROCEDURALS RESPECTED BY LAW ENFORCEMENT™.

Carolyn was born in a small town and enjoys spending time outdoors, but she also loves the lights of a big city. Grounded by her roots and lifted by her dreams, her overactive imagination insists that she tell her stories. Her intention is to touch the hearts of millions with her books, to entertain, inspire, and empower.

She currently lives just west of Toronto with her husband and beagle and is a member of Crime Writers of Canada.

Read more from Carolyn Arnold:

Midlife Psychic: A Paranormal Women’s Fiction Novel
Stolen Daughters (Detective Amanda Steele Book 2)
The Little Grave (Detective Amanda Steele Book 1)