Book Review - Pray for Silence by Linda Castillo

Synopsis:  In the quiet town of Painters Mill, an Amish family of seven has been found brutally murdered on their farm. Chief of Police Kate Burkholder and her small force have few clues, no motive, and no suspect. Formerly Amish herself, Kate is no stranger to secrets, but she can’t get her mind around the senseless brutality of the crime.

State agent John Tomasseti arrives on the scene to assist. He and Kate worked together on a previous case during which they began a tentative relationship, but each is wary of commitment. The disturbing details of this case will push them to their limits and force them to face demons from their own troubled pasts.

When Kate discovers a diary, she realizes a haunting personal connection to the case. One of the teenage daughters may have been leading a lurid double life. As the case develops, Kate’s list of suspects grows. Who is the attractive stranger that stole the heart of the innocent young Amish girl? Did her estranged brother—a man with a violent past who was shunned by his family and the Amish community—come back to seek out revenge? Driven by her own scarred past, Kate swears she’ll find the killer and bring him to justice—even if it means putting herself in the line of fire.

First Line:  "Officer Chuck "Skid" Skidmore wished he hadn't indulged in that last cup of coffee."

Random Quote:  "I keep an eye on the sky as I head out of town.  The first fat drops splat on the windshield as I turn into the lane of the Plank farm.  The slow-moving vehicle sign mounted on the rear of the buggy reflects my headlights."

Review:  I wasn't sure what to expect from Pray for Silence - a police procedural with an Amish twist.  I often see the romance novels with an Amish twist, but there's something really creepy about them to me.  I'm not sure what, exactly, but it seems odd.  Still, I was curious so I bit.

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This was a good police procedural.  Ms. Castillo knows how to put together this kind of book and builds a great plot populating it with interesting characters.  The Amish twist is that our heroine is formerly Amish and now Chief of Police in a town in the area where she was born and raised.  It's a place where Amish and English are intertwined - two communities in parallel, but not necessarily connected.  I liked very much that this was a simple part of the landscape of the book - this is where we live, this is who lives here, here's how we interact.  Very well done.

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Throw in a heinous crime, brutally raw descriptions of the crime, and complicated relationships and you get a good read.

FTC Disclosure:  Advance copy from LibraryThing Early Reviewers

Rating:  Green

Reading Challenges:  The Mystery and Suspense Reading Challenge 2011