Gone Quiet

Marti MacAlister #3

by Eleanor Taylor Bland

A routine investigation of an elderly man's death leads to personal and professional complications for Marti MacAlister, the only black female police detective in Lincoln Prairie, Illinois.
When the coroner finds that Henry Hamilton was suffocated in his sleep, Marti and her partner, Jessenovik, know it's likely he was killed by someone he knew. They also know that Hamilton, a deacon of Mount Gethsemane Baptist Church, is the stepfather of Denise Stevens, a juvenile probation officer who has helped them on other cases.
Hoping to prove that Denise is not a murder suspect Marti looks into the victim's church-centered community and his family's troubled past. But the closer Marti gets to identifying the killer, the more protective Denise becomes toward her mother and Gladys, whose lifelong struggle for respect may have taken a dangerous turn; Belle, a nightclub singer whose flamboyant style has a desperate edge; and Terri, her father's favorite, who feels trapped in her marriage to an older man. As the police learn more about who Hamilton really was, Denise withdraws further from the people who want to help her until Marti is forced to assume that she and her sisters are keeping a terrible secret.

Genres: Mystery, Mystery Thriller

214 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

Eleanor Taylor Bland was an African American writer of crime fiction. She was the creator of Lincoln Prairie, Illinois (based on Waukegan, Illinois) police detective Marti McAllister.

Reviews

[Ryan Mishap · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unafraid to tackle harsh familial and social issues involving abuse, silence, and surviving, Bland is really expanding the depth of the protagonists and storytelling in book three. Bland seems interested in having the reader confront the inequities, oppression (personal and systemic), and abuse that goes on unabated and unchallenged in our society. While this can make for uncomfortable reading, these are the kind of mysteries I prefer--ones that tackle real issues.

Readers should be warned that the sexual abuse of children described can be triggering.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

The characters and settings in this book only get richer as the series progresses. I'm disappointed this series isn't more well known, but I will do my best to change that by suggesting it left and right! These books really have heart.

[Wendi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one involves very difficult subject matter, child molestation. It was dark, grim, disturbing.
Ordinarily I shun this topic in my fiction. I just really enjoy Bland's characters and her eye for setting and descriptive details.
The mystery part wasn't surprising.

[Gretchen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a series about a female black police detective in a Chicago suburb. I am late to this series (this third book in the series was published in 1994). I will continue to read these because I like the protagonist and the books deal with interesting issues.

[Margaret · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Annie Garvey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dark tale

[Marilynn Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny and horrifying. Pretty amazing combination. Marti, the black detective is a wonderfully human character to admire. Too bad the book is hard to find.

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

This had its moments and the protagonist is likable, but it didn't ring true as a police procedural. Can't say I'd read any more of the series.

[jules revel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love this book. Fast-paced mystery. Interesting characters.