Dead Silent

DC Laura McGanity #4

by Neil White

‘Superb, tense, action-filled tale with lots of human interest and totally unputdownable.’
The Bookseller

‘… a whirlwind of a novel…a serious contender to match the giants of the crime fiction world’
Crimesquad.com on Fallen Idols

‘Fast-moving, brutally realistic and utterly compelling stories...White is proving more than a match for the likes of Val McDermid.’
Lancashire Evening Post on Last Rites

‘Totally gripping’
Closer Magazine on Lost Souls

Twenty years ago, Britain was rocked by the disappearance of Claude Gilbert without a trace on the night of the murder. The corpse of his pregnant wife was discovered buried in the garden. Worst of all, scratches were found inside her makeshift coffin – she had been buried alive! Everyone believes hotshot barrister and handsome TV presenter Gilbert murdered his wife and then killed himself, but with no body ever found, the mystery has remained unsolved. Until now…

When Lancashire crime beat reporter Jack Garrett is contacted by someone claiming to be Gilbert’s girlfriend, asking him to write the story proving his innocence, Jack eagerly leaps at the chance to clear a decades-old enigma.

But as Jack sets off on the trail of Gilbert – and the news scoop of his career – he soon uncovers some dark secrets. Jack and his girlfriend DC Laura McGanity, attempting to earn her sergeant stripes in the local police force, quickly realise that they are now pawns in a twisted game and the rules are about to get real nasty…

Learn more about Neil White at his websites:
USA: www.neilwhite.info
UK: www.neilwhite.net

Follow Neil on Twitter: @neilwhiteinusa or @neilwhite1965

Genres: Crime, Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Detective, Procedural, Police

487 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 27, 2010

About the author

Neil White (b. 1965) is a British freelance criminal lawyer and a full-time crime writer.


Librarian's note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Alma (retirement at last) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great read from White. Two stories in one with many characters but they are well described so easily identifiable. It was easy to read and flowed well. The private life of the two protagonists is tangled as their careers conflict so they are always wondering what the other one is doing or knows.
Not a very nice theme but that's the point of the book, to entice the reader in and continue to hold their attention. Boy, does it do that. Will definitely be reading the next one. White has become one of my favourite authors.

[Lynda Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my favourite of this series so far (book 4) about Laura a policewoman and her live-in boyfriend Jack, who's a journalist.
The last book was a little disappointing as they weren't getting on very well but in this one appear to be past that which made me happy.
A guy who supposedly murdered his wife by burying her alive over 20 years previously makes contact with Jack. He wants him to prove his innocence and write his story. It's a great story and full of lots of twists and kept me interested all the way through.
What struck me about this story was a lot of similarity with the Lord Lucan mystery of the 1970's. The author even gave one character his surname-Bingham.
Without posting a spoiler the Susie character mentioned a daughter and I guessed (wrongly) she was a daughter featured later in the book. That could have tidied things up a bit there, I thought..........but then I'm no author and Neil White is.
I have Book 5 ready on my wishlist !!

[Abhijeet Dutta · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Fallen Idols” and “Lost Souls”, the first and second novels of the “Jack Garrett and Laura McGnaity” series I found very OVERWHELMING that I still strongly desire them into a cinematic adaptation.

Unlike the mentioned previous books of this series, this really DISAPPOINTED me. It was NOT as GOOD as I expected. I have enjoyed other books by Neil white but this was pretty ordinary. The story was quite dull and there was no sense of drama at all. Suspense was not too much gripping.

Unexpectedly I found a waste of time and disappointing being a fan of Neil White.

[Pat · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm surprised by this book. I have enjoyed other books by Neil white but this was pretty ordinary. The story was quite dull and there was no sense of drama at all. Even attempts to create some tension towards the end of the book were predictable and lame.

[Bettina Lippenberger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Meine Meinung:
Als eine Frauenleiche, 20 Jahre zuvor entdeckt wird, verdächtigt man ihren Ehemann. Dieser taucht unter. Nun will er zurück in sein altes Leben, seine Unschuld beweisen. Doch ist er wirklich so unschuldig? Der Fund ist grausam. Eine Frau, noch jung, lebendig begraben. Mir haben sich die Nackenhaare aufgestellt, vorallem bei dem kleinen aber traurigen Detail. Jack ist Reporter und wirkt sehr klar in seinen Handlungen. Laura seine Lebensgefährtin, ist genau wie Jack ein sehr ehrlicher Mensch. Bobby ihr Sohn bleibt eher im Hintergrund. Jack versucht Laura und Bobby zu schützen. Leicht ist das nicht. Denn Laura ist Polizistin und gerät selbst in Gefahr. Es gibt auch noch Frankie Cass, der so viel mehr weiß und gesehen hat was geschah. Dabei kommt er mir trotz seiner Vorliebe, zwar verrückt aber berechenbar vor. Er kann einem trotzdem Angst machen. Susie ist für Claude, den verdächtigten Ehemann nur Mittel zum Zweck. Der hat einen Knall! Sie tut mir eigentlich leid. Hunter ist der Polizist, der Nancy fand. Er hat unerklärlicherweise Angst. Roach hingegen, der zweite Polizist ist selbstverliebt und hat, da bin ich mir sicher, etwas zu verbergen. Rachel von der Polizei, kann ich nicht leiden, sie nutzt ihre Position aus. Sie ist genau wie Roach auf meiner Negativ Charakter Seite. Die ganze Zeit ist Jack auf der Suche, am Ende erhöht sich die Spannung extrem. Der Schreibstil ist flüssig, auch wenn die Übergänge manchmal schwierig waren. Ich musste das Buch nochmal beginnen, um richtig einzusteigen. Denn dafür, musste man viel mitdenken. Ein Buch für den Strand, ist es deshalb nicht unbedingt. Aber für ein paar Winterabende sicherlich. Viele Zusammenhänge, werden erst am Ende klar.
Totales Chaos wer mit wem, was getan hat. Wer was weiß. Das gilt es für Jack rauszufinden.
Insgesamt hat mir die Geschichte gut gefallen.

Mein Fazit:
Ein Reporter der als Detektiv unterwegs ist,
im Auftrag eines Mörders.
Es geht um Leben und Tod.

[Gordon Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good thriller, with suspense aplenty and more than a few twists at the end. White creates characters that are rounded and believable. They have their flaws and foibles, and that adds to the relationships that the reader can establish.

PC Laura McGanity is back in uniform for this one and much of the action revolves around her reporter boyfriend Jack Garrett. He is contacted about a mystery murder from many years back - a missing barrister presumed to have killed his wife. Now this Lord Lucan type wants to come home and clear his name. Is this the scoop of the century for Garrett?

Garrett begins to investigate and interviews everyone he can find from the original crime. But then strange things start to happen ...

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

There was definitely something interesting in the bones of this book, and I didn't want to just stop reading, but by golly was it dull.

The plot was hidden beneath way too much repetition and description. If I read about Laura's stiff white shirt and black trousers once I read it ten times. Whole segments added nothing to the plot except padding - all of the Mike and Frankie sections could have been removed to make the book shorter and to add more tension and creepiness to their characters as they became involved in the plot.

There was little action and little tension until the final 25%. It just plodded along.

I've read other books by rhe author and enjoyed them, so I'll definitely go back for more and put this one down to missing the mark.

[Lisa Butler · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the fourth novel in the DC Laura Mcganity series following her and her reporter boyfriend Jack Garrett.

This time they are investigating a murder that happened in the 80s where the suspect went missing. This gave the book a searching for Lord lucan vibe.

I'm not sure if it's because it's the fourth book in the series and bored as the stories follow the same plots.

Jack gets a story, Laura doesn't want to help as she's a police woman. Laura gets involved then they both in danger and this story was no different.

The start was slow but as with the other books the last few chapters were racy and interesting.

Only 1 more book in the series and will be glad when finished

[Plum-crazy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the fourth book in the Laura McGanity/Jack Garrett series but the third one I've read &, I'm sorry to say, I was a little disappointed in it. Having enjoyed books 2 & 3 ) I was looking forward to this one but for some reason it failed to keep me engrossed & on occasions I felt my attention wandering. I'm not sure why this was, the storyline was intriguing enough & the characters were good as usual but it just didn't grip me in the way I'd hoped, though I'd rate it a better than okay.

[Kristine · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good solid crime thriller with an intriguing premise of a gruesome murder 20 years ago, plenty of twists and turns, credible characters and lots of suspense. I liked the pacing of the story, it was easy to read and maintained my interest throughout. There were a few sections I didn't like as much because the action and outcomes were too obvious and expected. Overall a good escapist read.

[Simon Armitage · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rated 7/10 An easy read. A murdered womans husband who vanished at the time wants to return home. He enlists the aid of a local reporter to help find the killer and ease his path back into society. Still, things are not what they seem and there are a few twists to the tale.

[Rani G · Rating 3 out of 5]

generally good, but some scenes were a little bit unclever

[zirconesse · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's actually great and kept me flipping the pages on and on until the ending stabbed me, making me say "is that it?" and felt like my excitement was sttipped away quickly.

[Edith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gut gel. Mai 2013

[Jhmtan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The pacing was good. Enjoyed it somewhat, though it dragged somewhat near 2/3.

[Effortless Anxiety · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had its strengths, notably the short chapters and multiple points of view, which made it engaging and fun to piece together how the different storylines connected. This structure kept me guessing and added an element of suspense that I appreciated.

However, Lake's sudden willingness to confess everything at the end felt both unrealistic and disappointing. Given the character's previous interactions and behaviour, this abrupt change seemed forced and undermined the story's credibility. While I understand it was necessary to tie up the plot, it didn't sit well with me.

The book concluded without any significant changes from start to finish, leaving me feeling a bit let down. There were also several unresolved areas that could have been explored further. Overall, this was an enjoyable read, but it didn't quite live up to its potential.

[Hannah Polley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book about a murder that was committed over twenty years ago and the main suspect now wants to come forward after being on the run for all of that time. It was exciting but it didn't hold my interest as other books have. I liked Laura much more than I liked Jack who I considered to be the main character. However, I see on here that this is actually the fourth book in the series of DC Laura McGanity so perhaps she features more in the other books. I will be trying the first book to see. I thought the mystery in this all came together too easily, it could have done with more intrigue. However, it had a very good beginning and end.

[Lynda · Rating 4 out of 5]

A northern freelance reporter gets the story he has been waiting for..
Missing murderer wants to tell his story after 25 years on the run.. will this scoop make him rich..?

After doing a deal to find the real murderer of Nancy ( buried alive scratching boards to get free)
Claude Gilbert tells his tale.
This book has you on the edge through out each page....twisting and turning back onto the reporter and his partner ..policewomen Laura.

Excellent Tale..I will read more of Neil White books from now on..

[Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

First of Neil's books I have read and I will be reading more. Set in North Manchester so I was familiar with the areas mentioned. Easy to read, enjoyed the characters, kept moving. Never once had to skip pages of meaningless discriptive writing.
*SPOILER ALERT*
The only reason I didn't give 5 stars was that I couldn't see how Laura could survive so long at the end with so little air, considering how long her hubby wanted to chat to everyone and tie up all the loose ends.

[Tim Garner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another barnstormer from Neil White. I like the way he keeps the plot moving in real time by separating the different threads of the story and then bringing the reader along for the ride of their lives with him. A great find.

[helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

All the books are brilliant

I have now read all of the books. Read them in order to get the best out of them. Not wanting to spoil the books for anyone. I will just say I just can't stop reading . All the books have an exiting ending. I would really recommend this series

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good easy holiday read - set in England which is nice.

[Belinda Cohen · Rating 5 out of 5]

AWESOME, LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

This kept me wanting to turn the pages to see what happened next.

[Thasc · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not much of a story to talk about.

[Vicki - I Love Reading · Rating 5 out of 5]

enjoyed that one

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

This first novel of his read and loved it. Will try and catch up series well written and well woven story

[Iain · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well-paced, easy to read and with a pleasantly convoluted ending that throws in a few curves.

[Lesley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I down loaded all six books on my kobo ages ago & forgot about them. I started on fallen idol & then had read the others straight away

[Mavio · Rating 3 out of 5]

unexpected ending !