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Claire Codella Mystery #1
Silent City: A Claire Codella Mystery
NYPD Detective Claire Codella has just won a tough battle with cancer. Now she has to regain her rightful place on the force. she hasn't even been back a day when Hector Sanchez, a maverick public school principal, is found murdered. The school is on high alert. The media is howling for answers. And Codella catches the high-profile case at the worst possible time.
As she races to track down the killer, she uncovers dirty politics, questionable contracts, and dark secrets. Each discovery she makes brings her closer to the truth, but the truth may cost Codella her life.
Silent City , Carrie Smith's explosive debut, will introduce readers to a brilliant new voice in crime fiction that will grab them and not let go until the very last page and a fearless heroine who they will enjoy for years to come.
As she races to track down the killer, she uncovers dirty politics, questionable contracts, and dark secrets. Each discovery she makes brings her closer to the truth, but the truth may cost Codella her life.
Silent City , Carrie Smith's explosive debut, will introduce readers to a brilliant new voice in crime fiction that will grab them and not let go until the very last page and a fearless heroine who they will enjoy for years to come.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published October 13, 2015
47 people are currently reading
574 people want to read
About the author
Carrie Smith
6 books43 followersCarrie Smith is the author of Silent City and Forgotten City, the first two titles in the NYPD Detective Claire Codella mystery series from Crooked Lane Books.
Book three, Unholy City, will be published November 2017 and is available for pre-order now.
Carrie is also the author of a literary novel Forget Harry. She is the recipient of three Hopwood Awards from the University of Michigan, a fellowship to the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, and Killer Nashville's Readers' Choice Award. Carrie is also senior vice president and publisher of Benchmark Education Company, a literacy publisher. She lives on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.
Visit Carrie at www.carriesmith.nyc, Facebook, and Twitter at @carriesmithnyc.
Book three, Unholy City, will be published November 2017 and is available for pre-order now.
Carrie is also the author of a literary novel Forget Harry. She is the recipient of three Hopwood Awards from the University of Michigan, a fellowship to the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, and Killer Nashville's Readers' Choice Award. Carrie is also senior vice president and publisher of Benchmark Education Company, a literacy publisher. She lives on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.
Visit Carrie at www.carriesmith.nyc, Facebook, and Twitter at @carriesmithnyc.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
October 13, 2015
4.5 stars
Fans of police procedurals do not want to miss Carrie Smith's Silent City, the first installment in the Claire Codella Mystery series. With a well-drawn cast of characters and an impossible to solve murder, this well-written and intriguing mystery provides readers a fascinating behind the scenes look at educational infighting and politics when new principal Hector Sanchez is murdered.
Claire Codella's first case when she returns to work following her intensive and aggressive treatment for cancer is an unexpected high profile murder investigation into Hector's murder. Paired up with newly promoted Eduardo Munoz, both detectives have a lot to prove to their co-workers and they, along with Codella's former partner, Brian Haggerty, follow numerous leads in their search for Sanchez's killer. The staging of his body makes it appear that his murder is connected to his job as principal at PS 777 and the three investigators quickly learn there are many suspects who had motive to kill him.
Codella is an intelligent detective whose new boss is not exactly her biggest fan. Despite his attempts to undermine her authority, she has managed to pull together an excellent team of investigators. Codella has a precise way of doing things and she follows the evidence instead of hunches. She is clever and resourceful and although she is still just getting back in the swing of things, Codella relentlessly pursues any and all leads in the case.
Munoz and Haggerty are also excellent investigators, but most importantly, they are loyal to Codella. Munoz is also new to the squad and unfortunately, he is enduring some malicious harassment from one of his fellow detectives. Haggerty was Codella's partner for seven years and right before her cancer diagnosis, she transferred out of their squad following an unpleasant altercation with him. He is hoping this case will heal the rift between them and although things are tense at first, they quickly put aside any residual animosity and concentrate on the case.
Codella is a little surprised to discover that Sanchez was not as beloved as everyone has been lead to believe. Many of the staff at PS 777 disliked him due to his impossibly high standards, unfair performance assessments and bullying tactics toward staff members. Sanchez also recently clashed with Superintendent Margery Barton over the proposed implementation of a software program to help individualize student learning. Secrets and lies often hinder the investigation but Codella skillfully ferrets out the truth and doggedly pursues the clues where they lead.
Silent City is a compelling mystery with an engaging storyline and appealing characters. With plenty of suspects, no clear cut motive for the crime and stunning plot twists, Carrie Smith skillfully conceals the killer's identity until the novel's astonishing conclusion. It is an excellent beginning to the Claire Codella Mystery series that I greatly enjoyed and highly recommend to fans of the genre.
Fans of police procedurals do not want to miss Carrie Smith's Silent City, the first installment in the Claire Codella Mystery series. With a well-drawn cast of characters and an impossible to solve murder, this well-written and intriguing mystery provides readers a fascinating behind the scenes look at educational infighting and politics when new principal Hector Sanchez is murdered.
Claire Codella's first case when she returns to work following her intensive and aggressive treatment for cancer is an unexpected high profile murder investigation into Hector's murder. Paired up with newly promoted Eduardo Munoz, both detectives have a lot to prove to their co-workers and they, along with Codella's former partner, Brian Haggerty, follow numerous leads in their search for Sanchez's killer. The staging of his body makes it appear that his murder is connected to his job as principal at PS 777 and the three investigators quickly learn there are many suspects who had motive to kill him.
Codella is an intelligent detective whose new boss is not exactly her biggest fan. Despite his attempts to undermine her authority, she has managed to pull together an excellent team of investigators. Codella has a precise way of doing things and she follows the evidence instead of hunches. She is clever and resourceful and although she is still just getting back in the swing of things, Codella relentlessly pursues any and all leads in the case.
Munoz and Haggerty are also excellent investigators, but most importantly, they are loyal to Codella. Munoz is also new to the squad and unfortunately, he is enduring some malicious harassment from one of his fellow detectives. Haggerty was Codella's partner for seven years and right before her cancer diagnosis, she transferred out of their squad following an unpleasant altercation with him. He is hoping this case will heal the rift between them and although things are tense at first, they quickly put aside any residual animosity and concentrate on the case.
Codella is a little surprised to discover that Sanchez was not as beloved as everyone has been lead to believe. Many of the staff at PS 777 disliked him due to his impossibly high standards, unfair performance assessments and bullying tactics toward staff members. Sanchez also recently clashed with Superintendent Margery Barton over the proposed implementation of a software program to help individualize student learning. Secrets and lies often hinder the investigation but Codella skillfully ferrets out the truth and doggedly pursues the clues where they lead.
Silent City is a compelling mystery with an engaging storyline and appealing characters. With plenty of suspects, no clear cut motive for the crime and stunning plot twists, Carrie Smith skillfully conceals the killer's identity until the novel's astonishing conclusion. It is an excellent beginning to the Claire Codella Mystery series that I greatly enjoyed and highly recommend to fans of the genre.
June 4, 2016
After reading the glowing praise from various crime writers on the back cover, I had high expectations for this book, and unfortunately it didn't quite live up to that. It was a competent procedural, but there were some things that bothered me about it. I was intrigued by having a cancer survivor as a main character, but I wish it had been handled perhaps a bit more deftly, especially toward the end; still, I'm interested enough in her to read on. I also thought there were a few too many characters, which made things muddled rather than unclear. There were hints at relationships between characters, but I'm starting to tire of character InstaConflict! by way of "they're colleagues but they have history."
September 5, 2015
SILENT CITY was an excellent mystery story. I really enjoyed the main character who is coming back from cancer treatment. She had an aggressive form of lymphoma and it was treated aggressively. She still has nerve damage in her extremities and other side effects of her treatment. The first day back on the job she is called to a murder scene. A popular elementary school principal is found dead in his apartment with a broken neck. His body has been posed like Christ on the cross.
As Codella investigates she finds a plethora of suspects. Beloved by the families of his school, Hector Sanchez was not beloved by his staff or central administration. Many of his legacy teachers resented his approach; his assistant principal was bullied by him. He was opposed to his Superintendent's plan to buy a huge technology program.
Codella has to get back up to speed quickly to solve this one. She is in a new precinct which she transferred to just before she began her battle with cancer and the precinct commander resents her ability and is constantly trying to undermine her activities. She is paired up with a new partner who has just transferred from Vice and who is a gay man getting his own harassment from bigoted colleagues. She also has to deal with her relationship with her old partner. They had a fight just before she transferred because he wanted a more personal relationship with her. She was caught off guard by this and, before they could resolve this, she was in the hospital fighting her cancer. She was also angry that he never came to visit her when she was undergoing her treatments.
So Codella investigates. Is it one of the legacy teachers that Sanchez was trying to get fired? Is it the Superintendent who has her own secrets to conceal? Is it the salesman who is having an affair with the Superintendent and who wants his commission on this huge software scale? Is it the actress or her lesbian partner who has been pouring money into the school and who might have an inappropriate relationship with Sanchez? Is it the assistant principal who had been bullied by Sanchez?
This was an engaging story. I educational infighting and politics rang true to this long-time teacher which was unsurprising since the author works in the education field. I liked Codella because of her desire to prove that she is back to form but who is forever changed by the battle she won.
Fans of mysteries and police procedurals will enjoy this fast-paced, engaging story.
As Codella investigates she finds a plethora of suspects. Beloved by the families of his school, Hector Sanchez was not beloved by his staff or central administration. Many of his legacy teachers resented his approach; his assistant principal was bullied by him. He was opposed to his Superintendent's plan to buy a huge technology program.
Codella has to get back up to speed quickly to solve this one. She is in a new precinct which she transferred to just before she began her battle with cancer and the precinct commander resents her ability and is constantly trying to undermine her activities. She is paired up with a new partner who has just transferred from Vice and who is a gay man getting his own harassment from bigoted colleagues. She also has to deal with her relationship with her old partner. They had a fight just before she transferred because he wanted a more personal relationship with her. She was caught off guard by this and, before they could resolve this, she was in the hospital fighting her cancer. She was also angry that he never came to visit her when she was undergoing her treatments.
So Codella investigates. Is it one of the legacy teachers that Sanchez was trying to get fired? Is it the Superintendent who has her own secrets to conceal? Is it the salesman who is having an affair with the Superintendent and who wants his commission on this huge software scale? Is it the actress or her lesbian partner who has been pouring money into the school and who might have an inappropriate relationship with Sanchez? Is it the assistant principal who had been bullied by Sanchez?
This was an engaging story. I educational infighting and politics rang true to this long-time teacher which was unsurprising since the author works in the education field. I liked Codella because of her desire to prove that she is back to form but who is forever changed by the battle she won.
Fans of mysteries and police procedurals will enjoy this fast-paced, engaging story.
November 3, 2015
This book truly surprised me. I read a lot of new authors and rarely do I have the kind of reaction that I did to this woman's first novel. It was absolutely wonderful. I never would have suspected it was a first novel, had I not known going in. She develops characters in such a way that you wind up feeling as if you know these people. I didn't want the book to end and cannot wait for the next one in the series. Carrie Smith is a real find and I hope she turns out to be as prolific as James Patterson! If you like mysteries/crime stories and you like strong characters, both male and female, read this book. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
April 13, 2016
Detective Claire Codella has just returned to work after being treated for Burkitts lymphoma, a particularly virulent type of cancer with a horrifying treatment. A school principal and another educator are murdered on the same day and Codella is in charge of the case. She figures out what ties the cases togethler and eventually who is responsible. Although she is presently cancer free, she knows that a cancer cell might proliferate inside her at any moment and that she will be living her life in 6 month increments for the foreseeable future. Great mystery -- and it's Smith's first book.
November 25, 2015
Brilliant debut! Claire Codella is a wonderful character, as are all the rest. Smith has done a great job plotting this with enough twists and intrigue to keep me reading past my bed time. Much as I enjoyed it= and I really did_ I almost hope this does not become a series. The last lines were perfect!
March 10, 2017
A promising first book in a new mystery series, a sort of police procedural, set in New York. Here is a link to my review:
http://perfectretort.blogspot.com/201...
http://perfectretort.blogspot.com/201...
January 19, 2016
This was a perfect weekend for this book. Crime fiction....quite the page turner. I recommend you Read It!
January 26, 2016
New author. I loved the educational setting...something I could relate to. I am looking forward to reading more from this author.
March 31, 2016
This was a great book. It kept me engaged by building believable characters and a story line that wasn't overly outrageous or too convoluted. I'll be waiting for her next book.
June 7, 2021
5 star - Perfect
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
November 18, 2018
I LOVED this book.
September 19, 2025
At the gym I go to, the patrons leave books when they’re done with them for others to read, so I had no real knowledge of this book until I read the back cover and decided to take it to the beach with me. It is completely unfair to write a review of a book one hasn’t finished, so this isn’t a review. It is however a “heads up.” I almost never put a book down once I start reading it, even if I don’t like it. But I did give up on this one. After doing so, I checked out the reviews. Many reviewers liked this book which is good. Fiction is primarily meant to entertain. But one negative reviewer nailed why I couldn’t continue. That person noted that this author “has an agenda.” I am ok with reading crime fiction but not one with woke-ish themes. It doesn’t surprise me that this book has a Left- leaning current since if you peruse what literary agents and publishers “wish list” contain regarding submissions, at the top of that list you’ll see that they desire material from “historically underrepresented writers” and works by and or/about “members of the LBGTQ+ community.” Of course there are many compelling stories out there about the discrimination and bullying faced by homosexuals, but that’s just not what I was after in a crime fiction read for the beach. One reviewer criticized the author’s writing ability but I really didn’t find it poorly written (as far as I got) but rather typical of police procedurals.
So just know going in that there is most certainly a Left-leaning themed ideology to this story. If you’re ok with that, you might like it but I can’t comment on the twists and turns etc. as I didn’t get that far. I’d advise checking others’ reviews to decide about the story arc.
So just know going in that there is most certainly a Left-leaning themed ideology to this story. If you’re ok with that, you might like it but I can’t comment on the twists and turns etc. as I didn’t get that far. I’d advise checking others’ reviews to decide about the story arc.
May 6, 2018
Coming back from sick leave from a debilitating bout with cancer, NYPD homicide detective Claire Codella picks up a tough first case upon her return. A controversial high school principal, who is hated as much as he is adored, is found murdered in his apartment, posed to look like Christ on the cross. There is no lack of suspects and when a second murder occurs, Codella finds herself with not only catching the killer but having to prove herself all over again in the eyes of her boss and colleagues. Codella and the rest of the characters - and there are plenty of them - are extremely well written and I found myself caring deeply for the detective and the rest of her force, who are all too human with their faults.
The book switches back and forth between the investigation by Codella and the intrigues at the public school, with the chapters divided between the two parallel tales. In fact sometimes the chapters are just two pages long, but are still fulfilling to the advancement of the story. I really enjoyed this mystery and are looking forward to the next book in the series.
The book switches back and forth between the investigation by Codella and the intrigues at the public school, with the chapters divided between the two parallel tales. In fact sometimes the chapters are just two pages long, but are still fulfilling to the advancement of the story. I really enjoyed this mystery and are looking forward to the next book in the series.
March 27, 2018
A police procedural set in modern day New York City. Claire Codella has just returned to work after surviving a bout of cancer. Her first case is the murder of a public school principal who the media had named the "Saviour of PS 777", PS 777 being the school he worked at. Claire faces opposition at work, and from the people she questions. Throughout the book we learn about what Claire went through during her cancer treatments. First in a series.
February 27, 2022
I'm going to give it a lower rating then I normally do. I was not sure that I liked it. The narrator is a female detective who comes back after cancer treatment to a high profile murder of a School principal in an area school in New York. There is from the beginning those colleagues that are not to glad that s high she is back. A couple more murders occur. The end result is a combination cover-up. And inter school fighting.
October 23, 2024
Really didn't like this one. The storyline/mystery part was decent enough, but felt like the author had some major agendas that really permeated the whole book and left a bleh taste in my mouth. Not to mention some pretty graphic sex scenes that weren't necessary and a surprise considering the genre. I just wanted a good mystery/thriller - opinion and viewpoint are fine, but not heavy-handed agenda preaching and graphic sex for this genre.
March 17, 2018
This new author does a great job with this mystery book. The main character, Claire Codella, has more depth than most comparable characters in other police procedurals. She has survived a particularly aggressive form of cancer and the chemo for it. She has just returned to work and this is her first case since she's been back. A good mystery and fun to read.
October 7, 2018
I gave this book three stars. I enjoyed the mystery, I just couldn't connect to Cordella. I know she is a cancer survivor. She is a police detective. She had one drunken kiss with her partner before she found out she had cancer. Other than that, no other personal information. I could keep reading the rest of the books but I'm not really invested in this character.
February 14, 2019
Wow!!!
All I can say is I loved this book. It was hard to put it down. What I truly loved about it was ,the fact I couldn’t figure out who was the killer. If you love a good murder mystery then this is your book.
All I can say is I loved this book. It was hard to put it down. What I truly loved about it was ,the fact I couldn’t figure out who was the killer. If you love a good murder mystery then this is your book.
February 24, 2019
The book was great until the last page when a side character's name was used instead of the main character's. GRRRRRRR Where are the editor/proofreaders these days? Spellcheck isn't capable of finding all errors!
February 23, 2017
Good start to a new series
July 16, 2017
In Silent City, Carrie display fine story craft and gives us an excellent thrill.
November 22, 2017
Author can write but number one of this series strikes me as: Humorless and dry, YA writer meets tawdry meets cancer surviving NYC homicide detective. Go figure.
February 3, 2018
A debut that introduces great characters and a good story.
February 6, 2018
A good story; I'll definitely be reading the next in the series.
June 22, 2018
I thought this was a good debut book by Carrie Smith and I look forward to reading the next book. It's a police procedural which is my favorite type of mystery to read at the moment.
August 28, 2018
liked the characters, plot, and the writing
July 14, 2019
Once you decide to overlook several of the main characters' personality flaws, it is a clever mystery.
January 25, 2020
Interesting main character. Very well done.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews