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Joe Gunther #20
The Price of Malice
Joe Gunther’s Vermont Bureau of Investigation team is plenty busy trying to solve the grisly murder of Wayne Castine, a suspected child predator who’s got mob ties in the area. But Gunther has other pressing, more personal business to attend to: the old case of his girlfriend Lyn Silva’s father and brother. Fishermen both, they were once believed to be lost at sea. Until today…
With the Castine investigation in full swing, now is hardly the time for Gunther to go AWOL and join Lyn in Maine. But as more evidence emerges, the less it seems that the Silvas were innocent victims. Turns out they had some involvement with a gang of vicious smugglers—men who will do whatever it takes to keep Lyn and Gunther from finding the truth…and who will kill to keep old secrets buried.
With the Castine investigation in full swing, now is hardly the time for Gunther to go AWOL and join Lyn in Maine. But as more evidence emerges, the less it seems that the Silvas were innocent victims. Turns out they had some involvement with a gang of vicious smugglers—men who will do whatever it takes to keep Lyn and Gunther from finding the truth…and who will kill to keep old secrets buried.
308 pages, Hardcover
First published September 29, 2009
36 people are currently reading
410 people want to read
About the author
Archer Mayor
45 books735 followersOver the years, Archer Mayor has been photographer, teacher, historian, scholarly editor, feature writer, travel writer, lab technician, political advance man, medical illustrator, newspaper writer, history researcher, publications consultant, constable, and EMT/firefighter. He is also half Argentine, speaks two languages, and has lived in several countries on two continents.
All of which makes makes him restless, curious, unemployable, or all three. Whatever he is, it’s clearly not cured, since he’s currently a novelist, a death investigator for Vermont’s medical examiner, and a police officer.
Archer has been producing the Joe Gunther novels since 1988, some of which have made the “ten best” or “most notable” lists of the Los Angeles and the New York Times. In 2004 Mayor received the New England Booksellers Association book award for fiction.
Intriguing plots, complex characters, and a vivid landscape are the foundation of Archer Mayor's award-winning New England thrillers.
All of which makes makes him restless, curious, unemployable, or all three. Whatever he is, it’s clearly not cured, since he’s currently a novelist, a death investigator for Vermont’s medical examiner, and a police officer.
Archer has been producing the Joe Gunther novels since 1988, some of which have made the “ten best” or “most notable” lists of the Los Angeles and the New York Times. In 2004 Mayor received the New England Booksellers Association book award for fiction.
Intriguing plots, complex characters, and a vivid landscape are the foundation of Archer Mayor's award-winning New England thrillers.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 97 reviews
January 10, 2019
This is the twentieth entry in Archer Mayor's long-running series featuring Joe Gunther who, through the years, has graduated from being a police officer in Brattleboro, Vermont, to his current position as head of the Vermont Bureau of Investigation.
A Brattleboro low-life named Wayne Castine is brutally murdered. Castine has a reputation as a child molester and no one is mourning his passing. Still, the case gets handed off to the VBI and Joe's team begins an exhaustive investigation that comes to focus on the members of a highly dysfunctional Brattleboro family.
At the same time, Gunther's new girlfriend, Lyn Silva, is still reeling from bad news that Joe brought her at the end of the previous book. Lyn's family had long believed that her father and brother had died in a storm at sea. But Joe discovered their fishing boat, which was not at the bottom of the sea after all. It now appears that the father and brother may have been engaged in some sort of criminal enterprise. Lyn is shattered by the news and begins her own investigation, determined to discover the truth about her father and brother.
Joe is torn between his responsibility to the investigation and his affection for Lyn, and he winds up alternating back and forth between the investigation in Vermont and Lyn's crusade up in Maine. Surprisingly, for someone who has been so responsible through the first nineteen books, Gunther winds up slighting his obligation to his team at the VBI and leaving the team somewhat rudderless while he rushes to Lyn's assistance. The reader is left to wonder whether this division of his attention will allow one or both of the investigations to be compromised. The tension that Mayor creates in this regard heightens the suspense and makes this another very enjoyable entry in the series.
A Brattleboro low-life named Wayne Castine is brutally murdered. Castine has a reputation as a child molester and no one is mourning his passing. Still, the case gets handed off to the VBI and Joe's team begins an exhaustive investigation that comes to focus on the members of a highly dysfunctional Brattleboro family.
At the same time, Gunther's new girlfriend, Lyn Silva, is still reeling from bad news that Joe brought her at the end of the previous book. Lyn's family had long believed that her father and brother had died in a storm at sea. But Joe discovered their fishing boat, which was not at the bottom of the sea after all. It now appears that the father and brother may have been engaged in some sort of criminal enterprise. Lyn is shattered by the news and begins her own investigation, determined to discover the truth about her father and brother.
Joe is torn between his responsibility to the investigation and his affection for Lyn, and he winds up alternating back and forth between the investigation in Vermont and Lyn's crusade up in Maine. Surprisingly, for someone who has been so responsible through the first nineteen books, Gunther winds up slighting his obligation to his team at the VBI and leaving the team somewhat rudderless while he rushes to Lyn's assistance. The reader is left to wonder whether this division of his attention will allow one or both of the investigations to be compromised. The tension that Mayor creates in this regard heightens the suspense and makes this another very enjoyable entry in the series.
September 24, 2021
I have read all of the Joe Gunther series, and I was not disappointed in any way with this latest addition.
I gave it a 5 star rating because it kept my attention from the first page to the very last.
Archer Mayor is one of my favorite authors. I put him up there with James Lee Burke and Craig Johnson. In reading his books, at every stage you are aware of where you are, what the weather is like, whether birds are singing, and you are aware of how the past history of a certain location plays into what you are witnessing now. The characters are unforgettable and I can't wait until the next chapter of Joe Gunther's life.
I gave it a 5 star rating because it kept my attention from the first page to the very last.
Archer Mayor is one of my favorite authors. I put him up there with James Lee Burke and Craig Johnson. In reading his books, at every stage you are aware of where you are, what the weather is like, whether birds are singing, and you are aware of how the past history of a certain location plays into what you are witnessing now. The characters are unforgettable and I can't wait until the next chapter of Joe Gunther's life.
January 21, 2018
Another good addition to the series.
May 8, 2024
Another strong tale of senior Vermont police chief Joe Gunther - here torn my leading the team on the bloody murder of a suspected paedophile while worried about his girlfriend chasing the history of the presumed deaths of her father and eldest brother some years earlier in Maine
September 24, 2022
3.5 because not one of my favorites in series.
Continues 2008 story of JOE’s girlfriend LYN’s father and brother’s suspected murders. She can investigate without Joe’s official restraints and knows where to get a lead to find out what her father and bro were smuggling if not drugs as she suspected. Joe will go AWOL to help her in Maine because it get more dangerous for the now reckless Lyn. She just wants to know exactly what they were they doing — and if they were murdered as Joe and she suspect. He learns that betrayal and loyalty can be a matter of perspective.
However, her issues definitely complicate both his personal and professional life to a degree of stress that he doesn’t need or want. I got annoyed with Lynn for making her need for Joe’s rescues just because she didn’t use common sense getting herself into more trouble than was necessary.
At the same time, CASTINE, a suspected child predator is viciously murdered in Brattleboro. Could this bloodbath be accomplished by only one person filled with hatred and vengeance? The judge who demanded only 4 days of “therapy” let him back on the streets! (Similar suspect event happened recently in our news, when killer was put onto streets with judge knowing he'd kill again; this is unsettling to say the least.)
DAN KRAVIT was my unexpected favorite character in this novel. His talk with Willy was fascinating. Made me feel badly for his daughter that he was willing to live with so little. I wouldn’t be surprised if he had been a psychologist before he chose to live the way he does; they are prone to suicide, so maybe he chose this way to live in order to with his daughter instead. Maybe his wife died and left him feeling inadequate at his profession? We don’t find out more about him in this novel — maybe later?
Continues 2008 story of JOE’s girlfriend LYN’s father and brother’s suspected murders. She can investigate without Joe’s official restraints and knows where to get a lead to find out what her father and bro were smuggling if not drugs as she suspected. Joe will go AWOL to help her in Maine because it get more dangerous for the now reckless Lyn. She just wants to know exactly what they were they doing — and if they were murdered as Joe and she suspect. He learns that betrayal and loyalty can be a matter of perspective.
However, her issues definitely complicate both his personal and professional life to a degree of stress that he doesn’t need or want. I got annoyed with Lynn for making her need for Joe’s rescues just because she didn’t use common sense getting herself into more trouble than was necessary.
At the same time, CASTINE, a suspected child predator is viciously murdered in Brattleboro. Could this bloodbath be accomplished by only one person filled with hatred and vengeance? The judge who demanded only 4 days of “therapy” let him back on the streets! (Similar suspect event happened recently in our news, when killer was put onto streets with judge knowing he'd kill again; this is unsettling to say the least.)
DAN KRAVIT was my unexpected favorite character in this novel. His talk with Willy was fascinating. Made me feel badly for his daughter that he was willing to live with so little. I wouldn’t be surprised if he had been a psychologist before he chose to live the way he does; they are prone to suicide, so maybe he chose this way to live in order to with his daughter instead. Maybe his wife died and left him feeling inadequate at his profession? We don’t find out more about him in this novel — maybe later?
March 18, 2025
Another excellent adventure for Gunther, both professionally with the VBI and a case close to his Battelboro roots (involving a suspected child predator) and also his relationship with Lyn and the recent info discovered about her family in Maine.
I enjoy that in each book Mayor gives us a glimpse into the regular characters and the interconnected ways in which we live.
I enjoy that in each book Mayor gives us a glimpse into the regular characters and the interconnected ways in which we live.
January 2, 2011
This is #20 in the Joe Gunther series, and since I've read all of them over the years, in order, it's like visiting an old friend. I enjoy these books b/c of the locale (Vermont), the main characters (police officers), the writing (talented), and Mayor's social commentary. The latter struck me this time since it's not typical for a mystery series, meaning his commentary on the communities and neighborhoods, and how the economic and industrial history of a place, focusing on New England here, of course, shapes lives and families. I like that his police characters understand this interplay and that it's always an underlying element in his books. Not that the characters are Pollyanna do-gooders - the clear eyed, hard nosed police officer viewpoint always seems authentic to me in these books, and lends a realistic feel to them. Mayor does a good job plotting, with a sufficient number of red herrings to keep one guessing. The one arguable flaw with this book is that he covers two mysteries at once, one of them a carry-over from the previous title in the series, meaning that neither plot line receives its "full book" due; however, a small quibble in light of the overall positives.
October 16, 2017
A modern crime drama set, mostly, in Vermont.
Not the kind of mystery where you ponder out clues, red herrings, and plot twists to try to solve it all at least with, if not a bit before, the protagonist. No. This is the kind of story one passively observes as the protagonists deal with bad guys with behavior that is often violent but never questioned to be handed the solution toward the end of the story.
Not me cup of tea, to be honest.
Not the kind of mystery where you ponder out clues, red herrings, and plot twists to try to solve it all at least with, if not a bit before, the protagonist. No. This is the kind of story one passively observes as the protagonists deal with bad guys with behavior that is often violent but never questioned to be handed the solution toward the end of the story.
Not me cup of tea, to be honest.
October 24, 2016
Joe Gunther has been somewhat pre-occupied with a rough patch with his current girl friend and when the taskforce is brought into the investigation into the murder of a suspected pedophile, he is often off on his own investigation which eventually leads him to having to rescue her from a kidnapper. I am all ways glad when I come across an new book by Mr. mayor.
April 7, 2012
What?! Very disappointed with the ending. Actually, I think that the last chapter which should bring the novel to an end, was forgotten! Here's to hoping that the next book brings closure to this one!
October 27, 2013
I like this series, so I keep wondering why I've missed so many of the entries. In this one Gunther's present squeeze is confronted with the possibility that her father and brother did not die in a boating accident many years ago as he had grown up thinking.
January 18, 2026
#20 in the Vermont police 50 something year old lieutenant joe Gunther mystery series. This a very good police procedural series showing the nitty gritty day-to-day investigating work to solve a mystery. Former Brattleboro, Vermont, cop, Joe is now the #2 man of the new Vermont Bureau of Investigation (VBI), a joint task force charged with statewide responsibility for major crimes and now works collaboratively with the various other police units in the state to aid in their investigations.
This has a double plot: primary is the investigation into the brutal murder of a pedophile who he was involved with a tangled network of an extended family living in a local trailer park. Any member of the clan would have had the opportunity to kill him, and, as he was involved with both the mother and her 12-year-old daughter, reason to commit the murder.
The secondary plot line is he continuing story of Gunther's relationship with his girlfriend Lyn who is stirring up a mess of problems with Maine bad guys as she seeks to find out what happened to her father and older brother putting her life in danger. Thus, Gunther goes AWOL leading the Vermont investigation to go to Maine to help her.
This has a double plot: primary is the investigation into the brutal murder of a pedophile who he was involved with a tangled network of an extended family living in a local trailer park. Any member of the clan would have had the opportunity to kill him, and, as he was involved with both the mother and her 12-year-old daughter, reason to commit the murder.
The secondary plot line is he continuing story of Gunther's relationship with his girlfriend Lyn who is stirring up a mess of problems with Maine bad guys as she seeks to find out what happened to her father and older brother putting her life in danger. Thus, Gunther goes AWOL leading the Vermont investigation to go to Maine to help her.
February 15, 2021
An ok book that I picked up in our school's mail center that's a "special autographed copy". Pretty cool. The fact that the author had touched this book. The beginning was interesting but as the story continues, my interest in this book slowed. I feel like Joe spends so much time with his girlfriend's crime. The book should focus more on the Wayne man.
A man named Wayne was killed in an apartment that was not his. This case was investigated by the VBI crime team. With Joe Gunther as the boss of the team. From the suspect's list, it was discovered that 8 people were living under the same roof; and all connecting to the homicide. As Willy and Sam were solving the case, Joe was busy saving his kidnapped girlfriend, a woman who got herself in trouble while trying to found how why her father and brother were killed instead of drowned in the sea by waves. In the end, Joe saved his girlfriend, caught the bad man (her father and brother was selling drugs and owning money), and Nicky was captured for killing Wayne (from DNA testing).
A man named Wayne was killed in an apartment that was not his. This case was investigated by the VBI crime team. With Joe Gunther as the boss of the team. From the suspect's list, it was discovered that 8 people were living under the same roof; and all connecting to the homicide. As Willy and Sam were solving the case, Joe was busy saving his kidnapped girlfriend, a woman who got herself in trouble while trying to found how why her father and brother were killed instead of drowned in the sea by waves. In the end, Joe saved his girlfriend, caught the bad man (her father and brother was selling drugs and owning money), and Nicky was captured for killing Wayne (from DNA testing).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 2, 2021
Detective Joe Gunther is forced to divide his time between a pair of cases, one of which hits very close to hone. His VBI unit is investigating a Brattleboro murder in which the victim was a very much despised pedophile, while Joe's significant other, Lyn, is looking for clues to the fate of her father and brother after they disappeared at sea years ago.
Diving into one of the books in this series, in which this is the 20th, is like welcoming old friends into the house. Joe and his unit of Sammie, Willy and Lester go about their jobs with the usual differing styles, but there is added tension in this book between them as Joe is distracted by Lyn's investigation that puts her in the crosshairs of some not so nice characters.
Recommended as a stand alone book or to those fans of this series, which I very much count myself as!
Diving into one of the books in this series, in which this is the 20th, is like welcoming old friends into the house. Joe and his unit of Sammie, Willy and Lester go about their jobs with the usual differing styles, but there is added tension in this book between them as Joe is distracted by Lyn's investigation that puts her in the crosshairs of some not so nice characters.
Recommended as a stand alone book or to those fans of this series, which I very much count myself as!
August 2, 2023
From the Goodreads Blurb: Joe Gunther's Vermont Bureau of Investigation team is plenty busy trying to solve the grisly murder of Wayne Castine, a suspected child predator. But Gunther has other pressing, more personal business to attend to: the old case of his girlfriend Lyn Silva's father and brother. Fishermen both, they were once believed to be lost at sea. Until today...
The Castine case revolves around a large blended (more liked muddled) family — same mother / multiple fathers — that Castine has been lurking around. Richard, one of the sons, is a neat character who forms a bond with Sam.
The action revolving around Lyn's family in Maine is "off the books" and pulls Gunter away from the Vermont killing.
This was book #36 on our 2023 Read-alouds List and book #31 on our Read-alouds With Lutrecia List.
The Castine case revolves around a large blended (more liked muddled) family — same mother / multiple fathers — that Castine has been lurking around. Richard, one of the sons, is a neat character who forms a bond with Sam.
The action revolving around Lyn's family in Maine is "off the books" and pulls Gunter away from the Vermont killing.
This was book #36 on our 2023 Read-alouds List and book #31 on our Read-alouds With Lutrecia List.
January 18, 2026
Mayor excels at weaving layers of humanity into what initially appears to be a straightforward investigation. The stakes unfold gradually, and the tension comes less from spectacle than from the accumulating weight of choices, consequences, and institutional pressures.
Vermont itself is once again rendered with care. It is never romanticized, but textured, lived-in, and integral to the story rather than a backdrop.
I felt a bit of disappointment that I couldn’t fully connect with the Lyn subplot. It’s clearly meant to add emotional depth and parallel the main investigation, but for me it never quite clicked. It seemed a bit out of character for Joe.
This is technically a reread though I didn’t remember all of the details. But also knowing Lyn’s eventual fate…..
I really like these books.
Vermont itself is once again rendered with care. It is never romanticized, but textured, lived-in, and integral to the story rather than a backdrop.
I felt a bit of disappointment that I couldn’t fully connect with the Lyn subplot. It’s clearly meant to add emotional depth and parallel the main investigation, but for me it never quite clicked. It seemed a bit out of character for Joe.
This is technically a reread though I didn’t remember all of the details. But also knowing Lyn’s eventual fate…..
I really like these books.
April 6, 2024
SPOILERS for overall series, including books #21-24ish……
Not enjoying the cardboard cutout “evil for evil’s sake” criminal POVs in the past few books in this series. While I appreciated Mayor opening up the mostly-Gunther POV narrative to more of our main characters, I DON’T need to know the inner thoughts of evil bad guys stalking their prey; it’s become too confusing to keep all these bad guys straight, plus I’m missing the insight of our main characters as they go through every step of their investigations. Making all of this worse is the change of narrator for 5 or so of these novels; I’ve been listening to the series straight through on audiobook and have found myself speeding up the rate of the narration, especially chapters featuring these cookie cutter murderers.
Not enjoying the cardboard cutout “evil for evil’s sake” criminal POVs in the past few books in this series. While I appreciated Mayor opening up the mostly-Gunther POV narrative to more of our main characters, I DON’T need to know the inner thoughts of evil bad guys stalking their prey; it’s become too confusing to keep all these bad guys straight, plus I’m missing the insight of our main characters as they go through every step of their investigations. Making all of this worse is the change of narrator for 5 or so of these novels; I’ve been listening to the series straight through on audiobook and have found myself speeding up the rate of the narration, especially chapters featuring these cookie cutter murderers.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 25, 2022
I like this book a lot. It was a selection for my mystery book club. I don't usually choose mysteries but this was good. Nice plot that was not easy to guess. I have not read other books in this series. I did not like the 2 storylines at the same time. Both stories were well played but didn't really have any connection together. I do not know if this was to keep the Joe Gunther character in play as it is a series or if it is the usual style of the author. Both storylines were well done. I think I would have preferred just one.
October 16, 2021
Really about 3.5 stars. I just never got into this one and the story just didn't seem up to Mr. Mayor's usual style. Part of it is the finish of the story started in the last book about Lyn and her missing father and brother and the main case is a lowlife found brutally murdered in Brattleboro. I don't know...I didn't much care about the guy that got killed and that was never changed throughout the book. OK book, but not one to read again if I go through the series again in the future.
May 4, 2025
TW: child sexual abuse (off-page)
this isnt one of my favorite from Archer - like Joe in this one, i felt like my attention was divided by the two crimes, and i found myself unable to fully be present in either. i also have not found myself very invested in Lyn just yet, so the entire Maine storyline i could have done without. Tje at-home murder was super interesting and i wish i could have spent more time with Les, Sam, and Willy.
this isnt one of my favorite from Archer - like Joe in this one, i felt like my attention was divided by the two crimes, and i found myself unable to fully be present in either. i also have not found myself very invested in Lyn just yet, so the entire Maine storyline i could have done without. Tje at-home murder was super interesting and i wish i could have spent more time with Les, Sam, and Willy.
December 3, 2017
Jumping between two loosely connected plot lines, a murder in Brattleboro, VT, and a kidnapping in Maine make this one of the lesser "Joe Gunther" entries. I found the resolution of the Maine thread unsatisfying. I enjoy the settings and the characters, however, and there was a reasonable amount of action and tension along the way.
July 7, 2021
Loved the story line, loved Sammie especially, don't particularly like Joe's girlfriend. First time in an Archer Mayor book, I thought "Don't go in there you dummy".
I love how Mayor knows and gently explains all layers of society and the trailer folk herein were especially well drawn.
P S I am not jealous of Lyn, the girlfriend.
I love how Mayor knows and gently explains all layers of society and the trailer folk herein were especially well drawn.
P S I am not jealous of Lyn, the girlfriend.
February 21, 2022
Two interesting story lines that keep Joe from focusing completely on either. The drug smuggling story line of the previous novel continues up in Maine, while a pervert murder occurs in Brattleboro. No one is really interested in solving the child molester case--good riddance, is mostly expressed.
Overall, the usual Joe Gunther cases done the usual way, however still a good read.
Overall, the usual Joe Gunther cases done the usual way, however still a good read.
June 28, 2022
Having listened to this series since book 1 I have gotten to know all the characters in Tom Taylorsons voice. Not that this narrator was bad, he just wasn't Joe Gunther.... or Willy or Sam. It was off putting for me. Almost didn't feel like I was listening to A Joe Gunther book at all. Aside from that, the story was great as always. Looking forward to the next one.
August 13, 2023
This was a quick read, interesting story, good characters. It was a little clunky the way the 2 plots were alternated. And I find it annoying how often a snide commentary is inserted after each of Willy"s quirky personality traits or direct statements surface. I get it Willy"s autistic or has asbergers. Enough already. Other than that I liked it.
December 3, 2023
I wasn't entirely happy with the plot--the whole continuing drama about Lyn, her family, and drug runners just didn't interest me much--Mayor continues to write so well that I follow happily. For instance, I particularly enjoyed his description of an ex-con, "While clearly still the bull in his own mind, he appeared to be drifting toward the edge of the pasture." Brilliant.
September 21, 2017
I'm finding that his storylines are getting less interesting. I enjoyed the series when it began but after reading 4 or 5 of them, they all seem to be similar in scope. Am not sure I will read any more.
February 6, 2018
Another great Joe Gunther series novel. This is #20 of 28 so far. We started with #1 and have read all of them in order. Every novel has interesting characters and plot that hold the readers attention from beginning to end.
September 8, 2021
It was well written and enjoyable. It does go back to the crutch which Archer Mayor can not seem to get along without. Either Joe or someone close to him is injured, threatened, or their life is endangered. Surely he is a better writer than to resort to the same cheap theme book after book.
October 4, 2023
Poor narration
I found the narrator off putting, not giving the characters the same persona or feeling of depth as Mr Taylorsson.
The plot was and storyline felt rushed and the lead a bit self centred rather than a team player.
I found the narrator off putting, not giving the characters the same persona or feeling of depth as Mr Taylorsson.
The plot was and storyline felt rushed and the lead a bit self centred rather than a team player.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 97 reviews