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susannavs's review against another edition
3.0
This read more like book 2 than book 1. Overall, an okay read, not sure I'll keep up with the series though.
amy_da1sy's review against another edition
4.0
I always think books set in my home town hilarious. It’s a good book though.
ciska's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
wendoxford's review against another edition
4.0
What a rollicking great thriller. Really tightly plotted and I just loved that the main protagonists suffered realistic fates and that everything didn't get tied up. Despite the theme, Hannah manages to invoke a gripping and twisted conspiracy without having to rely on graphic violence. That said, not for the faint hearted
thebooktrail88's review against another edition
5.0
Booktrail locations
A prisoner sprung from a van on a Newcastle road will lead to a trail of conspiracy reaching all the way to murder.
Well Mari, you certainly know how to ramp up the tension and create a police team that pulls no punches! With her paintbrush speckled with North East colour, she washes it over the gritty, punchy story, interspersed with action, fast moving events and a trail which leads to a very interesting and unique conclusion!
This is no Kate Daniels. Heck I’m sure she could work in the team but then I was rather afraid of O’Neill and Maguire myself so kudos if the three of them should ever meet. These are the tough guys – the hard men of Northumbria police. These guys mean business – violence, double dealing and a dark dark core makes this a thrilling, bumpy and dangerous ride.
I liked Ryan. He had guts and determination to find out what really happened and the premise of the silent room was intriguing. I shall now wander down Nuns Moor Road where Grace lived and wonder where this place could be…hmm and in quiet Fenham who would have guessed?
The splashes of local colour such as Ian Payne, mention of Gazza, the Quayside and the heritage of the old pub in Central station makes this a novel which stands proudly on the NE literary map.
This is a gritty read and it was a real surprise to see how events took them to Norway and a whole other area of intrigue. Being a language fan, it was great to read the smattering of Norwegian which added to the overall sense of place. The conspiracy unravelled and there were some unexpected and neatly done twists.
Mari I am now going to rest a little, my heart thumping as it is. I need to lie down somewhere quiet although maybe not in the silent room that you write about.
A prisoner sprung from a van on a Newcastle road will lead to a trail of conspiracy reaching all the way to murder.
Well Mari, you certainly know how to ramp up the tension and create a police team that pulls no punches! With her paintbrush speckled with North East colour, she washes it over the gritty, punchy story, interspersed with action, fast moving events and a trail which leads to a very interesting and unique conclusion!
This is no Kate Daniels. Heck I’m sure she could work in the team but then I was rather afraid of O’Neill and Maguire myself so kudos if the three of them should ever meet. These are the tough guys – the hard men of Northumbria police. These guys mean business – violence, double dealing and a dark dark core makes this a thrilling, bumpy and dangerous ride.
I liked Ryan. He had guts and determination to find out what really happened and the premise of the silent room was intriguing. I shall now wander down Nuns Moor Road where Grace lived and wonder where this place could be…hmm and in quiet Fenham who would have guessed?
The splashes of local colour such as Ian Payne, mention of Gazza, the Quayside and the heritage of the old pub in Central station makes this a novel which stands proudly on the NE literary map.
This is a gritty read and it was a real surprise to see how events took them to Norway and a whole other area of intrigue. Being a language fan, it was great to read the smattering of Norwegian which added to the overall sense of place. The conspiracy unravelled and there were some unexpected and neatly done twists.
Mari I am now going to rest a little, my heart thumping as it is. I need to lie down somewhere quiet although maybe not in the silent room that you write about.
syren1532's review against another edition
4.0
Another excellent thriller by Mari Hannah. I've read all of her DCI Daniels series but this is a standalone novel. Hope there may be a follow up novels as would like to see the characters develop.
trusselltales's review against another edition
4.0
Being a keen follower of Hannah's Kate Daniels series I wasn't sure what to expect with her first standalone. I am the kind of reader who likes it when authors branch out, because I find it keeps the series fresh. As I've come to expect, The Silent Room is tightly plotted and a pacey read, with characters I was interested to follow :-) This isn't yet published but I was lucky enough to get an ARC from PanMacmillan (several library staff have raced through this with great excitement) and I can recommend it as an enjoyable and gripping read with, as always, an excellent sense of place!
novelbloglover's review
3.0
Book review
Title: The silent room
Author: Mari Hannah
Genre: crime/drama/thriller
Rating: ***
Review: The Silent Room, played out against the familiar backdrop of Hannah’s charming but chilly Northumbrian patch, is her first gripping, standalone thriller and marks out this former probation officer as one of our most exciting and accomplished crime writers.
Since the publication of The Murder Wall in 2012, Hannah has deservedly moved into the top league, producing deep, dark, action-packed thrillers that showcase her keen eye for authentic police and forensic detail, masterful plotting and superb characterisation skills.
This new page-turning crime mystery takes readers back to the tough streets of the North-East but into fresh and fertile police territory with a young Special Branch sergeant who is under suspicion after the arrest of his boss for alleged corruption.
His battle to clear both his name and the chief he is convinced has been framed takes us into the heart of an international conspiracy and to the most dangerous corners of the ruthless criminal world.
Northumbria Special Branch officer Detective Sergeant Matthew Ryan knows with absolute certainty that his inspirational boss, DI Jack Fenwick, is not corrupt despite the discovery of a stash of firearms at his home.
It has to be ‘a fit-up’ and Ryan doesn’t change his mind when the security van carrying Fenwick to Durham jail is hijacked by armed men en route and the prisoner bundled into a waiting car.
In Ryan’s view, Fenwick was abducted not sprung but officers from the Professional Standards branch, better known in the force as ‘the rubber heelers’ for their supposedly softly-softly approach, suspect that Ryan, Fenwick’s friend and loyal colleague, was somehow involved.
Suspended from duty and locked out of the investigation, Ryan is warned to stay away as a manhunt gets underway but the young officer is determined to prove that both he and Fenwick are innocent.
Meanwhile, former Special Branch officer Grace Ellis, still bored after several years of retirement, is equally unconvinced by the charges levelled against her protégé Fenwick and enlists the help of her ex-boyfriend and former MI5 spook Frank Newman to clear his name.
When the official investigation falls apart, Ryan joins forces with other sympathisers and, under surveillance and with his life in danger, he sets out to rescue Fenwick and discover the truth. And when the trail leads to the suspicious death of a Norwegian, Ryan uncovers more than he had bargained for… an international conspiracy that has already cost many lives.
Hannah springs some terrific surprises on her unsuspecting readers in a tension-filled story that combines brutal, breathtaking action sequences with a whole gamut of human emotions from fear, jealousy and fallibility to love, loyalty and unswerving devotion.
As always, Hannah’s intelligent plotting is given extra impetus by a cast of vibrant and credible characters, each beautifully portrayed and each explored and developed with the author’s remarkable insight, empathy and sensitivity. Clever, compelling and sophisticated, could The Silent Room herald the start of a very special new crime series?
Title: The silent room
Author: Mari Hannah
Genre: crime/drama/thriller
Rating: ***
Review: The Silent Room, played out against the familiar backdrop of Hannah’s charming but chilly Northumbrian patch, is her first gripping, standalone thriller and marks out this former probation officer as one of our most exciting and accomplished crime writers.
Since the publication of The Murder Wall in 2012, Hannah has deservedly moved into the top league, producing deep, dark, action-packed thrillers that showcase her keen eye for authentic police and forensic detail, masterful plotting and superb characterisation skills.
This new page-turning crime mystery takes readers back to the tough streets of the North-East but into fresh and fertile police territory with a young Special Branch sergeant who is under suspicion after the arrest of his boss for alleged corruption.
His battle to clear both his name and the chief he is convinced has been framed takes us into the heart of an international conspiracy and to the most dangerous corners of the ruthless criminal world.
Northumbria Special Branch officer Detective Sergeant Matthew Ryan knows with absolute certainty that his inspirational boss, DI Jack Fenwick, is not corrupt despite the discovery of a stash of firearms at his home.
It has to be ‘a fit-up’ and Ryan doesn’t change his mind when the security van carrying Fenwick to Durham jail is hijacked by armed men en route and the prisoner bundled into a waiting car.
In Ryan’s view, Fenwick was abducted not sprung but officers from the Professional Standards branch, better known in the force as ‘the rubber heelers’ for their supposedly softly-softly approach, suspect that Ryan, Fenwick’s friend and loyal colleague, was somehow involved.
Suspended from duty and locked out of the investigation, Ryan is warned to stay away as a manhunt gets underway but the young officer is determined to prove that both he and Fenwick are innocent.
Meanwhile, former Special Branch officer Grace Ellis, still bored after several years of retirement, is equally unconvinced by the charges levelled against her protégé Fenwick and enlists the help of her ex-boyfriend and former MI5 spook Frank Newman to clear his name.
When the official investigation falls apart, Ryan joins forces with other sympathisers and, under surveillance and with his life in danger, he sets out to rescue Fenwick and discover the truth. And when the trail leads to the suspicious death of a Norwegian, Ryan uncovers more than he had bargained for… an international conspiracy that has already cost many lives.
Hannah springs some terrific surprises on her unsuspecting readers in a tension-filled story that combines brutal, breathtaking action sequences with a whole gamut of human emotions from fear, jealousy and fallibility to love, loyalty and unswerving devotion.
As always, Hannah’s intelligent plotting is given extra impetus by a cast of vibrant and credible characters, each beautifully portrayed and each explored and developed with the author’s remarkable insight, empathy and sensitivity. Clever, compelling and sophisticated, could The Silent Room herald the start of a very special new crime series?
jessicamap's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you to Minotaur Books for the advanced ebook copy in exchange for my honest review.
This was my introduction to Mari Hannah and her writing. I've heard great things about her other police procedural series, but this one is a standalone thriller! THE SILENT ROOM includes a hijacking, international conspiracies, and a cop accused of attempting to help free an inmate from prison.
A security van is en route to Durham prison. Aboard is the disgraced Special Branch officer, Jack Fenwick, but he never makes it to his destination. The van is hijacked by a group of men, and the prisoner is taken. Detective Sergeant Matthew Ryan is under suspicion of helping coordinate the escape for his former boss and isn't allowed anywhere near this investigation. Matthew is determined to prove that he wasn't involved in any way, so he begins his own investigation and manhunt for Fenwick.
With everyone on to him, he decides to drop off and go dark. He enlists the help of others to continue his own investigation into the escape. As they continue, they find connections to the death of a Norwegian national who died under suspicious circumstances. The deeper Matthew goes he begins to unearth an International conspiracy. How far is he willing to go to prove his innocence?
I thought this was a great edge-of-your-seat thriller. I love anything with a good International conspiracy element, or anything remotely in the political thriller genre. It's something that I don't see enough of and I know its more of a hit or miss type element for most readers. That being said, it's not too heavy in the political ties.
Overall, if you want a good page-turner, then you'll have to pick up THE SILENT ROOM. I will be keeping my eyes out for more Mari Hannah books on my next trip to the bookstore!
I give this one 4/5 stars!
This was my introduction to Mari Hannah and her writing. I've heard great things about her other police procedural series, but this one is a standalone thriller! THE SILENT ROOM includes a hijacking, international conspiracies, and a cop accused of attempting to help free an inmate from prison.
A security van is en route to Durham prison. Aboard is the disgraced Special Branch officer, Jack Fenwick, but he never makes it to his destination. The van is hijacked by a group of men, and the prisoner is taken. Detective Sergeant Matthew Ryan is under suspicion of helping coordinate the escape for his former boss and isn't allowed anywhere near this investigation. Matthew is determined to prove that he wasn't involved in any way, so he begins his own investigation and manhunt for Fenwick.
With everyone on to him, he decides to drop off and go dark. He enlists the help of others to continue his own investigation into the escape. As they continue, they find connections to the death of a Norwegian national who died under suspicious circumstances. The deeper Matthew goes he begins to unearth an International conspiracy. How far is he willing to go to prove his innocence?
I thought this was a great edge-of-your-seat thriller. I love anything with a good International conspiracy element, or anything remotely in the political thriller genre. It's something that I don't see enough of and I know its more of a hit or miss type element for most readers. That being said, it's not too heavy in the political ties.
Overall, if you want a good page-turner, then you'll have to pick up THE SILENT ROOM. I will be keeping my eyes out for more Mari Hannah books on my next trip to the bookstore!
I give this one 4/5 stars!