Kate’s 2¢:  “The Silent Dolls” by Rita B. Herron

“The Silent Dolls” by Rita B. Herron

Kate’s 2¢: There is a plethora of in-depth biographies of authors and reviews of their books, that state the title, author, published date, and genre; as well as,     describing what the book is about, setting, and character(s), so, Kate’s 2¢ merely shares my thoughts about what I read.  I’m just saying…

   This story exploits a variety of psychological and physical fears, from a child’s fear of the dark and spiders, a child’s rage at being abandoned, a parent’s fear of losing a child, re-occurring night-mares, career insecurities, personal values, as well as being a dark and stormy night.

   Herron does a good job of casting doubt and suspicion on several possible perpetrators of the

abduction, layering multiple motives and opportunities  to keep  the reader guessing until the end.

   Not the best book to read before bed.

From the WEB:

Rita Herron. USA Today Bestselling and award-winning author Rita Herron fell in love with books at the ripe age of eight when she read her first Trixie Belden mystery. But she didn’t think real people grew up to be writers, so she became a teacher instead. Now she writes so she doesn’t have to get a real job.

   A former kindergarten teacher and workshop leader, she traded her storytelling for kids for romance, and writes romantic comedies and romantic suspense.

   Always the budding writer from a very early age, the American author Rita Herron was a keen scribe, something which carried through with her to adulthood working as a writer of suspense and mystery novels.

From NLS/BARD/LOC                      :

Silent dolls DB104653

Herron, Rita B. Reading time: 8 hours, 42 minutes.

Read by Phoebe Zimmermann.

Suspense Fiction

Mystery and Detective Stories

Detective Ellie Reeves is called in to the case of a missing seven-year-old girl, Penny Matthews. After discovery of the decades-old remains of a child, Ellie worries that she has come up against a serial killer–one with ties to her own past. Violence, strong language, and some explicit descriptions of sex. 2020.

Download Silent dolls

# 265 words

“The Silent Dolls”

By Rita B. Herron

Reviewed by Kate Chamberlin

What little girl doesn’t want a doll of her own?

In “The Silent Dolls” by Rita B. Herron almost a dozen little girls fall for the stranger’s ploy of having their own, hand-carved doll and going to see a beautiful doll house. The girls are never found again along the evergreen strewn and rocky cliffs of the Appalachian Trail.

This story exploits a variety of psychological and physical fears, from a child’s fear of the dark and spiders, a child’s rage at being abandoned, a parent’s fear of losing a child, re-occurring night-mares, career insecurities, personal values, as well as being a dark and stormy night.

   Herron does a good job of casting doubt and suspicion on several possible perpetrators of the  abduction, layering multiple motives and opportunities  to keep  the reader guessing until the end. We’re never sure if it is the Chief of Police Reeves, Ranger Chords, FBI Agent Fox’s father, or some deranged stranger. Detective Ellie Reeves’s discoveries will astound you.

Phoebe Zimmermann  read this for NLS with a voice appropriate for the suspense, mystery, and drama of the narrative; however, you might not want to read/listen this story at bed-time.

I enjoyed reading this book, although,  I have a ‘spoiler alert’ for Senior High Students and Adults who will also enjoy “The Silent Dolls. This is the first book in a proposed series, so there are several threads left dangling and may not be a satisfying ending for some readers. We’ll have to stay tuned for Book II in the series.

I recommend “The Silent Dolls” by Rita B. Herron: ISBN-13: 9781838887612: Storyfire Ltd: Pages: 334. (NLS/BARD/LOC: DB104653) 

Kate’s 2¢: “Tell No Lies”  by Allison Brennan

“Tell No Lies”  by Allison Brennan

Kate’s 2¢: There is a plethora of in-depth biographies of authors and reviews of their books, that state the title, author, published date, and genre; as well as,     describing what the book is about, setting, and character(s), so, Kate’s 2¢ merely shares my thoughts about what I read.  I’m just saying…

   Billy and Emma were in love and he doted on her. Her obsession was with the environment, so when she asked him to take her hiking to find what was poisoning the birds, he said yes.  He was worn out, letting her go ahead of him…to her death.

DBI Agent Matt Costa was running an under-cover op to look into the copper refinery plant’s possible contamination of the water source in the area.  

   Are the cases related? It is a merry chase and an intriguing story.  How the plots twist and inter-twine kept me listening on the edge of my chair.

From NLS/BARD/LOC:

Tell no lies DB106207

Brennan, Allison Reading time: 12 hours, 29 minutes.

Suzanne T. Fortin

Suspense Fiction

Mystery and Detective Stories

When a college intern turned activist sets out to find evidence of wildlife killings on her own, she is murdered. Detective Kara Quinn and loner FBI agent Matt Costa are called in. They find clues indicating dark secrets, and must uncover them before more lives are lost. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2021.

Download Tell no lies DB106207