Breaking Silence [Hardcover]

This is the third of Linda Castillo's series about Police Chief Kate Burkholder and life in Painter's Mill, a small town with a substantial Amish population. Each of the books brings us a thriller story with a twisted family backstory. There's plenty of suspense, enough violence to keep you on the edge of your seat, some romance between Kate and State Agent John Tomasetti, and some real insights into Amish culture. While this book seems to spend more time on Kate's emotions than the previous two, it's still an action-packed story.

Other reviewers have synopsized to book very well, so I'll skip that part and cut to the chase. Here, then, are the Top Ten Things That are Great about "Breaking Silence."

10. Dialog. Castillo writes good dialog. It's crisp, clean, and sounds natural. Each character has his own way of saying things, of course, but each sounds like a real person speaking.

9. I always like to learn something new when I read, even in fiction. I did not know that you could die very quickly in a manure pit. I figured it would be very unpleasant, but lethal had not occurred to me. And while this is information I probably won't need, I'll be sure to avoid all manure pits in the future.

8. Kate's crew: Pickles, Glock, TJ, and Mona's characters continue to evolve in this third book of the series. They add color to the narrative, they have distinct personalities, and probably back-stories of their own that we'll learn more of in the books ahead.

7. Castillo's books tell us much about the Amish culture. A while back, lured by the previous two Castillo books, I read a novel about an Amish family/Christmas story (and, committed to reviewing it, I read the whole thing). While, theoretically, I'd get more Amish facts from that, I didn't. Castillo's books explain much of the tradition, family customs, religions, beliefs, separatist notions, language, and more. And it's all done within the context of a fast-paced thriller.

6. A complex romance. Kate and John Tomasetti have an on again-off again relationship. They both come from deeply damaged places, and sometimes it's almost painful to watch their struggle for normalcy and comfort. But it's life-affirming the way they do, and sometime succeed. I'd call it a good love story without any mush.

5. Nasty characters. Castillo writes some devilishly nasty characters. They're not necessarily the villains, but they remind us that there are some angry twisted souls out there. Each Castillo book has a couple of these, and each is unique in his own twisted way.

4. Good physical descriptions. You'll feel the cold. You'll cringe through being soaking wet. You'll smell the smells and get a genuine feel for the homes, the landscape, and terrain of Painter's Mill and the surrounding areas.

3. An engaging B plot. When their parents die in the manure pit, three children are left without a family, except for an uncle who has been banned. His story has some interesting twists of its own.

2. A spectacularly twisted family back-story. I have to admit that my favorite part in mysteries is working backward through time, learning who the characters really are, why they are the way they are, what their past tells us, and what drives them. Castillo is a master of creating these dysfunctional family tales.

1. Twists and turns and more twists. I didn't predict this one... at all. It's a fast paced book that will keep you guessing until the end. I recommend it to everyone who likes his or her mysteries gritty and layered and quirky.

This, the third Kate Burkholder featured novel is, I think, the best.

Following in sequence from "Sworn To Silence", "Pray For Silence", and this installment - "Breaking Silence" - we are again drawn into the Amish community of Painters Mill where Chief of Police Kate Burkholder is again on the case when tragedy strikes a local Amish family.

It's difficult to comment too much without giving away juicy plot points, but I will just say that the depth of character in this book is wonderful and it's a real page turner right to the end ... lots of surprise twists and "gotcha" moments. Very well written.

What I love most about this series is the lead character - the wonderful but flawed Chief Burkholder. Linda Castillo has created a deep and layered character here and she continues to allow Kate to grow ( and not grow ) and become a true emotional epicenter for the series. Kate isn't perfect and she makes mistakes but each mistake seems a natural one, and more genuine than that of other female leads. For one thing, Kate is not perfect - she drinks too much, she has intimacy issues and she's got a temper. In lesser hands, these traits might seem cliché, but Linda Castillo imbues heart into her flawed heroine, heart and a dark past that Kate is working to overcome. It's a great dichotomy that Castillo handles incredibly well.

Without a doubt, this is a great novel - and a wonderful continuation of Kate Burkholder's story.

Highly recommended.

Breaking Silence is the third of the series Chief Katie Burkholder suspenseful thriller. Breaking Silence can stand alone without reading Pray for Silence or Sworn to Silence. Linda Castillo covered a little of both the previous books in Breaking Silence. I still recommend reading Pray for Silence and Sworn to Silence. They are both unputdownables with lots of action. Pray for Silence gives an overview how Chief Kate Burkholder and John Tomasetti from BCI met on Kate's first case as Chief of Police in Painter Mills.

There was a 911 call to go to Slabaugh's farm house. The Slabaugh's are Amish. Kate responded right away and was first on scene. She saw two male victims face down in the manure pit with poor area ventilation. A third victim was an Amish female lying face up. Kate went down into the pit to try to save the mother of four children. It was too late. Mother, father and uncle all died from the pit's Methane gas by the time EMS and the fire department arrived. Kate thought this was an accident until Doc Coblentz, in his preliminary examination, found that the father, Solly Slabaugh, had blunt-force trauma to the head that caused his death.

There have been a rash of hate crimes against the Amish, but the Amish victims had refused to press charges. Minor crimes are one thing, but now things have taken a terrible turn. Agent John Tomasetti was requested to help with the investigation of the hate crimes. Kate and John believe the hate crimes and the murder of Solly Slabaugh are not related.

The last several chapters were an emotional rollercoaster when Kate was interviewing Salome. Linda Castillo did a masterly job in strengthen Kate's character. I am thoroughly hooked on the series as I am with the two main characters, Kate and John. Kate and John had some key issues from their past that affected their relationship. I am eagerly looking forward to the next installment in the series.

I recommend Breaking Silence, another great suspenseful thriller.

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