Don’t Make a Sound (Sawyer Brooks #1)

3.5 stars First of all, I think it is important to note this story involves sexual crimes. It\’s big element of the story so if that is a topic that you try to avoid reading about, I suggest you take a pass on this book. While I wouldn\’t say this goes into the most graphic detail I have ever read, it still was disturbing and a lot to mentally process. I read mysteries and thrillers all the time and I would put it in the compelling but tough read category. Crime reporter Sawyer Brooks has tried to leave the past behind her but some things stay with you forever. She has never forgotten that her older sisters left her behind as they fled their hometown of River Rock, and she was left alone to endure horrific abuse. Two teenage girls were murdered in River Rock and their cases remain unsolved. Sawyer\’s childhood friend went missing and again, the case remains unsolved. While Sawyer has kept her distance from the town she grew up in, she is back hoping to find answers as to what happened to these girls. What will she discover? The story held my interest as there certainly was lot going on and Sawyer was a solid lead character. The story does bounce around occasionally to other characters and in some cases I thought it worked well having different perspectives but in others it didn\’t feel necessary in order to advance the plot. I feel the author might have been too ambitious in her storytelling as it becomes a bit much in terms of how much feels realistic when you add everything up together. I also thought the plot that kicks off the book started off promising but veered into bad Lifetime movie territory. In general, some elements of the story needed to be more fully fleshed out or abandoned completely. A few less characters might have also helped as it is never a good thing when you are near the end of a book and a character pops up and you struggle to remember who they are. With that being said, I did like this book even though it wasn\’t a perfect read. In terms of the mystery elements, there was nothing really here that I found surprising but I also read the genre often and it\’s difficult to catch me completely off guard. I\’m curious to see what is in store for Sawyer as this appears to be the first book in a series. If you can handle tough subject material, this is a decent pick.

Sawyer Brooks is a junior reporter who’s haunted by her past. It’s a past that’s full of secrets; horrible, terrible secrets that weave thru an entire town and extended family. Every time I tho’t I had this figured out, BAM! Author T. R. Ragan starts “Don’t Make A Sound” off at a modest pace; a bit snoozy at times. Then, all of a sudden, I was totally engaged, rapt attention and stunned with incredulity. There’s real horror to Sawyer’s story and what makes it worse is the knowing of just how possible it all is…giant shiver. For all the murder in this book, the violence is not too graphic. The sexual content as relating to the crimes is similar; mostly anecdotal or as given in a report. There’s one very brief scene early on that’s from Sawyer’s personal life that has a crude feeling about it but it’s fleeting and not gratuitous. The language is rough and contains all manner of expletives including f-bombs. That said, it’s spaced evenly and used “naturally” rather than for effect. This is for sure an R-rated book. Ragan has introduced Sawyer, her sisters, and a few key players at the newspaper where she works. We learn a fair amount about her and only a little about the sisters. The work people are thin. Since this is volume 1 of what looks like 2, but who knows how many, there’s great opportunities for development in future volumes. This one is complete with a nice teaser towards the next; REALLY NICE – due out in Nov of this year. The story is told from a third person P. O. V. and there’s no bouncing around timelines or locations; just straight up good storytelling. Plot lines are complex, the dialogue is direct and there’s not much subtlety or humor; intensity is the driver with a pace that moves steadily until the halfway point then it’s the build to intense; brilliant! A great thriller, language issues aside?

Did not like foul language. Didn\’t even finish first chapter.

Sawyer travels back home for a funeral where she also plans to investigate old murders that occurred in her home town. But this plot doesn\’t truly begin to pick up until around chapter ten or 23% on a Kindle because the first part is mainly introducing Sawyer and the other characters. There were a few moments in the first half when I felt disengaged, but it was not often. Chapters alternate between Sawyers narrative and an internet group of five women who were sexually abused/raped. The small group\’s goal is to seek revenge and justice against rapists. Most chapters revolve around Sawyer rather than this group. Every now and then you hear from this group and wait to see how they are connected to Sawyer\’s situation. Some things are predictable and I did question the plausibility about a couple of things in the end. But I did really enjoy it primarily because of the overall message pertaining to the dark truths involved. Though explicit, it is relevant. There is sex, a lot of cussing, and several gory scenes. Triggers- rape (it doesn\’t go into the graphic details of these acts), pedophilia (again, no graphic details for this topic), sexual abuse, torture (detailed)

I bought this book on Kindle as it was offered for free. It was described as a crime thriller. I was not expecting the entire book to revolve around sexual abuse, rape and paedophillia. I found the subject content disturbing and sick. Had I realised this book revolved around this I would never have bought it. It\’s the sort of book that should carry a trigger warning for survivors of sexual abuse so that they can make an informed decision about reading such content, it is that bad. I felt the story was disjointed, it didn\’t flow very well and was entirely too predictable. If you want a decent crime thriller I\’d suggest books by Jane Casey and Elly Griffiths.

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