Silent Night

by C J Kyle

Christmas, Tennessee, is a town where no one locks their doors and the worst crime is a stolen bicycle. Until the night blood is found ...but there's no body. Police Chief Tucker Ambrose hopes it's just a prank, but his years as a cop in Chicago tell him different. Then a body is discovered in the middle of the woods, staged with a bible, a crucifix, and a rosary ...and Tucker knows something dark and sinister has arrived in his town. Miranda Harley knows exactly what's going on. In fact, she's been tracking this serial killer, hoping to gather enough evidence to convict him. Trouble is, no one will believe her, not even the sexy police chief whose heated gazes promise nights of sin. But when Miranda falls into the crosshairs of a psychopath, Tucker must put aside his doubts and race to stop the killer from striking again.

• ISBN10: 0062079670
• ISBN13: 9780062079671
• Publish Date: 28 October 2014
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 10 April 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Avon Books
• Format: Paperback (A-Format (178x111 mm))
• Pages: 384
• Language: English
• URL: http://harpercollins.com.au/9780062079671

Reviews

[kimbacaffeinate]

Unexplained blood patterns in the snow, a missing teen, and a body found in the woods with a crucifix, rosary and bible. Something sinister has come to Christmas, Tennessee. I love a good serial murder and this case was an interesting one.

Police Chief Tucker Ambrose left the hustle and bustle of Chicago for the quieter life in Christmas where missing bikes and mischievous pranks are the most pressing cases. I liked Tucker; he was open minded, but thought things out for himself and was not averse to calling in outside help. I was a little disappointed that some of the department characters were cliché’ depicting small-town police officers as incompetent.

Miranda Harley is tracking a serial killer and has arrived in Christmas to gather evidence. A trained nurse, she has dropped everything to catch this killer. She failed once and refuses to fail again. Miranda is stubborn, a bit of a risk taker and not exactly open and honest with the local police chief. I know she was frustrated but I would have liked to see her open up more. Miranda was awkward at times but felt genuine.

I appreciated that the romance in Silent Night was delivered on the side and that solving the case took precedence. It allowed for an element of warmth as we hunted a killer. The relationship that developed was slow burning, with sexual tension as these two tangoed. The attraction felt genuine, and had just enough heat without too much detail thus, allowing this to appeal to a larger audience.

The serial killer is twisted, and I loved the religious angle and methodology the author used. The clues, red herrings and twists were delightful without getting too procedural making it a lighter read. Kyle shared the murders with us, giving us first hand experience with the killer. Silent Night flowed wonderfully and I was hooked from page one. Kyle offered some twists and turns to keep the reader guessing.

Copy provided by publisher.This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer