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The Reckoning Stones

Laura DiSilverio (Goodreads Author)

3.70 · Rating details · 168 ratings · 38 reviews

After accusing the pastor of her close-knit religious community of molesting her, fourteen-year-old Mercy Asher is branded a liar and publicly humiliated. She runs away on the night someone beats the pastor into a coma and kills his wife.

Two decades later, Mercy has become Iris Dashwood, an emotionally troubled but brilliant jeweler. She thinks she's in control of her lif

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Paperback, 360 pages

Published September 8th 2015 by Midnight Ink (first published September 1st 2015)

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· 168 ratings · 38 reviews

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Sep 12, 2015 Sue rated it really liked it

Shelves: family-saga

This is a close knit religious community which has no local police force but an outside Sheriff that never gets involved.

Everyone goes to church and everyone knows each other.

Mercy is a 14 year old girl who gets raped by the Pastor Matt. No one believes her.

Someone has attacked Pastor Matt, he has been badly beaten near to death.
But who did it? No one believed her, did they?

Mercy runs.

Twenty years later, she is living far away from this community and trying to live her life. She creates Jewe ...more

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Sep 04, 2015 LORI (Dollycas) CASWELL rated it it was amazing

Shelves: read-2015

Dollycas’s Thoughts

Lone Pine, Colorado is home to the Community. A religious group based out of the God’s Community of Believers and Disciples Church. Mercy Asher left Lone Pine and the Community behind after years of molestation by the pastor of the church. No one believed her when she confessed to her abuse and she was the one punished. She couldn’t stand to stay somewhere where it seemed even her own family thought she was lying. But someone must have knew she was telling the truth because on

Dollycas’s Thoughts

Lone Pine, Colorado is home to the Community. A religious group based out of the God’s Community of Believers and Disciples Church. Mercy Asher left Lone Pine and the Community behind after years of molestation by the pastor of the church. No one believed her when she confessed to her abuse and she was the one punished. She couldn’t stand to stay somewhere where it seemed even her own family thought she was lying. But someone must have knew she was telling the truth because on the night she ran away someone beat the pastor almost to death and his wife is found dead. The pastor has been in a coma ever since.

Mercy has moved on, traveling from place to place. She is Iris Dashwood now and has become a well known jeweler. She creates amazing pieces that are true works of art. Everything is going fine until she learns the pastor had a miracle recovery and after 20+ years later awakens from him coma. She is unable to think of anything else, her creativity is gone and she knows she has to confront the man who ruined her life. She hasn’t seen or communicated with her family and friends since the day she left. She has no idea what kind of welcome she will receive but she has to go back to Lone Pine.

This is a gripping story will serious topics. The cult like church, the abuse and molestation, secrets, lies and murder. I knew the author from her cozy mysteries. Let me tell you there is nothing cozy about this story. The people of Lone Pine had blind faith when it came to the pastors and the elders. They followed and were brainwashed and even those that knew the truth stood silent.

This has to be the best thing Laura DiSilverio has written. She grabs you by the collar with the prologue and doesn’t let go until the last word. The first twist was good but the last twist would rate a 10 on the Richter Scale.

I grieved for Mercy for what she endured and then suffered again as a young runaway. Her life was so tortured after what that man did to her and then to have no support from anyone until she connected with someone that saved her. She was saved but she was still so broken.

This story is one that will stick with you a long time, especially when you know places like Lone Pine actually exist.

Great character development and a super strong plot will definitely land this book on my Best Reads of 2015 list.

Paradise - 10 stars! ...more

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Aug 21, 2015 Christi rated it it was amazing

I have been a long-time fan of Laura DiSilverio's cozy mysteries, so I was excited when I won a copy of her new suspense novel, The Reckoning Stones, in a Facebook contest. Mercy Asher, the main character, grew up as part of a religious community located just outside of Colorado Springs. When Mercy was 14, she accused Pastor Matt, the leader of the community of sexual abusing her, but no one believes her. That same night, Mercy runs away, Pastor Matt is beaten into a coma, and his wife dies. Mer ...more

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May 23, 2017 Donna rated it it was amazing

Shelves: contemporary, mystery, fiction, thrillers, crime, suspense

Mercy Asher, A.K.A Iris Dashwood, had been raped by Pastor Matt and no one believed her. The tight knit religious community just punished her when she told them what happened. She was stoned as a result of this by her community. So she ran. And, somebody beat the Pastor to death. Who? Mercy's father said he did it so as to keep Mercy [Iris] from taking the blame as her parents assumed she did it. Her father went to prison.

Twenty-three years later, Iris has made a life for herself as a jewelry de ...more

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Feb 28, 2016 Albert rated it really liked it

The Reckoning Stones by Laura DiSilverio is mystery novel that puts the mystery itself secondary to the tale, and the emotional and traumatic recovery of a victim of sexual abuse primary. In doing so Laura DiSilverio has created a tightly woven story of betrayal, isolation and the eventual survival of its main character Mercy Asher.

Lone Pine, Colorado is a close knit community that is held together by its deeply seeded religious beliefs. They have no local police force and are rarely visited by The Reckoning Stones by Laura DiSilverio is mystery novel that puts the mystery itself secondary to the tale, and the emotional and traumatic recovery of a victim of sexual abuse primary. In doing so Laura DiSilverio has created a tightly woven story of betrayal, isolation and the eventual survival of its main character Mercy Asher.

Lone Pine, Colorado is a close knit community that is held together by its deeply seeded religious beliefs. They have no local police force and are rarely visited by the sheriff's department. In Lone Pine they take care of their own. They have had few scandals in Lone Pine but one of them involved it's minister, Pastor Matt, the death of his wife and the man who was convicted and sent to prison for her death and the severe beating of the minister himself. Pastor Matt, as a result of the beating, has been in a coma for over two decades. A coma he is beginning to come out of. A miracle to many in the religious community of Lone Pine.

Mercy Asher was fourteen when she left Lone Pine. Since that time her life has been one of suffering and redemption. On her own, as a young runaway she was prostituted and beaten. But now, with an opportunity to lead a better life she is settling down. Except for the occasional foray into sex with younger men with no emotional attachment. Mercy has changed her name to Iris Dashwood and has put Lone Pine far behind her. Except for the nights when the memories come back too strong to drink away.

But she is better she thinks, until news of the recovery of Pastor Matt reaches her. Now Mercy knows that she must return to Lone Pines. Return to face the man she accused of rape. Return to the community that shunned and turned its back on her. To the community that branded her a liar and humiliated her for accusing Pastor Matt of raping a fourteen year old girl. To the mother who sided with the church and Pastor Matt. To her father, who sits in prison for the killing and beating of Pastor Matt and his wife. The father that Mercy knows is innocent.

The Reckoning Stones is a powerfully written novel of the pain and betrayal that is the sexual abuse of a young girl by a authority figure she trusts. Compounded by the community and family that turns their back on her and you have a broken and tragic character in Mercy Asher. A character that DiSilverio has infused with strength and weakness and an all consuming rage at her herself and her past.

This novel is not an indictment on religion, but it is an indictment of the blind trust anyone puts in an institution that puts children at risk. But DiSilverio does not waste her story on that, instead she crafts a terrific story about Mercy/Iris. How she feels. How she copes. How she survives and the cost of returning to the community that caused her so much harm. A community that twenty years afterward would still prefer to believe in its authority figure then in the words of a fourteen year old girl. As the truth becomes to powerful to bear, the community must choose between the truth and the lie they had been led to believe.

If their is a knock on this book it is that we must believe that this community and the good people within are able to turn themselves blind to far too many instances. Not just the rape of Mercy Asher. While plausible, it does become a little too much.

DiSilverio does so much more with the character of Mercy/Iris that she overrides any flaws the book presents.

This is a very good read.
...more

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Sep 03, 2015 Lipsy rated it really liked it

Shelves: arcs, read-in-2015, thriller

The Reckoning Stones is a tightly woven, compelling mystery set in a tiny community in Colorado. But Lone Pine isn't your average community. It's inhabitants are all deeply religious and must live within certain rules and strict codes of conduct.

Iris, hasn't been back to Lone Pine for twenty years, but she can't put it off any longer, she has to face the very thing she ran away from, she has to free herself of her past.

Initially, I wasn't sure about this book at all. I was intrigued by the synop ...more

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Feb 02, 2017 Ed rated it really liked it

Shelves: crime, mystery, suspense

Non-series. A far cry from author DiSilverio's prior novels - three cozy mystery series. Here is the story of Iris Dashwood, the jewelry designer who escaped from being teenage Mercy Asher member of a cultish community. I found the beginning of this novel slow going, with the locale switching back and forth from Oregon to Colorado and the time from 2014 to 1991. Even when the time was firmly set in 2014, there were flashbacks. Once the backstory was firmly established, the novel proceeded nicely ...more

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May 17, 2018 Mara rated it it was amazing

Reckoning Stones is an insightful, suspense-filled novel that is hauntingly realistic in today's world. That makes it all the more frightening. I've lived in places where this could definitely happen and although it's fiction, shows that even the most tightly knit community must have critical thinking in its morality code. DiSilverio is fast becoming one of my favorite authors because of the insights she weaves on the human condition along with telling us a great tale. The classic novels have be ...more

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Sep 02, 2019 Stacey Adams rated it really liked it

Life in "The Community", a back woods religious congregation, isn't always what it seems to be. Pastor Matt uses his role as holy mighty spiritual leader to have his way with young women. When Mercy speaks out telling the truth everyone sides with Pastor Matt and they punish her with an ancient horrible ritual involving reckoning stones. Mercy is shunned by her family and the entire community. She runs away leaving that world behind struggling to find her way out of that oppressive upbringing. S ...more

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Mar 03, 2020 Nikki rated it really liked it

Shelves: serious, crime-drama

Crime-drama might be a bit of a stretch from what I typically think of when I think of that genre, but I still think it fits. The majority of this story is very serious and deals with a lot of heavy subject matter. I won't lie that it was difficult to read and if you are sensitive to any type of abuse I would proceed with caution. It's especially hard to realize that stories just like this actually happen and are true. That communities (religious ones, at that) often have things like this taking ...more

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May 21, 2017 Beverley Albright rated it liked it

The Reckoning Stones was very well written and a very easy read. The book flowed and you really wanted to know the outcome. I felt like I had read the ending from several previous books. Nothing really new there. But the characters were interesting. The author revealed the story at a good pace so you were never bored or frustrated. I would have given it one more star if it hadn't been so predictable at the end. ...more

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Jul 19, 2020 Patricia Stoltey rated it it was amazing

I'm a big fan of Laura DiSilverio standalones, and this one did not disappoint. The protagonist's backstory is interesting considering the way young women from decades ago were treated when sexual abuse was reported as opposed to today's #MeToo movement. In The Reckoning Stones, however, the ongoing tragedy is the lie that landed Mercy Asher's father in prison. Now known as Iris Dashwood, new developments bring Mercy back home to a web of lies that she must untangle. ...more

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Jul 14, 2018 Victoria Haugen rated it it was amazing

This story grabs you and doesn't let go, it's a journey into darkness that's a hard nut to crack, but very interesting story, great narration, really enjoyed it. Very enthralling, gripping story of corruption, religion, and dirty deeds. I'd definitely recommend this to others :)
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. ...more

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Jun 14, 2018 Mariko Tatsumoto rated it it was amazing

An excellent psychological suspense about a woman going back to her hometown to confront the man who sexually assaulted her as a teenager and the parents who didn't believe her. Disilverio keeps you guessing to the bitter end as to what really happened and who... ...more

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Nov 16, 2018 Una rated it it was amazing

Though I found some parts a little difficult to read, it kept my interest from beginning to end. I thought I had the ending figured out but I only had it partly right because of an interesting twist at the end.

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May 08, 2017 M&M rated it it was ok

Shelves: own, library

So many words to say so little. So many subplots.

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Sep 16, 2017 Ann rated it really liked it

Well written mystery. Kept my interest.

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Feb 04, 2018 Bgpriley rated it it was amazing

Couldn't put it down! ...more

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Jul 30, 2020 Threasa rated it liked it

The Reckoning Stones was very interesting. There were a lot of characters, and I had to stop and try to remember who they were. It was a very good story.

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Sep 21, 2015 Jeanie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: netgalley, adult-fiction, bully, crime

Redemption might come through some big selfless act, or through a series of small sacrifices, or it can come through a deliberate silence and a willingness to let go.

Iris once known as Mercy has come back home 23 years later to Colorado Springs. Will having a new perspective and a plan to claim her life back after losing it all those years ago, is she able to redeem all that she has lost? Her father is now in prison for 23 years for the brutal attack of the “community” pastor Matt whom Iris had ...more

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Jun 07, 2016 DelAnne Frazee rated it it was amazing

Shelves: reviewed

Title: The Reckoning Stones
Author: Laura DiSilverio
Published: 9-8-15
Publisher: Midnight Ink
Pages: 360
Genre: Mystery, Thrillers & Suspense
Sub Genre: Literary Fiction;
ISBN: 9780738745114
ASIN: B013J68VZW
Reviewer: DelAnne
Reviewed For: NetGalley
Rating 5 Stars

.
Although known for her many cozy mysteries which are well received and liked; Reckoning Stones takes her into a deeper darker side of the mystery genre. The Reckoning Stones tell of the hidden crime in ...more

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Dec 04, 2016 Mary Ellen rated it it was ok

There were several things to like about this book and one big flaw that made me not want to read anything else by this author. The careful, realistic presentation of sexual abuse of young people and the lifelong, psychological consequences of that circumstance is well handled and well done. I liked the idea of trying to reconstruct the crime 28 years later and I like the way that the author informs the reader of the discoveries as Iris discovers them. I like to follow the logic as a mystery unra ...more

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Oct 18, 2015 Mary Birk rated it it was amazing

I started this fascinating suspense novel Friday night on an airplane flight home and read it almost nonstop until I finished Saturday night, unable to put it down! The author has a lyrical touch with language even while dealing with serious and disturbing topics. The main character, Iris, is a fascinating woman who courageously escaped from an abusive religious community years before and now finds herself following a dangerous path to confront dark crimes from the past whose ugly tentacles have ...more

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Sep 28, 2015 Jk rated it really liked it

Shelves: first-reads, signed

I received a beautiful paperback copy of this book with a very nice inscription from the author for free via the Goodreads Giveaways program and would like to thank everyone who made that possible - especially the author!

This is a very enjoyable mystery novel that broaches some difficult and disturbing subjects. It features a church community that borders on being cultish and centers on how that community deals with a pedophile in their midst. I loved the use of flashbacks and how they created s ...more

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Sep 27, 2015 Donna rated it really liked it

Iris Dashwood (formerly Mercy Asher) hears on the news that Pastor Matt, who molested her 23 years ago, has come out of his coma. She returns to her hometown to accomplish several things: see her Dad who is in prison for putting Pastor Matt in the coma, confront Pastor Matt, and hold her head high in the community that sided with Pastor Matt and didn't believe her. Iris is now an acclaimed jewelry designer but she's hit a block with making her designs. In confronting her past, she finds some peo ...more

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Aug 23, 2016 Rachel rated it really liked it

Shelves: mystery, contemporary

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Feb 24, 2016 Stephanie rated it liked it

Shelves: 2016, mystery, possible-rc

Very quick read (read the whole thing on my train commute, lunch break, and then about an hour at home). Story is about a woman returning to her childhood home to confront the pastor of the extremely conservative church/community she grew up in about raping her as a young teen - he'd just awakened from a 23 year coma after having been beaten nearly to death the night she ran away. She goes to visit her father, in prison for the attack (which also apparently caused the pastor's wife to die from a ...more

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Jan 16, 2016 Joan rated it really liked it

I'm not quite sure why, but I could not put this book down. So I'm going to assume it was very well written, with compelling characters, a great plot, and subject matter that's enthralling. The author really knew how to keep the reader turning pages, which is good. I've never read this author before, but apparently she has a "cozy" mystery series and some other books out there. This is not a "cozy." ...more

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Aug 23, 2015 Aly rated it really liked it

Shelves: netgalley

I love a good mystery! This book was good and kept me wanting to read more. I enjoyed the characters and story line kept me on my toes. I think this is a good book for you to read it you like mysteries too. * I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

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Dec 11, 2016 Liz rated it liked it

Interesting story, lots of twists and turns. Read for a book group and it certainly engaged the group and provided lots to discuss; group pretty divided between like and dislike but everyone agreed it caught their attention.

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About Laura DiSilverio

Laura DiSilverio

365 followers

I'm the author of the Swift Investigations, Mall Cop and Readaholics mystery series.

After twenty years as an Air Force intelligence officer – serving as a squadron commander, with the National Reconnaissance Office, and at a fighter wing – I retired to parenting and writing full-time.

Spying was easier.

(Laura DiSilverio is also Ella Barrick.) ...more