Silent Knives

A Willows and Parker Mystery #2

by Laurence Gough

Desperately in need of a vacation, detective Jack Williams travels to a remote wilderness not far from Vancouver, Can., for what he hopes will be isolated and relaxing fishing. He promptly discovers the nude body of teenager Naomi Lister trapped in the icy water. Meanwhile, his partner Claire Parker, after an expensive evening of drinking and dining, finds the horribly lacerated body of a young male prostitute in the back of a mini van.

Genres: Crime

189 pages, Hardcover

First published April 3, 1988

About the author

Laurence Gough, who lives with his wife and two children in Vancouver, has written twelve Willows and Parker mysteries: The Goldfish Bowl, winner of an Arthur Ellis Award for Best First Novel from the Crime Writers of Canada; Death on a No. 8 Hook; Hot Shots, winner of an Arthur Ellis Award for Best Crime Novel of the Year; Serious Crimes; Accidental Deaths; Fall Down Easy; Killers; Heartbreaker; Memory Lane; Karaoke Rap; Shutterbug; and Funny Money. His international thriller, Sandstorm, won the Author Award (fiction) from the Foundation for the Advancement of Canadian Letters in 1991.

Series:
* Willows & Parker

Reviews

[Linda Strong · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the 2nd book in this 13-book series ...Originally published: January 1, 1988.

Jack Willows is a Canadian cop. He's off for a couple of days and all he's been thinking of is fishing. He gets more than he bargained for ... he finds the body of a young woman in the otherwise pristine mountain lake.

Unbeknownst to him, his partner Clare Parker has discovered the body of a young man ..mutilated and murdered and left in the back of a van.

Since both victims had a Smurf tattoo, it's up to them to find the connecting thread.

I like Jack and Clare. I like how they relate to each other. There's a lot of respect and a lot of humor. Reading between the lines, since I haven't read the series. they tried to take their relationship one step further, but they decided they made better friends than lovers.

The reader learns upfront who the killer is and who has hired him. The why remains a mystery.
I enjoyed this book. There is violence, but not graphic. There is some sexual content, again, it doesn't cross any lines. Sort of reminds me of mysteries from the 50s and 60s. The book is not a door-stopper, just nice, easy reading. I just might give this entire series a try.

Many thanks to the author / Endeavour Press / NetGalley who furnished a digital copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

[Roger Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read Death on a No. 8 Hook back in 1989. I was initially drawn to his work having spent a year in Vancouver for my doctoral residency. I was not disappointed, and I went on the read eleven more of his books over the next ten years. Gough's stories are gritty with interesting characters, and of course, it's hard to beat Vancouver; it's a place worth killing for!

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perhaps the difficult second book. The series continues and refers to elements of the earlier book. Willows and Parker still work together but their boss is now Inspector rather than Superintendent. He continues to chain smoke cigars and enjoy his window's view. The development begun in The Goldfish Bowl seems to have stalled at a lower storey allowing him an unrestricted horizon - for now.
The plot doesn't quite work; the police procedure is not fully detailed and obscure hunches pay off; yet even as we reach the climax to the novel and we are left with the police again not certain of the killer as in book one. This doesn't work everytime and lets the book down here. Indeed the book seems to drift away, although I am not a reader that wants all issues resolved this story gives the impression it is incomplete.

[CL · Rating 5 out of 5]

It starts alittle slow but picks up right away and then you can't put it down. Det Willard goes fishing and finds a body of a young girl. Back in his home town the discovery of another body leads him to think the two deaths may be linked but it is proving hard to link them. Then the meter maid tickets a driver of a Trans Am who makes origami animals and that seems to connect the two cases and it all begins to fall into place. I would like to thank the Publisher and Net Galley for the chance to read the ARC.

[Sheri · Rating 5 out of 5]

fantastic book. I read it in one day. The characters are well-defined we're seeing more and more of a background for each and every one of them, what makes them tick what makes them good what makes them bad. I love that there are no perfect ones everybody has a slight flaw. This was a very good murder mystery not as much of a whodunit but more of a can they catch them in time. I totally recommend this series and can't wait to download book three.

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Detective Jack Willows is on a long weekend up in the mountains north of Vancouver until he finds a body of a young girl.
Back in the city his partner, Claire Parker, finds a body of a prostitute in a van. Is there a connection between the two deaths.
Found it difficult to engage with any of the characters.
A NetGalley book.

[Gail · Rating 2 out of 5]

The plot seemed to be jumping around too much. It switched back and forth between different characters ans confusd so much that it was confusing and difficult to follw thw plot. I did not like this book as much as another in the Willowsand Parker Mystery series