Still Voices

by Maria Barrett

Young history professor Charles Meredith may be researching a book about a Victorian crime of passion, but passion is lacking in his own life. When Lotte Graham discovers her husband's decieit, it's time to act. Student Claire Thompson is a loner and on the night she boasts that her professor Charles Meredith is taking her to supper, she disappears... As Charles searches for the woman who can prove his innocence, as the police-hunt for Claire intensifies, as Lotte struggles for independence, help comes from a silent voice, a voice that speaks from the grave.

384 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Maria Barrett has published 12 novels, widely translated and sold worldwide. She also writes romantic fiction under the name of EVIE HILL.

Maria's latest novel is the first in an historical crime series set in New York in 1907.

Reviews

[Jess · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book took me by surprise. To begin with I thought I'd hate it but thought I'd give it a try anyway and well it just proves don't just a book by it's cover, well it's blurb in my case. Thoroughly enjoyed this story, with crossovers aplenty and twists and turns. Barrett has a real skill of making you want to keep going, but then you realise you're running out of pages and you can't quite figure out how she's going to bring it all together when pages are just disappearing. Well she does it beautifully.

[George Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still Voices is a gripping psychological thriller that skillfully weaves together a modern mystery with echoes of a Victorian crime. Maria Barrett’s pacing is relentless, and the dual timelines create a sense of mounting unease that never fully releases its grip. The characters feel deeply human, shaped by betrayal, fear, and buried secrets, which makes the twists land with real emotional force. The gradual revelation of the voice from the watery grave is handled with precision, keeping the reader guessing until the final pages. A compelling, atmospheric read for fans of intelligent, character-driven suspense.

[Hermes Kingsbury · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a page-turner, “cozy” thriller. I love how the small stories build and grow. It’s a breadcrumbing method of pulling the reader in and it’s perfect. Every section reads like a turn-of-the-century magazine serial where the reader is provided crucial information and left with a cliffhanger. I loved how much wasn’t said about what each character was like but was demonstrated by their actions and people’s responses to them. The personality differences between all of the main characters shows Barrett’s ability to fully envision different ways of being with lots of nuance so that the voices don’t read like the Author’s voice but are totally convincing as those of each character.

The historical novel sections are a great break from the contemporary tension and a really interesting point of comparison for how gender functions today and then (not so very very differently). The multiple intertwining story arcs that each have their own interior integrity and come together seamlessly.

Everything else I have to say about it would contain spoilers so I’ll hold back.

[Harsh Gowani · Rating 5 out of 5]

The narrative was engrossing, the writing style, very profluent, and the story, so well-constructed! It moved between two time periods - piquing my sense of curiosity every time a new revelation was made - and yet never failed to keep my attention. The climax, though not so predictable, was very fitting for the story overall!