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Dr. Sylvia Strange #3
A Desperate Silence
"She doesn't have a name. She's got the clothes on her back, a coloring book, a necklace, and a stick of bubble gum. She's ex parte. She's not talking. That's why they want you." With these words, Dr. Sylvia Strange--the tough forensic psychiatrist in Sarah Lovett's critically acclaimed novels Dangerous Attachments and Acquired Motives --is drawn into the world of a ten-year-old child too scared to speak. In A Desperate Si-lence, Dr. Strange must uncover this little girl's secrets or else the knowledge she possesses just might die with her.
What has this fragile child witnessed that makes her so dangerous? Dr. Strange soon learns that the girl's tattered history reaches across the border to the drug lords of Mexico and across town to a killer on death row. The deeper she delves into the mute child's psyche, the more Dr. Strange realizes just how frighteningly vulnerable her patient is and how vital the bond between them has become. A second attempt on the young girl's life by a sadistic madman pushes Dr. Strange into overdrive, struggling to put the pieces of this terrifying puzzle together before it is too late.
With roller-coaster suspense, a tightly woven plot, the eerie texture of the American South-west, and a heroine as sexy as she is intellectually provocative, Sarah Lovett's A Desperate Silence cements her reputation among the best suspense writers at work today.
What has this fragile child witnessed that makes her so dangerous? Dr. Strange soon learns that the girl's tattered history reaches across the border to the drug lords of Mexico and across town to a killer on death row. The deeper she delves into the mute child's psyche, the more Dr. Strange realizes just how frighteningly vulnerable her patient is and how vital the bond between them has become. A second attempt on the young girl's life by a sadistic madman pushes Dr. Strange into overdrive, struggling to put the pieces of this terrifying puzzle together before it is too late.
With roller-coaster suspense, a tightly woven plot, the eerie texture of the American South-west, and a heroine as sexy as she is intellectually provocative, Sarah Lovett's A Desperate Silence cements her reputation among the best suspense writers at work today.
- GenresMystery
306 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1998
8 people are currently reading
76 people want to read
About the author
Sarah Lovett
26 books29 followersSarah Lovett is currently collaborating with former CIA covert operative, Valerie Plame Wilson, co-authoring the second book (fall 2014) in a series of “Vanessa Pierson” spy novels for Penguin Books/Blue Rider Press. The series debut, BLOWBACK, is due out October 2013.
Lovett is the author of Dark Alchemy, Dantes’ Inferno, Dangerous Attachments, Acquired Motives, and A Desperate Silence as well as 25 nonfiction travel and science books written primarily for children.
The five novels in Lovett’s crime fiction series, featuring forensic psychologist Dr. Sylvia Strange, have been translated into a dozen languages, her non-fiction books include the award-winning “Extremely Weird” children’s series, which also aired as a network television special. Her short fiction and how-to pieces are included in anthologies, and she has worked as a freelancer for newspapers, magazines, and National Public Radio.
Before becoming a full-time writer, Lovett worked as a legal researcher for the New Mexico Office of the Attorney General, an executive director of a non-profit theater, a jazz dancer, a playwright, a gas station attendant, an upholstery assistant, and a bartender. It was her experience working in the New Mexico State Penitentiary and the exposure to prison issues that led her to write her first crime series. While researching for the series, Lovett earned a degree in criminal justice.
When she’s not on deadline, Lovett works with writers as a coach, teacher and consultant. She has been a presenter at writing conferences in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
A native Californian, she lives in Santa Fe with her family.
Lovett is the author of Dark Alchemy, Dantes’ Inferno, Dangerous Attachments, Acquired Motives, and A Desperate Silence as well as 25 nonfiction travel and science books written primarily for children.
The five novels in Lovett’s crime fiction series, featuring forensic psychologist Dr. Sylvia Strange, have been translated into a dozen languages, her non-fiction books include the award-winning “Extremely Weird” children’s series, which also aired as a network television special. Her short fiction and how-to pieces are included in anthologies, and she has worked as a freelancer for newspapers, magazines, and National Public Radio.
Before becoming a full-time writer, Lovett worked as a legal researcher for the New Mexico Office of the Attorney General, an executive director of a non-profit theater, a jazz dancer, a playwright, a gas station attendant, an upholstery assistant, and a bartender. It was her experience working in the New Mexico State Penitentiary and the exposure to prison issues that led her to write her first crime series. While researching for the series, Lovett earned a degree in criminal justice.
When she’s not on deadline, Lovett works with writers as a coach, teacher and consultant. She has been a presenter at writing conferences in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
A native Californian, she lives in Santa Fe with her family.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
November 20, 2025
Absolutely Unforgettable!
I just finished this book, and wow what an emotional, gripping ride. Dr. Sylvia Strange is a powerful, compelling character, and following her as she fights to protect a traumatized young girl kept me glued to every page. The psychological depth, the tension, the desert atmosphere, and the chilling danger all blended into a story I couldn’t put down.
The twists were shocking, the pacing was perfect, and the ending left me speechless. This is one of those rare crime thrillers that stays with you long after you close the book. A phenomenal read.
I just finished this book, and wow what an emotional, gripping ride. Dr. Sylvia Strange is a powerful, compelling character, and following her as she fights to protect a traumatized young girl kept me glued to every page. The psychological depth, the tension, the desert atmosphere, and the chilling danger all blended into a story I couldn’t put down.
The twists were shocking, the pacing was perfect, and the ending left me speechless. This is one of those rare crime thrillers that stays with you long after you close the book. A phenomenal read.
December 29, 2019
E' stato il primo libro di questa autrice ma è stata una bella scoperta. Un romanzo semi-poliziesco (scrivo "semi" perchè la protagonista è una psicologa ma vi è il fidanzato che è un poliziotto) che si svolge tra il Messico e gli U.S.A., il ritrovamento di una bambina che non parla, omicidi, corruzione e droga.
September 4, 2017
Sylvia Strange and Matt England
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January 3, 2020Can't find this book to read it.
January 22, 2012
Great crime thriller that took me inside the world of New Mexico and its proximity to Mexican crime. My favorite of the Sarah Strange novels I've read.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews