3.5 rounded to 4 . A easy fast paced stand alone thriller by one of my fav serial authors . Still prefer his crime detective novels.

Maggie is a strong character, and she is trying to get over her husband's death. It is not easy when someone is trying to hurt her.

4.5 ⭐️

As a huge fan of Robert Bryndza, I was excited to see what he would do with this, his first, stand-alone thriller. And did he live up to expectations? You betcha!

Fear the Silence is a nerve-wracking, locked-room type thriller; the “room” being a tiny island off the Croatian coast, where protagonist Maggie goes to grieve after the shocking suicide of her husband Will. Maggie doesn’t believe Will could have taken his own life, and her suspicions are confirmed, when she finds a letter from him at their villa, triggering a chain of terrifying events that sees Maggie fighting for her own survival.

Bryndza is a master of atmosphere, tension and pace, and here he draws on all his skills to carry the reader on a helter-skelter ride of breathtaking twists and turns. As Maggie searches for the truth, amid offers of help from locals and old friends, it quickly becomes clear that she can trust no one.

With an incoming storm adding to the sense of peril and isolation, the momentum builds dramatically, before exploding into a frenzied, heart-stopping finale.

Granted, some of the plot points are a bit far-fetched, but stickler as I am for authenticity, sometimes, like here, it’s okay to brush it aside and just enjoy the ride. If Tom Cruise can defy logic and physics in his Mission Impossible movies, why can’t authors like Robert Bryndza do so as well.

More where this came from, please, Robert. I loved it!

I thoroughly enjoyed this. Robert Bryndza has been a favorite of mine since his release of The Girl in the Ice. I have read all of his mystery/thriller books and enjoyed them. This was no different. The plot was fantastic and the twists were unexpected but believable. I hope Robert Bryndza keeps writing both his series' and standalones.

First time reading this author but will definitely check out his other works. This book had a smooth sailing introduction to the characters and set up for the mystery that will keep you turning pages. Read the cover or other reviews for details,I don't do book reports. Characters are interesting and believable,scene descriptions place you right in the middle of all the action. Lovely descriptions of Croatia,which from what I have seen has some gorgeous places to visit. You may get an inkling of who submit but it is so much later in he book you'll have to finish it to see if there is a perfect outcome. I was provided an advanced reader copy of this book and was under no obligation to write a review. The opinions expressed are my own. Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

3.5 stars.

This was a great poolside read, quick and easy to follow and totally undemanding.

Maggie is a trauma surgeon in a London hospital when every A & E doctor’s worst nightmare comes true and the patient on the gurney is a loved one - in fact, her husband, Will.

What follows is a cross between a traditional chase thriller and a poor man’s Da Vinci Code, demanding a great deal of suspended disbelief. None of the characters are particularly plausible and neither, to be honest, is the plot which did make me giggle in parts until I nearly fell off my sun-bed. It’s fun, fast and escapist but perhaps not one for those who are looking something a bit more cerebral.

With thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great thriller. I couldn't wait to find out what was going to happen. I wish I'd picked this one up sooner. A good author and one I'll be looking out for again. My thanks to netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

I absolutely love Robert Bryndza's detective thriller series so I couldn't pass up the opportunity to read his latest standalone. It was obvious from the start that Will's death wasn't what it first appeared to be. Someone had gone to great lengths to make it appear like a suicide. His widow, Maggie, did not believe that Will committed suicide and I was right there with her.

I enjoyed the setting of Croatia and the claustrophobic feel of the island. I can't imagine being stuck on an island where the ferry only comes once a week and in the middle of storm. The island was quite deserted which added to the ominous feeling. To make it worse, someone was stalking Maggie and breaking into her home at night.

The tension escalated with each page and I could feel it especially once Will's secret was revealed. This was such a gripping read. I loved the setting, characters and the pacing. To say that it met my expectations is an understatement. This was simply a brilliant thriller!

Wow. Started a bit unusual and slow, as in where is this going, but it escalated quickly. The book got better and better and finished in...well you have to find out for yourself.

Great character development. Suspense build up through out and interesting twists around every corner.

I love Robert Bryndza's writing!

Was I super exiting about this new book? Definitely yes. It was worth it.

Not maniac. not detective related story. Just ordinary couple, one death and a lot of secrets. Almost forgot, a beautiful Croatian island. Pefrect for summer reads)

Maggie a badass. Who you can trust if you can trust no one? How to keep alive and whiten your husband's name?
There was a lot of tension, theories and blackmailing. It was definitely a must read.

This was an excellent read-taut, suspenseful and chillingly creepy! Robert Bryndza has captured the sense of doubt and confusion Maddie feels when her world is turned upside down with the premature death of her husband and then it’s spun around with the information she finds. Read this when you have hours of time because you will not want to stop! Thanks go out to #netgalley and the publisher, #ravenstreet for this to read and review, all opinions are my own.

A stand alone thriller from the author of some of the best "must read" series today. Robert Bryndza is especially skilled at layering the stories so the reader can "see" everything as it unfolds.
In FEAR THE SILENCE, Bryndza sets the scene for the MC, Maggie, as she witnesses her husband's death. When the police tell her he died by suicide, her grief intensifies to the point that she cannot return to the home where he was injured. Her escape to a small island will allow her to grieve in peace, or not. As the story unwinds and the tension builds, Bryznda adds small pieces, clues, to keep the pace moving as fast as the storm that will keep everyone on the island from leaving. Now, the air is charged, the scene is set, and.......oh no you don't get anymore from me. You have to read it yourself!

I really enjoyed this book. The settings were fabulous shifting from dark London over to sunny Croatia. Authentic characters, of which I think I liked George the most. The story kept me engaged throughout and was thoroughly entertaining.

Fear The Silence
Suspense
Thriller
Secrets
Action
Adventure
I enjoyed this book! It had a great pace that added to the suspense and thrill! It was full of twists! I thought it had a good triumphant ending to the story!
thanks net galley and raven street publishing for this arc!

This is an awesome thriller, which I thoroughly enjoyed and loved.

The story is about a woman called Maggie who is an Emergency Room doctor. One day her husband Will is brought there as he has been shot. He doesn't survive, and she is told that he took his own life. She is then sent a note while she is on holiday, which confirms to her that Will was killed. People around her are then taken out, and she is scared for her life,

I found this book very exciting and thrilling, as it was so fast paced and like an adventure story with a lot of action. It would make a good movie. Highly recommended!

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this book.

Wow! Was not expecting that!

Well written and interesting, you will be reading nonstop until the very end. Highly recommended if you want twists and turns that keep you in the edge if you’re seat until the very end.

Maggie’s husband , Will is found dead in his home office, ruled a suicide. But Maggie doesn’t believe it. Why would Will kill himself when he was so happy? To help her deal with his death and to help her find out why, Maggie sets off to their Island home in the Croatians. Once Maggie arrives to the Island she discovers the Island is empty of the holiday visitors who flock there in the summer months and the ferry only runs one day a week. As Maggie is settling in, she discovers a letter from Will disclosing a secret he has kept for the last past 6 years. Suddenly a storm hits the Island and Maggie is finding her “smart home” is malfunctioning or is it someone on the Island who knows Will’s secrets and wants to put an end to them once and for all?

I have enjoyed Robert Bryndza's Detective Erika Foster series and recently began his new Kate Marshall, which I am also enjoying, so when I saw that he had a standalone thriller, I had to read it. Fear the Silence is a story that will grab you from the beginning and keep you on the edge of your seat until the end. Maggie is a doctor and her husband used to be a pathologist. Six years ago, he abruptly quit his job and is now a real estate developer. While Maggie was at work, he is killed, shot in their home. When the police tell her he committed suicide, she can't believe it. Maggie needs time to grieve, so after the funeral she heads to their vacation home on an island off Croatia. What she finds there, a letter telling her he was killed, sends her on a chase and eventually running for her life. What is going on? Who killed Will? Why are they after her now?

This is one of those stories that would make a perfect movie, with its action, remote location, secrets, and suspense. The plot was intricate, twisty and creative. Could it really happen? Maybe. There is a cast of characters that are suspicious, leaving this reader not sure who Maggie could trust. The setting of the "smart house" was intriguing and when it began causing accidents, I decided I will never do that to any home I live in. As things were revealed, I got a few aha moments, and a few that threw me for a loop. With lots of twists and turns, secrets and suspicions, corruption and power, Fear the Silence is a wonderful read. Grab the popcorn, sit back and enjoy the ride.

3★
“I returned the smile, trying not to show how nervous that made me feel. Our house was in the most isolated spot on the northwestern tip of the island, and I would be the only woman here with two men.”

She had good cause to be nervous. The publisher’s blurb gives away a lot of the first 20% of the story, presumably to attract readers, but I think it could have held a bit back.

Maggie is a London trauma doctor who married another doctor from a well-to-do family. A few years ago, he told her he’d become a doctor only because it’s what his parents wanted, but his real passion was always for architecture and design – so he quit! His mother has never approved of the change or of Maggie.

“I was surprised to see Will’s mother. Marelle is very tall and willowy and was elegantly dressed head-to-toe in black. Not a hair was out of place. Her height has always intimidated me, and she has this habit of looking down at me without needing to angle her head.”

Will was found dead in his office chair, shot through the head – an apparent suicide. Maggie doesn’t believe it for a minute. He’s been happy and has plans. She decides to escape for a time to their holiday house on a small, much-loved Croatian island.

This is no humble cottage. It is a big home with all the latest smart features, cameras, automatic pool covers, timers. These wi-fi connected conveniences are great when they work, but a good storm can knock them out. Or an intruder who knows the system.

This is a step up from the cat burglar who cuts the phone line or flips the circuit breaker, but the tension is exactly the same. Except this is an ‘almost’ empty island with a weekly ferry, and Maggie is entirely alone. I mentioned storms.

“The wind hit me as it whipped my hair about my head. Waves were smashing against the rocks at the bottom of the cliff, and a knot of black storm clouds gathered on the horizon. It was forty miles to the mainland. I shivered at the thought.”

This part of the world had suffered political upheaval (to put it politely), and Maggie doesn’t really know where the old enmities lie. Can she trust anyone?

As the action heats up and there are wounds to dress (she’s a trauma doctor, remember), she’s on the ball. I’m exaggerating to say she keeps herself going with bones sticking out of her legs, but I just had to suspend disbelief that a good bandage and a dose of pills conquers all.

“When I was clean I applied gauze bandages to the more significant cuts on my legs, and dressed in a warm, soft tracksuit, thick socks, and trainers. I took more antibiotics and painkillers…”

Every time she puts on thick layers of dry clothes, she seems to be immediately drenched again. She’s confused and terrified, but also furious. As she begins to figure out what has happened and why, she is even more frightened (and wet, and cold, and badly wounded). She’s in more trouble than she ever thought possible.

It’s a great premise, with the personal stories mixed with politics and international intrigue. I lost interest as she seemed to overcome such terrible assaults and injuries with bandages and a handful of pills. For me, it felt repetitious.

I like mysteries, so I enjoyed that part, and I’m sure the thriller part will probably appeal to true thriller fans who will forgive a lot for the sake of action!

Thanks to NetGalley and Raven Street Publishing for the copy for review.

3.5 stars for this book, I absolutely love all the authors series however this stand alone was good but not fantastic like his other books. The plot is a dark thriller based around the main character Maggie and her search for answers after her husbands death. At times it felt far fetched and I didn’t warm to Maggie as I have the authors other characters. Over all is was an ok read but I look forward to reading more of the author series books.