Cover Image: The Silent Girls

The Silent Girls

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The Silent Girls previously titled come Out To Play
Detective Anna Gwynne Crime Series Book 1

A book I've had for so long that now I've read it I regret not reading it sooner. A New author and and a new series, what can be better than starting a new book.
Anna Gwynne shone in this book, a real interesting character. I love getting to know the characters early in a series, I think for me it makes following the series and the stories that much better when you have started from the beginning.
The family of Kimberley Williams didn't believe she had killed herself. There was no way she would jump of that bridge. There was no reason for her to do that.
Did she have secrets that no-one knew about.
I found this very well written.





Detective Anna Gwynne Series
The Silent Girls (Book 1)
Blood Runs Cold (Book 2)
Before She Falls (Book 3)

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I would recommend this story to all thriller lovers .This book took me by surprise. It kept me interested throughout the story and I needed to see what was going to happen. I truly enjoyed the pacing of the story and the well written characters.

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I found this book quite enjoyable, although it did drag in one or two places, it is the first in a series of books featuring Detective Anna Gwynne so I look forward to reading more.

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Wow what a great beginning , full detail and absolutely first solid novel. Remind me of D.I.Kim Stone( Angela Marsons books)Angela Marsons which I love.
I really like the description in the book , the first chapter was absolutely gripping , I needed to find out more as soon as I read that chapter.

Sargent Anna and Shipwright are good together, but later Anna needs to carry two case by herself. I really like how Anna head works and the back story to her.

Its solid police procedural, which include everything . it was fast and fulfilling ending . I will look for the next one .

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This seems like something else I’ve read...I can’t think of the name. It was a good read overall—but it was a little too similar to other books with similar plots that I have read for me to fully enjoy it.

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*thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

2 stars.

Firstly I have to say, what is with the title and cover change? My version had the original title which was "Come Out and Play" with a butterfly on it. I preferred it SO much more than "The Silent Girls", with the new image. 

But that aside, it turns out that the story didn't really work for me anyway. I don't know what it was exactly because it seemed like this is exactly the type I would enjoy. I love books like these. I can't make up my mind if I liked Anna or not or if it was the storyline and the way it was told, that didn't agree with me. It took ages to get into and really kinda click and connect with the characters. But unfortunately, it took too long by the time it started to pick up. It's not one I would recommend but if you read the description and it sounds like one you will like then yeah, give it a chance. I don't think it was badly written, I'm going to guess that its just me and as not every book is for everyone, then this is just all that happened here.

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.I was hooked after the first few pages. Fast
paced and full of cleverly placed red herrings. I did guess who the perpetrator was but only because I caught the clue and then I had to wait for the big reveal. I am also fond of this book as it is based around my local area which always adds a thrill.
Anyone who enjoys a crime/thriller will love this.

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This is a standard police thriller with a protagonist you can root for. I just wish the story was less predictable overall.

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THE SILENT GIRLS is the first book in the Detective Anna Gwynne Series by author Dylan Young. This is a gripping serial-killer thriller.

The books in the Detective Anna Gwynne Series Include:
The Silent Girls (Book 1)
Blood Runs Cold (Book 2)
Before She Falls (Book 3)

Chris Hopkin’s and wife Sarah live with their sixteen- year old daughter Nia and ten- year old sister, Gwen on their family farm on the outskirts of the Forest of Dean in the Gloucestershire area.

Nia was stubborn and insisted on sleeping in her horse’s stable, in the cold winter, with her best friend, Beckie. When Chris makes his way down in the morning to the stables with coffee for the girls, he finds Nia is missing…her blood soaking the floor, and something is wrong with Beckie.

A call to 911…his daughter is missing!

Detective Sergeant Anna Gwynn aka the “Ice Queen” and DCI Ted Shipwright aka “Lollipop Man” and her team, under the direction of Superintendent Rainsford, are part of a major crimes review task force reviewing cold case files.

“Anna sees patterns where others see mess, ask questions no one does, and doesn’t let emotion cloud her judgement.”

The Gloucestershire police are convinced Nia’s been taken by the killer who stabbed to death Emily Risman eighteen years ago. Neville Cooper had been wrongly accused of the brutal murder of Emily Risman eighteen years ago, and now has been released from prison. The police are desperate to finally have the evidence to put him away. To save another girl before it’s too late.

They now have a historical DNA match for an inmate, a lifer, called Hector Shaw, in an unsolved rape case going back almost a year before he was in jail.

But Detective Anna Gwynne thinks everyone is jumping too quickly to nail the wrong man. He doesn’t fit the profile she’s been trained to see. This killer is sadistic. The suspect isn’t capable of that kind of crime.

Anna knows she’s the only one who can hunt down this serial killer…but by putting her own life in danger!

A page-turning thriller that will have you hooked. Now looking forward to starting book 2 in the series.

Many thanks to Bookouture via Netgalley for my digital copy.

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*I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not influence my opinion in any way. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher of this book, for sending me a copy.

When I read the synopsis on Netgalley I was intrigued. Unfortunately it took me a while to get around to finally reading it!

We follow Anna Gwynne, who is a police officer, who has been made Inspector while the boss is recovering from a heart attack. She is thrust into investigating a cold case which a man was wrongly convicted for. Since he has been out of prison, however, there has been another murder in the same manner as the original. The officers investigating this new crime are hung up on the original suspect, but Anna thinks they are on the wrong track.

Anna needs to solve her cold case and assist on the new cases and put all the pieces together to find out who the real killer is.

This book was an enjoyable read. I liked the style of writing adopted by Dylan Young, it was easy to follow – even when the story itself was a little confusing. The way in which I was lead to believe the perpetrator was a certain person, only to find out it was someone completely different, someone that I was definitely wasn’t expecting, was a great twist, and made the ending less obvious.
Anna as a character was great. I enjoyed following her and seeing how she solved the crime. Detectives from the other area who were investigating the newer crimes got on my nerves however. Just in the way that they didn’t appreciate that the boss was a woman. It worked for the story and I am glad they were like that, even though they frustrated me!!

All in all, The Silent Girls was a good read, I will most likely look out for the next one in the series, Blood Runs Cold, to see where Anna’s story goes.

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Thanks to netgalley for the ARC of this brilliantly written book.
This is the first book in a new series featuring Detective Anna Gwynne, and I can see the series going places!
Its well written, gripping from the beginning to the end and had me on the edge of my seat!!!
Highly recommended.

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When a young girl goes missing the police are sure they know who their man is. Previously convicted of a brutal crime, but the conviction overturned, surely it can't be a coincidence as soon as he's out of prison that history begins to repeat itself. Detective Anna Quinn doesn't think so.....but then again she doesn't believe he did it either. There's too many convenient clues and evidence lost for her to feel comfortable with him being accused again. But the rest of her colleagues think differently. But she finds help in the most unlikely place, six time murderer Hector Shaw knows things about the murders....but to tell her his secrets he wants something in return.....to get inside Anna's head....

This is the first Anna Quinn novel and it's a very good start. Anna Quinn is a bit of an enigma. Unlike most female detectives around she comes from a decent family, she had a normal happy upbringing. She's a driven young woman and a calm and methodical detective. But she's also a very human and empathetic character that it is easy to warm to. As the book goes on you realise her controlled life has a few chinks that could come back to haunt her, and her experiences in this story certainly will. Add to that she's Clarice to Hector Shaw's Hannibal this is a great set up for a new series which really could stand out from the crowd.

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For the first book in the series I think it was a really solid book. Anna Gwynne was a really likeable character and I think she is a really strong female character. The plot of the story was done really well, however the ending did fall flat for me, I just felt like there w.as something missing.
There are also parts that are very descriptive which made me feel like the book was dragging a bit.

I do feel like this was a strong first book and I am looking forward to see where book 2 will take us

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The Silent Girls by Dylan Young book number one in the Detective Anna Gwynne series. There are crimes in this book that DI Gwynne is working on. The first one is trying to get a convicted con, Hector Shaw, to admit to another crime and the second is reviewing an old case that could have repercussions on a current case. Young’s attention to detail is pretty good. I would put this one in a thriller category at times and then other times I was trying to solve the mystery like a whodunnit. Gwynne is a strong female lead which is often times not what you get with a male writer. I would recommend this book to others but it did take me a little bit of time to get into. The beginning of the book was a little slow to me but overall it was definitely a good effort from Young. One of my main problems is no matter what in most books it always seems that something demeaning happens to the female lead. Gwynne is a strong character and does not need these things to happen to her to get a strong foothold in our minds. I look forward to reading Gwynne’s future adventures. I received an egalley of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

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So, late to the party I started Dylan Young’s book....book 1 in a new series of books featuring Detective Anna Gwynne
Firstly, and important for a reader I really liked Anna and her personality and methods and thought processes and also the fact the writer did not ( as some do ) go OTT on her private life narrative but just gave enough to satisfy your nosiness about her life...but leave a lot to be discovered...maybe!!!
The major part of the book dealt with a man accused of a heinous crime who is then l, 17 years later, cleared by the appeal courts, he is released but then a copycat murder, equally nasty, happens soon after his release, was he the killer after all? Or is there another, a serial killer on the loose? Who is involved and why?
The book has a lot of police procedural information in it but on the whole is not baffling and is explained well and holds interest
The characters are interesting but all equal in the story and none so big that they take over
It is s well written, enjoyable ( although at times the subject matter is dark and hard going ) snd set out well, a proper mystery thriller that gave me a good read and had a believable ending ( although had not guessed it ) and made me want to start the new second book immediately
9 /10 and 5 stars

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A thoroughly enjoyable thriller, you wont be able to put it down!

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Detective Anna Gwynne is tasked with a serial killer who may be someone that has been dormant since the last spree. This is a fast paced, well plotted and developed story and Gwynne is such a strong great, female lead that this series is off to such a great start. I can't wait for more.

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Very fast paced and very intriguing. I enjoyed how it kept me hooked and it was an original story. Nowadays so many books read the same. Highly recommend

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One of my favourite books of the year. Really well written, I could not put it down and once I had finished the story I was actually sad, as I wanted it to continue. An author I will definitely be looking out for!!

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The Silent Girls pulled me in from the start and just wouldn't let go. This is an incredibly gripping page-turner with a cast of truly fabulous characters. Incredibly compelling, it had me hooked and the ultimate conclusion left me reeling. I didn't see that coming at all! This is a fantastic start to a new series and I can't wait for the next book! 4.5/5

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