This was a bloody brilliant read, and I couldn't put it down. I can't wait to read some more by a very talented author! Recommended.
TB

What a freaking page turner. Book had me guessing from page to page and I never wanted to put it down. Literally did not see the end coming. At all. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Silenced Girls is a the first in a new series of books by Roger Stelljes with the protagonist, Tori Hunter. It was enjoyable but maybe over hyped for me.
We are introduced to Tori as a teenager, being questioned by the police when her twin sister is missing. Tori is devastated to have lost her best friend and sister.
20 years later, Tori lives in New York and has become an FBI agent focused on missing children. She left her hometown behind after the disappearance of her sister. When the 20th anniversary of her sister's disappearance brings with it a letter from her captor, Tori is compelled to go home and find her!
The story is good and has excellent set up. It's a bit of a slow burn (I like action) and a bit too long. I would be interested to see the next installment of Tori Hunter's cases.

This book was frustrating for me. The first half was incredibly long and hard to get in to. I dreaded reading it and forced myself to try to finish the book. There was so much background information on Tori and Will that I understand was wanted as it is the beginning of a series, but just had nothing to do with the book or the story line.

The second half of the book really took a turn for me. I found myself having a hard time putting it down and I really wanted to read it. It still dragged on, and I thought the book was much longer than it needed to be to tell the story, but at least I was interested.

The actual story of the missing and murdered girls was great. The twists and turns of who actually did it was unexpected and well thought out. I just could of done without a lot of the unnecessary filler. A good start to a new series.

This was a well written, captivating thriller that sucked me right in. It took me a little bit to get into for me but once I got into I was loving it. I thought the characters were well developed and had plenty of backstory to round them out. I liked the writing and the story was fast paced. The mystery was well done and kept me engaged in. Overall I enjoyed this book. The only downside is that the book had a couple parts and story lines that felt a bit unnecessary and seemed to be just padding to make the book a bit longer. If those had been taken out the book would have been a 5 star read for me.

Agent Tori Hunter returned to her hometown while investigating the case of a missing woman. But that was painful for her as memories of her missing twin came to the forefront. Only by the power of sheer determination could she find her path to justice.
My first read by this author, I liked the flow of the story most times. Tori was complex and the author could infuse her with layers. But the book was too long and I found myself putting this book on the backburner. The prose could be kept sharp
Overall, I could skim read and manage to finish it. I would say it was a good police procedural.

“Silenced girls” is the first book in the Agent Tori Hunter series and it is a very promising start to this new series. There are enough twists to make for an interesting read and I couldn’t figure out who the killer was until almost to the end. The characters and setting where very well developed and I look forward to see how Tori’s characters grows.

I can't really think of anything I didn't like about this book. Maybe it was a "TAD" bit too dragged out. I think that whole side story with Tori and the missing 2-year-old could have been left out completely and the story wouldn't have suffered at all. But that was a VERY minor issue. It sucked me in from the start and kept me turning the pages.

The characters were likable (although there were a couple times I thought Tori put a toe over the line into the "unlikable" category), but again, it wasn't a major issue. I was also really taken by surprise by who the "baddie" turned out to be. I am usually quite good at Sherlocking these things out, but this one was a genuine surprise. So kudos to the author for that!

I look forward to seeing what this author has in store for Tori next!

Wow! What a debut novel!
Seriously, before I say anything else, I just have to say that if you are a fan of mystery thrillers you need to get this book.
If you’re a fan of tough, smart heroines who very real, you need to get this book.
And if you’re a fan of being taken along on a detailed case that follows an investigation perfectly, you need to get this book.
I can’t say enough good things about it.
Right from the prologue, where Victoria “Tori” Hunter is questioned about her sister’s disappearance, I could tell that it was going to be a well-told story. There was something about the style of writing and the interplay between characters that drew me in.
The story then jumps to present day and takes off from there. Honestly, it was so well-plotted I don’t want to give anything way, but the way the author moves between characters and events was flawless.
I really liked Tori. She was one of the most real characters I have “met.” Everything that was part of her story rang true – nothing seemed to be overdone or manipulative to fit the narrative. Her career trajectory, life choices, and attitude were all spot on.
I also appreciated Braddock and his history. I’m partial to NYPD stories, but I’m also picky about them. Authors often use a well-known department as a mechanism but treat it as any other law enforcement agency.
This author either did copious research or knew someone on the job, because he captured the attitude (and background) of an NYPD MOS perfectly. I think I actually knew this guy. I also appreciated that 9/11 wasn’t used as a crutch, but as a pivotal event that was a part of Braddock’s history. It was accurate.
The plot was excellent. Once again, everything just flowed. I especially liked how there was a side story that focused on Tori’s normal “every day” job. That was an interesting detour that gave the reader insight to Tori’s drive and professional persona. It also provided additional background.
The author does a great job of creating a “real” investigation. There are swings and misses, wrong avenues and surprise suspects. Again, I can’t stress how natural everything was.
I’m starting to repeat myself, but that’s because I want to emphasize how great the book was – but not give any plot points away.
Suffice to say that I’m very excited to have found Agent Tori Hunter, and I can’t wait to read more of her stories.

This book is one very beautifully written , full of plot twists and evolving characters also very unpredictable that it made me want to take off my imaginary detective cap.
I couldn’t pinpoint who the bad guy was until the very end and I couldn’t have been more shocked

I like Tori’s character , how she was quick on her feet, always saying what she wants and following her guts , Also Braddock who’s still very strong after all he’s gone through in the past and of course I loved their romance because it was just right not too much or too less ❤️

About;-
Tori Hunter and Jessie Hunter are identical twins who enjoy their own company and spend every second with each other but have two different personalities , Jessie is a popular party girl, charming, always dresses up while Tori is a quiet girl hiding behind her glasses , shady clothes and always in a pony tail

One 4th July ..after a party Jessie goes missing but her car was found with a flat front tire the next morning. Tori now heartbroken decides to leave Manchester , bury her past and never to return

20years later, Tori now a successful FBI special agent who loves too much online shopping receives an article from the abductor on her sisters death anniversary that is way too familiar

Without hesitation, she goes back to her hometown to investigate the missing case and search for her sisters Murderer.

I took a-bit long to finish this one but I enjoyed every single moment in it and I would love to read more from this amazing series

Lots of thanks to NetGalley , Bookouture and Robert Stelljes for letting me experience this intriguing mystery world.

I can’t say enough good things about this book!!!

I’ll admit that initially I was hesitated to start this one because of its length (the book is almost 500 pages and the audio book is 17+ hours long!) and it’s a pretty dense, detailed crime story. I was a little concerned it wouldn’t hold my attention—-I shouldn’t have been! This one grabbed my attention immediately and never let go!

Every character in this book I fleshed out perfectly—— they jump off the page and you really feel like you know them, but you never feel bogged down by details. The author manages the same thing with the setting, painting a vivid picture for you without boring you with endless landscape descriptions. Stelljes did the most perfect job of walking the line between vivid detail and overkill I’ve ever read and I absolutely loved it. He also did a great job creating enough a romantic plot to soften the gory story without turning it into a romance novel.

Lastly, the plot line was complicated and woven well, giving you enough clues without giving it away.

I just absolutely loved it. I can’t wait for more from the Tori Hunter series!!!

On July 4th 1999, two sisters went out to celebrate.
Only one of them came home.

That night, Jessie Hunter went missing, leaving her car abandoned on an empty road. Suffocated by the grief of an entire town for the loss of her twin sister, Victoria (Tori) moves away, and doesn’t look back.

Over 20 years later, Tori is a skilled FBI agent, working to reunite worried with their missing children – the happy ending her own family never got. With her father long dead, Tori has no reason to venture back to Manchester Bay. Not until she receives an anonymous note to her home address from her sister’s killer.

Unable to ignore the possibility of answers about her sister’s death, Tori finally returns to her hometown. Alongside former NYPD detective Will Braddock, Tori investigates a recent disappearance with stark similarities to her sister’s case. With the prospect of finally finding her sister’s killer – Tori is on a quest for justice.

It took a little while, but I warmed to Tori. I understood her grief around her sister’s disappearance and I was glad to see her open up to the other characters throughout the novel. Will makes a great partner for Tori, he challenges her and their personalities contrast each other well – his calm veneer versus her more hot-headed nature. I liked how they clashed at first but eventually learnt to work well together.

The story has some interesting minor characters, but I feel like we didn’t get to spend enough time with them in the novel to get a good grasp of their personalities – in particular, Tori’s childhood friends. Even though there were some scenes where they got to spend time with Tori, we didn’t get to know them very well in the story. Perhaps if the series continues we will get to see more of them.

In all, I really enjoyed the book, but I did feels like there were lulls in the pacing. However, there were some cleaver red herrings and hearing the killer’s voice throughout added to the tension. I usually prefer police procedural narratives set in cities, but this small-town setting was really interesting. The descriptions were beautiful and I loved how we got to witness the characters enjoying it in the novel.

A special thank you to the team at Bookouture for giving me this digital ARC through Netgalley.

The Silences Women (I fixed it for you) disappeared over a span of 2 decades. They were taken from disabled cars and never seen again. Tori Hunter (baseball fans may have a hard time picturing this woman and not the former Angel) knows about the case first hand. her twin sister was the first to disappear. On the 20th anniversary another woman disappears in the same town under the same circumstances. Now a special agent with the FBI, Tori is lured back by the murder. No one believes that one person waited 20 years between kills, so she teams up with the local detective on the case to solve the case and find her sister.

The characters and plot were well developed. We learn the background of all of the players in town. There is even another case that Tori is called out to handle right in the middle. It's tied up pretty quickly, but it is meant to show us just how good she is at her job. I liked Tori. I was less sure about a lot of her former friends who all seemed to now run the town she left behind. Over time, I'm hoping they all grow on me or at least my feelings about them clarify. Overall, it was a satisfying story with a good mix of action, plot, and character development.

First book by the author and first book in a new series. The story starts so well, and in a few paragraphs, it becomes so addictive that I couldn’t stop reading till the last page. A terrible event in her teenage helps our heroine, Tori, becoming what she is today, a special agent working on children's disappearances cases. Twenty years after her twin sister was abducted and her case became a cold one, a similar one arises and she receives a mysterious message that, of course, she can’t let it go without acting on it. It’s an interesting story overall with fast-paced moments and interesting characters, with many twists and turns, some predictable, some unexpected, a story that sets up a must-read series for sure. I will say though that I found some chapters unnecessary as nothing is happening there or it’s just about a daily life activity in anyone’s life that many times I don’t want to read and hence the lower star rating but it’s definitely a great book and I’m looking forward to the next ones.

Roger Stelljes kicks off a brand new series with Silenced Girls featuring FBI Agent Tori Hunter.

Special Agent Hunter returns to her hometown of Manchester Bay in Shepard County, Minnesota for the first time in twenty years to investigate the disappearance of Genevieve Lash, a young woman who has vanished just like Tori's twin sister, Jessie years ago. She needs to solve a case that will force her to confront her painful past and question the motives of others she thought were friends. Shepard County Chief Detective Will Braddock, formerly from NYPD is not too keen to have Tori on his team, so she works alongside the police force and finds shocking similarities between Jessie's kidnapping and Genevieve's disappearance. The investigation soon finds her and the other detectives in danger.

With its excellent plot and zippy pacing, I had difficulty putting this book down between chapters. Silenced Girls was such a compelling read, and I relished every moment. Special Agent Tori Hunter was really well-drawn, and I found her to be super-confident, with a huge personality though she was had a tendency to flirt with recklessness. This riveting, horrifyingly dark tale was emotionally very weighty and Roger Stelljes brilliantly showcased the emotional impact of the trauma experienced by the main character, Tori Hunter following her sister's abduction, driving her to find justice for the women and their grieving families. An absolutely cracking piece of crime fiction, chillingly and brilliantly delivered.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel from Bookouture via NetGalley at my request and this review is my own unbiased opinion.

An interesting plot with believable characters and a lot of suspense. The story kept me interested to the end and made it hard to put the book down. I like the person that Tori became and look forward to the next in this series. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys a good mystery.

I did not enjoy this book. In all honesty I wasn't even able to read all of it. I made it a few chapters in and just couldn't force myself to read anymore. It had a lot of unneeded details and just wasn't written in the strain that I enjoy.

Thank you to Bookouture for my copy of this book via Netgalley and for letting me take part in this tour. If you follow my reviews then you will know I love a good crime story. I also love reading new to me authors. It's so refreshing to try a new style or a new series. I love it just as much as going back to my old comforts.

This story follows Tori Hunter. Tori's twin sister was taken 20 years ago and now another young woman has gone missing on the same night in very similar circumstances. So Tori heads back to her home. I really liked Tori. Yes, she is strong-willed and stubborn but underneath that, there’s a softer side that wants to come out. It’s just a little buried under everything she has been through.

Tori's partner on this case is Will Braddock. Will seems like a cool guy and someone that everyone will respect. He has had quite a career in the NYPD before moving to Manchester Bay. I really liked the way these two interacted too.

The case itself is very gripping. With two young women missing there’s a lot of answers needed for a small town. The pressure from the powerhouses above was, unfortunately, very realistic. More often than not people play the game.

I liked that we got to see Tori doing her real job as an FBI child abduction specialist. It showed us how good she really is and also how she has to drop everything at a moment’s notice.

I think the pace was good at the beginning but it did slow a little towards the middle point. This is probably more realistic of how a case goes and I’m just used to the fast pace of TV shows.

I can’t wait to jump in with another case with Tori though. I am excited to follow her journey and the series.

Tori and Jessie Hunter are seventeen year old identical twins. Tori hugs her sister and says goodnight and leaves with her boyfriend. Little does Tori realise that she has just said goodbye to her sister Jessie will never be seen again. Fast forward twenty years Tori is now FBI and heads a team to find missing children. Another woman is missing back home in the same circumstances as Jessie. Tori can't ignore this news and heads back home to where it all began. Little does she realise that she will uncover a prolific serial killer.
This is a roller coaster of a read. From the first to the last page I was hooked. Fast paced, full of red herrings. This read got my heart racing and I finally turned the last page at 2.am. Yes this book is that good. I really want to read more now PLEASE. A new author for me and one to watch. A well deserved five stars and a MUST READ.
Thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for the ARC in return for giving an honest review

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ #5stars
Wow wow wow!
From the very first chapter it grips you in a choke hold and does not let go. The characters are immediately likeable. The atmosphere, characters and dynamics are detailed and suck you right in. The first shoe drops right in the first chapter and then we are off and running at a rollercoaster of a pace. This story does not slow one iota till the last astonishing page. It twists, it turns and just when you think it is solved it spins again. This is one of those rare books you stay up all night to read and then when it’s over you are sad that it’s done. This book absolutely needs to top your must read list! I can not wait for the next Tori Hunter book.