*Here’s a tale of a man who has no friends,
Not much can be inferred about him even with a lens,
A murder follows and the plot gets dense,
Much is to be said before ‘The Final Silence’*
Stuart Neville: This Irish author has written 9 novels since 2009. His book ‘The Twelve’ has won prestigious awards. His brainchild of fiction is inspector Jack Lennon. This is Jack’s 4th case.
Plot: The story is set in Belfast, Ireland. This is the hometown of our author as well. Raymond Drew, a lonely middle-aged widower, commits suicide after silently regretting the sins he has committed in his life. His house is inherited by his only living relatives, the family of a very politically powerful man - Graham Carlisle.
After initial reluctance, Graham’s daughter Rea accepts this house as her new abode. The eerie air in the house makes her wary since day 1. When she breaks open a locked room in the huge home, she stumbles upon a thick book. To her horror, she finds that there are chilling mementos of people who have been reported as missing over the past many years. There are photographs, newspaper cuttings as well as real hair. Although the Carlisle family had always suspected Raymond to be a weird man, this was way beyond anyone’s expectations that he could have been a mentally unstable character with cold-blooded, murderous impulses.
The power-hungry Mr. Carlisle doesn’t allow this matter to go to the police since it would jeopardize his political career. Desperate Rea, torn between acquiring justice for the victims and her love for her father, calls up her friend –inspector Jack Lennon. Jack has recently suffered an injury not only to his physical self but also his dignity. Though he is waiting for both wounds to heal, he is intrigued by this sudden revelation about a presumably simple suicide.
Before Rea could move ahead towards detection or even show Jack the book, it is stolen and Rea is murdered! The case is then assigned to a meticulous and ethical inspector - Serena Flanagan.
Since Jack was the last person to meet Rea before her death, he becomes the main suspect. He would have owed it to Rea to find the culprit, but now he will have to investigate the case to prove his own innocence.
Did Raymond have a partner in crime? Will Jack be successful in unmasking the devil? Will Serena trust Jack and find the real culprit?
My opinion:
The first few chapters talk about the two main characters, Rea Carlisle and Jack Lennon, in every alternate chapter. Jack struggles with many things in life - with his injured body, with his addiction to painkillers, with his drinking and with his relatives who regard him as a failed father to his 8-year-old daughter. He is not a very amiable character, but his relationship with his daughter is heart-warming. On the other hand, Rea is alone, unmarried and unemployed. She has a fierce desire to be independent. Despite her family’s influential background, she is untouched by the glamor. Both these character portrayals are very relatable and real.
The picture of strong yet sensitive, ambitious yet patient Serena is very well established.
I loved the narration, pace, attention to detail and the story. I would classify this as a thriller more than a mystery since there is no explosive revelation in the end.
There are mystery discussions every month at our town library, and despite me taking a book each month, I could never finish it on time primarily because the story wasn’t too gripping or interesting. This month, The Final Silence ornamented the mystery discussion bookshelf. Needless to say, I was gripped from the first page itself. I finished the book in 4 days, this is something I have never managed with any book since many years.
About this book, famous author Lee Child mentions, “Crime fiction doesn’t get much better than this.”
Quite true!