Keep Quiet by Lisa Scottoline Also by this author: Daddy's Girl, Every Fifteen Minutes, Most Wanted, Look Again, Corrupted (Rosato & DiNunzio, #3), After Anna
Published by Macmillan on March 31st 2014
Genres: Mystery/Thriller/Suspense
Format: Audiobook
ISBN: 1250057868
ASIN: B00ISAAXYM
Goodreads
New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award-winning author Lisa Scottoline is loved by millions of readers for her suspenseful novels about family and justice. Scottoline delivers once again with Keep Quiet, an emotionally gripping and complex story about one man's split-second decision to protect his son –and the devastating consequences that follow.
Jake Buckman's relationship with his sixteen-year-old son Ryan is not an easy one, so at the urging of his loving wife, Pam, Jake goes alone to pick up Ryan at their suburban movie theater. On the way home, Ryan asks to drive on a deserted road, and Jake sees it as a chance to make a connection. However, what starts as a father-son bonding opportunity instantly turns into a nightmare. Tragedy strikes, and with Ryan's entire future hanging in the balance, Jake is forced to make a split-second decision that plunges them both into a world of guilt and lies. Without ever meaning to, Jake and Ryan find themselves living under the crushing weight of their secret, which threatens to tear their family to shreds and ruin them all.
Powerful and dramatic, Keep Quiet will have readers and book clubs debating what it means to be a parent and how far you can, and should, go to protect those you love.
"Scottoline has written another winning novel of unparalleled suspense. Fans of psychological suspense and family dynamics will want to snap this one up." ―Library Journal (starred review)mily.
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Keep Quiet by Lisa Scottoline starts off with a scene in the life of a family that many parents will find typical. Troubled family trying to get back on track. Dad has lost touch with his son while trying to build a business. Son is trying to get his way with a “Please, Dad! What can it hurt? Just this one time.” kind of persistence. Dad gives in because he’s trying to maintain the tenuous bond being formed. Well…BAM! A bad decision, the briefest moment of inattention, and we see a family crash-land into just about the biggest mess in which I’ve ever found myself as a reader. I can not tell y’all how much this story hurt my heart for this family because the more they tried to dig their way out, the further they slipped back into the abyss.
Keep Quiet is classic Lisa Scottoline, an author who loves to twist her readers in knots and end her stories with “Did that just happen?” conclusions. Although she is best known for her Rosato and DiNunzio lady lawyer mysteries, I have read several of Ms. Scottoline’s standalones and every single one of them had me fooled right up to the last word. That is no small confession since I am a person who takes a great deal of pride in being able to figure out things before the author spells them out. Father and son Jake and Ryan Buckman are two characters for whom you will want the best even though they are far from perfect and find themselves in a bad situation of their own making. There are other characters who, on the surface, seem OK, but whom you will develop suspicions about as the story moves along and the family unravels. Frankly, I disliked Ryan’s mom Pam Buckman about as much as any character I’ve ever encountered. Take a listen and you’ll hear why! Of course, there is the requisite villain who is just plain loathsome from the moment he’s introduced. He will receive his just deserts. There are so many twists at the end of the story, and I have read mixed reactions from reviewers about the conclusion. Personally, I was fine with it. Come on people! It’s fiction and Ms. Scottoline is the author. She can end her story any way she chooses.
The narration of KeepQuiet far exceeded my expectations. As I’ve stated previously, actors do make excellent narrators and this book is no exception. Ron Livingston, best known for his roles in the movie Office Space and the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers, fires the words like shots in the night, propelling listeners along and creating an atmosphere of almost unbearable tension and suspense as father and son dig themselves deeper and deeper into the chasm of lies, deception, and guilt. According to Publishers Weekly, Livingston is only the second male narrator the author has used and he totally nails this one.
“Every parent’s worst nightmare is brought chillingly to life by narrator Ron Livingston. He deftly captures the story’s many characters and as the terror grows, his measured approach keeps the story believable… a riveting listening experience.” ―AudioFile Magazine
I highly recommend Keep Quiet to lovers of mystery and suspense or even lovers of good fiction. The book is well-written as one would expect from this author and will definitely hold your attention whether you choose the audio version or the written word. Brava Ms. Scottoline. . .you fooled me again!
About Lisa Scottoline
Lisa Scottoline is the New York Times bestselling author of thirty novels including her most recent, AFTER ANNA, and also writes a weekly column with her daughter Francesca Serritella, called Chick Wit, for The Philadelphia Inquirer. Lisa has won many honors and awards, notably the Edgar Award, given for excellence in crime fiction, and the Fun Fearless Female Award from Cosmopolitan Magazine. She also teaches a course she created, called Justice and Fiction at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, and regularly does speaking engagements. There are twenty-five million copies of her books in print, and she is published in over thirty other countries.Lisa graduated magna cum laude in three years from the University of Pennsylvania, with a B.A. degree in English, and her concentration was Contemporary American Fiction, taught by Philip Roth and others. She graduated cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania Law School. She remains a lifelong resident of the Philadelphia area, where she lives with her array of disobedient pets.
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