The Vows of Silence

By: Susan Hill

Narrated by: Steven Pacey

Melanie shops happily for supper the day after her return from her honeymoon but when she gets back from the supermarket there is someone other than her new husband waiting for her... and she won't survive the encounter to talk about it. Tanya and Dan, who have been married that day, slip back into town to enjoy the fun of Lafferton's "Jug" Fair. Also in the throng among the roundabouts and coconut shies are middle-aged Helen and Phil who are planning their wedding. And someone else. Someone bent on destroying happiness - and lives. Simon Serrailler is faced with a number of apparently motiveless murders. Could the link be love and marriage

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Revenge

Simon Serrailler is brought into a murder with no motive. Then another and another and another, all connected but not connected. This is a great story of a police force being spread to thin and officers dealing with serious family matters.

Solid police procedure/family saga

Susan Hill is a wonderful writer... this series is deeper than police mysteries, it is
a family story, a complex family of professionals, yet with flaws. This was good but
not quite as compelling as the previous two. The narrator is wonderfully skilled at voices
and characters. The author has a deeper sense of connecting to the reader by providing
literary and religious references that deeper the reader connection.
I will continue this series...

Another Fabulous Read from Susan Hill

This whole Simon Serallier series is simply awesome!! Extremely well written! Narration is the best! Highly recommended!!!!!!!!!’

Too much about dying, little about mystery

I struggled to finish this book. If the author continues to kill her characters off at this rate, the town will soon be empty. The killer's motive made no sense whatsoever. Simon is childish, selfish, unlikeable and apparently not overly bright. Everyone in town saw the connection between the victims except Simon. It took an overheard remark from a stranger for him to get a clue. Too much time was spent on his sister's struggles, her extremely unpleasant children, and her husband's illness, none of which had any bearig on the storyline. Much time is wasted on ancillary characters and story arcs that never tie in or even resolve. The ending is abrupt and seems to have no bearing on the story at all. I would never recommend this book to anyone.

This story just gets better and better!

I am thoroughly enjoying this series, and particularly the fact that the protagonist is not perfect. He is flawed, as so many of us are, and that’s probably why he’s so likable and easy to relate to. The events that surround the rest of the story are also realistic and they get under your skin very easily. The narrator is wonderful, and as I am signing off on this review, I’m loading up the next book in the series.

Another Winner

What a winning combination. I really enjoy this newly, found to me author and the absolutely superb narration of Steven Pacey, who moves through characters and intonations seamlessly and with such ease.

Riveting

You find yourself praying with the prayers and being pulled into the characters lives. Never guess who the killer is.

Love this book, love this series.

The Simon Serrailer series is a well-written, engaging series of mysteries that feature interesting characters and enough suspense to keep you engrossed. But more than the mysteries, it is the characters themselves that keep me coming back for more.

Hits all the buttons

This series is so unique, not just a mystery or a family saga or police procedure. It is all of these! All of these done well. Intertwined with DSI Simon’s experiences is a close look at his family members lives (a plus that they are interesting) and their relationship with friends. Simon is the “flawed” detective though not in the tiresome, making the mystery genre rounds, way. He’s not a hard drinking, hard cussin’ cigar chomping, womanizer ass hole. He’s a decent guy but does have a streak of selfish unawareness so just a little bit of an ass. Still likable though. Each murder mystery is new but the family part is on-going. This series should be read in order. It is well written, “normal” dialog(yes ppl speak like this) and narrated well. Although the whiney kid voices grate a bit. Definitely look forward to each installment.

I'm Hooked on This Series

I loved this book! It is a "police procedural", but there is so much more to it. It is the story of the of the Serrailler family. Their story is complex, interesting and moving. The author does an excellent job of describing the family members and the dynamics of their relationships.

A number of other characters are introduced and developed. One thing that kept me interested in the story was wondering what roll these people would play in the in the murders.

Simon Serrailler is fascinating. He is excellent at his job, but is also struggling to determine what he wants from his life.

The solution to these murders is in this book. What will happen in the life of the Serrailler's is an ongoing story. I'm looking finding out how that story goes in future books.

I have read several of these books "out of order". It hasn't made the books any less enjoyable. However, I expect I will listen to them more than once. When I do I will read them "in order".