Rating: 
Summary: I couldn't turn the pages fast enough!
Review: SILENT WITNESS grabbed me from the first few pages. From the beginning, I could not put the book down - my eyes would close first!Richard North Patterson writes with a style that enables the reader to really understand the characters and feel what they feel. This bookis written in such a way that I felt that I was in Lake City with the characters. Like Eyes of a Child, this book was riveting, yet disturbing at the same time. Even though I have finished the book, I feel that the characters are still with me. Patterson has a way of making you think you know these characters and you keep trying to figure them out even after the book is finished. I read Private Screening right before reading Silent Witness and it was a perfect background to Tony Lord. I hope that Patterson carries these characters forward in future books.
Rating: 
Summary: Condense the first half of the book and you've got a winner
Review: Compared to "Eyes of a Child", "Degree of Guilt",
and "Lasko Tangent", this book just didn't cut it.
I found myself NOT liking the characters very well
(with the exception of Saul)and I literally had to
force myself through the first half of the the book
(which establishes the character's histories.)
Once the trial started, however, it was classic R.N.
Patterson...tight and suspensful. I must admit,
I had a different villian picked out but by the
same token, was not surprised. In fact, I thought
the ending amounted to literary slight-of-hand...
should have known better but was fooled anyway! I'd advise first time Patterson readers to start
with one of his earlier books (especially "Degree
of Guilt")but long time Patterson fans will want to
read this mostly because I suspect it's not the last
we'll see of Tony Lord (in addition to "Private
Screening")
Rating:
Summary: An Intense, Powerful Story
Review: In 1967 Tony Lord and his best friend, Sam Robb enjoyed double dating with their girlfriends Sue and Alison. Alison was murdered on the night she and Tony had sex for the first time and Tony was the chief suspect. Although there wasn't enough proof to charge him, the town turned against him, so he left, vowing never to come back. Twenty-seven years later he's a successful defense attorney in San Francisco. He's put the past behind him, though he's never forgotten Alison or how he was falsely accused.
Then Susan, now married to Sam Robb, calls and asks him to come back and defend her husband against a charge of murdering a teenage girl. The case is strikingly similar to what happened to Alison so long ago and Tony begins to think it's not just coincidence. Friendship, death, the death of a friendship, grief and justice are just a few of the issues dealt with in this thriller that spans half a lifetime.
Rating:
Summary: Over the Top Performance!
Review: Richard North Patterson doesn't get close to the amount of attention he deserves for his masterful way of writing. If you read a lot and think you can pretty much predict what is going to happen...well you are in for a surprise here. If you've ever wondered..."What If..." this book is for you. Patterson takes you from present day life and transforms you to the high school years of youth and freedom. From puppy love to vicious deaths, you will be surprised, intrigued and have a sick curiosity about everylife involved. You'll root for a killer and want him to be free, then realizing he's killed again, you'll want revenge. There's indepth autopsy information and plain and simple friendship. There's loyalties to be kept and betrayals that must be brought to light. You'll be enamored with each and every character, and when the last page is turned, you'll wish there were another hundred more.
Rating:
Summary: A thoroughly enjoyable story by a master craftsman
Review: This is the fourth book I've read by Richard North Patterson, following "Degree of Guilt," "Eyes of a Child" and "Final Judgment," all of which were very well written. With "Silent Witness," Patterson easily surpasses even the lofty expectations I developed based on the stories I had read earlier and joins Elizabeth George and Dorothy Sayers as one of my favorite mystery writers. The story is masterfully crafted, weaving two murder mysteries separated by nearly thirty years into a seamless web of intrigue, betrayal and misguided loyalties. It is reminiscent of "Lone Star" in rooting its two mysteries in the small town social fabric with conflicts between Catholics, protestants and Jews; and between blacks and whites. The characters evolve in very credible ways. One can see the teenagers we first meet in the middle-aged characters we later visit, with their basic traits sometimes mellowed, sometimes entrenched; with dreams shattered and realities acknowledged. The book actually begins slowly, unlike other Patterson novels which firmly hook the reader in the first three pages. I found the ending a little less than satisfactory. I correctly guessed the identity of the guilty party and expected another character to do the same. The ending was good, but more satisfying to one of the characters than to the reader. The book is a must read and a real page turner.
Rating:
Summary: An Intense, Powerful Story
Review: In 1967 Tony Lord and his best friend Sam Robb enjoy double dating with their girlfriends, Sue and Alison. Alison is murdered on the night she and Tony have sex for the first time and Tony is the chief suspect. Although there is not enough proof to charge him, the town turns against him, so he leaves, vowing never to come back. Twenty-seven years later he's a successful defense attorney in San Francisco. He's put the past behind him, though he's never forgotten Alison or how he was falsely accused.
Then Susan, now married to Sam, calls and asks him to come back and defend her husband against a charge of murdering a teenage girl. The case is strikingly similar to what happened to Alison so long ago and Tony begins to think it's not just coincidence. Friendship, death, the death of a friendship, grief and justice are just a few of the issues dealt with in this thriller that spans half a lifetime. Reviewed by Vesta Irene
Rating:
Summary: Well Done Courtroom Drama Draped with Rising Suspense
Review: As an attorney, I found Richard North Patterson's depiction of the verbal exchanges that comprise a criminal trial to be realistic and entertaining. Mr. Patterson created a visualization of the court proceedings that successfully sustained the rising suspense level that characterizes his novel, SILENT WITNESS. As the author a suspense thriller, EVIL, BE GONE, myself, I was very impressed with Mr. Patterson's ability to keep me guessing the identity of the perpetrator of the grisly crimes to the very end of his fine novel. I look forward to enjoying many more Patterson books. - Robert John Estko, author of EVIL, BE GONE, another thriller available on Amazon.com
Rating:
Summary: "SILENT WITNESS" A REAL WINNER!
Review: Richard North Patterson continues his string of outstanding novels with this penetrating look at friendship, faith and love. Tony Lord, who we first met in "Private Screening" is the legal wizard who is called to his hometown after nearly three decades to defend his best friend of the murder of a sixteen year old girl. Tony himself left his hometown because he had been accused of murdering his girlfriend, Alison Taylor. Tony's guilt was never really clarified, because the only other person who could have murdered Alison was killed robbing a convenience store. We know Tony didn't kill Alison, but the townspeople believe he did.
So now his best friend (who also may have thought Tony was guilty) is facing similar charges, only he gets to go to trial with Tony as his lawyer.
A stunning novel, filled with secrets; heartbreaking scenarios that are so lifelike in their structure, you can't help but feel for those involved. The confrontational courtroom scenes, as always, are brilliant and riveting. The relationship between Tony and Sam is superbly etched; Tony's feelings about Sam's wife, Sue, are painstakingly real; the enigmatic Sam Robb is focal---is he capable of such a brutal murder; does he lie about everything? Is he really Tony's best friend? And is Tony justified in what he does to Ernie?
The novel cruises along with such intensity and fervor, one can't help but gasp in awe at its structure. The finale is devastating, although you can see it coming, you just don't want to admit it.
A brilliant, exceptional novel.
HIGHLY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
Rating:
Summary: Sometimes a page-turner, sometimes not
Review: After having read only one of R.N.P's books beforehand (Final Judgement), I found this book both exciting, gripping, but also too long at times.
After having reached the middle of the book, I almost swallowed the rest of the book in no time.
I liked the way that new surprises kept coming up to the surface to turn the story around again and again. That's how I want thrillers to be.
I have now bought all the books from the Christopher Paget trilogy, so I have definitely become a fan of this author.
Rating:
Summary: one of his best
Review: apart from RNP's seeming obsession with sweet valley high style high-school antics and sexual intimacies involving teenage girls which have occurred in all the books i've read of his - (protect and defend and last judgement) - this is pretty gripping legal drama with good characters and all the betrayals and dilemmas necessary for such great drama. the the teenage characters irritated me through parts of this book
|
