Rating: 
Summary: SILENCE CAN BE GOLDEN
Review: In Joe Trona, the hero of this well-conceived novel, T. Jefferson Parker has created a wonderful, likeable, semi-tragic hero who propels the reader into the dark secrets of many political bigwigs, including his own adoptive father.
Will Trona is Joe's dad, who adopted Joe at age five; poor Joe was horribly disfigured by his real father when he was a baby. The accident has left Joe with many physical and emotional scars; how he gets through these scars is the basis of this book. There's lot of complex plotting going on; intermingled is Joe's relationship with a radio reporter, June. Their coming to know each other is touching and believable. What makes this book so compelling is Joe himself. He's such a unique character and so "moral", you can't help but dive into the story with him.
A brilliantly appealing novel.
Rating: 
Summary: Joe¿s Only Scarred On The Outside
Review: Joe Trona is a gentle man, loyal to his family and friends, who was horrifically scarred as a child when his father threw acid in his face. A wealthy politician, Will Trona, who trained him in all aspects of life, particularly in awareness of self and respect of others, and employed him as his driver and bodyguard, adopted him. When Will is murdered, the greatest influence in Joe's life is gone, leaving him feeling guilty for letting his father down and driven for revenge.In Joe Trona, T. Jefferson Parker has created an amazingly complex character, who while essentially gentle, is capable of great violence. He is painfully aware of his appearance and its effect on others, yet has overcome his embarrassment and shame and is an extremely strong person because of it. He was the kind of lead character who is easy to like and become involved with, in the hope that he "wins". The story, while essentially a simple one involving a sons' need for revenge, was made much more interesting by the colourful characters and the intrigue with which they were involved.
Rating:
Summary: Silent Joe speaks volumes!
Review: Joe Trona is scarred in more ways than one. Rescued from an orphanage by a charismatic Orange County politician, Joe is swept into the maelstrom of power & intimidation surrounding his adopted father's illustrious career. Serving as Will Trona's right-hand man & bodyguard, Joe is trained to protect & defend his father's territory until the paths of his father & a kidnapped girl cross in an alley one fateful, foggy night. Silent Joe is a really good read - much, much more than a thriller or a mystery - it is a deeply satisfying journal of a wounded man's healing & his chance for redemption.
Rating:
Summary: easily one of the best written works of the year
Review: Joe Trona suffered a terrible injury as a child. His father threw acid on his face leaving him horribly scarred. It is a scar that has affected his life since then. After being adopted by Will and Mary Ann Trona, his life improved considerably. As the book opens, Will is a prominent politician in Orange County and Joe is his right hand man. Unfortunately, as Will goes on an assignment, he is killed in an ambush as Joe helplessly watches. Joe, of course, will stop at nothing to find Will's killers. He must delve into Will's past to get the answers.
What is especially impressive about this particular work is the superb writing. In fact, this is easily one of the best written works of the year. Joe Trona is an unforgettable character. He is brought vibrantly alive though both actions and dialogue. The plot is reasonably compelling, yet, at times, frustratingly complex. The slightly excessive length served to slow down the pacing of the story. This is not my favorite of the Best Novel Edgar nominees, however, the superb writing cannot be denied nor should the Edgar.
Rating:
Summary: Great mystery as told in 1st person.
Review: Joe Trona, 24 yrs old, deputy who works in the Orange County jail system witnesses the murder of his adoptive father. But this is no ordinary murder. Joe Trona, who had his face terribly scarred as an infant was adopted at the age of five by Will and Mary Trona. Will, an Orange County Public figure raised Joe unlike his other siblings. Joe was privy to the secrets his father kept and the political circles his father ran around in. Joe honed his skills in fighting and marksmanship at the personal sacrifice of 'fitting in' with a society that judges more to appearance than someone's substance. In investigating the murder of his father, Joe learns that his father was not the Robin Hood character he portrayed himself to be. Just as Joe thinks he gets closer to learning the identity of the murder, he discovers a very intricate web of lies, deceit, and conspiracy that his father tried to just stay slightly ahead of all these years. Was his father a saint, or was he something else that only Joe can decide. Throw in a kidnapped girl, a crazy brother, and a violent rich father of the two aforementioned, and the story gets deeper. This all takes place in Orange County, CA, with actual locations (I know'.I live here.). Mr. Parker's descriptions and moods are very accurate to the locals he places his characters in. Overall the story was very entertaining, and one of the best mysteries I have read in a long time. Each chapter had me changing my mind on who the killer was and the motivation. Every suspect threw in a new monkey wrench and the plot got thicker and thicker. There were other supporting characters that added new dimensions to Joe as well, and you wouldn't consider them filler material. Loved it. What was really keen about this novel was most of it was told from the perspective of Joe. Through his tortured eyes and life he needs to separate fact from fiction, who's manipulating who, and most importantly a new discovery of emotions he has kept under wraps his whole life from his dramatic injury and scarring. He learns much about himself over the course of the investigation, which proves how great a writer T. Jefferson Parker can be. Silent Joe moved at a good pace, was always interesting, many plot twists, and a surprise ending that was very rewarding to the reader. One of Mr. Parker's best to date!!
Rating:
Summary: Silent Joe--Parker's Best
Review: Last summer when his previous novel, RED LIGHT, was in its initial release, I had the rare honor of appearing on the same Round Table West luncheon program in Newport Beach as T. Jefferson Parker. As the author of a recently published mystery set in Orange County, I had the privilege of speaking to our Balboa Bay Club audience immediately before Mr. Parker. During my talk, I stated that Jeff Parker is the author who has taught all the rest of us Orange County mystery writers how to write about our unique region of Southern California. SILENT JOE continues to prove my point. It is a marvelously complex mystery that is Parker's strongest book to date. It will move him securely into the major league of crime fiction writers with the likes of Sue Grafton, Robert Crais, Sara Paretsky, and Robert B. Parker. In its complexity, it even reminds me of the works of the genre's immortals such as Hammett, Chandler, and Macdonald. Joe Trona was scarred for life by an acid attack at the hands of his biological father. He is adopted and nurtured by Will Trona, a local politico. When Joe grows up, he aspires to a career in law enforcement. He works in the Orange County jail and moonlights as driver/bodyguard for Will Trona. Will Trona is murdered. Joe wants to avenge the murder of the man who contributed the most to the person he has become. During his investigation, Silent Joe finds himself entangled in the kidnapping of a tycoon's daughter, the murder of two Latino immigrants, and a political corruption scheme. He uncovers long-bured secrets involving Will and himself. SILENT JOE is an extraordinary work by an extraordinary author. With every book he writes, Jeff Parker continues to show the rest of us Orange County mystery writers how to write about Orange County. Parker's best!
Rating:
Summary: Named Los Angeles Times' mystery/thriller Book of the Year
Review: Los Angeles Times Prizes: Mystery/Thriller Category:
T. Jefferson Parker for "Silent Joe," published by Hyperion. The judges agreed that this, Parker's ninth crime novel, is "a gripping book as moving as it is hard-edged" and "a 'career best.'"
Rating: 
Summary: I don't know why I don't like this novel a bit
Review: Maybe it's the plot, maybe it's the unacceptable premises that this Joe character is both a cop and a driver in every 24 hours of a day....or an Orange County local politician got a driver or something; the story seems to me so farfetched and pretentious; the writing is so poor and unnatural that finally forced me to dump the brand new book into the garbage can without any regretful feeling. I am a loyal fan of Michael Connelly(although he's also becoming sloppy for his 3 recent novels), so please DO NOT compare this guy with him; organge never tastes like apple. Amen, I rest my case.
Rating:
Summary: EXPLOSIVE
Review: Meet Joe Trona, a scarred man. As a child, Joe had acid thrown on his face by his biological father. Spending much of his youth in an orphanage, Joe, is rescued by politician Will Trona. Tormented by the nightmares of his childhood, Joe, welcomes the love, and acceptance given to him by his new family. At twenty-four, Joe, now a cop, is his adoptive father's biggest fan. As the ever enthusiastic supporter of Will, he helps his father with his political career, but on an evening of "night business", things go terribly wrong leaving Will dead. On what started as a mission to rescue a kidnapped girl, turns into a storm of violence, lies, and deception...with Joe wondering if he knew his adoptive father at all. While trying to find his father's killer, and locate the missing girl, Joe, will uncover all the secrets that Will kept hidden, and he will be forced to face the painful memories of his childhood. "Silent Joe" is another explosive novel from T.Jefferson Parker. While a suspenseful, page-turning thriller, it is much more, for at the heart of the novel lies the examination of love, and the power of man's spirit to overcome tragedy. With it's strong characters, powerful plot, and strong narrative "Silent Joe" races at break-neck speed to a statisfying conclusion. T. Jefferson Parker has been consistent with churning out fresh thrillers, and "Silent Joe" is no exception. Although a depature from the style of his previous thrillers, Mr. Parker keeps the pages turning by throwing in twists at every turn. A MUST read! Nick Gonnella
Rating:
Summary: Imaginative, fascinating, a terrific ride!
Review: Not only is this a perfectly constructed thriller, but it's told from the point of view of a very, very unusual person - Silent Joe is a facially scarred (a relative threw acid on him as an infant) 24 year old bodyguard/cop, the adopted son of a warm hearted but flawed Orange County politico, who is murdered almost immediately. We follow Silent Joe on his quest for the who and why of this killing - and as we take this journey, both the man and his murdered father become clear to us. Joe is almost autistic in his perceptions and language, laconic to the point of bizarreness, and oddly talented - with an eidetic memory for conversation, time and detail, and an uncanny mastery of all the defensive arts. Neither inflated in his self perception, nor blind to his father's foibles, this relentless, non judgemental stranger in a strange land uncovers and digests layer after layer of interlocking blackmail and crime (we slowly discover, along with Joe, that the murdered man was some cross between a Machiavellian monstrosity and a Robin Hood) . What is so fascinating is that we travel through many shades of gray in the political and criminal underworlds of Orange County, but through the very very simple lens of a simple man's eye. It is actuallly delightful being in this character's shoes and there is something essentially clear in Joe's vision of right and wrong, truth and lies, good and evil, that is at the very heart of why I enjoy mysteries. In this way, Joe reminded me somewhat of Thomas Harris' wonderful creation of Clarice Starling in Silence of the Lambs. Unlike Clarice in most ways, Joe's extraordinarily sane (if unusual) presence is a terrific vantage point for the wild ride of the story. I enjoyed this thriller for its unique and deeply loveable hero, intelligent writing, strong narrative drive, and fascinating characters. A great, great read.
| 
