Silent as the Grave

Accidents, malfunctions, suspense, and a movie studio are featured in the twenty-first book in the mystery series featuring Molly Murphy Sullivan, Silent as the Grave. It starts with a heartrending prologue that immediately pulls readers into the story. Set in New York City during eight days in April 1909, this intriguing novel takes readers to the beginnings of silent movies.

Molly is juggling a newborn, a five-year-old son, and fourteen-year-old daughter Bridie, along with household chores. Playwright and friend Ryan O’Hara is shooting a silent film involving a real plot and actors, and Molly and the children are invited to the set. When Bridie gets a chance to replace a fired actress, Molly reluctantly agrees to let friends and neighbors Sid and Gus to chaperone Bridie.

As things continue to go wrong during the shooting of the movie, the situation turns deadly. Is there a saboteur or simply malfunctions and accidents? Molly is invited to go undercover on the set to investigate.

Molly misses the days when she had her own detective agency. She is curious and enjoys life more when there’s a spark of danger. She’s observant, but tends to disregard her safety at times. While she can be headstrong, it seems she has mellowed somewhat with marriage and children. Molly’s husband Daniel is a police homicide captain. He takes his job seriously and worries that Molly gets herself into dangerous situations. Bridie has a large role in this story as well. She felt relatable as a teenager for the times.

Combining information about the early days of the movie industry with a mystery worked well. Additionally, along with the fictional characters, there are a mixture real people like Thomas Edison and Mary Pickford that added realism to the story. The book is descriptive, making for great world-building, but the pacing was somewhat slow, but interspersed with action scenes.

Along with the information about the film industry, there are discussions of women’s roles, as well as several inventions, and the beginning of a federal Bureau of Investigations. Friendship and family dynamics add to the depth of the story. The author adds enough twists to keep readers guessing, and there is one strong emotional scene.

Overall, this was an entertaining and suspenseful novel that kept me engaged. Readers who enjoy historical mysteries or are interested in the early days of silent movies will likely enjoy this novel. While this is the first book I have read in the series, I had no trouble reading it as a standalone.

St. Martin’s Press – Minotaur Books, Rhys Bowen, and Clare Broyles provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own. Publication date is currently set for March 11, 2025.