Book Review: No One Will Hear Your Screams, by Thomas O'Callaghan

Guest review by: Becki Bayley

Before returning to the office, Driscoll parked the Chevy on Montague Street, where Margaret hopped out and ducked inside Avgerinos Restaurant to purchase lunch.

“Nothing says New York alfresco like at Chicken Souvlaki and a Coke,” Margaret said returning to the passenger seat where she peeled back the waxed paper from her savory sandwich and handed half to Driscoll.

“You know, Margaret, I can’t shake the feeling we’re overlooking something,” The Lieutenant said before biting into the Greek delicacy.

“OK. Let’s break down his lunacy. He’s arterially embalming his victims then sews a locket featuring the patron saint of prostitutes under the tongue. It suggests he’s not a fan of the working girl, but why burn down a church?”

“Beats the hell out o’ me.”

“And why that church?”

“Maybe he’s got a gripe with Sally Fields.”

Driscoll looked at her wondering where she was going with an odd comment like that.

“What’s Sally Fields got to do with it?” he asked.

“The actress. Sally Fields. She played the flying nun on TV. The church he torched was Saint Teresa of Avila. The original flying nun.”

A little bit of religious trivia mixed in with crimes is always interesting. This serial killer definitely had a few issues with his religious upbringing.

Official synopsis:

Is there a sociopathic killer on the loose and murdering prostitutes in New York City? NYPD’s top cop, Homicide Commander Lieutenant John Driscoll, believes there is. Someone who calls himself “Tilden” and claims to have been sexually abused as a child by his mother’s john. But what could have triggered Tilden’s rage that has him on a mission to eradicate all the women of the night in The Big Apple?

More importantly, will Driscoll put an end to the madness? He soon discovers Tilden’s not the run-of-the-mill sociopath. After all, would a common murderer have taken the time to embalm his victims, which the New York City chief medical examiner determined was the cause of their deaths?

Driscoll, a man haunted by the events of an unstable childhood himself, must put aside any sympathy he may have for Tilden and put a stop to his murderous rampage. Teamed up with Sergeant Margaret Aligante and Detective Cedric Thomlinson, who have their own issues, the commander sets out to stop the killings and bring Tilden to justice before he kills again.

The action in this book starts pretty quickly. Tilden is on a mission - he’s got a list of women who have done him wrong, and he’s decided their punishment is death. While each of the bodies are discovered in unique places and situations, Lieutenant John Driscoll finds enough clues to know they’re connected.

While there was more about Tilden than the other characters, this was not the first book in the series about Lieutenant Driscoll. Several characteristics of Driscoll and his co-workers are stated in passing, with the sense that they were developed more in previous books. Everyone was still explained adequately to understand in just this book, but having read the others may have given more of a sense of attachment to the characters.

Without giving too much away, there were some loose ends in the background of the Tilden that could have been better explored. Overall, I’d give this book 3 out of 5 stars and recommend it for those who enjoy crime thrillers (and don’t mind them a bit gory).

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Becki Bayley loves sleeping in, laughing with her kids, and watching the birds and butterflies in her yard. She also blogs (mostly about books) at SweetlyBSquared.com.