The Finale Silence, by Stuart Neville

This is book four in the Belfast novels, all apparently featuring Jack Lennon as the protagonist, but it's the first I read from this author. It was decent, but not great, and I likely won't read another book by this author. It kept me interested but I never got too attached to any of the characters. The main character, Jack Lennon, is a bit of a loser in his personal life. And in his professional life, I don't remember him doing anything very daring or clever to solve the case.

I read this book a few months ago and it's tough to remember much about it. I did enjoy the beginning and actually liked the character of Rea. Unfortunately, she didn't live very long in the book, and a lot of what got me interested in The Finale Silence died with her.

In general, I think it's a mistake to develop a character only to kill them off in the middle of the book. While it will be shocking to the reader in the short term, it's also not fair to the reader either, and destroys some of the trust between reader and author.