Silent Mercy (Alex Cooper, Book 13) (An Alexandra Cooper Novel) Paperback – May 1, 2012

I've read all of the books in this series, and have been a fan from the begining. I love how the setting becomes another character in all of her books. I really appreciate all the research she puts into her work, and the backstage tour she gives us of New York. This book was no exception on the research and the back history.I gave it 3 stars because I'm finding it hard to care about the main characters as much as I used to. I pre-ordered this when it first came out, and it's been sitting on my shelf for the last couple of months because I started feeling this disappointment when I read the previous book, and didn't want to feel that way about this one., About midway through I just started skimming to get to the end. There have been about a dozen books in this series, and the characters have worked together for over 10 years, but they haven't changed at all. About the only difference I see, is that Chapman's good-natured ribbing is taking on a much snarkier edge.It would be nice to see more about the characters personally, and it would be nice to see them relating to others more. We know that Mercer's married with a son; we got a brief glimpse of them in the last book, but that was it. It's obvious that Cooper is married to her job, but I need to see she's not all about work. I thought after a dozen books, we might have seen her in situations where she would have to struggle to balance work and personal, like most women have to. She's never put anything before work, nor does it look like she ever will, and that's boring to me.And don't hold Luc up as an argument for her having a social life. All of her boyfriends have been like him, long distance, fly in, fly out, meet here, meet there, blah, blah, blah. Those aren't real relationships. A real relationship is a guy she's seeing that has to kick Mercer and Mike out of the apartment because they've had her for 12 hours that day, and he wants to be a part of her life too. A real relationship is someone she has to actually share herself with, and I don't see that happening.The characters are nicely drawn, and they don't detract from the stories, so I'll read the next book and know I'll be glad I did, but I've lowered my expectations on character growth.

I have read all of the books in the Alex Cooper series and have found some to be much better than others. This one is somewhere in the middle. I always enjoy the fascinating historical facts Ms. Fairstein weaves into her plots and this book was no exception. In this book we learn about the history of various church buildings in and around Manhattan as well as about the discrimination practiced by church hierarchy (primarily but not exclusively Roman Catholic) against those women who desire to become part of the professional church community. The murder victims had either been outcast from their religious communities and/or had offended certain fanatical religious "sensibilities." However, while the plot flowed nicely for a good portion of the book, it lost me with an ending that not only was too neat, but somewhat preposterous. Mostly, however, I came away with the feeling that so many threads of the story were left dangling (I'd like to mention them here because they REALLY bugged me, but I don't want to give away any more of the story). All in all, not Fairstein's best but an ok read for a rainy Saturday afternoon.

Silent Mercy is one of Fairstein's best. This is not just about solving some murders on historic spots in NYC, here an old synagogue and a cathedral. It also connects you indirectly with the aspirations of women in the roman catholic church for an equal position. I was not aware of the fact that some of them have organized themselves and taken up the courage to no longer ask for permission from the pope. Fairstein takes a stand against the growingly intolerant response by a small conservative religious minority that is prepared to use intimidation and violence to prevend those hopeful developments. Martin

Fairstein writes a particularly grisly chapter in her ongoing Alex Cooper storyline. But most of us who read this series faithfully are in it for the relationship Cooper has with Mike Wallace and Mercer Chapman. This book does not disappoint in that regard.I got the impression she did not know how to end this book and the finish is over the top and hard to believe - but again, not why we read this series.Worth the investment in time and money.

If you liked Linda's earliest works best, you will love her latest. Excellent plot with enough twists and turns to keep you guessing but not so complicated that you feel the need to take notes. The history was quite interesting and added to the story rather than overwhelming it. The relationship between Alex and Mike was as fun as always and perhaps a bit kinder this time around, as though Mike was finally starting to admit, or at least realize what an asset Alex is to their team.I do wish we could have seen more of Mercer though, hopefully next time. All in all, this was a fun read and I would certainly reccomend it.

Silent Mercy is filled with the plot twists and turns readers have come to expect from Linda Fairstein. Alex Cooper is up to her eyeballs in crime. Throw in the usual complement of history trivia from Dect. Mike Chapman and some theological controversy and the result is another good read. The only reason this doesn't get another star is because I tend to think that in a series like this, even when the plot is fun, there is still a level of predictability to the meta-narrative.

Starting this book, I felt the atmosphere changing between Mike and Alex. I enjoyed the mystery as always but this time I found myself hoping Luc would stay in France and Alex would wake up and smell the roses. Good mystery, ending is leaving me hanging.

This is not Fairsteins's best work by any stretch of the imagination - it fulfils a yearly requirement and that's it..keeps the kettle warm. Cooper is not the main character in this book, she is very much the sidekick to Mike Chapman and his far too extensive religious knowledge - to be honest this is almost a religious crime story a la Dan Brown.I lost interest quickly as one needs to have a fair amount of knowledge in religion to be able to grasp the apparant significance of the crimes, and it is almost a listen-and-learn story from the "expert" Chapman; Cooper is the bit part player in a detective novel. Not great - if this is your first Cooper read please read from book 1, "Final Jeopardy". this is 13th time unlucky; and please Fairstein, revert to type for thre next epistle....Cooper is the heroine and lead; she is a forensic expert, and Chapman is not the clever-clogs expert with the dismissive attitude he has here, bemoaning Coops almost apparent ignorance of religion. Here's to book 14, it has to be better!

This is the second time I've written a review for this book, the first mysteriously didn't make it...Thought this book was a bit trite and did not match up to earlier books in the series. The whole religious plot was a bit unbelievable I thought, especially where the main characters seemed to have so much obscure knowledge. And the whole circus train thing...come on! The author seems to be going down the Patricia Cornwell route with the werewolf...Hope to see a return to form in the next book.

I really like the Linda Fairstein Alexander Cooper Series. Keeps you on edge to the last minute.

Easy to read crime novel - similar pattern in all her work, but a nice underlying story too.I now own several of her books.Book arrived promptly in a good condition.

Another fantastic Alex Cooper story. Linda Fairstein headstone it again! Excellent read, fabulously fleshed out characters and marvellous story. Thoroughly enjoyed another Alexandra Cooper book!