J. Todd Fielding's first thought about the location of her possible new editorial position was "Where the hell is Brindle, Oregon?" which turns out to be a rather prophetic statement. Brindle is a small town whose very existence is in jeopardy and yet remains firmly entrenched in age old politics and grand old family status. As Todd and Barney Fielding start to settle into their new quarters trouble follows on their heels.

Jodie Shuster, fourteen years old, is reported missing. Local police don't seem to be all that worried and cite runaway statistics as their reason for not setting up any alarms. They are certain that she ran away, perhaps with someone she met on the internet, and she will show up when it suits her. Problem is -- those that know Jodie feel quite different and Todd is disturbed by the nonchalant attitude of the local authorities. In Todd's investigating she turns up some rather disturbing facts about Brindle. It seems that in the past twenty years there have been several young girls that have disappeared, many never to be seen again. Even more disturbing is the towns lack on interest in the fates of these girls. The silence is deadening and in the case of the town of Brindle it's deadly.

THE PRICE OF SILENCE weaves a chilling tale of obsession and inherent madness. At any given point in the book there is still another character to distrust and fear. Kate Wilhelm doesn't give anything away and yet once you reach the conclusion you realize the clues were right there -- in the readers face just as Wilhelm planned. The line between the good guys and bad guys is purposely vague. The perpetrator of these evil deeds isn't revealed until the very end giving the reader a real challenge to solve this whodunit. There's a chill in the air in Brindle Oregon and J. Todd Fielding seems to be the only person willing to chase it away even if it puts her own life in jeopardy. Run don't walk to get this book. It's a keeper.

Book Summary

In a small town, everone knows everyone else's business. But in Brindle, Oregon, there's a secret nobody wants to see.

Brindle is a dying town, each generation smaller than the last. But Ruth Ann Colonna, who has run the local paper for almost sixty years, is determined to keep the past alive with a special edition of The Brindle Times, to celebrate the town's centennial. Photos, letters and newspaper articles trace the town's inhabitants back to its founding members. But the relics of the past hold more than a record of marriages and deaths; they also hide a secret too dark to acknowledge.

Todd Fielding needs a job, and the offer to provide her computer expertise to The Brindle Times seems like the perfect opportunity. The only downside to small-town life is the potential for boredom, she suspects. But soon after her arrival in Brindle, Todd realizes she was very wrong. A young girl disappears... and no one in the town appears particulary concerned.

Looking deeper into the story, Todd uncovers a shocking fact; five other girls have "run away" from Brindle under strange circumstances over the past twenty years--and no one seems interested in finding them. With Ruth Ann's help, she begins to understand the history of a town steeped in evil, manipulation and cold-blooded murder. This town has cloaked itself in secrecy far too long. And innocents are paying the deadly price of silence.