We are so excited to announce a 2-part tour for The Longest Silence, a gripping thriller by USA Today bestselling author Debra Webb!
Follow along the excerpt tour beginning in mid February, with long excerpts in consecutive order at each tour stop, followed by a review tour beginning March 5th, release week!
Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: MIRA (March 6, 2018)
“The twists and turns in this dark, taut drama make it both creepy and compelling.” —New York Times bestselling author Steve Berry
A killer stole her voice. Now she’s ready to take it back. Don’t miss the chilling Shades of Death series from USA TODAY bestselling author Debra Webb.
Joanna Guthrie was free. She had been for eighteen years–or so she needed everyone to believe. What really happened during the longest fourteen days of her life, when she and two other women were held captive by the worst kind of serial killer, wasn’t something she could talk about. Not after what they had to do to survive.
But when more women go missing in an eerily similar manner, Jo knows her prolonged silence will only seal their fates. She’s finally ready to talk; she just needs someone to listen. FBI special agent Tony LeDoux can’t deny he finds Jo compelling–he’s just not sure he believes her story. But with the clock ticking, Jo will do anything to convince him, even if it means unearthing long-buried secrets that will land them squarely in the crosshairs of the killer…
“This psychological thriller is rife with tension that begins on page one and doesn’t let up. It’s a race against the clock that had me whispering to the pair of flawed, desperate protagonists, ‘Hurry,hurry.’ A gripping read.” —New York Times bestselling author Sandra Brown
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Excerpt:
Chapter Seven
Wild Things Lounge, Macon, Georgia
5:00 p.m.
Tony fought to restrain his temper as he waited for the manager to pick through the wad of keys he’d dug from his pocket for the one that would unlock the door. No matter that he had called the club manager en route to Macon he’d still waited an hour in the goddamned parking lot. According to the owner, who lived in Atlanta and was the contact Tony had called first, a new security system, including video surveillance, had been installed three years ago. The owner couldn’t confirm whether the recorded data from a month or more ago would still be available. The manager handled the day-to-day operations and such decisions were at his discretion.
While Tony had waited for the manager to show up he had walked around the building. There was a camera at the front entrance, the emergency side exit as well as the rear employee entrance. No cameras focused on the parking lot. No windows in the building. He’d glanced in the Dumpster noting the discarded condoms and drug paraphernalia which spoke to the establishment’s general clientele or, at least, those who hung out in the parking area.
His phone vibrated again. Angie. He let the call go to voice mail as he had the previous two. He wasn’t ready to talk to her. Anything he told her now would only get her hopes up. Until he had confirmed the roommate’s new story he wouldn’t share the information with his sister.
“You got a warrant?” Sean, the manager, asked as he finally unlocked the door. Then he leaned against it rather than opening it and waited for Tony to answer.
Sean Waldrop. Twenty-five. Shoulder-length hair badly in need of a wash. A few curly hairs that looked more like they belonged somewhere in the vicinity of his balls sprouted from his chin. Tony felt reasonably confident the tight, ripped jeans were cutting off the blood supply to his upper body and, more important, his brain. With the heavy metal band T-shirt, worn leather jacket and combat boots, he had the 90s grunge look down. So not the kind of joint he would have wanted his niece to patronize. Something else his sister didn’t need to know.
Apparently Tony didn’t respond quickly enough since Waldrop lifted his skinny shoulders in a shrug and warned, “No warrant, no entrance, man.”
If he didn’t have one hell of an ongoing hangover from the past week—maybe month—Tony would have taken that punk-ass attitude down a notch or two. Instead, he smiled and said, “I showed you my credentials already.” What was one more flash of his invalid creds? “The owner, Kenneth Jonas—you might recognize the name from your paychecks—gave me permission to look to my heart’s desire. You want to call him?” Tony offered his cell. “I’m certain he’d be interested in learning why your bartenders are selling alcohol to minors.”
Waldrop stared at him a moment before relenting. He opened the door. “Make yourself at home, Mr. Fed. I got shit to do.”
Tony waited for Waldrop to go inside first. The stench of nicotine had infused the air, the dark paneled walls as well as the worn upholstery, all of which was underscored by the smell of countless spilled beers emanating from the cheap carpet. Waldrop flipped on the lights, which only confirmed Tony’s assessment. Tables filled most of the space. A small tiled dance floor butted up to an even smaller stage while a long bar stretched across the far side of the space. A door behind the bar probably led to the kitchen and/or the office. Between the bar and the stage, a narrow hall disappeared into the darkness. A sign directing patrons to the bathrooms pointed in that direction.
“What’s the lighting like during business hours?” Tony asked.
Waldrop plopped a rack of glasses on the counter. “We keep the lights you see now on behind the bar and the stage.” He gestured to the stage. “The rest that stay on during opening hours are along the baseboards and under the tables—ambience lighting they call it.”
In other words it was basically dark in the place during operating hours. The one camera Tony had spotted was above the mirrored wall behind the bar. “Is this the only camera inside?”
Waldrop picked up a rag and set his hands on his hips. “That’s it. Old man Jonas is a cheap motherfucker. I see that when I look at my paycheck, too.”
Tony decided it wasn’t worth the effort to point out that the owner was likely getting exactly what he paid for. The rows of liquor bottles behind the bar had his mouth watering. “Is the video recorder in the office?”
The manager hitched his head. “Follow me.”
The door behind the bar led into a small kitchen, as Tony suspected. The grill was blackened with use and the sink was stacked high with beer glasses and mugs. The rest of the counter space was cluttered with cans, boxes and utensils.
“Told you I had shit to do,” Waldrop said.
Tony doubted the regulars showed up every night for the health department rating. “Hopefully this won’t take long,” he offered. “I have shit to do, too.”
Waldrop opened the office door and gestured for Tony to go on in. “The system’s set up in that coat closet.”
About Debra Webb
DEBRA WEBB is the award winning, USA Today bestselling author of more than 130 novels, including reader favorites the Faces of Evil, the Colby Agency, and the Shades of Death series. With more than four million books sold in numerous languages and countries, Debra’s love of storytelling goes back to her childhood on a farm in Alabama.
Connect with Debra
EXCERPT TOUR:
Monday, February 12th: Clues and Reviews
Tuesday, February 13th: What is That Book About
Wednesday, February 14th: The Book Diva’s Reads
Thursday, February 15th: Books & Spoons
Friday, February 16th: Book Reviews and More by Kathy
Monday, February 19th: Palmer’s Page Turners
Tuesday, February 20th: Broken Teepee
Wednesday, February 21st: Helen’s Book Blog
Thursday, February 22nd: The Lit Bitch
Friday, February 23rd: Lit Wit Wine Dine
Monday, February 26th: Ms. Nose in a Book
Tuesday, February 27th: Why Girls Are Weird
Wednesday, February 28th: Kritter’s Ramblings
Thursday, March 1st: Books a la Mode
Friday, March 2nd: Read Love Blog
REVIEW TOUR:
Monday, March 5th: The Sassy Bookster
Monday, March 5th: Books & Spoons
Tuesday, March 6th: Clues & Reviews
Wednesday, March 7th: Moonlight Rendezvous
Thursday, March 8th: Tales of a Book Addict
Friday, March 9th: Books & Bindings
Monday, March 12th: Thoughts from a Highly Caffeinated Mind
Tuesday, March 13th: @athousandbookstoread
Wednesday, March 14th: The Book Diva’s Reads
Thursday, March 15th: Katy’s Library and @katyslibrary
Friday, March 16th: Not in Jersey
Monday, March 19th: Helen’s Book Blog
Tuesday, March 20th: Mama Reads Blog
Wednesday, March 21st: Ms. Nose in a Book
Thursday, March 22nd: Bewitched Bookworms
Thursday, March 22nd: A Bookish Way of Life
Friday, March 23rd: Kritter’s Ramblings
Monday, March 26th: Novel Gossip and @novelgossip
Tuesday, March 27th: Mystery Suspense Reviews
Tuesday, March 27th: A Chick Who Reads
Wednesday, March 28th: Why Girls Are Weird
Thursday, March 29th: From the TBR Pile
Thursday, March 29th: Book Reviews and More by Kathy
Friday, March 30th: Staircase Wit
There’s pretty much only one rule when you’re a guy.
rk Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author of more than two dozen titles, Kendall Ryan has sold over 1.5 million books and her books have been translated into several languages in countries around the world. She’s a traditionally published author with Simon & Schuster and Harper Collins UK, as well as an independently published author. Since she first began self-publishing in 2012, she’s appeared at #1 on Barnes & Noble and iBooks charts around the world. Her books have also appeared on the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists more than three dozen times. Ryan has been featured in such publications as USA Today, Newsweek, and InTouch Magazine.
About DONNA GRANT
