The Absence of Mercy, John Burley
The Absence of Mercy, John Burley
21 Rating(s)
List: $24.99 | Sale: $17.50
Club: $12.49

The Absence of Mercy

Author: John Burley

Narrator: Adam Verner

Unabridged: 9 hr 17 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: HarperAudio

Published: 03/22/2016


Synopsis

John Burley’s The Absence of Mercy is a harrowing tale of suspense involving a brutal murder and dark secrets that lie beneath the surface of a placid, tight-knit Midwestern town.When a brutally murdered teenager is discovered in the woods surrounding a small Ohio town, Dr. Ben Stevenson—the town’s medical examiner—must decide if he’s willing to put his family’s life in danger to uncover the truth. Finding himself pulled deeper into an investigation with devastating consequences, he discovers shocking information that will shatter his quiet community, and force him to confront a haunting truth.With its eerie portrait of suburban life and nerve-fraying plot twists, The Absence of Mercy is domestic drama at its best for fans of Harlan Coben, Laura Lippman, Jennifer McMahon, and Lisa Gardner.

About John Burley

John Burley is the author of The Absence of Mercy, honored with the National Black Ribbon Award; The Forgetting Place; and The Quiet Child. He attended medical school in Chicago and completed his emergency medicine residency at University of Maryland Medical Center and the R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore. He continues to serve as an emergency medicine physician in Northern California.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Mallory on January 08, 2021

I really wanted to like this book but I struggled my way through it. The writing was awkward and didn’t always visit the characters and the plot was full of holes I won’t point out to avoid spoiling the mystery. The pacing was slow and there was some over explaining the medical details (and I unders......more

Goodreads review by Amy on April 01, 2014

I read this book in one day, and it was all right. I enjoyed the references to Pittsburgh, being a native Pittsburgher, and Ben was an interesting character. Beyond that, I can't get past several major obstacles...beginning with the error in continuity in the very first chapter. How does an editor o......more

Goodreads review by David on November 26, 2013

I won a copy on Goodreads Firstreads. This was an uncorrected proof copy. This is a suspenseful psychological thriller. Ben Stevenson became the county medical examiner because he didn't want to go to bed every night listening to sirens. Also the slower pace would give him more chances to spend time......more

Goodreads review by Kari on December 27, 2014

I thought that The Absence of Mercy was a pretty good mystery. The story flowed pretty easily and was well written. The book is told through the points of view of Ben, his wife and the teens in the town. There is a killer loose in the town and it has everyone scared. It was interesting to see how th......more

Goodreads review by Allison on October 31, 2013

[URL not allowed] THE ABSENCE OF MERCY by John Burley: I could subtitle this review “I was so bored.” The premise was enchanting; the execution, not so much. Dr. Ben Stevenson, pathologist, is a small-town medical examiner, a very undemanding job until the first victim of a ser......more