John Johnson, a high school teacher and baseball coach in the small town of Grain, Ohio, has been found murdered with a baseball bat. Jeremy Long, a young autistic man who has been mute since he was nine, was seen fleeing the scene of the crime with a bloody baseball bat. Now Jeremy is on trial, and his seventeen-year-old half-sister Hope is testifying in his defense. Jeremy's attorney Raymond Munroe wants to plead insanity, but Hope thinks he's innocent and sets out to find the real killer, with the help of her best friend T.J. Bowers and Sheriff Wells' son Chase.
The Silence of Murder contains examples of:
- Blackmail: Rita and Coach Johnson were having an affair. Coach Johnson paid her $1,000 a month so she wouldn't tell his wife, Caroline.
- Calling Parents by Their Name: Jeremy and Hope's mother insists that they call her Rita.
- Character Tics: Under stress, Jeremy rocks and fidgets rapidly.
- Dedication: "To the memory of my dad, Frank R. Daley, MD, who taught me to love words, wit, and a good mystery. I have been blessed with two fantastic parents, who gave me a much better start to life than I deserved."
- Disappeared Dad: Hope's dad was hit by a truck when she was three. Jeremy knows nothing at all about his father, and was told that he didn't have one. Once when he heard in church that he was the son of God, he ran home and asked Rita how she and God met and fell in love.
- Dumb Struck: When Jeremy was nine, he sang in the car and said that he got the song from God. Rita slapped him in the face and screamed, "God don't sing!" Jeremy hasn't spoken since then. He could still communicate by writing, but since the murder he won't even do that.
- Not Now, Kiddo: Hope tells Sheriff Wells that a white pickup truck has been following her around, and she's been getting mysterious harassing phone calls. Sheriff Wells responds that there are lots of white pickups and crank callers in Grain and she's worried over nothing. Turns out he was the stalker.
- Really Moves Around: Rita grew up in Grain, but dropped out of high school and left to get away from her parents. After that, she and her kids lived in a number of cities, including Minneapolis, Chicago, and Enid, Oklahoma, before settling back in Grain when Jeremy and Hope were sixteen and fourteen.
- Signature Scent: Jeremy smells like late-season grass and cherry Kool-Aid. His room still smells like him, even after he's been in jail for two months.
- Taking the Heat: Jeremy won't write in his defense because he thinks Rita killed Coach Johnson. When Hope shows evidence in court suggesting Rita did it, Rita confesses, even though she's actually innocent.
- Tantrum Throwing: Jeremy collects empty Mason jars. Once, during one of their moves, a box of jars got left behind. Jeremy was so upset that he threw glasses and plates, causing Rita to hide under the table.
- "Well Done, Son" Guy: Chase feels like Sheriff Wells is always disappointed in him. When Coach Johnson made him starting pitcher, his father was so proud he bought fireworks to celebrate. Chase was thrilled to have finally earned his approval. When he was removed from the roster due to his poor batting skills, he got so angry that he smashed Coach Johnson in the head with Jeremy's bat, killing him.
- Your Makeup Is Running: Rita cries in court, mascara streaking her cheeks like tribal paint, when Keller reveals that Coach Johnson was Jeremy's biological father, and Jeremy knew about it because he overheard Rita and Coach Johnson arguing.
