Hush, My Darling

Winter Austin

Jan 2022 · Benoit and Dayne Mystery Book 2 · Tule Publishing

About this ebook

Sometimes, the past starts to bleed into the future…

Dark memories haunt Eckardt County Deputy Lila Dayne. Two years ago, she survived a serial killer’s attempt to add her to his growing list of victims in Chicagoland, but the fight cost her more than just time lost to surgeries and rehab. Now she’s finally beginning to connect with the people in this small section of southeast Iowa, even if she can still sense him watching her.

Sheriff Elizabeth Benoit has her sights on bringing down Eckardt County’s corruption when two bodies surface, both bearing striking similarities to the serial killer victims discovered along I-80—and one delivers a personal message for her department. Lila spirals out of control under the pressure, pushing everyone out of her life.

As Elizabeth and her deputies try to bring Lila back into the fold, the killer closes in, marking his next victim. Lila must shake free of her fears and trust those who have supported her—or the killer will finish what he started.

Ratings and reviews

4.5 stars- HUSH, MY DARLING is the second instalment in Winter Austin’s contemporary, adult BENOIT AND DAYNE murder, suspense thriller series focusing on small-town Sheriff Elizabeth “Ellie’ Benoit, and former Chicago police officer turned deputy Lila Dayne. HUSH, MY DARLING can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary. Told from third person perspectives (Lila and Elizabeth) HUSH, MY DARLING follows in the wake of a possible serial killer in Eckardt County. Former Chicago police officer Lila Dayne is the newest recruit/hiree on the Eckardt County police force but Lila’s past is a mystery to Sheriff Elizabeth Benoit, a mystery that is about to upend the town, sending Lila into a spiral from which she may never return. With half the town submerged under water in the wake of a seasonal storm, an unsolved serial case and a badly decomposed body has followed Lila Dayne to Eckardt County, and with it, a message that the killer has come to finish the job. As the only known surviving victim of the I-80 killer, Lila knew it was only a matter of time before her past comes full circle, and threatens the people with whom she works, loves and plays. The large ensemble cast is spirited, dynamic and impassioned. Most of the previous story line characters return including Sheriff Elizabeth Benoit, Deputy Lila Dayne, Deputy Rafe Fontaine, Deputy Ben Fitzgerald, Deputy Brent Meyer, and Deputy Kyle Lundquist; ME Dr. Olivia Remington-Thorpe and her husband Dr. Dominic Thorpe, dispatcher Georgia Schmidt, and former Eckardt County Sheriff Kelley Sheehan. We are introduced to former CPD detective Cecil Waterford, and Agent Tate McCall with the Illinois State Police. The relationship between the Drs Thorpe is turning messy and concerning. HUSH, MY DARLING is an intriguing, haunting and gritty story of power and vengeance, murder and mayhem, obsession and control.The premise is tragic and edgy; the characters are broken, intense and determined.