The Chris Voss Show - The Chris Voss Show Podcast – Web of Silence by Kathleen Dutton

Episode Date: April 22, 2025

Web of Silence by Kathleen Dutton Authorkathleendutton.com Amazon.com Caught in a web of dangerous deception, Beth Brockton is forced to flee her hometown. Without a word of explanation, she abandons her identity and all that she holds dear, including her fiancé, Sam Andrews. After she briefly returns for her mother's funeral two years later and escapes to her safe haven once more, Sam is determined to find her and discover the secrets she guards. But Sam is not the only one searching for her, and in order to protect her loved ones, Beth must confront her terrifying past to ultimately shed the sinister bonds of the. . .

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Voss show with all the most brilliant minds, authors, leaders, people who shape the world and know what's going on and they bring their stories to life and share them with you so that you can live a better life. And if you're not living a better life listening to the Chris Voss Show, you're still not getting it. So just go back and listen to all the episodes again. There's only 2,300 of them. Opinions expressed by guests on the podcast are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the host or the Chris Voss Show. Some guests to the show may be advertising on the podcast, but it is not an endorsement or review of any kind. Today, we have an amazing young lady on the show.

Today, we're going to be talking about her books, her authorship, what she does, and some of the cool things you can enjoy reading her books. Her book that we'll be talking or leading off with today is called Web of Silence by Kathleen Dutton. We'll get into it with her, find out about her experience with being an author, how she finally became one. And you know, it's so great. People in life, you know, they determine that they want to tell their stories, share them with people and get everyone going.

Kathleen has enjoyed the craft of writing since childhood as a path to enter a world of unlimited possibilities and escape a traumatic childhood. Her first novel is Out of Habit. Her first novel is out of habit. Her second novel is web of silence. She retired from the professional world as a clinical specialist and clinical field engineer training cardiologists in the US to support products that make a difference in cardiac procedures. She enjoys life in Michigan with her family, your husband, and three office assistant cats.

Welcome to the show. Kathleen, how are you? I'm well. Thank you, Chris. Thank you. We're glad to know you're well. We just, we were checking your blood test earlier. And so, so Kathleen, give us your.com.

It's where can people find you on the interwebs? You can find me at www.authorcathleen.com. Pretty simple. Simple and easy. Kathleen become whole by the end. But Web of Silence is about a young lady who had to disappear from her small town Michigan home because of a very, very dangerous deception. And so she left and without a word of explanation, she abandoned her identity and all that she holds dear, including her fiance, Sam Andrews. After she briefly returns two years later for her mother's funeral and She believed she escapes back to her safe haven

But Sam is to Sam her fiance is determined to find her and discover the secrets she guards But Sam is not the only one searching for her, and in order to protect her loved ones, she must confront her terrifying past to ultimately shed the sinister bonds of of the web of silence. Oh, the web of silence. Yeah, and it even has a web on the cover. Oh yeah, yeah, yeah. There's something there should be a voiceover for it too whenever you say it.

The web of silence. I can't, you know, my voice is so childlike. I used to get calls from my daughter's friends, the party's at at and I would just Pretend I was her and then I could front her Yeah, I should hire you to punk my friends you can answer my phone and my friends I've finally had a sex change. We knew it was coming all along. So I don't know. So why do you always pick, you said you pick damaged women or women have issues? Is that how you framed it?

Oh yes. And that's my story. Where do you find these women? Have you been checking my dating pool with people I've been taking out lately? I have dreams that start these books. And it's about me actually, that my mother was a narcissistic mommy dearest. And I was one of three in the middle and I took the brunt of her. three in the middle and I took the brunt of her. Pete Slauson Oh, a whole Joan Carford sort of thing for those of you. Dr.

McCrory Oh, yeah. I was fractured, I had no self-esteem. And I can tell you at 16, I was suicidal, dropped out of school, and then my aunt and uncle had me come live with them in San Francisco. My aunt said, you know, I had no grades. I had no self-confidence. I was worthless. My mother, I believed it. Why try if you're stupid? Oh, it was awful. Wow. Anyway, my aunt encouraged me. She said, I know you can do it. And all of a sudden, all you need is one person to say, you're smart, you're funny, you're, you know, just one person to help you on the path. And I just bloomed out in San Francisco.

I got the lead in summer stock and 4.0. I wouldn't settle for anything less than a 4.0. She gave me the confidence. Pete That is awesome. You know, that is awesome. That really speaks to, you know, a lot of people have that experience in school. They have a teacher that helps them bloom and blossom. And you know, sometimes you just need that person to believe in you. And when you have someone who's constantly telling you, you know, berating you, telling you you're worthless or talking down to you, you start, berating you, telling you you're worthless or talking down to you, you start to believe them, right?

KB I just needed that. I was so hungry for that. It was such a different atmosphere. This is my mom's brother and his wife, and they just coddled me and told me, you can do whatever you choose to. We know we know you can. So when I tried out for the summer stock production my aunt said oh you'll get the lead and she said little did I know the whole San Francisco county was trying out but I got the lead and Course I I need to make my head a little smaller, you know But that's when I started writing about these fractured women and How they can get anyone can change? I don't care what your background is. And that's the theme through all my books.

In fact, some reviews say how much they appreciate that one can change no matter what, no matter what you've been through. The Phoenix rising from the ashes. Everyone loves the comeback story. Everyone loves, you know, this is why it's so important that we share our stories, even novels and fiction, that we share our stories and the lessons of life. And by sharing, we realize we're not alone. And by sharing, we realize other people maybe have figured out a way to get out of the You know some of the messes we tend to get into as human beings and and then we survive Absolutely, not only

survive Most people can survive but to become Something you never dreamed of But I think there was a little spark in me that I knew Um, something you never dreamed of. But I think there was a little spark in me that I knew I could overcome. And I like to share that story in all my books. I do different scenarios, of course, but they're romantic, but not erotic. I started typing like somebody, some of these famous authors,

and I just deleted it cause my mother and my kids were going to read it. So it's a, it's a very fresh, it's a love story. Very, very emotional. Pete Slauson Hmm. Are there, is there any influence in the book or of your other two books, maybe examples or influences you pull from your personal life and growing up? Dr. Mary Jo C. McNeese Exactly. I do start out, the second one is Out of Habit, and it's won awards on contests.

And this one is about a young lady who at the age of 10 became an orphan. Her parents were murdered and she had no one and she never spoke after because of the trauma. So she went to live under the sheltering arms of nuns and she wanted to become a nun. But then Sister Margaret, who was her guardian, asked her to live out in the real world for one year before she takes the vows, because she'd been sheltered all that time. So she lives on her own and she runs into this rookie reporter and they form a bond and at course it's ups and downs. There's a murder and yeah. So, oh, there's a murder. And in the first book, web of silence, there's a trial.

trial. One guy that reviewed it said, there's an intriguing trial that all comes together. And yes, I do start out with a person that is totally crippled and make her whole through learning she can be loved, she can survive and not only survive, she can go beyond the expectations she ever dreamed of. That's my second book. Is there a little bit of your own story woven in there? Every, every story is me. Oh, well, very fractured, very wounded, no self-esteem until like my aunt. And then I came back home from San Francisco and I met no Paul. My husband was my best friend from fifth grade. Nothing,

nothing romantic, nothing this. And I, when I was in San Francisco, we wrote letters and I think I fell in love with him when I was away. So I'm sorry. They say distance makes the heart grow fonder. Oh my gosh. I reject everyone I go on a date with so they'll eventually fall in love with me over the writing letters to someone. Oh, I'm supposed to write the letters. Damn it. Yeah. I knew I was leaving something out. No emails, no emails. Write the letters. You write from the heart. Oh, God. And we're really pushing here. I don't know if I can.

Oh, come on, Chris. You can do it. You can do it. I'm glad you believe in me. You can. I don't know. Anyway, I'm pretty heartless and dead inside. So that's what most of my, no, you're not.

I don't know. You don't have to get to know me better. I'm pretty, I'm going to try and hook you up. I'm pretty soulless. I'm unlovable. That's my problem. Oh no, you're not. We're in Davey.

They're like, I can't find anything about you to love. There's just, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait,

wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, called, all of them have a middle of, web of silence, out of habit. Third one is color of tears. Pete Hmm. KB And she's an artist. Pete The color of tears. What color are tears actually? I've never… KB I know, she's an artist in...

She's having a hard time painting the color of tears. Oh, okay. I like that. That's interesting. What is the color of tears? I don't know. It depends. I'm from...

I'm from... I'm a Martian, so my tears are green. It depends what you're on, of course. That's right. It depends. Maybe that's the reason I think I'm a Marsha. It could be red. Could be.

So, tell us more about what's inside that book and what you hope people come away from. Which one? The most, yeah, the color of tears. Does she ever figure out the color? You probably shouldn't tell us the answer. It's a lady that is divorced, very abusive husband. She she goes to her great grandmother's home on the shores of Lake Michigan. And she's never told her ex about the house. So starts renovated and her great-grandmother

is a ghost and she comes through and then next door is the guy she used to you know when she was a kid she used to go there for summers. And he's now a big FBI guy. And his great uncle is a ghost in his house. And the great uncle and her great grandmother never got together. But yeah, she thought he died in World War II. Lots of girls. Yeah. The ghosts come together. Her ex husband turns out to be, I don't want to say, but he's after her.

Oh, yeah. That's not good. He's after her. You know how those abusive exes are. They are. I've had a couple. I've had my windows broken into, yeah, my house broken into by exes. Yeah. I've had it all. It's awful. Yeah. It's always best not to date people that have father or mother abandonment,

whether they're man or woman, father or mother abandonment has an effect on people that when you break up with them, you might as well be their father or mother who left for the milk. Exactly. Oh, that's terrible. You never want to take that role. Pete Slauson Never want to take that role. Just advise that person to get into therapy because they don't deal with rejection well especially a narcissist you know oh yeah have you run into any narcissists i i mostly date women yeah i tell the joke because it's they're actually finding women are becoming more narcissistic like men because they're being masculine and doing masculine activities and social media i think and they take care of you

and doing masculine activities and social media, I think is- And they take care of you, but then they become obsessive. I haven't gotten to that point yet. None of them want to take care of me. Like I said, I'm unlovable. So, they just reject me outright from, you know, the moment they see my picture. Oh, come on. I'm not buying that for one minute. So, we covered the three books that you have out right now. Is that correct? Yes. And then, what do you hope your readers come away with from your books? Is it different per book or is it kind of general overview?

I think they love the characterizations that I put really close people in with the protagonist and I developed those characters. They fall in love with them. Like I said, out of habit, they want a sequel. It's like maybe he should turn narcissistic. There's no way to write a sequel to these, but the outcome of all is from my own experience of being able to change no matter what. I mean, you can be given, and these, my heroines are given horrible, worse than mine, beginnings. And that's in the reviews on a lot of them.

I love to watch her change and become whole. And it's not without murders and cop killer trials and that type of thing. It's up and down, but they have this one supporting guy that believes in them no matter what. It's good to have. And since they're damaged women that you write about. Listen to that, Chris. What? You have to listen to that, what I just said.

I did. I was just actually going to feed it back to you. So, for the damaged women that you write about, they tend to find that finding a man that's steady helps them? Is that what you said? Finding out, reuniting with an old fiancee. Okay.

That hated her for leaving. So he was not interested. He just tried to forget about her. Ah. But then he finds that she's in trouble and he follows and it's quite a search and that's kind of interesting, but whatever. You got to read the book to find out. I'm not telling you that good stuff. I'll tell you the good stuff, but not the ending or the suspense.

All right. Are you going to tell us or do you just leave it? No, no. That okay. I number one web of silence. She's hiding from a very heinous act. And she relocates by her grandmother way up north. And that's, she, her grandmother helps her find a new identity. And she's teaching. And then all of a sudden things fall apart. And out of habit, she wants to become a nun. And then I think there's one line that I just love. When she looked into Ryan's eyes, becoming a nun was the furthest thing from her mind.

So it's very, very romantic, but not too much. There's so much suspense. And in that, in that book, Out of Habit, yeah, people come after her and the people that killed her parents. Never mind. Okay. We can't give away the novels because people gotta read them to find out. Pete Slauson I know it!

Pete Slauson Gotta buy you the books, ladies and gentlemen. You got the T's, you got the T's out. What do you love about writing? What is it that you find that satisfies you? Pete Slauson I've been writing, like I said, since I was a child. I wish I saved those early stories. And I do have 17 manuscripts under my bed. So I don't I'm running out of time. So I'll probably be famous post humorously. And I don't know, I just love to write. That's how, you know, I get into the characters, they're my friends. I get into the story where it's like a movie and I create it. I get into quite a bit of characterization that people fall in

love with and they love her story. In fact, sometimes the heroine infuriates them. Just deal with it and tell them for God's sakes. But then they understand why she cannot divulge what happened. Pete Slauson Mm hmm. Ah, the suspense of it all. Any new books you're working on? Any future things coming out soon that we should know about? Debra Larson Tears, I'm almost done with that. Pete Slauson Okay. Tears I'm almost done with that. Okay, but that's the artist and She moves away from ex abusive abuse of husband who didn't start out that way

But he's Stalking her. Hmm And that's color of tears and then I have a series after that it's kind of like paranormal Where They go back Into centuries where they met in prior lifetimes and they always came together and Yeah, they're pretty suspenseful yeah so that's three book it's called chances of changes chances of survival and then chances of

love oh i love these as many chances as it can get. I've seen it. It's not doing well lately. I'm glad you said that. We need more love in the world. That or more. Absolutely. Who doesn't like to escape?

And even men have read these. And I mean, there's police. I have a friend that's a state trooper who's helped me through some of those scenes. Yeah. Pete Slauson Yeah. We need more love in the world and more tacos. And actually, if we just want more tacos, there'll be more love. Julie Well, and it's not with its levels of suspense, right?

Pete Slauson Ah! Pete Slauson As well. As well. I'm gonna, I'm thinking, I'm thinking I'm gonna roll with this tacos thing for more tacos and love in the world And I'm gonna write my next book. It's gonna become the tears of tacos Funny I was like, I'm not sure if this is gonna be funny or not, but I'm just gonna You're gonna kill or die. So tears of tacos, the tears might be ripping off a little bit. You may have to sue me for pleasure.

I won't say what tacos represent on emojis. Not either. I'm not either, but they're at filling in our sponsor here. I'm not going to say Taco Bell. Anyway, thank you very much for coming to the show. How can people stay in touch with you, the dot coms? Is there a newsletter you have that they could subscribe to so they can get updates on your future offerings? Mary F. Kennedy S. I don't know. I'm just hopeful that I'll find a publisher. I've gotten many people that many scammers, I'm telling you, many people that want to present it as a movie because it's what people are looking for today. Both of my

books, they just want to change it into a movie. And while I was writing, it was so easy to write Web of Silence. I had this, I was in Northern Michigan on the shores of Lake Michigan with my feet in the water. And these characters would come to me and demand to be put in my book. And so I would put them in my book and it was like I had a muse and it was just fascinating. I love writing. I love writing and how my mind can just go to places that are not unkind or they are unkind and

then transformation. Are you okay? Yeah, just got a little good, probably a beard hair in my mouth. I got a little bit there. A little good, probably a beard hair in my mouth. Got a little bit there. So give us your dot coms. Where can people follow you on the interwebs and watch for more stuff from you? Dot com is www.authorcathleendutton.com. It's been fun to have you on Kathleen.

Wonderful discussion. Congratulations on the books you're putting out in fact you're touching people's lives and proving them and you know reconciling your own story as well thank you for coming on. I'm so glad to be here Chris I really enjoyed it. Thank you we're glad to have you as well we'll look forward to the next book you put out see a lot of pressure we just put on you there. Mary Farris But I'm really appreciative that you let me talk about all three. Pete Yeah.

Mary Farris And then even those that I'm just starting to write. Pete Yeah. I think we've got some, I know we have a lot of authors that listen to the show that are checking what other people are doing. And I imagine we have a lot of wannabe authors on the show, you know, successful people like yourself that can come on and tell them how they can start writing and start flushing out the characters and doing. I have at the Ottawa book festival, I did a presentation.

It was a keynote speaker and I did it on Don't stop writing Hmm, and it's very interesting. I I took all of the authors in the past Stephen King was rejected because he used a different name Your Rudyard Kipling got a letter of, you know, we don't, we're not interested because sir, you don't have command of the English language. So I have all these that I tell you about. Dr. Seuss. I mean everybody. So that's a further presentation.

Thank you very much for coming to the show Kathleen. We really appreciate it. Thanks to our audience for tuning in. Go to Goodreads.com for just Chris Voss. LinkedIn.com for just Chris Voss. Chris Voss won the TikTokity and all those crazy places in the internet. Be good to each other. Stay safe. We'll see you next time. And that should have us out.