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Review
'A great thriller, probably the kind of book a lot of people would chose to read on their sun loungers. It will appeal to fans of Jodi Picoult.' --Radio Times
'Deeply moving and exquisitely lyrical, this is a powerhouse of a debut novel.' --Tess Gerritsen
'Beautifully written, compassionately told, and relentlessly suspenseful.' --Diane Chamberlain
'Deeply moving and exquisitely lyrical, this is a powerhouse of a debut novel.' --Tess Gerritsen
'Beautifully written, compassionately told, and relentlessly suspenseful.' --Diane Chamberlain
Product Description
When two seven-year-old girls go missing, all are under suspicion. Calli Clark is a dreamer. A sweet, gentle girl, Callie suffers from selective mutism, brought on by a tragedy she experienced as a toddler. Her mother Antonia tries her best to help, but is confined by marriage to a violent husband. Petra Gregory is Calli's best friend, her soul mate and her voice. But neither Petra nor Calli have been heard from since their disappearance was discovered. Now Calli and Petra's families are bound by the question of what has happened to their children. As support turns to suspicion, it seems the answers lie trapped in the silence of unspoken secrets.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
33 of 35 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I pre-ordered this book based on a 20 word review in a book industry magazine. When I started it, I was enthralled from the first moment, enjoying the way the story unravels, loving the mystery and desperately wanting further clues to be revealed. This is a wonderful novel told through the eyes of several characters, allowing you to get to know and understand them and share their fears and desires. If you enjoyed Alice Seybold's "The Lovely Bones", you will love this book!
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I felt this book got off to a slightly slow start, but as soon as I was into the story I was absolutely flying through it, and couldn't wait to get to the next chapter to see what had happened to the two girls who had gone missing from their beds during the night.
All the action takes place over one day as the girls' families and the police try frantically to find them. The story is told from a number of different viewpoints, in nice, short, easy to read chapters, and it unfolds really well, as we find out more and more background information about the girls' family life.
This book will appeal to fans of Diane Chamberlain, as the style is very similar. I look forward to reading Heather Gudenkauf's next book.
All the action takes place over one day as the girls' families and the police try frantically to find them. The story is told from a number of different viewpoints, in nice, short, easy to read chapters, and it unfolds really well, as we find out more and more background information about the girls' family life.
This book will appeal to fans of Diane Chamberlain, as the style is very similar. I look forward to reading Heather Gudenkauf's next book.
31 of 34 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This story is spread over a sixteen hour period when two 7 year old girls both vanish from their houses on the same night, without a trace. Calli suffers from selective mutism and hasn't spoken since she was 4 years old, despite councelling and psychological help. Her best friend, Petra, understands Calli and acts as her mouthpiece to other friends and adults alike.
The book is written a chapter at a time by a different narrator: as well as the two girls, there is also Antonia and Ben (Calli's Mum and brother), Martin (Petra's Dad) and Sherrif Louis (who was an childhood sweetheart of Antonia's and is still in love with her). From the first realisation of a disappearance (at 4.30am) until the conclusion the reader is taken on a journey through the adults attempt to bring the girls home safely.
This may sound like the book is a thriller / mystery type and at times I did wonder if that was what it was trying to be: however if that was its intention then I'm not sure it works. There is a crime committed but it's pretty obvious "whodunnit" in both the girls cases fairly early on and the great revelation at the end falls a bit flat. The book really centres around Calli's muteness more than anything and her reasons for being that way. I also suspect that this was meant to be some great revelation too but again, it's not hard to work out why pretty early on.
I don't mean to sell the book short as, admitidly, it is a real page-turner. The short chapters that are alternately narrated by a different character means that the book has great forward momentum and I do like that in a book; one where you say "just one more chapter" and then again and again until you've read the whole thing before you know it. To summarise, I really liked this book and although I didn't think there was anything particularly clever or original in it sometimes I don't need that in a book. As far as debuts go, this is a pretty good attempt. I do think that the book could have done with a tad more spit and polish but it's more than likely that I will pick up her next book when it's out too - I think this author may be one to watch in the future.
I would recommend for a holiday read or a quick page-turner between more heavyweight tomes.
The book is written a chapter at a time by a different narrator: as well as the two girls, there is also Antonia and Ben (Calli's Mum and brother), Martin (Petra's Dad) and Sherrif Louis (who was an childhood sweetheart of Antonia's and is still in love with her). From the first realisation of a disappearance (at 4.30am) until the conclusion the reader is taken on a journey through the adults attempt to bring the girls home safely.
This may sound like the book is a thriller / mystery type and at times I did wonder if that was what it was trying to be: however if that was its intention then I'm not sure it works. There is a crime committed but it's pretty obvious "whodunnit" in both the girls cases fairly early on and the great revelation at the end falls a bit flat. The book really centres around Calli's muteness more than anything and her reasons for being that way. I also suspect that this was meant to be some great revelation too but again, it's not hard to work out why pretty early on.
I don't mean to sell the book short as, admitidly, it is a real page-turner. The short chapters that are alternately narrated by a different character means that the book has great forward momentum and I do like that in a book; one where you say "just one more chapter" and then again and again until you've read the whole thing before you know it. To summarise, I really liked this book and although I didn't think there was anything particularly clever or original in it sometimes I don't need that in a book. As far as debuts go, this is a pretty good attempt. I do think that the book could have done with a tad more spit and polish but it's more than likely that I will pick up her next book when it's out too - I think this author may be one to watch in the future.
I would recommend for a holiday read or a quick page-turner between more heavyweight tomes.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Great read
I have read both of Heather Gudenkauf's other 2 books and loved them. This is her first book and is very well written. Read more
Published 11 days ago by Sarah Lambert
The Weight of Silence
A' hard to put down' read, Heather Gudenkauf uses a similar style to 'These Hidden Things' with short chapters always entitled with the name of one of the characters. Read more
Published 1 month ago by jmd
The Weight of Silence
The Weight of Silence is described in more than one place as a book Jodi Picoult fans will love. Well I'm a Jodi Picoult fan, but to be honest that's not something that would make... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Lucybird
A compelling novel of family and relationships
In as many months, I seem to have coincidentally read three novels that focus on selective mutism in children; `Breaking the Silence' by Diane Chamberlain, `December' by Elizabeth... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Nicola F (Nic)
Really grew on me
When I started reading this book, I was a bit disappointed. Although I was enjoying the style of each character having a chapter each to describe the story from their point of view... Read more
Published 4 months ago by daisyduck1976
A good read
I love books like this - not a thriller, but with a mystery that weaves through the story and is unravelled along with the characters. Read more
Published 6 months ago by DubaiReader
Unputdownable
This book was picked as a book club read and I was dubious at first becase all the chapters are of individual characters and their thoughts and actions, but once I started to read,... Read more
Published 9 months ago by DorsetGirl_11
Not reliable
I never recieved what I ordered, I tried contacting the seller through email but had no reply from them....wont be using them again!!
Published 11 months ago by dani
A good read
I seem to really enjoy novels where children take the main stage for one reason or another. In this book, two seven year olds go missing from their beds, one a mute since 4 and the... Read more
Published 11 months ago by E. Murphy
Not as great as the publicity!
This book was disappointing. I couldn't identify with the characters. I was irritated by Antonia constantly throughout the book. She had few redeeming characteristics. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Austen Wannabe
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