The Weight of Silence (MIRA)

Author: Heather Gudenkauf
Publisher: Mira Books
Category: Book

List Price: ~~£7.99~~
Buy Used: £1.49
as of 9/9/2010 01:07 BST details
You Save: £6.50 (81%)

New (25) Used (25) from £1.49

Seller: brit-books
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars

39 reviews
Sales Rank: 986

Media: Paperback
Pages: 416
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 7.6 x 5 x 1.1

ISBN: 0778303691
EAN: 9780778303695
ASIN: 0778303691

Publication Date: April 16, 2010
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days

Features:

•	New
•	Mint Condition
•	Dispatch same day for order received before 12 noon
•	Guaranteed packaging
•	No quibbles returns

Also Available In:

•	Paperback - The Weight of Silence (MIRA)
•	Kindle Edition - Weight of Silence (MIRA)
•	Paperback - The Weight of Silence (Kennebec Large Print Superior Collection)
•	Paperback - The Weight of Silence
•	Kindle Edition - The Weight of Silence

Similar Items:

The Bed I Made

The Man Who Disappeared

The Legacy

Ellis Island

The Devil's Acre

Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
Calli Clark is a dreamer. A sweet, gentle girl, Callie suffers from selective mutism. 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.

Customer Reviews:

Showing reviews 1-5 of 39

1 2 3 4 5 6 ...8 Next »

Wonderful, moving, raw and enthralling! October 21, 2009
J. Johns (London)
16 out of 17 found this review helpful

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 out of 5 stars

A real page-turner July 31, 2010
Nicola (UK)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful

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.

5 out of 5 stars

An easy but page turning read.... August 7, 2010
smellslikeangels (Scotland)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

This book revolves around the disappearance of two little girls, Calli and Petra. Calli is a selective mute, and Petra is her best friend who serves as her voice.

The story has a number of narrators, whose chapters are each around 2-3 pages long. This keeps your interest as the perspective changes frequently, but doesnt allow for a great amount of character development. However, having a fast moving and dramatic plotline perhaps excuses the reader from not having an indepth knowledge of the characters.

I read this book within a couple of hours - I was gripped and felt the panic and distress of the childrens parents along with them. Unlike other reviewers, I did not find the conclusion at all predictable.

5 out of 5 stars

A great first book August 6, 2010
C. Bannister (Jersey, CI)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

This story captures the fear of parents who realise that their daughters are missing. Naturally they assume that they were taken by the same person.

As others have pointed out this isn't really a whodunnit because we have so many characters points of view, so we know who Calli is with although we don't know where Petra is until much later on. That said it is an easy read and compels you to turn to the next page to find out more.

I loved it and can't wait for Heather Gudenkauf's next book.

5 out of 5 stars

An intriguing debut by a gifted author. I look forwards to finding more of her books! March 14, 2010
E. Heckingbottom (U.K.)
8 out of 10 found this review helpful

Two innocent young girls, best friends, have disappeared ... vanished without trace in the early hours of the morning. More disturbing is the fact that one of them, Calli, is a selective mute who has not spoken for 4 years. The other, Petra, is her soul mate who acts as her `voice'. Are they together? Where have they gone? Who could have taken them, and why? Is Calli's father, Griff, the guilty one? Is there any link to the earlier disappearance and murder of 10 year old Jenna McIntire?

Intriguingly, this book is intriguingly written in six `voices', each chapter being 'written' by a different voice. The six are: - Calli's mother, Antonia; Petra's father, Martin; the deputy sheriff, Louis, Antonia's former boyfriend; Ben, Calli's brother; Petra, one of the missing children and Calli herself. The intriguing thing is that 5 of these write in the first person, in the present tense. Only Calli's section is written in the third person and in the past tense - which adds to the intrigue.

This is an excellent debut novel - I look forwards to seeing more by this talented author. It should appeal to those who enjoy Jodi Picoult and The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold's. It should also appeal to those who enjoyed Little Bird by Camilla Way.

Showing reviews 1-5 of 39

1 2 3 4 5 6 ...8 Next »

CERTAIN CONTENT THAT APPEARS ON THIS SITE COMES FROM AMAZON EU S.à.r.l. THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED ‘AS IS’ AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR REMOVAL AT ANY TIME.

First4Books