Book Review – The Silent Sister

Hello folks! I wanted to share a book review on The Silent Sister for your reading pleasure, as you venture into the weekend. The Silent Sister was published in 2014, and written by the internationally best-selling author, Diane Chamberlain.

Believe it or not, I stumbled onto the novel in a local Barnes & Noble and I was intrigued by reading the back cover, even though it’s not 1998! It has been forever since I scooped up a book from a bookstore on a whim, versus keenly selecting a novel through pre-meditated research on goodreads. Fellow writers, a good back cover, and a well-designed cover carry weight, so all of our efforts are worthwhile! OK, so, one additional tidbit. As I stood in the purchase line I quickly looked the novel up on amazon, and purchased it once I saw it had 2,719 reviews and 4 ½ stars, so that is more in tune with 2019.  BUT, I still would not have known about the novel outside of the walk-in bookstore occurrence.

Now, onto the review. I read the book in two days, which for me represents a plot driven novel. Right off the bat you feel incredible empathy for the main character, Riley, who lost both of her parents by the tender age of twenty-five, a sister who killed herself when Riley was two, and one mentally unstable brother left as a family member. She had no husband or children of her own, and her best friend had moved away. As Kurt Vonnegut said, ‘No matter how sweet and innocent your lead characters, make awful things happen to them-in order that the reader may see what they are made of.’ Chamberlain was successful in this regard, and without spilling the beans on what happens in case you want to scoop this novel up this weekend, I will leave it at that.

Somehow in the midst of a sad setting, the writer managed to keep the read from becoming heavy. The main character is rather focused on what matters—her brother, and managing her parent’s estate. That is until, of course, she begins to uncover some hidden family secrets. This takes Riley in a direction completely off course, with a multitude of shocking revelations. In this way, the author was successful in moving the story forward and reeling you in as a reader. And though this novel is not my typical read, I enjoyed the thrill as Riley unraveled the realities of her family and life.

A good book review draws attention to the challenges of a novel as well. This said, the story was a bit predictable. Also, Riley seemed impossibly reasonable given everything she endured throughout the duration of the novel. Still, at the end of the day, the novel kept me hooked.

Goodreads gives this novel 3.94 stars out of 5, and I would rank it at 3.4. If you are looking for a page-turner that you cannot put down, this is a great novel go-to!

What are your thoughts on this book review?  Have you read this novel, and if so what did you think of it? Do tell, I would love to know!

See you back at my corner of the webosphere soon!