Reviews

Weight of Silence by Heather Gudenkauf

michellefleming33's review against another edition

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2.0

So I bought this back in August 2009. Yeah, that's how long it's been sitting on my "to be read shelf."

And I hate to say this about any book, but um, it should have just stayed there, or even maybe just stayed at the store. It was one of those buy one get one half off, and that's what suckered me into getting it.

The story itself is pretty simple, and what gives this book the buzz is the fact that you hear from everyone's perspective except Griff's, Lucky's, Mr. Wilson's and some other small insignificant characters.

It was an interesting take on two girls go missing, but still. Not enough for me to shout from the rooftops about how great it is.

I had already guessed who the bad person was and was really kind of disappointed with the ending. All this detail and exquisite writing throughout the book and then to end it so flatly? Ugh.

Not the best, not the worst. It was just ok. Glad things worked out, but then again there wasn't a really "happy" happy ending for anyone.



***SPOILERS!!!!***
I still thought that Mr. Wilson was a good person and counselor for Calli, but why the heck was he in the woods? Why did he think that the dog ran off when he was clearly in the yard? And why did he lawyer up so fast? That made me really suspicious of his character, but I never thought it was him that did that to Petra. It was just weird to make him seem that way especially when he's been nothing but great to Calli, and not great in a sick pervert way, but a helping, genuinely cares about her way. I don't know, just a "twist" in the story that really wasn't needed or need to be mentioned at all. I hate it when authors do that. Write random stuff about a great character to make you suspect that they could be the killer/abductor/bad guy, when they are perfectly innocent and innocuous. Ugh.

hjweigel's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

jellokites's review against another edition

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5.0

Could not put this book down! Kept me reading till the end.
The story centers around Callie, a 7 year old who is a selective mute and Petra her friend, who is Callie's "voice". Callie stopped talking after a tragedy as a 4 yr old. Both go missing in the middle of the night and a search beings.
A story about tragedy, love and hope.

canadian_booknerd's review against another edition

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5.0

I was absolutely sucked in to this book. It is beautifully written and the story is heartbreaking and yet so touching all at once. I highly recommend it.

julia0000's review against another edition

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4.0

Book club book! Quite a suspenseful read and I appreciated the change in narration style.

hkent80's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

3.25

harriet64's review against another edition

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4.0

I put off reading this book for so long, questioning why I bought it in the first place mainly because it isn't the sort of book I normally read...
This book was amazing! The characters were so developed and I loved it all. The themes explored in the book really make you question everything without making you work too hard which made the book even better, which is why I'm definitely glad I read it.

yousyyyyyyy's review against another edition

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3.0

Traumatizing 

cloudedsulphur's review against another edition

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5.0

I really enjoyed this book. It was well written and fast paced. Taking course over a short period of time, it offers multiple viewpoints, which gives you small pieces of the puzzle at a time. While the overall ending was not surprising, it was still great to read.

jayfr's review against another edition

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Meh!