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lsneal's review
2.0
Melodramatic, and with a story that kept making me flip back to see if I had missed a page or chapter or something. Nope. The missing chunks of the story/reasoning that were seemed to be intentional on the author's part.
eoppelt's review against another edition
4.0
Won this in a first reads giveaway, and I'm glad I did. Inwanted to read this because I enjoy Sagara's Chronicles of Elentra series. This book is urban fantasy rather than high fantasy, but they story was just as compelling.
The character development in Silence was wonderful. Even though the main chatacters are teenagers, they didn't fall into traditional teenager categories. They were neuanced and much more human than the characters other authors are able to create. I loved the inclusion of Michael, who has autism. His character was pretty spot on. Even the dog had a character that felt real.
One thing I struggled with, and this is also true of other books I've read by this author, is a slight vaguness to the plot. It took to the last few pages before I was able to figure out basic plot and background points. But the story still made sense and information was finally given, so it worked out okay.
The character development in Silence was wonderful. Even though the main chatacters are teenagers, they didn't fall into traditional teenager categories. They were neuanced and much more human than the characters other authors are able to create. I loved the inclusion of Michael, who has autism. His character was pretty spot on. Even the dog had a character that felt real.
One thing I struggled with, and this is also true of other books I've read by this author, is a slight vaguness to the plot. It took to the last few pages before I was able to figure out basic plot and background points. But the story still made sense and information was finally given, so it worked out okay.
marktimmony's review against another edition
3.0
This is very different to Michelle's other work - and not least because it's YA Urban Fantasy.
There is a very distinct change in style - while at the same time still retaining Michelle's voice. Unfortunately it didn't quite work for me which is why I have given it 3 stars instead of the 5 I usually give her.
The idea is great, but the characters didn't really contect with me.
There is a very distinct change in style - while at the same time still retaining Michelle's voice. Unfortunately it didn't quite work for me which is why I have given it 3 stars instead of the 5 I usually give her.
The idea is great, but the characters didn't really contect with me.
bookmaddie's review against another edition
5.0
I looved Sagara-West's writing, as usual, and the story was very engaging and interesting to read. While I was confused at some parts, it all worked out in the end, and I cannot wait for the next book in the series!
lessharper's review
3.0
Interesting premise. Interesting writing, yet it tends to wander. Characters are a tad flat but that is to be expected in a YA read. While I enjoyed this it's aimed much more directly at the teenage audience and I vastly prefer my heroines to be older, wiser, and a little more autonomous. As such I probably won't read the rest of the series. (When I was a teen I probably would have read then all in one sitting.)
I would have prefered it if Emma had done a lot more of the investigative questioning that Sagara's other characters do in her other books. Emma just didn't ask a lot of how, what, why, or when questions that would have helped her to figure stuff out.
I would have prefered it if Emma had done a lot more of the investigative questioning that Sagara's other characters do in her other books. Emma just didn't ask a lot of how, what, why, or when questions that would have helped her to figure stuff out.
justalillost's review
2.0
This, and other reviews can be found on Just a Lil Lost
Rating: ★ ★ ☆ (2.5/5 stars)
Emma has been drawn to the cemetery ever since her boyfriend died. It was her quiet place to be with him & reflect on the day until one evening’s chance encounter with Eric, a new boy at the school and an obviously not-of-this-world old woman. From that moment on, Emma realizes she can hear, speak to and touch the dead. When the title of Necromancer starts being passed around, Emma makes it clear she has no interest in such a role. She wants to use her new-found powers for good, to help the dead move on but those that hunt Necromancers have a different plan.
A friend pitched this book to me and it sounded like something I would enjoy. A ghost story book set in Toronto? Sold. Unfortunately though, I just couldn’t get into the book. It was a bizarrely-told story, where a lot of the time I had no idea what was going on. I’ve been told that Sagara usually writes adult fiction, so her style may not lay everything out as clearly as other YA novels might, but I don’t believe that’s it for me. I don’t need things spelled out for me to understand the plot.
I didn’t get a feel that it was set in Toronto though, and really wouldn’t have even known it was supposed to be T.O. if not for one mention (about 76 pages in). Not that it really detracts from the story itself, but personally, it being set in Toronto was a big seller. This could have been set in any city in North America. However, I did appreciate the more human moments with Emma and her family. The dynamic and interactions between her & her mother, or her & her father were touching. The scenes with the burning house were also interesting, with the different experiences that Emma was having from the others.
Otherwise, I thought there were some aspects to the book that were really intriguing as to how Sagara chose to develop certain things. However, I feel at many times it just got so convoluted and complicated that the reader isn’t quite sure what was going on for the majority of the book. Perhaps this was just a book that was so far from what I was expecting it to originally be.
Rating: ★ ★ ☆ (2.5/5 stars)
Emma has been drawn to the cemetery ever since her boyfriend died. It was her quiet place to be with him & reflect on the day until one evening’s chance encounter with Eric, a new boy at the school and an obviously not-of-this-world old woman. From that moment on, Emma realizes she can hear, speak to and touch the dead. When the title of Necromancer starts being passed around, Emma makes it clear she has no interest in such a role. She wants to use her new-found powers for good, to help the dead move on but those that hunt Necromancers have a different plan.
A friend pitched this book to me and it sounded like something I would enjoy. A ghost story book set in Toronto? Sold. Unfortunately though, I just couldn’t get into the book. It was a bizarrely-told story, where a lot of the time I had no idea what was going on. I’ve been told that Sagara usually writes adult fiction, so her style may not lay everything out as clearly as other YA novels might, but I don’t believe that’s it for me. I don’t need things spelled out for me to understand the plot.
I didn’t get a feel that it was set in Toronto though, and really wouldn’t have even known it was supposed to be T.O. if not for one mention (about 76 pages in). Not that it really detracts from the story itself, but personally, it being set in Toronto was a big seller. This could have been set in any city in North America. However, I did appreciate the more human moments with Emma and her family. The dynamic and interactions between her & her mother, or her & her father were touching. The scenes with the burning house were also interesting, with the different experiences that Emma was having from the others.
Otherwise, I thought there were some aspects to the book that were really intriguing as to how Sagara chose to develop certain things. However, I feel at many times it just got so convoluted and complicated that the reader isn’t quite sure what was going on for the majority of the book. Perhaps this was just a book that was so far from what I was expecting it to originally be.
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