3.4 AVERAGE

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

An engaging spinoff from Some Quiet Place, Where Silence Gathers is a tense read that shines a light on hard topics such as grief, rage, and forgiveness.
glaseramy's profile picture

glaseramy's review

3.0

This is a companion novel to Some Quiet Place and it was still very well done, but I think because I was so blown away by the first one, this one wasn't as powerful. Still very unique and an engaging read.
melliesimps's profile picture

melliesimps's review

4.0

As you may remember, I absolutely loved Some Quiet Place (review here). So I was beyond excited when I heard that there would be a companion book and I am even more happy to say that Where Silence Gathers is a wonderful companion to Some Quiet Place!

In Some Quiet Place, the main character can't feel emotions but in Where Silence Gathers, Alex not only feels emotions but she calls Revenge her best friend. I could go on with the comparisons to keep the element of familiarity alive but honestly, this companion title does such a magnificent job, I don't even need to.

Readers of Some Quiet Place know what world to expect in Where Silence Gathers but the stories within this world are so unique that it feels like you're diving into this world for the very first time. If you've ever wanted to read a book again but for the very first time, this reading experience is the closest I've gotten to that. It's so familiar yet so fresh. It's heartbreaking and hopeful. Once again, the main character is grieving but grief is so unique to each person and there are so many different circumstances that lead to grief and so many different actions one can make in the midst of grief.

Following Alex's story was fascinating and intense to say the least. The relationships that Alex has with her family and friends were quite a sight to see as well. After losing her immediate family, Alex has her Aunt Missy and Uncle Saul and while she loves them, her grief has kept her distant. Their loving hands never pull away and that was just so beautiful to see. I don't think we see enough of that in stories that are out today. Alex's friends don't take a backseat either. Georgie and Briana are going through their own struggles just as Alex is but having each other and knowing that they are all there for each other makes such a huge difference. And Angus. Alex's neighbor. Wow. What a wonderful reminder that help often comes from the most unexpected places.

As for the Emotions... I love how Alex sees the Elements not just as Emotions but as Choices. That is so powerful and really changes the game for the companion novel. I love the direction Sutton went with this novel and I love that with this added element to the story, there's even more depth to every single word when there already was so much. This is not easy to do. Not at all. Bravo!

Now I must mention that I loved when Forgiveness showed up and Alex thought, "I can't deal with him right now." Later, Forgiveness tells Alex, "Maybe you're stronger than you realize." Can we just bask in the brilliance of these words? Sutton nails the relationships that we human beings have with emotions and choices. She nails it. While pushing herself to do the one thing she thinks will satisfy her, Alex goes searching for answers and the tug of war between Revenge and Forgiveness is the most exciting and terrifying and beautiful war I've ever seen on the page.

This is a story about mistakes. Addiction. Consequences. Letting go. Making different choices. And so on. This story has so many secrets and so many revelations and it's filled with so much tension and hesitation and I am in awe of Sutton's ability to translate all of this on the page in the way that she has here, once again. It was so exciting getting to see Fear again. I found Disappointment and Worry and Surprise and Death and Hope the most thrilling of them all. But Revenge. Wow. The levels Revenge goes to accomplish his goals astounds me and the relationship that not only Revenge has with Alex, but we have with our own emotions and choices I will never see the same way again.

Where Silence Gathers is a beautifully constructed companion title that is so fluid and captivating on every page. It's truly one of the most haunting pieces of work I've read this year and the only one that has me wondering what emotions are sitting beside me at any time of the day. What a phenomenal job here, Sutton! Absolutely phenomenal.

Review originally posted on my blog, Hollywood the Write Way.
8lueminn0w's profile picture

8lueminn0w's review

4.0

“I know what I want to hear most: that everything will be okay. Except that it won’t. People move on, people live their lives day-to-day just trying to cope. But I think there’s a small part in all of us that’s just waiting for the next awful thing to happen. Everything is okay until it isn’t.”

No sé cuántas veces me he sentido triste por culpa de este libro ;-;.

*I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

Where Silence Gathers was an incredibly refreshing read. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I went into this novel, but it ended up being a mix of paranormal and thriller genres.

Alex was a great character because she was a whiny teenage girl who had been through alot, but she was unapologetic about it. She also admitted at times that her behavior was terrible, and she felt guilt about the way she treated her family and friends. I thought that this was incredibly realistic, because I remember feeling guilt as a teenager for my bratty behavior. Of course, I never apologized for it because I was a teenager and too proud, but I think that it was accurate for her age.

Also I really liked the dynamic between Revenge and Forgiveness. They were both so enthralling in their own ways. I felt bad for Revenge, because he couldn’t change his nature for Alex, but in many ways he wanted too. Forgiveness was different, he knew that his purpose was more noble and he carried that with him. I liked that each of the emotions had their own personality and even looked different from one another.

The thriller aspect of this book was incredibly well done and interwoven with the Emotions being represented as people. I definitely wouldn’t have seen the twist coming, because I thought I had figured out that bad guy just a few chapters in. There were some parts that seemed repetitive, especially with Alex’s behavior so that did detract a little bit for me.

I would give this book 4 out of 5 stars. It was a great read, and I really enjoyed it. I would definitely recommend this book, and I will be keeping an eye out for other books by this author.
betterbeereading's profile picture

betterbeereading's review

3.0

Sono riuscita finalmente a finire Where Silence Gathers. Mi ci è voluta più di una settimana ma ce l'ho fatta. Sebbene finirlo in una sola settimana, soprattutto in questo periodo dove il tempo per dedicarmi alla lettura è davvero poco... ad essere sincera mi è sembrato di esserci stata una vita.
Where Silence Gathers non mi è piaciuto. Ecco, l'ho detto.
Ho avuto non poche difficoltà a trovare la voglia per andare avanti nella lettura, e a dirla tutta ad un certo punto mi sono ritrovata a saltare pagine.

Alex è l'unica sopravvissuta in un incidente che le ha portato via il resto della famiglia e tutto quel che vuole, o almeno crede di volere, è vendetta per tutto ciò che non potrà più avere. E Vendetta, infatti diviene il suo migliore amico. L'Accompagna nel corso della sua vita e Alex non mette mai in dubbio che quando ne avrà la possibilità, riuscirà a mettere in atto ciò che ha covato nel cuore per anni.
Tuttavia, tra il dire e il fare come ben sappiamo c'è ben più di un abisso. E l'esitazione di Alex si manifesta in Perdono. Anche lui inizia a farle periodicamente visita e a sussurrarle parole gentili e ragionevoli nel tentativo di farle cambiare idea.

Sebbene abbia amato Some Quiet Place, la stessa scintilla non è scoccata per il suo companion. Personaggi diversi, non più Emozioni ma Scelte e un proseguire della storia troppo lento per i miei gusti. Non ho apprezzato molto certe scelte dell'autrice, come quella di dare una sorta di spiegazione alla Vista che certe persone possiedono. Perché Alex riesce a vedere la personificazione di queste Scelte, esseri ma non umani che Vivono su un Piano differente dal nostro. Secondo me certe cose dovrebbero restare inspiegate, il loro fascino spesso e volentieri sta proprio in questo o comunque si dovrebbe tentare di dare una spiegazione ben più affascinante di qualche mero esperimento scientifico con poco fondamento.
A mio avviso la storia è stata anche abbastanza prevedibile e Alex spesso e volentieri si è ritrovata a fare delle scelte sbagliate che hanno prolungato la storia sempre di più.

Sebbene non vi consigli caldamente di leggere Where Silence Gathers, spero che queste mie parole non vi convincano a non dare una possibilità anche a Some Quiet Place! Potete trovare cliccando qui la mia recensione del primo libro della Sutton.

Questa e altre recensioni su Down the Rabbit Hole
aliceinbabylon's profile picture

aliceinbabylon's review

3.0

3.5

jen225's profile picture

jen225's review

3.0

Overall, this was an enjoyable book to read. At first, the feelings were a little difficult to figure out, but that may have been because I haven't read the first book. Once I got into it, though, I wanted to see how it came together. It is a nice blend of teenage angst, technology, and the supernatural.

somarostam's review

5.0

I read Kelsey Sutton's first debut book, Some Quiet Place almost a year ago and it was PERFECTION. Who would have thought that she could even top her first novel all over again? I surely didn't.
Alexandra Tate lost her family to a car accident that she survived. And she knows who was in the other car. Now that he's out of prison, she sits in front of his house with a gun in her hand but she can't decide. Not when she can see Emotions and Choices. Not when Revenge is telling her to pull the trigger and Forgiveness telling her to move on. Not when she's falling in love, with both of them. Not when someone is trying to kill her and her remaining family.
I absolutely adore Kelsey Sutton's writing style. It's indescribable, it fills you up, it pulls you in, it makes you feel like you know everything about these characters. Every single feeling. Every single secret. She has this captivating kind of writing that every author takes a decade, at least, to master. But she just HAS it, it's a gift and she excels at it.
As with the first book, I am still in awe of the creative road that Kelsey has taken. The ability to see Emotions is, by far, the most imaginative thing i have read about. And I have only found it in Kelsey's books. I don't know if any other author has written anything about it, but it's a unique subject, for sure. And Kelsey has put so much work into it, to differentiate between all the emotions and how Alexandra sees them.
The characters take the main stage in Kelsey's books. First, we have Alexandra Tate which is the opposite of our previous heroine in her first book. The previous one could see Emotions but she could feel NOTHING. But Alexandra sees the Emotions and she feels everything. And it was refreshing. I fell in love with Alexandra, and all she was going through. It was so sad to see her grow up in such a way, still, she grows amazingly.
Then, there's Revenge and Forgiveness. The two Choices that Alexandra has to decide. I loved the twist that was associated with them both, but i am not gonna spoil it. So you have to read it to find out. Revenge and Forgiveness are swoon-worthy. I loved Revenge, he had this magnetic pull in him and he cared about Alexandra, he has been with her in her whole life and the sexual tension between them was delicious. Forgiveness is like the calm to Revenge's wild. He is amazing and sweet and caring. These are Emotions, you're not supposed to fall in love with creatures like them, but you do, just like Alexandra does.
The cast of secondary characters are also unique and add a lot to the story. One other thing that I LOVED was the appearance of Fear in this novel. he was one of the main characters in the previous one and I really liked seeing glimpses of him here and there. The ending caught me off guard, I was totally not expecting it. But I loved it all the same. I cannot go on and on saying all the great things this novel made me experience. But I can say this: Reading Kelsey Sutton's books is a MUST. If you think you truly love paranormal and romance genres but you still haven't read her books, then please reconsider. You won't be disappointed, I promise.
novelheartbeat's profile picture

novelheartbeat's review

3.0



I totally didn’t realize this going in, but this book is a companion novel to Some Quiet Place, not a sequel. I was disappointed to say the least, and sadly, I feel like maybe that could have affected my overall judgement of this book.

My first issue? I wanted Fear. I loved Fear in the first book. Actually, he was what made that book for me! If you didn’t already know, I gave Some Quiet Place 4.5 heartbeats. While he had a few small cameos in this one, there was basically little to no parts with him in it. I’m not basing my opinion of the second book off of that (because that wouldn’t be fair), but I really do think that Fear was 90% of what made me love the first so much. Whatever the case, the sequel lacked the magic that the first book had.

My main problem with this was that I didn’t like our main character, Alex. She was selfish and impulsive, and did idiotic and reckless things with no thought to how it would affect the people around her. There were times when I wanted to throttle her! I felt bad for her aunt and uncle for the way she treated them. Actually, I didn’t particularly like any of the characters. I was really hoping to love Revenge, but it just never happened.

I didn’t care about the relationships, either. There was a love triangle in there, and almost instalove (instalust?) with Forgiveness. While I understand the appeal that he has, and that Alex’s attraction to him was kind of a double meaning, it still annoyed me. I thought at some point I would start to feel something for one of the Choices, but again, it never happened. I never chose a side and I didn’t care who Alex chose, either. I think I was disappointed because neither Revenge nor Forgiveness ever stood out like Fear had. Terrible, isn’t it? I kept expecting to fall in love with one of them.

The second major flaw that this book had: It was forgettable. It didn’t leave an impression on me, and within days I’m already I’m forgetting details of the story.

What I did love, though, which was what struck me about the first book, were the Emotions and Choices as people. How awesome is that?! It was always interesting to see how each Emotion would be interpreted in physical form. I also liked the mystery aspect of the story with all the experiments and secrets! That was what kept me going when I wasn’t otherwise invested in the story.

Favorite quote:
“The most painful emotions are better than none at all. Ironically, we make you human.”

OVERALL ASSESSMENT
Plot: 3.5/5
Premise: 5/5
Writing style: 4/5
Originality: 5/5
Characters: 2.5/5
Pace: 4/5
Feels: 1.5/5
Cover: 4/5