Reviews

No More Words by Kerry Lonsdale

lsmoore43's review

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5.0

I have read and loved several of Kerry Lonsdale's books. I have to say this is my very favorite and I can't wait for the next book in this series. Edge of your seat thrills and so much more.

This book is full of emotions. From a thriller to a love story and all between you won't want to put this one down. Talk about family drama.. This one is full of that and more. The characters, Olivia, her sister Lily, brother Lucas, parents Dwight and Charlotte, are about as messed us as a family can get. From the beginning you meet the children when they are small. When their dad drops them off at the Whitmans for the summer. Not camp exactly, but a summer of fun that lasts several years. The Whitmans have two boys, Theodore/Blaze and Tyler. The children all form a bond each year. The bond between Livy and Blaze is the one that will give you the most pleasure. They are just great together. I really loved them.

This story starts with the arrival of a boy. A boy that Olivia/Livy has never met. But she knows who he is. He's her baby sister's son, Josh. Why is he here? What is Lily thinking sending him? Did Lily send him? What is going on? There are many questions throughout this book that will keep you guessing. From who Josh's dad is to where Lily is. What is going on. Olivia hasn't seen her sister in fourteen years and now her son has just shown up. He has a speech problem and it's next to impossible to get information from him. Olivia and Josh do form a bond that will test both of them. The strength of family is proven beyond limits in this book. What happened between Olivia and Lily all those years ago can possibly be mended finally.

There is also a love story going on here. The one between Olivia/Livy and Theodore/Blaze. He wants to be called Blaze as he hates his name. Blaze and Livy have a past and hopefully finally a future. If only he can make her believe that he is there for the long haul. He's not going to betray her and he would never hurt her. She has many trust issues that you will learn about.

There is a lot of action in this book to keep you on the edge and turning the pages. Olivia and Josh are determined to find Lily and leave no stone unturned. The back story of the children when they were young and the present when Olivia finds out so many things about her family that she had no idea about. Or had buried. From the things that their parents did to the things that happened to each of them. This book is very heartwarming and heartbreaking too. In places I did manage a chuckle also. But the story of these children and their friends is great. From the time they are just kids until they are grown adults there seems to be a bond. But there is also a distance with the siblings. They all have issues to overcome. The Whitman children are not close either. There is a lot of family drama here also. A few instances of unfaithfulness. A whole lot of lies and big secrets.

I loved almost all the characters but most certainly did not like Dwight or Charlotte. Dwight was a bit cruel to Lily and well he was a liar. Charlotte was not a good mother even if she did try to make you think she was. She was very self centered and so selfish. She was only ever out for herself. Dwight was no better. I think he had some mental problems and I'm not saying that lightly. I think his anger was horrid. At least toward Lucas and Lily. Olivia was his princess and he seemed to treasure her. When he needed too that is. He did have motives for that though.

This book was great from start to finish. It's well written and the characters are so realistic. You can picture the lake and forests. The things the children did when they were young. As they grew and things got bad you feel strong for them. It's an emotional story. A very good one. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to the next one. I want to get to know more about what Lily went through raising Josh on her own. I hope to learn more about each character but mainly Lily and Josh.

Thank you to #NetGalley, #KerryLonsdale, #lakeuntionpublishing for this ARC. This is my own true feelings about this book.

5/5 stars and would be more if possible. Grab this one and dive right in. It's great!!

neilsbarringer's review

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2.0

I found this book frustrating for a few reasons.
1. The author's overuse of Similes, there was one just about every page. About half way through the book I started laughing every time one appeared. In addition to the quantity of similes they were BAD!
2. Spoiler here: The ending; So, Lily/Jenna goes missing for several days leaving her kid who has had. TBI and when they reunite it is SO anticlimactic and it seemed to me like she was just having a little lover rendezvous with her kid's dad (Umm..what??)
3.Olivia was a complete narcissist I mean the flashbacks to childhood, clearly her parents were CRUEL to Lily, how did she not pick up on that? Way to into herself.
4.Throughout the book the author makes it clear that Olivia has SERIOUS trust issues especially with men, yet she trust every single word that came out of her dad's mouth and she readily believed her mom's lies.
5. The Police- So they pretty much brushed off Olivia's attempt to find her sister. Totally unrealistic, I mean at least they could have tried to get Lilly for "abandoning" her child--I mean technically Josh was a lost child and couldn't find his mom...pretty sure the police would be concerned about this.

To sum up This book is like a pimple on picture day ---> BAD!

--sorry I couldn't resist!

akire07's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

I love the twists and the surprises in this story. Great book that keep you interested right till the end.

brewtifulfiction's review

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5.0

All the stars to the first book in a new trilogy.

I have to admit when reading, I didn't know it was going to be part of a series but I'm so pleased that it is.

No More Words is a tale of a broken, dysfunctional family that is (without them truly knowing) on the edge of complete and utter ruin.

Three siblings who were once close, torn apart by lies, secrets and jealousy.

An unplanned pregnancy, a stint in jail and cheating boyfriends, not to mention a murder. These are children that have been through (and continue to go through) a lot so it is no wonder that they have trust issues in amongst all of the other problems that they are dealing with.

Now I feel this is hard one to review as I don't want to give too much away.

It is told primarily from one point of view Olivia - who is the eldest - we get taken on a journey through past and present, starting with the summer of 95, to show what led up to such heartbreak for the Carson children.

It is clear with each chapter that Kerry really knows what she's doing. The raw emotion and depth which each character experiences pulses through the pages.

There are multiple layers to this tale, mystery and romance combined, every person with their own arc, a story to tell, this gave the book a well rounded feeling.

There are a few lose threads but that keeps us wanting the next book (ASAP please).

What No More Words showed me was that although we may. make mistakes, experience regrets and enormous feelings of guilt along our life's journey, what matters is that we continue to live and learn. Don't let the past define you instead let it give you the strength to keep moving forward.

Amongst the sadness and turmoil there are moments of joy and adoration.

I cannot wait to see more from this family.

kay__dee's review

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5.0

NO MORE WORDS is domestic drama at its very best, full of suspense and intrigue with a perfect amount of humour and romance to balance it out. The characters are wonderfully complex and as the layers of the plot unfold, you find yourself getting drawn deeper into their story and more invested in the outcome.

I absolutely tore through the pages of this book and am thrilled it is just the first in a new trilogy because I definitely want to read more about the Carson siblings as they work to heal their fractured family.

Thank you to Lake Union Publishing for the advance reading copy.

alysonbookishthoughts's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

5.0