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michalice's review
3.0
I first heard about Silent Saturday at a blogger event a few months ago. When I was contacted about reviewing this book I jumped at the chance. Silent Saturday follows Veerle as she struggles to cope with her overbearing, overprotective Mother, that even though Veerle is seventeen, her Mother treats her like a child, wanting to know where she is, what she is doing. The events that set this off occurred when Veerle was younger and had more freedom, and as the days go on her Mother is getting worse, refusing to learn Flemish, having to rely on Veerle to make payments, read letters, even going as far as locking Veerle in her room.
Veerle ends up stumbling upon her old friend Kris, a boy she knew when they were younger, at an old castle. When she discovers the reason for Kris's presence at the castle Veerle is initially worried until she learns more about it. Kris and a few others, break into people houses, or borrow keys to get inside and live the life of luxury for one night. While there, as repayment they fix things or clean as a way of saying thank you.
As Silent Saturday progresses a new problem is added into the mix. People from this small group are found dead, or disappear completely off the radar. As the body count mounts up and a near miss by Kris and Veerle, they soon put all the pieces together and realise that they are not as safe as they initially thought, and are now being hunted.
I enjoyed Silent Saturday more than what I thought I would and I thought it was funny that Kris breaks into peoples homes but doesn't steal or trash the place, he tidies, fixes, or does what needs fixing up as a thank you for staying there. This concept was a refreshing chance to what usually happens when a house is broken in to, each house is treated with respect and care and left mostly as it was found, with only the occasional bottle of alcohol or frozen meal missing.
I enjoyed the mystery behind the murders and we don't get to find out what person is missing or dead till a while after the fact, and it's not till near the end of the book the it is revealed who is the hunter, and it wasn't who I expected. The last few chapters of Silent Saturday had me on the edge of my seat, wondering about what was going to happen to Kris and Veerle, would they make it, how would Veerle's Mother react to the news. The last few pages were bitter sweet for Veerle, but I am not telling you why. Silent Saturday concludes well for the story, but I would love to see what happens next.
Veerle ends up stumbling upon her old friend Kris, a boy she knew when they were younger, at an old castle. When she discovers the reason for Kris's presence at the castle Veerle is initially worried until she learns more about it. Kris and a few others, break into people houses, or borrow keys to get inside and live the life of luxury for one night. While there, as repayment they fix things or clean as a way of saying thank you.
As Silent Saturday progresses a new problem is added into the mix. People from this small group are found dead, or disappear completely off the radar. As the body count mounts up and a near miss by Kris and Veerle, they soon put all the pieces together and realise that they are not as safe as they initially thought, and are now being hunted.
I enjoyed Silent Saturday more than what I thought I would and I thought it was funny that Kris breaks into peoples homes but doesn't steal or trash the place, he tidies, fixes, or does what needs fixing up as a thank you for staying there. This concept was a refreshing chance to what usually happens when a house is broken in to, each house is treated with respect and care and left mostly as it was found, with only the occasional bottle of alcohol or frozen meal missing.
I enjoyed the mystery behind the murders and we don't get to find out what person is missing or dead till a while after the fact, and it's not till near the end of the book the it is revealed who is the hunter, and it wasn't who I expected. The last few chapters of Silent Saturday had me on the edge of my seat, wondering about what was going to happen to Kris and Veerle, would they make it, how would Veerle's Mother react to the news. The last few pages were bitter sweet for Veerle, but I am not telling you why. Silent Saturday concludes well for the story, but I would love to see what happens next.
bibliobethreads's review
4.0
I'm really excited to introduce everyone to an author new to me and one I'm ever so glad I discovered - Helen Grant. For the next few days I shall be reviewing her Forbidden Spaces trilogy which begins with Silent Saturday, followed on by The Demons of Ghent and finishing with Urban Legends. The day after that I shall be featuring an interview with the lady herself and hopefully by that time I will have persuaded anyone who hasn't read her before that this is an author well worth trying!
The series is set in Belgium, a beautiful country which Helen has actually lived in herself so I was confident about the authenticity of the setting and was certain I was in safe hands with the narrative as I began to read a gripping and incredibly thrilling story that will both terrify and excite you in equal measure. The descriptions of Brussels and the surrounding area are so intricate that you leave the book feeling like you know the country inside out and I love it when I can picture a setting with such clarity.
Our heroine is seventeen year old Veerle de Keyser who when we meet her is struggling in her relationship with her mother. Claudine is extremely over-protective, relies on Veerle a great deal both emotionally and practically and is beyond paranoid about many issues, but particularly the security of herself and her daughter. Veerle loves her mother a great deal but gets very frustrated with many aspects of her behaviour so, as an outlet, she loves to visit the local climbing wall and becomes very adept at clambering around in tight positions.
As with all aspects of mental illness, there are reasons behind Claudine's fears and one event in particular greatly affected her relationship with her daughter. It involves something terrifying that Veerle witnessed when she was younger with her childhood friend, Kris Verstraeten, that we will see in this trilogy, returns to haunt her. Kris returns to Veerle's life after about a ten year hiatus where the two have barely spoken and introduces her to a fascinating new prospect that she cannot resist. The group is the Koekoeken (meaning Cuckoos) and they are a group of people that explore abandoned or uninhabited buildings, for example - residents who have gone on holiday, millionaire's mansions where the owner is out of the country and a rather spooky and crumbling old castle. It's not all law-breaking and vandalism however, the group have an unwritten rule that they do something for the house before they leave i.e. a bit of maintenance as a thank you for the use of the building.
Both Veerle and Kris thoroughly enjoy exploring various establishments together and perhaps as expected, develop feelings for each other. However, their world is about to be unbelievably rocked when one of the group is brutally murdered. When certain other members of the Koekoeken seem to be targeted by a ruthless killer with a thirst for violence, Veerle and Kris are terrified that they could be next. Can they go to the police though when they themselves have been technically breaking the law by breaking and entering several properties? The killer appears to have them right where he wants them... and he shows no sign of stopping.
On first reading the premise of this book, I have to say I was beyond excited. I loved the idea of a group exploring empty buildings but doing something nice for the owners on the way out. However, I was not prepared for just how thrilling this novel would be. We get a little insight into the killer - De Jager, or The Hunter and oh my goodness, he is one of the most dark and disturbing villains I have ever read about. I knew beforehand that this was a young adult trilogy but don't let the genre put you off the author does not skimp on the darkness or the horror of certain situations. In that way, I probably wouldn't recommend this series to the faint-hearted or much younger readers but then again, if you can handle a bit of heart stopping terror - go ahead, it's perfect! Silent Saturday is a wonderful start to what I'm certain will be a brilliant trilogy. Try it.... if you dare?
For my full review, please see my blog at http://www.bibliobeth.com
The series is set in Belgium, a beautiful country which Helen has actually lived in herself so I was confident about the authenticity of the setting and was certain I was in safe hands with the narrative as I began to read a gripping and incredibly thrilling story that will both terrify and excite you in equal measure. The descriptions of Brussels and the surrounding area are so intricate that you leave the book feeling like you know the country inside out and I love it when I can picture a setting with such clarity.
Our heroine is seventeen year old Veerle de Keyser who when we meet her is struggling in her relationship with her mother. Claudine is extremely over-protective, relies on Veerle a great deal both emotionally and practically and is beyond paranoid about many issues, but particularly the security of herself and her daughter. Veerle loves her mother a great deal but gets very frustrated with many aspects of her behaviour so, as an outlet, she loves to visit the local climbing wall and becomes very adept at clambering around in tight positions.
As with all aspects of mental illness, there are reasons behind Claudine's fears and one event in particular greatly affected her relationship with her daughter. It involves something terrifying that Veerle witnessed when she was younger with her childhood friend, Kris Verstraeten, that we will see in this trilogy, returns to haunt her. Kris returns to Veerle's life after about a ten year hiatus where the two have barely spoken and introduces her to a fascinating new prospect that she cannot resist. The group is the Koekoeken (meaning Cuckoos) and they are a group of people that explore abandoned or uninhabited buildings, for example - residents who have gone on holiday, millionaire's mansions where the owner is out of the country and a rather spooky and crumbling old castle. It's not all law-breaking and vandalism however, the group have an unwritten rule that they do something for the house before they leave i.e. a bit of maintenance as a thank you for the use of the building.
Both Veerle and Kris thoroughly enjoy exploring various establishments together and perhaps as expected, develop feelings for each other. However, their world is about to be unbelievably rocked when one of the group is brutally murdered. When certain other members of the Koekoeken seem to be targeted by a ruthless killer with a thirst for violence, Veerle and Kris are terrified that they could be next. Can they go to the police though when they themselves have been technically breaking the law by breaking and entering several properties? The killer appears to have them right where he wants them... and he shows no sign of stopping.
On first reading the premise of this book, I have to say I was beyond excited. I loved the idea of a group exploring empty buildings but doing something nice for the owners on the way out. However, I was not prepared for just how thrilling this novel would be. We get a little insight into the killer - De Jager, or The Hunter and oh my goodness, he is one of the most dark and disturbing villains I have ever read about. I knew beforehand that this was a young adult trilogy but don't let the genre put you off the author does not skimp on the darkness or the horror of certain situations. In that way, I probably wouldn't recommend this series to the faint-hearted or much younger readers but then again, if you can handle a bit of heart stopping terror - go ahead, it's perfect! Silent Saturday is a wonderful start to what I'm certain will be a brilliant trilogy. Try it.... if you dare?
For my full review, please see my blog at http://www.bibliobeth.com
lostinthelibrary's review
2.0
Despite an interesting concept I really couldn't get into this book. I found it very repetitive and the characters uninteresting. The most interesting characters such as the 'villian' and protagonist's mother were the ones we spent the least time with and no one had a sufficient backstory. Not my cup of tea.
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