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A review by mrninjaviking
The Silent Land by Graham Joyce
4.0
Through a drawing here at GoodReads.Com, I was given a copy of "The Silent Land" by Graham Joyce. I was thrilled, given that I entered the drawing close to the deadline and have really enjoyed Joyce's work. (Would have bought this book had I not gotten this copy.)
From the review by Publishers Weekly found on Amazon.Com:
As I said, I have enjoyed every novel I have read by Joyce on some level. Unfortunately I read his first novel most recently, and it's not always easy to do that. It's like taking a step back. However, and back to the point, I had no clue what this book was about when I opened it to read. I never read the description/review above. I didn't read the flaps on my copy. I went in cold (no pun intended). I had put this on my wish list at Amazon this way, and when I won the drawing I didn't want to change find out more.
What I found interesting though is that I quickly assumed what had happened to Zoe and Jake. Honestly, it isn't hard to figure out. You might come close to guessing the actual ending without reading the book. What makes this book so good though is getting to the finish. The journey that Zoe and Jake take. What their relationship means and how they deal with their situation.
There is a fascinating tale woven in the pages of this book. Zoe is hiding something from Jake, something she has never done before. And Jake starts taking stances that aren't normal for him. However, Joyce gives you enough of a feel of the characters, little bits sprinkled throughout the whole story, that makes you really feel these "facts" about them without being given major chunks of their past. Honestly, there is very little that looks back at either of their pasts. 90% of the book is the here and now that Zoe and Jake are dealing with. I feel it was quite a feat to pull this off.
This is on top of doing something that was easy to see coming, yet making the whole story engaging, interesting, and entertaining. It had a couple of some duller moments in the middle, but at certain times throughout the book, it was hard to put it down after finishing a chapter for the night.
Joyce continues to be an author I will continue to buy. He doesn't write books that will knock your socks off, but is consistent in giving his readers very good tales that can be fascinating.
From the review by Publishers Weekly found on Amazon.Com:
Near the outset of this gently haunting fantasy thriller ... a freak avalanche buries Zoe and Jake, a couple on a skiing holiday near the Pyrenean resort town of Saint-Bernard-en-Haut. After digging out, they find themselves the only inhabitants of the unnaturally silent landscape. Back at their hotel, they discover they're still alone. All their efforts to leave for the next town only bring them back in a circle. Jake suspects that they've died—but then Zoe begins seeing furtive figures and hearing snatches of speech that suggest this likely explanation is more complex than it seems. Joyce brings freshness to this familiar supernatural scenario by emphasizing the humanness of his characters over the weirdness of the phenomena.
As I said, I have enjoyed every novel I have read by Joyce on some level. Unfortunately I read his first novel most recently, and it's not always easy to do that. It's like taking a step back. However, and back to the point, I had no clue what this book was about when I opened it to read. I never read the description/review above. I didn't read the flaps on my copy. I went in cold (no pun intended). I had put this on my wish list at Amazon this way, and when I won the drawing I didn't want to change find out more.
What I found interesting though is that I quickly assumed what had happened to Zoe and Jake. Honestly, it isn't hard to figure out. You might come close to guessing the actual ending without reading the book. What makes this book so good though is getting to the finish. The journey that Zoe and Jake take. What their relationship means and how they deal with their situation.
There is a fascinating tale woven in the pages of this book. Zoe is hiding something from Jake, something she has never done before. And Jake starts taking stances that aren't normal for him. However, Joyce gives you enough of a feel of the characters, little bits sprinkled throughout the whole story, that makes you really feel these "facts" about them without being given major chunks of their past. Honestly, there is very little that looks back at either of their pasts. 90% of the book is the here and now that Zoe and Jake are dealing with. I feel it was quite a feat to pull this off.
This is on top of doing something that was easy to see coming, yet making the whole story engaging, interesting, and entertaining. It had a couple of some duller moments in the middle, but at certain times throughout the book, it was hard to put it down after finishing a chapter for the night.
Joyce continues to be an author I will continue to buy. He doesn't write books that will knock your socks off, but is consistent in giving his readers very good tales that can be fascinating.