Silence - Natasha Preston

Silence is written from the perspective of a young adult who's been totally mute for eleven years. While the reason for her lack of communication becomes obvious fairly early on, the majority of the novel deals with the relationship budding between her and her best friend, Cole. The author stylishly uses the development of this relationship to deal with Oakley's feelings of inadequacy and Cole's determination that she is just fine with or without verbal communication.

I felt that the author had a twofold purpose with this story. The first is to expose and deal with the emotional trauma and self-blame resulting from the situation that Oakley dealt with as a child. The second is to expertly deny that you have to be exactly who someone (in Oakley's case, her mother) wants you to be. While Oakley's Mom tries to "fix" her daughter, Cole proves to her that she is just fine regardless of her eccentric unwillingness to communicate.

The ending of this novel is a bit abrupt and takes a seemingly unnecessary turn. Based on the description of the sequel, this frustration was a setup for the second half of Oakley's story. That was definitely not my favorite usage of a writer's freedom because it seemed forced and Cole's reaction does not match his character development throughout the rest of the story. Perhaps, the continuation in the second book will redeem my faith in the author. But, as of right now, I haven't been able to commit myself to the second novel, for fear that I will be disappointed again after so much emotional investment in the characters. In all fairness, my curiosity will eventually get the best of me and I will read the rest of Oakley's story.

Overall, the first book captured me from the beginning and I loved everything except the very last page.