I've had kind of an up and down journey with this series. I wasn't the biggest fan in the world of Hush, Hush but I was curious enough to pick up the sequel Crescendo and that book pleasantly surprised me! In fact, I was very emotional already when I read Crescendo, so I bawled like a baby at the heartbreak and jealousies that occurred and by the end of it I was coming around to Nora and Patch's relationship. So by the time I began reading Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick, I had some high hopes for the book.
Sadly, I was disappointed. I really didn't want to be let down by this book, but I was. I think the addition of a fourth book was a mistake. It felt, to me, like there was too little to be said or done in Silence, which is why the story went down a memory-loss route. Reading Silence felt very much like a rehash of the previous two books followed by a small amount of action and new information to move the story forward. And I didn't feel as though there was enough new material there to make it worth another entire book.
I think the big drama that concerns Silence is how and why has Nora lost her memory and what has she been through during the previous 5 months of so? And while the quest to find answers to these questions are interesting, I think the major draw for most readers to this series is the relationship between Nora and Patch. I've already had my fill of tension-filled moments between Patch and Nora. We've had the attraction and the falling in love. We've had the long looks and fun banter already - I wanted to see the next step between the two and it looks as though we'll have to wait for another book before we get to that.
This book is still readable, and I did enjoy parts of it. It just isn't nearly as emotional as the previous book. The scenes between Nora and Patch when Nora can't remember him should have been heart-breaking and unbearable but all I could feel was a vague sense of deja vu. Perhaps bigger fans of the series than me will have enjoyed this more than I did.
I think I've had a similar experience with this series and I still want to read Silence but I have been dragging my heels a bit.
ReplyDeleteGreat review.
Oh thank you so much! I'm really glad it isn't just me with this series, usually I only come across the die-hard fans :)
DeleteI loved the first book and felt disappointed by Crescendo. My hopes aren't high for Silence :/
ReplyDeleteI think other readers have managed to get past the weird Nora lost her memory thing and enjoy the book, but if you weren't thrilled with Crescendo, then I don't hold out much hope for this one :(
DeleteFor me this book was pure filler. I loved Crescendo, and this was such a disappointment! I definitely think it suffered because of the addition of a 4th book. I guess it's a big seller though, so they're gonna drag it out...
ReplyDeleteIt's a bit sad, isn't it? The quest for more sales etc over telling the story in a decent manner for the fans. Oh well :(
DeleteI guess I'm in the minority. I thought Hush Hush was okay, I didn't like Crescendo but I liked Silence. I think Crescendo just really annoyed me because it was obvious Nora and Patch were perfect for each other so the mistrust, the lies, the drama all fell flat. Oh well, to each his own.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Silence was kind of filler-ish. It's like the series took a step back before moving forward to the final book.
Anyway, great review! I like reading about different people's perspectives on books.
PE - I think it's great that we all think differently about hte book and the series :) It's nice to mix things up a bit. For me, Crescendo took on a different element to it because I was grieving the death of a family member when I read it. Perhaps in different circumstances the romance could have fallen flat for me as well, but now I'll never know!
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