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Katharine Johnson
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The Silence Kindle Edition

by Katharine Johnson (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 164 ratings
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“A gripping tale of secrets and lies remembered long after the last page.” – Amanda James, author of Behind the Lie.

Doctor Abby Fenton has a rewarding career, a loving family, an enviable lifestyle - and a secret that could destroy everything.

When human remains are discovered in the grounds of an idyllic Tuscan holiday home she is forced to confront the memories she has suppressed until now and relive the summer she spent at the villa in 1992. A summer that ended in tragedy. The nearer she gets to the truth the closer she comes to losing her sanity.

In order to hold onto the people she loves most, she must make sure they never discover what she did. But the reappearance of someone else from that summer threatens to blow her secret wide open.
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  1. Print length
    293 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publication date
    June 8, 2017
  5. File size
    489 KB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
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  8. Enhanced typesetting
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B071D6JTMS
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ darkstroke books (June 8, 2017)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 8, 2017
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 489 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 293 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 164 ratings

About the author

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Katharine Johnson

Katharine Johnson

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Katharine Johnson is the author of gripping psychological and historical suspense stories set in the UK and Italy. It's always the whydunit that intrigues her most. Katharine's characters are flawed but not evil - they're ordinary people who through a bad decision find themselves in nightmarish situations. Born in Bristol, she currently lives in Berkshire. As a journalist she's written for a variety of magazines, mostly about home and lifestyle. She has a passion for crime novels. old buildings and all things Italian (except tiramisu.) When not writing you'll often find her drinking coffee, exploring cities, restoring her house in Italy or out walking with her partner in crime-writing, Monty the spaniel, while thinking up plots. She blogs about books and writing and loves to chat so catch up with her on her blog, Katy's Writing Coffee Shop, Facebook page/instagram/pinterest @katharinejohnsonauthor, and twitter @kjohnsonwrites

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Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
164 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Frederick Fullerton
5.0 out of 5 stars What began in silence....
Reviewed in the United States on November 20, 2018
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If you happened to have read Katherine Johnson’s latest novel The Secret first as I did, you’ll definitely want to read her earlier mystery, The Silence, which takes place in the same Tuscan Village. But in this mystery, Ms. Johnson begins her story in England.

A newspaper story about the discovery of two bodies at a villa in a Tuscan village prods Abby to remember and relive moments of her summer visit as a young teen in Italy. Her Aunt Sue and her somewhat dysfunctional family lived in the Villa Leonida in Santa Zita. As more stories appear about the murders and the discovery of a third body, Abby returns to Santa Zita years later to discover the truth—what really happened to Philippa—and the identity of the bodies in the tower next to the villa. The story flashes back and forth between past and present. Time can deceive memories. Which are true and which have become fragmented and distorted over the years?

The Silence melds a potpourri of teenage Sturm und Drang and discovery with an adult world of adultery, disappointment, betrayal, forbidden love, pregnancy, and murder. Like Ms. Johnson’s other mysteries, The Silence is a “potato chip book.” Once you begin reading, you can’t stop until you finish it.
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Rev. Jason Reed
4.0 out of 5 stars Meh
Reviewed in the United States on May 16, 2018
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I give it four stars because the story was easy to follow and it wasn't plagued by proofing mistakes. It lost a star because it seemed like the author was working hard on a slow-burn that it became painfully slow. Not a bad book, but could have made a better pace.
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Miriam Drori
5.0 out of 5 stars A normal woman with a secret
Reviewed in the United States on September 24, 2017
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I think the most disturbing thing about this story is the fact that Abby is so normal. She's happily married, the mother of two little girls and she works. She could be you or me or anyone.

Then we discover that something happened to Abby when she was a teenager, although we don't know exactly what and neither does Abby. She's kept the events secret for many years. The details were never clear in her mind.

And so this normal woman, when faced with new events that threaten her normal life, tries to do whatever she can to prevent her secret from coming out. And we're with her all the time because she could be us. Because she can't be responsible for this thing that happened to her as a child. Or can she? Only towards the end we begin to wonder, or at least I did. The event really was terrible, and Abby had a part in it. Perhaps she deserved to be punished for it.

I was engrossed in this story. It disturbed me and kept me reading, eager to discover the ending. I wasn't disappointed.
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Amy@Novelgossip
3.0 out of 5 stars What was unique about this was that Abby herself only has a fuzzy recollection of the events of that time and she’s done her bes
Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2017
This is told partly in the present day and partly in flashbacks to a summer in Italy in 1992 through the eyes of Abby. She was a teenager when she was sent to spend some time with her aunt and uncle after her mother passed away and it’s clear from the start that something tragic happened, but what actually occurred is detailed much later. What was unique about this was that Abby herself only has a fuzzy recollection of the events of that time and she’s done her best to bury it all. She’s now a successful doctor and she’s married and has two daughters, so when the secrets of that summer threaten to come to light, she’s desperate to keep them buried.

Abby was a pretty unlikable person and she made quite a few questionable decisions, but with the scenarios she was dealing with, I can’t totally judge her. It’s the classic case of lies and betrayals creeping out of the dark and when I finally found out what she was hiding, I could better understand why she was so erratic in her behavior. The character development was solid, as the story progressed the layers were peeled back revealing true motivations and what brought them to make particular choices. If you like reading the sort of books that feature a protagonist unraveling at the seams with some twists and turns along the way, then you may like this one.
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Kate Braithwaite
5.0 out of 5 stars Gripping plot!
Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2018
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The Silence has a great story and complex and believable characters to bring it to life. I love a story with secrets from the past and this really delivers. Johnson's teenage characters are particularly well-drawn. I particularly liked the storyline from 25 years ago and the way events then came back to haunt the main character later in life. Would make a great tv drama. Thumbs up from me.
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Jen
4.0 out of 5 stars An interesting read.
Reviewed in the United States on April 1, 2018
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From the very beginning of the novel, the reader knows something terrible happened. I enjoyed anticipating what it was, and why it happened, as possible motivations and significant events were revealed. The characters are flawed, complex, and seem real.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars A thrilling read
Reviewed in the United States on September 3, 2017
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It's been a while since I've read a thriller and I have to say that I was made to feel highly discomforted as the story unfolded, but in a positive way as this is what thrillers should achieve. I was gripped and pulled into the story. Like a fly on the wall clearly observing all that takes place. Very well written, beautifully descriptive, highly recommend.
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Good mystery
Reviewed in the United States on May 2, 2019
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This story kept you guessing what was going to happen next. I thought the explanation as to who killed who was very vague and not too detailed.. It kind of left you hanging.
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Top reviews from other countries

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Helen
5.0 out of 5 stars A great psychological thriller
Reviewed in Italy on March 26, 2018
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Dr Abby Fenton has a good, solid life; she's married to James, who has just become Minister of Education, and they have two daughters. Then an article in a newspaper turns her life upside down and nothing can be the same ever again. This psychological thriller slowly reveals its story with flashbacks to Abby's childhood, in particular to two summers she spent in Tuscany with her aunt, uncle and cousins. The problem is that Abby has gaps in her memories, leaving her uncertain as to what actually happened.
This is a real page-turner, the story draws you in the further it progresses. Abby's reluctance to talk with her husband is frustrating at first, but as events are revealed, you come to understand the reasons why.
The ending doesn't disappoint either, with shock revelations and a tying up of loose ends. A great read, and I look forward to reading more by this author. Highly recommend.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars but Katherine Johnson’s novel is far superior, in terms of intrigue
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 22, 2017
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The Silence is an incredibly intriguing book, an addictive read. There have been a lot of page-turning mystery thrillers that have come out over the last few years, but Katherine Johnson’s novel is far superior, in terms of intrigue, quality of the writing, characterisation (above all) and that illusive “I need to know what’s going to happen next” quality. It’s hard to write a review of this book without (inadvertently) dropping a spoiler or two along the way. I read it in two sittings, in the same day, and was completely absorbed. Accomplished storytelling. Anyone who has read Gone Girl or The Girl on the Train, go to the next level and read The Silence.
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Heidi Reads
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant!
Reviewed in Australia on April 22, 2018
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This book! Oh my goodness... THIS BOOK! I can't speak highly enough about it. I warn you not to start reading it unless you have a clear schedule as you're not going to be able to put it down. From the very first chapter I was hooked on this brilliant story and I remained glued to it until the last page. It's so well done in every aspect - the characters, the setting, the writing, the plot. I could go on and on! Loved it and I can't wait for more.
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Rachel
4.0 out of 5 stars Great Tuscany Setting
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 31, 2020
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The main character in this psychological thriller is Abby, an English doctor with two young daughters and a happy marriage to a successful politician. When Abby was a child, the shock of her mother’s sudden death rendered her unable to speak. In desperation, her father sent her to stay with his sister’s family in Italy.
But her two summers spent with her cousins were far from idyllic. What memories she has of the time are fragmented and full of fear. When a shocking discovery is made in the grounds of the villa where she stayed, she is forced to face a truth she has suppressed for thirty years.
The star of this well-written story is the Italian setting. The author describes the atmosphere so well – sun, piazza, crumbling buildings, cicadas, fireflies, honey, olives – that I felt myself transported to Tuscany.
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Elizabeth Moore
5.0 out of 5 stars A Compelling Read
Reviewed in Australia on February 13, 2019
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This book is skilfully woven through two time periods, present day England and Tuscany in the early 1990s. Abby, a successful doctor is suddenly dragged back to an Italian summer she has tried her best to forget. A crime committed when she was young returns to haunt her and even she is not clear as to what her involvement actually was; her comfortable world threatens to tilt irretrievably. With twist and turns you simply don't anticipate this book had me reading well into the wee small hours.
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