Before A Quiet Kind of Thunder, I had never read a book involving a character with selective mutism, nor a character who is deaf. It didn’t occur to me previously that I hadn’t until I had the opportunity to review this book. I was a little unsure if I would like it because it’s primarily a romance novel. On the flip side, Sara Barnard wrote this and I really enjoyed her debut, Beautiful Broken Things, so I was still curious.
THE YELLOW ROOM by Jess Vallance
When i first requested The Yellow Room for review, I had rather vague expectations. I hadn’t heard or seen any of my friends mention it but it’s published under Hot Key Books, so I figured the intrigue must be justified. And indeed, it was! The keywords tagged to this book were “lies, truth, sanity and yellow”. What I didn’t know was coming was the sheer madness of the story!
THE MEMORY OF LIGHT by Francisco X. Stork
The Memory of Light is such an excellent book. It’s not excitingly adrenaline-pumping, although there are some intense moments. On the contrary, it’s an exceedingly introspective book dealing with the realities of mental illness. It portrays the complexities of mental health and the difficulties of diagnosing and treating those who are mentally ill.
BEAUTIFUL BROKEN THINGS by Sara Barnard
Reading Beautiful Broken Things struck me on many levels. There were a lot of things I related to her having gone through these myself. I’ve been in Caddy’s shoes. I’ve been in Rosie’s shoes. I’ve had a number of Suzanne’s in my life. I’ve learnt that groups of threes aren’t always the most stable of friend groups. Beautiful Broken Things reminded me of toxic relationships I’ve had, the naïve wishes to be there as a friend unravelled and being pushed aside as I wasn’t included in the plans of two when we should have been three.
REVOLUTION by Jennifer Donnelly
Revolution presented the obsession with music and 18th-century France in the face of post-traumatic stress disorder and mental illness. The combination of these added so many layers, I was immersed in Revolution for the entire duration of the audiobook. Living in contemporary times, Andi’s grief over the loss of her brother was palpable as she and her mother had completely fallen apart.
