The Silent Sister

This book is well written and tends to pull you in within the first chapter. It builds all of the characters into the story line while staying on topic. There is very little violence to speak of in the book and no sexual content (if you can believe that). It is just a light, interesting story that moves fairly quickly through out the story line, while keeping the reader interested in what will happen next. After her father has passed away, one of the daughters finds out she may be adopted while cleaning out the family home. Her brother, who is a recluse, drinks all day and lives in a mobile home on a small piece of property owned by their deceased father, is not in the least bit interested in helping her find out the truth. The third sibling, a protegy violin player committed suicide after killing her mentor/violin coach of 11 yrs.... or did she???!! All of these angles are played out in the story and are totally surprising and unexpected. The book was a very enjoyable, easy read - just what I wanted after reading several very intense books before the holidays.

The Silent Sister by Diane Chamberlain The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly This book follows the life of Riley MacPherson as she goes through her father’s things when he passes away. Her mother had already passed away years earlier and so she travels back to her hometown to go through his things and to settle his affairs. Her brother Danny lives there, but wants nothing to do with any of it leaving Riley to clean up the mess all herself. As Riley begins to go through his things, she begins to uncover things about her past she hadn’t known yet, such as the secrets and lies revolving around her sister, Lisa’s, suicide. Before Riley came to town she thought she knew who she was, but she realizes soon after arriving that her life was not what she thought it was and she struggles to find out who she can really trust. As she uncovers the truth a little at a time, she comes to further realizations about herself and the people she believed. 4/5 stars. Who’s Who: The Lovable and the Unlovable Riley MacPherson The main character. She goes through the process of dealing with her dad’s state of affairs and uncovers more truths (and lies) about him, as well as herself, as she goes along. She does come to a certain “coming of age” and realization throughout the story and grows as a character. Danny Riley’s brother. He is disturbed, injured, and has huge trust issues, especially when it comes to his parents. This leads to his non-caring attitude in reference to what happens to everything that their dad left behind. Lisa/Jade Riley’s sister that committed suicide. Jeannie Family friend. Helps Riley to go through her father’s things as well as deal with new information as it comes up. They Did What? (Some Spoilers) Riley travels back home upon the death of her father to help settle his affairs and get his estate sold as well as his will taken care of. Throughout it all, Riley comes to learn of new information about her sister, who she believed to be dead. While going through papers, she finds out that her sister murdered a man and then following that and before an upcoming trial, she committed suicide. After this introduction to Riley, we switch to Lisa’s viewpoint, where we learn that their father gave Lisa an out. A way to make it look like suicide and then instead run away with a new identity, under the name of Ann Johnson. The name so common that she could blend in, with the condition that she only contact him under extreme emergencies, but she would be on her own. She would leave and never be able to return or have contact with her family again. She was a music prodigy and part of the deal was to never play another instrument again. She had to leave her precious violin behind. Lisa decided to go with the nickname of Jade and began to make a new life for her. The following chapters in the book jump between how Jade began her new life years ago starting from when Riley was only 2 years old to the present day where Riley is in her mid-20s and settling affairs. Riley hears from tenants in her father’s trailer park that she was adopted, but she doesn’t believe it and everyone else tells her that is a lie. As the reader is brought back and forth between the two lives it shows how Jade got her start and found a new home, a new way to love music, as well as a new love of her life. The day that the inspector comes to Jade’s job at the music store, she goes to hide and her boss and frequent customer cover for her. She leaves that night, but not without going to say goodbye first. After that we are back to only Riley and her story. We watch her as she learns about her adoption and getting hassled for information about Lisa’s (as Riley knows her) whereabouts. Riley goes through bouts of emotional turmoil, exasperated by Danny who wants to see Lisa pay for the murder she committed. When Riley finally finds out who Lisa now really is, she goes on a search and eventually finds her, but that meeting ends in disaster for more reasons than one. Ultimately Riley lands in the hospital, upset about new information she learned from Jade’s wife and driving in the dark, she gets into a wreck, which brings together Danny, Jade, and Riley together all under the same roof. Danny, by the end, promises not to turn Jade in for her crimes, but can’t promise that she won’t be caught eventually. The true relationships come out as well and Riley’s world changes from a family she thinks is all gone, to a new family and new relationships to grow and build. They Said What? There are some topics, such as adoption, murder, and rape that are addressed and discussed in here that are not suited for some readers. This book deals with death in multiple instances and in different ways to show how various people are dealing with it. Extra! Extra! Great story and once you start reading, it is a fast read and was really hard to put down. I would be reading this while talking to friends or working, sneaking in pages where ever I could. Writer’s Heads Up! Great book to show how to switch between viewpoints without getting confused about who is talking and what is going on. Last Call Great read and really quick too. Highly recommend!

Keeps you interested with plenty of twists and turns. Great ending bringing everything together. Would definitely recommend to anyone looking.

This book has an interesting premise. It is told from two alternating points of view. Riley's story takes place in the present, and covers her return to her childhood home to take care of her father's estate after his sudden death. Her sister Lisa's story takes place over twenty years ago, just after she fakes her suicide. (Not a spoiler). Riley and Lisa have a brother named Danny, who has had a tough time with life, and lives like a recluse in the woods. He can not bear to help Riley with the work with the estate and blames Lisa for all that has gone wrong with him and the family. Riley has experienced her family differently, and does not bear any ill will toward Lisa. As the story unfolds one mystery after another is revealed and we learn that just about everybody in the story has lied to Riley about something and/or has been lied to about something significant. Although it was an enjoyable read, the reason that I can't give more stars is that I had trouble keeping track of all of the lies, what was true, who knew what when etc. There were plot points that I did not feel tied well together, and some 'reveals' happened in a way that seemed implausible. At the beginning of the book there is a Prologue. By the end of the book, I had trouble figuring out who the woman was based on who would have known what at that time, who would have reasonably had those feelings, who would have been in town... I actually went back through and re-read all the portions of the book that related to try to tie it all together and I am reasonably sure that I know who the woman was supposed to be, but I am still not sure it fits 100%. It was more of the Sherlock Holmes 'Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.' There was also a character who is later shown to be very shrewd by other actions who reveals something early on in the story to Riley that is the turning point to her starting to think there is more to her childhood than meets the eye. Later in the story it seems that same character does not want Riley digging in to her past. It seemed inconsistent with other behavior that they would not have been more careful. Other than these type of inconsistencies, the book was an enjoyable read, which lead to the three stars. I'd recommend it, if you don't care too much about tying together all the loose ends at the end of a story.

Easy read and enjoyable. Wish it went a little further into characters storyline at the end. Would recommend. Entertaining and unpredictable

Loved slowly learning the full story. Could not put it down. Kept feeling like I knew what was next, and turned out so different. Excited to read more by this author.

I truly enjoyed this book. I finished it up in 1 session. I couldn't put it down! Th protagonist really has her hands full with cleaning out her parents old house after they died. She then uncovers many things about her family and especially (as the title says) about her older sister Lisa, who supposedly committed suicide. This was the first book I read by Diane Chamberlain but definitely won't be the last!

I am reading this book & enjoying every minute. The suspense is good. Late night reading at it's best.

História repleta de suspense e segredos que são revelados lentamente no decorrer da história, porém a narrativa te prende no trama. Final surpreendente.

i couldn't wait to reach the end of the book and uncover all mysteries. this novel is about parental love and so touchingly conveys the message that family is what counts. i enjoyed it very much

Its a totally gripping story. Very well written. A book about the powerful love within families...!! Though it was a new book, pages were yellow and the bind wasn't good also.