The Second Silence

by Eileen Goudge

Book Overview

A mother's worst nightmare is brought to life in this searing, intricate new novel by the bestselling author. Romantic, suspenseful, and utterly compelling, The second silence takes us into the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0670891592
• ISBN13: 9780670891597
• Release Date: June 2000
• Publisher: Viking Books
• Length: 365 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 6.3" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Pleasant surprise on first encounter

It amazes me how 10 people can read the same book and either love it or hate it. This is the first book by Goudge that I have read; I went into it cold and did not read the reviews until I finished it. Not being an avid reader of romance books, it was a surprise to see that it was combined with my favorite genre: mystery-thriller. You can get the details from other reviewers if that is what you are looking for but I say, read it and judge it for yourself. True, it may sound like a soap opera but aren't our lives the basis for those soaps?Every body has to make decisions that ultimately affect the lives of others and your decisions will have great impact that you never in your life could imagine. In this story, decisons made 4 generations ago lead to a terror-riden climax with a beautiful ending. See if you can identify with the different characters in your own family's generations. I did and saw a lot of "what if"s as we all do. Enjoy the book just to get away from all the stress and obscentities of today's pressures.At least you can put the book down but you can't put your own life on hold!!

Fantastic Read!

Every now and then one stumbles over an author they haven't heard of before, then is left wondering, "Why not"? The Second Silence was the first book I've read by Eileen Goudge and I hadn't even finished it before running out to pick up three more of her novels.The storyline has been detailed by several other reviewers here, so all I can add is that the combination of mother/daughter relationships, ex-spouses rediscovering each other, an unsolved murder and the suspense of other mysteries unraveling made for a wonderful book and done very differently then anything I've read before. Very absorbing and difficult to put down once I had started it and I'm looking forward to moving on to another Goudge novel.

This Book Has it All -- Highly Recommended!

I have no idea what is wrong with these people who were so disappointed in this book. I found it well-written and absolutely unputdownable. I loved the relationships between the women in this story - between mothers and daughters, particularly. But the relationship between sisters is also highlighted. Books where old loves are re-acquainted have often been a favorite of mine so I really enjoyed the story of Mary and Charlie who had been married briefly nearly 30 years previously, as they come together to help their daughter.One review mentioned that this was soap-operish. Maybe. But a similar situation happened to my own daughter - false charges being made in order for her ex to gain custody of her child. Charges she was unable to fight because she didn't have the financial means to do so. This was heartbreaking for our family so I could really identify with Mary and Noelle.Noelle had married what she thought was a good catch - a stable, older man who could give her everything. What she didn't realize was that he was a controlling, conniving, and even a crazy man who would stop at nothing to get what he wants, even trumping up charges that Noelle was drunk and unable to care for her child. In Noelle's fight to regain custody of her five-year-old daughter Emma she and her sister, mother, and father find more than they bargained for when the truth about several three-decades-old deaths finally comes to light.There's a little bit for everyone here - romance (not only between Mary and Charlie but Noelle and the young new doctor in town, teenage love between Noelle's half-sister Bronwyn and a young man who isn't exactly what her father would prefer; plus a budding romance between Mary's sister, bookstore owner Trish, and another unlikely candidate for romance). Along with the romantic relationships are the relationships between mother and daughter, sisters, grandmothers, and other people important in the lives of the main characters. Add that to a decades-old mystery, a kidnapping, arson fire, and more - and you have what I found to be a real page-turner. Recommended for those who enjoy books by authors such as Kristin Hannah, Barbara Delinsky, Mariah Stewart, Diane Chamberlain, Georgia Bockoven, Nora Roberts, and others.

Ms. Goudge has a gift for language.

I am always amazed at how an author can change hats and carry me off to another world. Eileen Goudge has often transported me into wonderful worlds where the characters become people I can imagine right next door. The Second Silence proves that she can step out of a more typical mold and create characters and situations that are very real and intense. I felt like I knew these people. I can only imagine how hard it is fit the puzzles of a book together. In my opinion Ms. Goudge is one of the best. Her use of our language should be studied by other authors. As I enjoy reading her stories, I also feel as though I am enjoying literature worthy of a great writer. Eileen Goudge is a great writer. You'll love reading this book if you love language, emotion, conflict and resolution. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did.

Goudge always delivers

In Burns Lake, New York, after eight years of marriage, Noelle Van Doren informs her spouse Robert that their relationship is over. No one messes with Robert, a cruel developer who willingly destroys people, historical sites, and the environment. Robert refuses to go quietly. He concocts a plan to make Noelle look like a drunken loser. He abducts their little girl Emma more as a punishment of Noelle than for any love of the child.If it only involved her, Noelle would have probably accepted Robert's scheme without a whimper. However, no one will harm Emma without Noelle interceding. With the help of her parents, who divorced long ago in spite of their love for one another, Noelle begins to fight back in an attempt to regain her reputation and more importantly, her beloved Emma.Best selling author Eileen Goudge provides her fans with a suspense-laden relationship drama. The story line is exciting and entertaining even as it switches between the modern Van Doren subplot and that of the 1969 tale involving Noelle's parents. The charcaters are for the most part genre stereotypes. The odious Robert is made so amoral that he turns into a caricature of a villain. Still with Ms. Goudge's talent she makes the duel themes of second chances at love and redemption succeed in an engaging tale.Harriet Klausner