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Revision as of 15:03, 18 November 2023
, 15:03, 18 November 2023no edit summary
|reviewer=Jill Murphy
|genre=General Fiction
|summary=Absorbing story of family secrets, the breakdown of a marriage, and a parent with dementia. Delicately written, handling some distressing events with great sensitivity and building tension well.
|rating=4
|buy=Yes
|date=July 2018
|isbn=978-1789014921
|cover=1789014921
|aznuk=1789014921
The book is delicately written, handling some distressing events with great sensitivity and building tension well. Annie is a challenging woman and at times it is hard not to dislike her but, as the book goes on, you can see why she became as she is. The fog of her dementia is also handled well, with Stone showing rather than telling. It's sad. Sasha, I wished the best for, as she struggles to maintain a good relationship with her recalcitrant teenage son whose usual adolescent angst is compounded by resentment at discovering family secrets that had been kept from him.
''What's Left Unsaid'' is a sympathetic but honest look at the ways in which our lives and our most precious personal relationships are as affected by what is ''not'' said as they are by what ''is'' said. Secrets are like pebbles in ponds: the ripples they leave are insistent and persistent and bear down upon us whether we like it or not. Deborah Stone's novel illuminates this truth and gives us pause for thought about our own lives and the things we ourselves are keeping hidden. It's written with honesty but also with compassion and understanding.
More like this, please! I'll be interested to read whatever Deborah Stone writes next. We can recommend [[Me and My Shadow by Deborah Stone|Me and My Shadow]]. We can also recommend [[Iron House by John Hart]].
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