In a town beholden to a mysterious deity, only the Silent can hear the truth...
Nineteen-year-old Katherine "Kat" Jones is about to be forced into an arranged marriage with the awful Peter Ellis. In a town where every resident is required to be married at the age of twenty-one, it's not unusual. Kat doesn't love Peter though; she loves her boyfriend, Adam Ashby, who her parents hate. As the date of her marriage draws nearer, Kat dreams of running away with Adam. But that's not possible; the magic around Everhaven physically prevents any resident from crossing its border into the Outside world. However, there is one place in town where she and Adam can go to avoid arranged marriages: The Silence. They're a group of the most devout citizens who pledge their lives to the Provider, the deity responsible for Everhaven's good fortune and the magic surrounding the town.
Out of options, Kat and Adam enlist. At first, they believe they've found a loophole to stay together. But as the day-to-day dealings of the Silence grow increasingly unsettling, Kat realizes she may have just walked into a situation even worse than marrying Peter. A situation with grave consequences that could very well spell death... or worse.
The Silents is a prequel novella set 35 years prior to the events in Everhaven.
Elizabeth "E.J." Rekab is an author of YA & NA fantasy romance, science fiction, and paranormal, including THE REAPER TRILOGY which international best-selling author E.E. Holmes calls, "A truly unique paranormal thrill ride."
I honestly fell in love with this author the moment I read Everhaven. She hasn’t disappointed me ever since. Hawnt was equally amazing. I devoured both books and wanted more of both. She writes in a way that captures you from the absolute beginning and keeps you enthralled until long after finishing the book. Her mind works in incredible ways and comes up with the most amazing stories that don’t bore you.
When she told me she was doing a prequel for Everhaven I was instantly on board! And boy am I glad I was. This story gives a different view in the Everhaven world. Set years prior to Abbie’s story. She takes us on a journey that is absolutely amazing. The story line was entertaining and full of secrets that it never got dull.
Kat is like any other 19 year old girl. She’s finding herself and realizing just how strong she really is. Adam is slightly quieter. Living in Everhaven hasn’t been easy for him since his father is an outsider and drinks. Both are judge harshly. They are in love and just want to be together. In order for Kat to escape her parents and the marriage she is being forced into they join The Silents. A part of their community who are outside the rules of Everhaven, or so they thought. As soon as they enter their new home they are thrusted into a nonstop adventure of finding out how truly wrong The Silents are and what a big mistake they have made.
A nonstop adventure with so many twists and turns that even I was shocked by everything. While this is a prequel you don’t have to read it first. I read it after Everhaven and was still shocked by what I was reading.
I definitely recommend this series. I for one can’t wait for book two!!
This is my third book by this author. And it will not be my last. I read Everhaven a few months back and “The Silents” is the prequel to Everhaven. The Silents gives a view into the “quiet and unknown” world of Everhaven.
Kat & Adam are in love. But in this town, their love is forbidden due to Adam’s dad being an outsider (not born in the Everhaven boundaries)- instead of her parents arranging a marriage for Kat- her & Adam decide it is best to join the silents. They vow for a lifetime of silence, celibacy, and worshipping of the Provider. But they’re in love with each other, so of course this isn’t going to end well.
While this is a prequel to the Everhaven trilogy, it’s not necessary to read this one first. This book moves quick, keeps you guessing, and rooting and cheering for Kat & Adam. I can’t wait for the next book to be released in this series.
With the rules in this town I wouldn't be able to live there. Can't be friends with an outsider, can't leave the city limits especially if you were born there and they even set up who you'll marry. The dead don't stay dead and you can join the silents a group that worships the Provider but like all groups behind the scene aren't all they portray. This book leads you to the top of the mountain in suspense and keeps you there. Great read. 👍
I read this after the first book, and I’m glad I did, because it filled in some things I wondered about.
Those poor teenagers, Adam & Kat. Joining the Silents was a huge mistake. Although they didn’t have much of a choice when everyone was going to make sure they couldn’t be together. It was sad. But also very informative about how Dean came to be. I’m loving this series so much!!!
The Silents was a really good read and setup for the series. I’m intrigued to pickup the next book. Writing is crisp and clear, with a good flow. With the read!
The Silents is a fascinating look at what happens when a society places social status and religious ideology above the freedom and happiness of its citizens, and illustrates how the difference between "pious" and "sinner" often has more to do with ones ability to hide their actions than it does with true devotion. It tells the story of Kat Jones, a 19 year old in Everhaven who has been dating her boyfriend, Adam, for a long time, and would like nothing more in the world than to marry him. However, Adam's father is an Outsider, a man born outside the town's magical forcefield, making Adam an unworthy match for her in the eyes of the image-obsessed residents, including Kat's parents. Desperate to escape Kat's arranged engagement to a skeevy boy whose father is of more respectable breeding, the young lover's enlist in the Silence, the town's mysterious religious sect, believing a life of silent devotion together would be preferable to any life that tears them apart. Once within it's walls, however, they quickly learn that their struggles have only just begun. Existing outside the town's anti-violence laws, the Silent Elders enact strict punishments for any lapse in their vows. And when one of their misdeeds ends up having more lasting consequences and a chance encounter reveals that their Elders are not as flawless as they claim, Kat and Adam must learn to think quickly or risk losing everything they fought so hard to keep, possibly even their lives.
From beginning to end, this book grabs your attention and refuses to release it until the end. From the moment I started reading it, I had a hard time putting it down, wanting to know the fate of Kat and Adam, as well as to learn more about the mysterious Silents that they live with. Every twist I encountered left me eager for the next, and even when an event was easy to predict, it did not take away from the story, but rather added more to the suspense as the stakes were continually raised and the question of how the teens would manage to pull through became ever harder to answer. The characters all felt very real, as if Rekab were relaying the actual story of a supernatural cult hidden away in our world rather than a tale of her own creation. I was not familiar with her Everhaven duology prior to reading this prequel, but that lack of knowledge in no way interfered with my ability to follow the story, and it left me wanting to buy copies of Everhaven and its sequel as soon as possible. From the synopsis I read, however, it does not seem as if this series will spoil anything about the main series, nor will the main series likely spoil much of this story, given they are connected mostly by setting rather than narrative, so I would imagine it would be equally enjoyable to those who are more familiar with the world in which it takes place. Regardless, I highly recommend this novel to anyone looking for a story of love that is more powerful than the forces that try to pull it apart, and of the lengths that some will go to in order to do what they believe is right.
Spoiler Alert! This review does contain some spoilers, though I will try to avoid them or be vague about them. I decided to give a new world by a new author a try when I saw this novella listed for a free giveaway with other Fantasy novels/novellas.
The Silents, for a novella, was a very interesting and hooking short read. It was not what I was expecting--it has less of a fantasy feel and more drama than I was expecting, but it was an original premise. Elizabeth's world-building was stunning! I was able to picture myself alongside her characters in their white-picket-fence-image of a "perfect" town and inside the Silent Compound where the world has an opposite appearance but is the flip-side to the same imperfection that the town wishes to maintain.
Having not read any of the other books, I found this novella to be a super-helpful set-up for what I imagine will be an amazing story about Dean and Abigail? The souls of people never dying, a provider that returns for souls every 150 years, a mysterious holy order, and a star-crossed lovers clean romance all made for a very interesting story!
My only disappointment while reading it was purely my preference as a reader, not a necessary flaw of the story-telling. We follow the majority of the story through the eyes of Kat and Adam, but toward the very end (over 80% of the way in), they --spoilers I won't disclose-- and then the POV shifts to --spoilers again -- and that's really all we hear of them, leaving the last 20% of the book to feel like a super long head-hopping epilogue (like the author couldn't decide which ending/epilogue had the biggest hook, so they picked four; the Elder's Apprentice, Abigail?, Dean, and Dean's "parents"). It just felt odd to me, head-hopping one scene to another all at the end but nowhere else in the book.
Had it not been for that, I would happily give Kat and Adam's portion of The Silents a solid 5/5. Great tension between the characters, a sweet romance doomed from the start but true and pure, and the fire and conviction of discovering one's purpose in life truly rules in this thought-provoking novella! Well-done!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Not bad, in fact even with the romance-YA vibes who i usually avoid, it quite enjoyable. However, i'm not a fan of the epilogue, it was unnecessary and add nothing important. I like the cover too, sleek dan on point.
And another thing, the concept of The Silent feels like a nineteen century/ medieval era thing while the town settings like an 80's undeveloped one with characters that speak in present modern tone and language. It feels mismatch and awkward to read.
I want to thank Elizabeth J. Rekab for providing me with a copy of this book so I could write a review.
This was an interesting read. It was fast paced and held my attention the whole way through. I was sad to see how things turned out for Adam and Katherine. I wish things could have turned out differently for them. I am curious to see more about Dean's life, though. I would recommend this book and look forward to reading Everhaven.
I truly enjoyed this book! It was so easy to get hooked and ever so hard to put down. I love getting so engrossed by characters and the storyline that I forget everything. I'm looking forward to reading the first book, as this was the prequel!
I received from author for review. This started with a feeling like I had read this story before and wasn’t sure this was going to offer anything new, I was wrong. Since this is a prequel to The Reaper which I haven’t read yet, however reading this first has left me intrigued to what happens next.
This was so good that it makes me want more. It was completely unexpected in the best way. I couldn’t put it down. Can’t wait to read the the next one. Definitely recommend.
Side note: I received a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review.
Solid world building and likeable main characters. I found this prequel throughly enjoyable. It made me want to read Everhaven to see where the story goes.
I received a complimentary copy of the book from the author via Voracious Readers
An amazing read! The twists and turns at every page get me craving for more. The best and philosophy and raging emotions of the protagonist and how they fight is perfect!