This is my first book review and I am so excited to share this gem with you! I hope to come across more resources like this to feature here. What a riveting read and powerful tale of healing. Thank you Bethany Kaczmarek! Find out more about the story behind the story here.
I met Bethany through a mutual friend (hey Heidi!) who had just read a preview of this novel. She couldn’t contain her excitement about Strains of Silence, so I thought I’d snoop around to see what the fuss was all about. After answering a few questions, author Bethany figured I wasn’t too creepy and sent me my very own review copy. Aaaah. Books!
Bethany KaczmarekReading has always been a huge love of mine. As a young child I’d plow through classic novels by Jane Austin and Charlotte Bronte, and devour book series like Little House On The Prairie, Anne of Green Gables, Junior Jedi Knights and Chronicles of Narnia. Yes, of course I even had a Tolkien phase. I’d spend like way too long in the restroom reading chapters at a time despite my parents giving me countless lectures about health complications associated with all that. Those were the days…
It’s been 10 or more years since I’ve read any of those childhood stories! Though my thirst for reading remains, I don’t spend hours lost in tales that stop time anymore (hello adult life!), and I certainly don’t take reading material into restrooms now.
…or so I thought.
Bethany KaczmarekIt was a week ago when I looked at the clock and thought I could grab a few moments to start reading Strains of Silence before the afternoon responsibilities began. Well, there should be a warning label that says, “May cause you to forget about everything else that matters in life”. Too late! I was captivated. Immediately setting the stage for the rest of the story, the book opens with two college students at odds in an abusive relationship. How will this end? My breath was bated as I read, and my emotions were raw as Bethany took me on a heart pounding journey simultaneously through the eyes of Kasia Bernolak and her friend and protector, Zan Maddox. Moments turned into minutes which turned into hours as I soaked in every page. I COULDN’T put it down! By 9pm that night, I completed the last page literally with my hand on my heart in awe of the experience I had just finished. Don’t laugh. This will be you too.
Strains of Silence is a fictional but honest look at the reality of spousal abuse, date rape, denial, justice and healing. The truths of broken love and True Love are compellingly juxtaposed. Emptiness and Wholeness. Hopelessness and Faith. Yes, it’s a sensitive read, but it is so full of beauty, healing and life. There’s something for everyone in this novel, I promise! Adventure, acts of valor, romance, mystery…what’s not to love? Though there is much food for thought packed in for those concerned with abusive relationships, readers from all backgrounds can connect with this universal story of overcoming. As my eyes flew through each page, words poured out at me, stabbing, comforting, angering, and giving my heart wings. Whatever we are going through, the words of our hero Zan ring true. “God can bring you through this. Stronger.”
Please read Strains of Silence and share it with others!
look for the eBook release on July 21st (tomorrow people!), 2017
and the Paperback release on August 1, 2017
*this post contains affiliated links. Yay! learn more here*
