10 stars !!! A BRILLIANT READ ... like always with that amazing author !

Two best friends, 10 years old, a death...

I was into it from the start... thinking how rude 10 year old girls can be, really mean girls...

I kept wondering all along if they did hurt Bessie or not... or if they witnessed something. Why they were there... why they won't speak a word...

Imagine your 10 year old child arrested by the police... And they won't say a word about the 'incident', their parents going crazy... nobody understanding what's going on...

Add family drama and secrets into the mix...

I'm glad my sister and I have a good relationship.

I loved therapist Dana talking to the girls, trying to connect and get them to open up...

It was more interesting with each chapter!

And what an ending! I didn't see that coming! Full of emotions...

Intense, well written, different in a good way, unexpected and interesting storyline, well developed story with good characters.

It kept me wanting to turn the pages until the end to find out the truth.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC of this book. This is my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Wow! Just Wow! The Silent Ones is my first K.L. Slater novel and it definitely won’t be my last! Ten-year-old cousins, Maddie and Brianna are being charged with bludgering an elderly lady. They have made a pact not to speak. Their mothers Juliet and Chloe are sisters who are part of a very unlikable dysfunctional family! This is a fast paced book filled with twists and turns. I thought I had it figured out several times but I didn’t. My head is still reeling. Do yourself a favor and read this one; you won’t be disappointed!

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

3.5*
Maddy and Brianna are cousins and best of friends. As is typically the case, one is more of a leader, the other a follower. So which is which?

An elderly woman is discovered brutally beaten, and unbelievably, the 10 year old cousins are brought in for questioning. Oh come on…how could they do this to a helpless woman? Was it both of them? One of them? One thing is certain. The girls aren’t talking! Neither will utter a single word!

The girls’ parents and grandparents arrive at the police station and instantly take sides. Fracturing a family that is already teetering on the edge .

K.L. Slater is one of my go authors! Though this wasn’t a favorite for me I still enjoyed her style and pacing! It’s a quick read that has many surprising twists to keep you glued to the pages!

My only issue was the lifelong issue of dysfunction within this family seemed to take priority over the girls' looming incarceration.

A buddy read with Susanne!

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and K. L. Slater for an ARC to read and review!

Excellent psychological thriller! It moved at a fast pace with twists and turns throughout! Well-developed characters and plot. Highly recommend!

Always a great book with this author!
Maddy and Brianna are 10. They are accused of a horrible crime. But who is to blame? Why won’t they speak? K.L. Slater does a great job guiding you through their story until the surprising end

What a unique story line, i really enjoyed this book and all its deep twists and turns. It was very well written with great character development and loads of suspense. This book will keep you guessing until the very end. A + a highly recommended read.

This was a great, thought-provoking book, with plenty of surprises and plot twists. While I wouldn’t call this a psychological thriller, it is still an excellent mystery and a great read. I think every family is dysfunctional in its own way, but this family takes dysfunctional to a whole new level, with a lifetime of deceit, lies, and secrets. There are the two sisters, Juliet and Chloe, who grew up with a narcissistic, self-centered, drama-queen mother (Joan), and a father who makes Joan his entire focus and comes across as a weak-willed man. The secrets, lies, and deceit start very early in Juliet and Chloe’s lives and the manipulation from their mom follows them into adulthood. Juliet is married to Tom and their daughter is Maddy. Chloe’s daughter is Brianna. Brianna and Maddy are taken into custody after they are found at the scene of a crime, and both girls refuse to say a word, so they bring in a therapist, Dana, to try to talk to the girls and the family to find out what happened.

I do wish that the author had developed Maddy and Brianna’s characters a little more since the book was essentially about them and their involvement in the murder of Bessie. I felt the author left a lot of questions unanswered about things that come out during the investigation regarding the girls' interactions with each other and things they are accused of. For instance, there is an accusation by Joan that Maddy stole money from her purse (this was kept a secret from Juliet when it happened and comes out during the story), but we never find out if this was actually true or not.
I was able to guess quite a bit of the ending, but the author actually surprised me with a couple of the plot twists.

The characters are both likable and unlikable in certain areas (much like all of us), and I think the author did a great job of showing both strengths and weaknesses. Although, Joan is a truly unlikeable person all the way around and had no redeeming qualities at all.
4.5 Stars

In “The Silent Ones” by K.L. Slater we meet the families of two ten-year old cousins, Maddie and Brianna, just as they are arrested for a terrible crime. None of their parents can believe their girls could commit such an act and the girls are not helping themselves when they refuse to speak a word. But as pressure is put on the detective and Maddie’s mom tries to get to the truth past secrets and more than the truth is revealed.

Another great book by Slater. I received this book through Net Galley and this is my honest review.

Wow ! KL Slater has done it again and written another fantastic book that had me glued to every page . I literally couldn’t put this book down . An outstanding psychological thriller that I highly recommend.

It’s a gripping psychological thriller!
It’s fast paced, and there’s no dull moment. It’s full of twists and turns!

Two 10-year olds, and a murder!
There’s a twisted family, some unspoken truths and long hidden secrets.

Loved this book!
I would definitely recommend it to anyone who loves reading thrillers.

Thanks to Netgalley & Bookouture for the e-arc. All opinions are of my own.

Hold on to your seats- wow! One gripping read.Two ten year old girls are at their grandparents for the day, being off school for a staff training day. Their mothers are sisters and work together. When they get a knock at their office door from the police and tescort then immediately to the police station about a possible assault, both mothers being understandably worried about their daughters. It transpires that the girls had wandered off from their grandparents and visited an old lady. The next thing anyone knows is that the police have been called as the old lady has been badly assaulted and injured. The girls are not saying a word to anyone not even each other as if they have taken a vow of silence. Their mothers know they can be scamps but a serious assault.? Ooh!! This is one of those books that makes you want to read faster and faster. The tension between the pages is almost palpable and brilliantly written. I liked Juliet, and felt for her predicament, not only in the current situation but how the family had always been against her three to one. Chloe came across as having something to hide and having a temper, something Juliet had seen with Chloe’s Daughter Brianna. The twist? Argh!! I didn’t see that coming until it hit me square between the eyes. This is one stunningly written book- put it down if you can- you might just be sitting up to finish it. I love books like this that are gripping, entertaining, and keep the grey matter functioning- albeit not having worked it out on this one (and I read a lot). It made me cringe, it made me smile, it made me cry. There is hope after disaster, it’s just that small matter of finding your inner self, that one made of steely determination and a big heart that gets you there in the end. Love this doesn’t cover it.
(amazon done- misfits farm)

Sensational, captivating, and unputdownable!
Slater's one of the best at keeping her readers guessing and she's proven it once again!

"They found the old lady in her chair, snoozing. She looked thinner than when they’d seen her during the spring bank holiday week a couple of months earlier. On the small lamp table next to her were a few pound coins and a small piece of paper. To pay the milkman, she’d explained to them before.
Pressing her finger to her mouth, the girl with the ponytail tiptoed up to the chair and bent forward so her mouth was right next to Bessie’s ear.
‘WAAKE UUUP!’ she yelled.
She shouted so loudly, the other girl jumped back from the doorway in alarm.
Bessie let out a strangled yelp and lurched forward, tipping right out of her chair. The girl with the ponytail howled with laughter, bent over double, her eyes shining with mirth.
‘Oh! Oh no…please, help me…’Bessie pleaded, rocking slightly on her back like a dazed swatted fly.
The girl snatched at Bessie’s arm and roughly tugged at the pretty ruby and gold ring on her right hand before slipping it into the pocket of her shorts. Bessie had once told them it had belonged to her mother, but it was too nice to be stuck on the finger of an old lady who never went out.
‘I need the bathroom,’said the girl at the door, and hastily walked away. She wanted to leave now; it had all got out of hand and this wasn’t what she called fun. But her cousin seemed to be enjoying it. She would try and think of an excuse why they should go home.
When she got back from the bathroom, she gasped when she saw the blood seeping steadily from the side of Bessie’s head. It pooled neatly on the worn, patterned carpet and sank into the grooves around the corner of the cream tiled fire surround.
‘What happened?’ She swallowed down a knot of panic.
‘It…it was an accident,’ her cousin stammered.
The girls backed out of the room and had just stepped into the kitchen when they heard it…a scuffling sound, like the movement of feet.
They froze as a shadow loomed in the hallway and advanced towards them.
Had Bessie jumped up and started coming after them covered in blood looking like a zombie from a horror film?
Alarmed, they let themselves out of the kitchen and darted around the side of the house until they were out in the front garden again. Behind them, through the open window, they felt sure they heard Bessie laughing.
They were halfway up the street, heading back home, when they heard the sirens."

********
The Silent Ones by K.L. Slater is a captivating read that's crackling with menace, intrigue, and tension as thick as pea soup! There's a continuous and unmistakable undercurrent that there's something about this crime just doesn't add up. But what? The questions are many. The answers, too few.

Is the solution to this terrible crime only a whisper away?
Why won't the girls say anything?
What are the they hiding?
Are they just terrified little girls?
Is it possible that Maddy or Brianna could do something either alone or together that no one thought either girl would be capable of?

I've enjoyed every novel I've read by Slater and I've been highly entertained each time! This one is no exception!
She's placed herself firmly on my favorite authors list!

With thanks and appreciation to NetGalley, Bookouture, and K.L. Slater for this advanced digital copy to read and honestly review.

Thanks Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC. I have have never heard of K.L. Slater and I figured why not give it a read. I am so glad I did! Loved this book, I could not put it down!! Brilliant writing and suspenseful. Everything you look for in a psychological thriller. Two young girls accused of a violent crime. Keeps you wanting more!

Wow, this book had me hooked and so dang frustrated. Premise was amazing and had me itching to read it. You would think 10 year olds are not capable of violence but I’ve read too many true stories that I can actually believe it 😭 that being said, I did find this book really frustrating because of the events that transpired and that’s all i’ll Say. Read the book to find out what happens 😜

This book was hard to put down, there is so much going on, lot's of lies and cover up's but nothing prepared me for the ending. Wow it blew me away, not just one reveal but several, The writing was brilliant and I will certainly be looking out for more from K L Slater

3.25 Stars

A terrible crime. 2 ten year old cousins accused. Their mothers both willing to do whatever it takes to protect their daughters. The problem? The girls refuse to speak and relationships are torn apart.

What on earth happened when Maddy and Brianna visited a family friend? Could they truly have inflicted harm on a little old woman? If only the girls would talk. When a therapist is brought in to help the walls come tumbling down, in more ways than one. What starts out as a tense read, quickly made my eyes roll as this story took a turn I was not expecting. My oh my! As we all know, far-fetched is not really my thing. That said, I love me a good K.L. Slater novel. While this wasn’t my favorite of her novels, it was still enjoyable.

This was another buddy read with Kaceey!

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and K.L. Slater for an arc of this novel in exchange for an arc.

Published on NetGalley and Goodreads on 7.25.19.

"We're all caught up in our own little worlds of denial and dread."

The unimaginable happens when two 10 year-old cousins are detained after an assault on an elderly woman, Bessie Wilford, whom they'd been visiting. The parents of Maddy are Juliet and Tom Fletcher and single mom, Chloe Voce's daughter's name is Brianna. Juliet and Chloe are sisters and have grown to adulthood in a quite dysfunctional family. When Maddy and Brianna are interviewed, neither of them will say a word. A child therapist, Dana Sewell, is brought in to help with getting the two cousins to talk. The townspeople and press are going wild with vitriol and disgust as the news goes out about the attack by these two ten-year-olds. Juliet and Chloe each try to support their daughters but the whole incident is bringing the entire family to the breaking point. Secrets and lies are revealed and the truth comes out with a shocking betrayal. NO SPOILERS.

This is domestic drama at heart and moves at a fairly slow pace with some flashbacks to the childhood of Juliet and Chloe where we learn a little about their family unit including Mum and Dad. It won't surprise anyone that there were problems there that would ultimately lead to what's meant to be a shocking revelation. I did not like any of the characters in this novel as they all had some issues and behaved in ways that I found irritating or repugnant. I believe we're supposed to feel some empathy for Juliet, but she was annoying in making excuses for herself and her self pity. I felt that the cousins were just a sidebar in a plot that should have featured them a bit more as they were very one-dimensional in the narrative. I think I was expecting more of a crime thriller plot because of the "murder" -- even though it's clearly marketed as a psychological thriller. I've read previous novels by this author that I liked more, and I'll read future books by K.L. Slater -- it's just that sometimes I find the synopsis misleading or it doesn't give me an accurate expectation for what the book is about. I guess I thought I was going to read a book about child killers...my mistake.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the e-book ARC to read and review.

Fantastic story!! The Silent Ones is by far one of the best books I've read this year!! Engrossing story, well developed characters, twists and turns I never expected! Very compelling and sympathetic characters. This is the first book I've read by K.L. Slater, but I am eager to read others! Great story; absolutely unexpected ending. Thank you so much to Netgalley, the author and publisher for allowing me to read this excellent book in exchange for my honest review.

Two 10-year-old cousins become embroiled in a murder investigation after an old woman is brutally killed in a small village. At first, the two girls refuse to talk to anyone, including their mothers. But eventually, a twisted family history rears its ugly head as the girls take on the same roles that their mothers were forced into as children.

This was an enjoyable thriller that had several twists and turns. Most of them were able to be figured out in advance, but a few of the twists were truly shocking. The Silent Ones is definitely worth reading if you enjoy thrillers about the aftermath of a crime and dysfunctional families.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing a copy. This review contains my honest, unbiased opinion.

I'm always interested in books where two young girls are accused of a crime and this one did not disappoint. It felt a bit "ripped from the headlines" at times but it was reasonably well written and a good book for a day at the beach. I didn't feel like the characters were super relatable or sympathetic but for a beachy, quick read, I accepted it.