Fifteen years ago, Skye's twin sister Ginny died in a suspicious drowning. Skye has no memory of that horrible night. But what she does remember is her mother blaming her for Ginny's death. She left her rural Scottish village the next day and has never looked back. Now she's back in her hometown to spend time with her sick mother and is determined to find out what really happened to her sister all those years ago. My Mother's Silence is a gripping and emotional story about the impact a young woman's death can have on a grieving family and a tight-knit community. It's a story of lies, secrets, and the lengths some will go to to protect the people that they love. The plot was engaging and nicely paced. My heart broke for Skye and her family, and my desire to see her uncover the truth kept me turning the pages well into the night. Skye was a likable and well developed main character. But is she a reliable narrator? After all, she got into a pretty bad accident and doesn't remember anything from that night. All she has are flashbacks which suggest that there is way more to the story than what was originally told to her by her boyfriend and his two cousins. I really liked how the truth slowly started to unravel and I was unable to guess the twist. The ending was very satisfying and bittersweet. I look forward to reading more books by this author. Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was fast paced. Hard to put down. It flowed well and it was very well written. It caught hold of me and had me hooked from the start . I was literally on the edge of my seat reading this book.

The opening scene of this thrilling read, sets the tone of the whole novel. The reader is kept in suspense, did she die accidentally, or was she murdered. Who was responsible. Was it the sister. Was it someone else...
This was the first novel by Ms Westwood I've read, and I can't wait to read some more by this talented author.

Great tragic thriller that sets a great atmosphere and will leave you gagging for more!

I didn’t like Skye as a character but that doesn’t take away from how breathtaking this book is! 15 years ago her younger sister Ginny died leaving lots of secrets that unravel throughout the story. Every chapter has something happening and it’s fast paced and emotional
I loved it!

Fifteen years ago Skye left her home in Eileen Shiel.. escaping after the death of her sister in a tragic accident.
Her brother contacts her to say their mother is asking for her. It’s the sign she’s been waiting for to return. So she he”s back to Scotland from America. In the time she’s been away things have changed and so has the story behind her twin sister Ginny”s death.
Lauren Westwood has written a beautiful and emotional book. She takes you on the journey of discovery on how Skye and her mother finally understand what happened to Ginny and how they deal with the grief. A powerful read that will stay with you after you’ve put the book down.

I loved this book. It was a mystery with a bit of romance and it just all worked, excellent writing style, wonderful characters and a terrific ending. Overall, a great read. Highly recommend,

This is a gripping emotional and thought provoking page turner that would definitely stays with the reader long after finishing it.

This is the story of secrets, half truths and lies and how sometimes the best of intentions would result in so much damage.

Skye lost her twin sister Ginny in an accident years ago. An accident that crippled her, her family, and their community and left them all suffering from suppressed and conflicted emotions.

When Skye has to back to her hometown to look after her ill mother, she has to unravel the past and its muted secrets to get to the truth of how she lost her sister in that accident all those years ago.
It is an intense emotional journey written with so much compassion and I highly recommend it.

Thanks Netgalley, Bookouture, and Lauren Westwood for an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

Read this book in one day... it definitely will bring your emotions to the top ! I couldn’t wait to find out the plot . Very easy to read and it kept me interested ! Loved the characters!!

This is a deeply heartfelt book, dealing with emotions in a skilful way. I enjoyed it very much, some great characterisation and I didn’t want it to end.

"If it hurts when it's over, then it must have been good."

A line from the book was exactly how I felt when I came to the last page. The emotions hidden in the pages told me the present with the force of the past, a story about the lost sister, so far untold, left in the unsaid words of half-truths.

The waves hitting the rocks of Eilean Shiel had nothing on them compared to the force of the feelings I was left with. There was an inner pain knowing what I knew now. Lauren Westwood brought this all out when she wrote this book, a tale of 3 women bound by love and connected by secrets.

Ginny died 15 years ago. Skye was the twin left behind in more ways than one. A road accident left her with amnesia, her mother's whispered accusation left her with guilt, and a need to escape her pain all the way to America left her with a lie. Skye came back when her mum wasn't well. And decided to get to the truth of what happened that night.

Lauren Westwood has smashed it out of the park with a roaring whack!! Her writing was muted, but the power behind behind it ravaged my soul. There were moments I was angry, irritated with the to and fro of Skye's emotions, the way she wanted to know the truth, yet didn't really want to. But that's true for all of us. We are the same. Skye was one of us.

Her relationship with her mum had so many layers that it was extremely bittersweet when each came up. I liked how they found the strength in knowing the truth. There was a depth to the story, more than the half-truths that were told by the witnesses. There was something hushed in between the lines, as if they wanted me to listen to its silent words.

Silence speaks, and this book spoke to me.

This book affected me in a lot of ways telling me a story not only of the written words but a hidden one behind the unstated ones. I was left with a pain deep inside me, pain of the unshed tears for the mother and daughter who had lost so much but found each other.

I could write pages, but I have to stop here with a tear rolling down my cheek.

This book really touched me. I felt the main characters were multi-dimensional and really cared about their fate. Very well written and insightful.

This was a well-written tale of how half-truths and lies surrounding a young woman's death impacted a grieving family and a tight-knit community. In the absence of communication, grief metastasized leading to broken lives and severed relationships. In the end I couldn't help but wonder why had so many people kept so much information from Skye about Ginny's death for so long? How could those that loved her not come to realize that by protecting her from the truth about Ginny and the accident that they irreparably harmed her?

It is always a pleasure to read a story that stays with you long after the close of the book. 'My Mother's Silence' is a thought-provoking page turner that will make you ask yourself 'what if' many times over.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture, and Lauren Westwood for an ARC of 'My Mother's Silence' in exchange for an honest and voluntary review.

This wasn't an edge of seat thriller but it was a well developed story, well written by a new author to me and it held my interest throughout. The characters were good and it had a satisfactory ending.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read this book and to find a new author.

My Mother's Silence by Lauren Westwood is a strong, solid read that held my attention throughout. At its heart, it is a story about a family coming to grips with a fifteen year old mystery, and a loss that threatens to tear them apart.

Skye Turner has returned to her childhood home in the Scottish Highlands fifteen years after the tragic death of her twin sister, Ginny. Skye has spent these years believing that her mother has always held her responsible for Ginny's death by questionable circumstances. But upon returning to her mother's home, Skye will seek the answers that her family has been lacking, and the revelations will be explosive as long-buried secrets finally come to light.

This is a well-paced mystery that will have the reader searching for the truth in the all but cold case of a young woman's death, and hoping that her family will find at least some measure of peace.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC.