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THE SILENT SISTER

by Diane Chamberlain ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 7, 2014

A compulsively readable melodrama.

After her father’s sudden death, a daughter discovers disturbing facts about a sister presumed dead more than two decades earlier.

One way or another, Lisa MacPherson, a musical prodigy, has always dominated the lives of her family. By the age of 17, she's a violin virtuoso with a bright future. Unaccountably, on a winter morning, Lisa’s kayak (though not her body) is discovered in the ice-bound Potomac near the family’s Alexandria, Virginia, home. Shortly after the tragedy, the family moves to North Carolina. Lisa’s younger siblings, Danny, 7, and Riley, 2, will be told only that Lisa suffered from depression and committed suicide. Twenty-three years later, Riley, who has become a high school guidance counselor to help depressed teens like Lisa, is settling her father Frank’s affairs after his death from a heart attack. (Her mother had succumbed to cancer years before.) While getting ready to sell his North Carolina real estate—her childhood home and a trailer park—Riley runs across several people who harbor secrets about her family’s past: Danny, a mentally troubled Iraq War vet, nurses grudges against his parents while living as a virtual hermit on the outskirts of the trailer park. Her father’s friend Tom exhibits a threatening mien. Jeannie, another family friend, appears helpful, but what is she hiding? Riley discovers that her father was paying Tom off, but why? Early on, Lisa’s voice, and her version of events, emerges. We learn that she was accused of murdering her violin teacher and was about to stand trial. Her suicide was faked by her father and Tom, both ex-U.S. Marshals skilled at making people disappear. Her father relocated her to San Diego, where, ignoring Frank’s warnings to avoid music, she found new outlets for her extraordinary talent. Although the plot is not exactly watertight, the revelations are parceled out so skillfully that disbelief remains suspended until the satisfying if not entirely plausible close.

Pub Date: Oct. 7, 2014

ISBN: 978-1-250-01071-1

Page Count: 352

Publisher: St. Martin's

Review Posted Online: July 27, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2014

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A LITTLE LIFE

by Hanya Yanagihara ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 10, 2015

The phrase “tour de force” could have been invented for this audacious novel.

Four men who meet as college roommates move to New York and spend the next three decades gaining renown in their professions—as an architect, painter, actor and lawyer—and struggling with demons in their intertwined personal lives.

Yanagihara ( The People in the Trees , 2013) takes the still-bold leap of writing about characters who don’t share her background; in addition to being male, JB is African-American, Malcolm has a black father and white mother, Willem is white, and “Jude’s race was undetermined”—deserted at birth, he was raised in a monastery and had an unspeakably traumatic childhood that’s revealed slowly over the course of the book. Two of them are gay, one straight and one bisexual. There isn’t a single significant female character, and for a long novel, there isn’t much plot. There aren’t even many markers of what’s happening in the outside world; Jude moves to a loft in SoHo as a young man, but we don’t see the neighborhood change from gritty artists’ enclave to glitzy tourist destination. What we get instead is an intensely interior look at the friends’ psyches and relationships, and it’s utterly enthralling. The four men think about work and creativity and success and failure; they cook for each other, compete with each other and jostle for each other’s affection. JB bases his entire artistic career on painting portraits of his friends, while Malcolm takes care of them by designing their apartments and houses. When Jude, as an adult, is adopted by his favorite Harvard law professor, his friends join him for Thanksgiving in Cambridge every year. And when Willem becomes a movie star, they all bask in his glow. Eventually, the tone darkens and the story narrows to focus on Jude as the pain of his past cuts deep into his carefully constructed life.  

Pub Date: March 10, 2015

ISBN: 978-0-385-53925-8

Page Count: 720

Publisher: Doubleday

Review Posted Online: Dec. 21, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2015

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by Hanya Yanagihara

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PERSPECTIVES

by Elin Hilderbrand ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 16, 2015

Once again, Hilderbrand displays her gift for making us care most about her least likable characters.

Hilderbrand’s latest cautionary tale exposes the toxic—and hilarious—impact of gossip on even the most sophisticated of islands.

Eddie and Grace Pancik are known for their beautiful Nantucket home and grounds, financed with the profits from Eddie’s thriving real estate company (thriving before the crash of 2008, that is). Grace raises pedigreed hens and, with the help of hunky landscape architect Benton Coe, has achieved a lush paradise of fowl-friendly foliage. The Panciks’ teenage girls, Allegra and Hope, suffer invidious comparisons of their looks and sex appeal, although they're identical twins. The Panciks’ friends the Llewellyns (Madeline, a blocked novelist, and her airline-pilot husband, Trevor) invested $50,000, the lion’s share of Madeline’s last advance, in Eddie’s latest development. But Madeline, hard-pressed to come up with catalog copy, much less a new novel, is living in increasingly straightened circumstances, at least by Nantucket standards: she can only afford $2,000 per month on the apartment she rents in desperate hope that “a room of her own” will prime the creative pump. Construction on Eddie’s spec houses has stalled, thanks to the aforementioned crash. Grace, who has been nursing a crush on Benton for some time, gives in and a torrid affair ensues, which she ill-advisedly confides to Madeline after too many glasses of Screaming Eagle. With her agent and publisher dropping dire hints about clawing back her advance and Eddie “temporarily” unable to return the 50K, what’s a writer to do but to appropriate Grace’s adultery as fictional fodder? When Eddie is seen entering her apartment (to ask why she rented from a rival realtor), rumors spread about him and Madeline, and after the rival realtor sneaks a look at Madeline’s rough draft (which New York is hotly anticipating as “the Playboy Channel meets HGTV”), the island threatens to implode with prurient snark. No one is spared, not even Hilderbrand herself, “that other Nantucket novelist,” nor this magazine, “the notoriously cranky Kirkus.”

Pub Date: June 16, 2015

ISBN: 978-0-316-33452-5

Page Count: 384

Publisher: Little, Brown

Review Posted Online: May 20, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2015

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by Elin Hilderbrand

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Book Reviews | Open Book Society

Read, review & discuss, the silent sister by diane chamberlain: book review.

Brought to you by OBS reviewer Jerjen

Riley MacPherson has returned home to New Bern, North Carolina, to settle her father’s estate after his death.  She has to deal with the house, her father’s RV and the RV park that he owned.  She also has to deal with her brother, Danny, who has many emotional problems to deal with.  He was injured in combat and has been having trouble dealing with his injury and his life.  There was no love lost between Danny and his father, and Danny does not want to help Riley take care of any of his father’s belongings.  He wants nothing to do with his past or his family’s past.

Someone does want to help with settling the affairs and sell the house.  Riley’s mother’s old friend Jeannie Lyons and her daughter, Christine, cannot wait to tackle the house and get it on the market.  But Riley is getting bad vibes from Jeannie and after she finds out that Jeannie and her father were lovers, she really has trouble dealing with her.  Riley is also getting bad vibes from Tom and Verniece Kyle, a couple that has lived at the RV park for a long time.  Riley’s father left them his expensive pipe collection, which surprised her because she did not realize that they were that close.  The more time she spends around the people who knew her father, the more she realizes that she did not know her father very well.

When Riley starts cleaning out her father’s belongings, she finds evidence that indicates that her family has been living a lie.  Riley and her brother Danny have grown up believing that their sister, Lisa, committed suicide when Riley was very young.  Why did her family make up the story of the suicide and is her sister still alive?  These are questions that Riley has to try to find answers to, but the more digging she does, she finds more questions, not answers.  I do not want to give away any more of the plot because I do not want to spoil the book for would-be readers.

The writing style flows smoothly and the book is an easy read. The book is written in the first person perspective, and although I do not usually like this perspective, it worked very well for this book.  The suspense builds throughout the entire book and there are many unexpected twists and turns that add to the drama.  Diane Chamberlain is a master at plotting and characterization, and this book is no exception.

The characters are well developed, well rounded and three dimensional.   Riley and her brother Danny are especially easy to care about and worry about.  I felt sorry for both of them.  Riley because she wanted to have a loving relationship with her brother but it seemed like an impossible dream.  And Danny because he was so depressed and angry all the time, even though we do not know the specific reasons behind the anger.  The family dynamics are very dysfunctional and this is very well displayed throughout the book.  The family relationship is one of the best parts of the book, in my opinion.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a well crafted suspense read.  I have read many of Diane Chamberlain’s books and I have liked everyone of them.  She really knows how to develop characters, build suspense and use twists and turns to keep you guessing throughout the entire book.

*OBS would like to thank the publisher for supplying a free copy of this title in exchange for an honest review*

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Review – The Silent Sister by Diane Chamberlain

By Novelicious

This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.

Reviewed by Susan Lobban

Now that she is back in her hometown she is determined to reconnect with her brother. Perhaps reminiscing over their shared past will help? However, Danny has serious unresolved issues and has no intention of getting over them any time soon. Riley intends to take her time sorting through her father’s belongings, too, but when a family friend gets involved everything seems to be moving too fast. This unwanted help leads Riley to unearth more than she bargained for, as in amongst the collectables and old paperwork are newspaper articles, which reveal that the reason for Lisa’s suicide was not depression. Riley’s whole life has been based on a lie; she even became a counsellor to help other teens. No wonder Danny is unable to forgive their sister for ruining their family’s life – she was a murderer who took the coward’s way out.

Riley knows that her family has not been as happy as it can be, but it’s not until she begins clearing out after her father’s death that she realises how sheltered her life has been. In amongst the grief of her sister’s suicide she had a really close relationship with her brother Danny, but as the years have progressed they have grown apart and Riley is desperate to rekindle her brother’s love. I really felt sorry for Danny when it came to light he had doubted and ultimately dismissed his own memories of Lisa thanks to his mother insisting they were his imagination rather than truth. Years on he quite rightly blames his mother’s actions for his mental issues.

Whilst reading I did find that I worked out how the story would unfold well before it did, however, despite this, I was still eager to read on. I may have been able to figure out the twists and turns, but I was intrigued to read about the minute details that lead up to the ultimate outcome.

The Silent Sister is a true reflection of how fragile family life can be. The father/daughter relationship depicted, in particular, pulled at my heartstrings. Diane Chamberlain certainly knows how to write compelling family drama full of moral dilemmas, which make the reader think.

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Submitting a book for review, write the editor, you are here:, the silent sister.

• About the Book

In THE SILENT SISTER, Riley MacPherson has spent her entire life believing that her older sister Lisa committed suicide as a teenager. Now, over 20 years later, her father has passed away and she's in New Bern, North Carolina cleaning out his house when she finds evidence to the contrary.  Lisa is alive. Alive and living under a new identity.  But why exactly was she on the run all those years ago, and what secrets are being kept now? As Riley works to uncover the truth, her discoveries will put into question everything she thought she knew about her family. Riley must decide what the past means for her present, and what she will do with her newfound reality, in this engrossing mystery from international bestselling author Diane Chamberlain.

The Silent Sister by Diane Chamberlain

• Publication Date: October 6, 2015
• Genres: Fiction
• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
• ISBN-10: 1250074355
• ISBN-13: 9781250074355

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New York Times   Bestselling Author

Diane chamberlain, praise, the silent sister.

“Compulsively readable” —Kirkus Reviews

“There’s no one audience for this book because it has wide appeal.” —The Bookbag

“A gripping and at times powerful read–You won’t be able to put it down!” —Candis Magazine

“Full of twists and turns, this new mystery will have you staying up late to find out what happens next.” —Essentials Magazine

“Chamberlain’s powerful story is a page-turner to the very end. A must for all mystery lovers and those who like reading about family struggles.” —Library Journal

“The Silent Sister is a powerful and thrilling novel . . . tautly paced and emotionally driven.” —Booklist

“Hard to put down.” —Better Homes and Gardens

“Chamberlain has written an excellent novel with well-thought-out plot lines that never lose the suspense lover’s interest for one solitary second.” Suspense Magazine

“If I could only read one author for the rest of my life, it would probably be Diane Chamberlain.” —The Bookbag

“It’s definitely a page turner and will keep everyone on their toes, trying to connect to the missing pieces as Diane Chamberlain slowly reveals little hidden truths along the way..” —Books in the Burbs

“The story takes several unexpected twists and turns along the way and I really enjoyed the roller coaster ride.” —Walley’s Book Reviews

“Diane Chamberlain is an author who never disappoints.  I didn’t know how she could possibly write another gripping novel after the wonderful Necessary Lies but this one is equally as good.  I was enthralled and didn’t want . . . the story to end.” —Hello Dollface Naturally

“It’s definitely a worthy beach read . . . or perfect for a cold winter night in front of the fire.” —Book Keeping

“Do not start this book if you don’t have time to finish it.  It’s a wild ride and so well written that you won’t stop until you uncover all the mysteries.” —Cayocosta72-Book Reviews

“This book really was enthralling!  The characters are well written and feel real.” —A Wandering Weyrcat

“I loved this story, and would recommend it for all Chamberlain fans, and for any who enjoy a good story of family secrets, lies and deceptions.” — Curl Up and Read

“Chamberlain skillfully crafts a complex family drama mystery, with multi-generational rich characters— which does not disappoint.” —Judith Collins Must Reads

“Great characters, interesting plot, fascinating twists and turns! Very readable.” —Amy’s Book Obsession

“This book is the perfect example of why I love to read.  It has it all – a well constructed plot, compelling characters, and a satisfying conclusion.  Truly well done!” —Book Reviews by Wanda

“This is one book that I really hesitate to say too much about, because IT IS SO GOOD. Suffice it to say that I was consistently surprised and Diane Chamberlain had me riveted at every point.” —One Little Library

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The Silent Sister

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I listened to the majority of this book on audio download. The novel tells the story of Riley, a 25 year-old school counselor. Her father has recently passed away and in the process of settling his estate she unlocks some family secrets. Once they begin to be revealed the novel jumps back and forth between current day and approximately twenty years earlier.

In the beginning, names were dropped as if we should know who they were. It bothered me briefly but then either I learned who they were or they weren't really mentioned again and it didn't matter.

On a scale of 1 - 5 (5 being a lot of examples/instances):

Religion: 0

Gruesome: 1

Suspense: 1

Morality: 2

Traditional: 2

Sex - Ch. 3: Lawyer cautions Riley she might find evidence of porn on her father's computer.

Religion - I don't recall any references to church, neither positive nor negative.

Gruesome - There are few details, if any, but part of the plot involves a murder by gunshot and another part involves the idea of suicide.

Suspense - On pg. 259 we are thrown a surprise / distractor but by pg. 261 is is set right and resolved. Then a second reveal follows quickly with no build up. Finally Riley follows a lead on pg. 267 and meets with a two-week delay, which also turns out to be nothing. There are a couple of other situations which a reader does want to see resolved and they do get resolved quickly and satisfactorily.

Morality - Many people aid in the harboring or escape of a fugitive because they think she's a good person.

Traditional - one girl, who didn't realize she was a lesbian, begins a relationship with a female

This novel had one of the most compassionate descriptions of suicidal thoughts I've ever heard, "Sometimes when a person is very, very unhappy, they forget that they'll someday feel better and they just want to end the unhappiness."

This novel also had one of the most hokey car accidents I've ever read. At the end of Ch. 56 the driver sees a flash of a deer and jerks the wheel to the right, launching the car into the air. As someone who lives in a rural area and sees deer run across the road on a frequent basis, I think a more common reaction is to hit the brakes. And if a jerk to the right launched the car airborne, it seems like it would have to be on the edge of a cliff but on Google maps the route from New Bern to Goldsboro doesn't look that treacherous.

Discussion Questions

Who did you think the woman on the bank was in the Prologue (1990)?

Could your parents have had a career you didn't know about? (Ch. 3)

It was suggested to Riley that she was adopted. Even with her dark hair and lack of musical ability it seemed far-fetched to her. Did you ever wonder if you were adopted?

Did Riley become a counselor because of her family? When she was going through photos she told Lisa she was helping kids now. How did your family shape your career selection?

Riley didn't like Jeannie Lyons and thought she was pushy. Did you? (Ch. 7-8)

Do you have trouble hanging out with your siblings? (Ch. 8)

What did you think Jeannie had in the box she carried out of Frank's room? (Ch. 11)

Did you like Riley's or Lisa/Jade's story better?

Did you think Jade should've trusted Ingrid and rented the cottage from her?

At the end of Ch. 38 Riley left a voice mail for Suzanne to not record the deed. Was that a smart move? Did it work?

At the end of Ch. 39 Jade receives a lot of unconditional support from Grady and Charlie. Was it logical? Well-placed?

In Ch. 41 was it wise for Riley to contact Sondra, the widow? Would you have?

The truth about Riley's parentage is finally revealed in Ch. 45. Were you surprised?

Did you wonder about the statute of limitations for Lisa's crime? Or if it mattered that she was a minor when the crime was committed? If you had been on a jury, would you have found her guilty? On what charges?

Riley puts a lot of faith in Danny, even though she abandons him to live with someone he doesn't approve of (trying to avoid spoilers). Will Danny keep her secret or will he feel more betrayed and retaliate?

Theme Ideas

Serve shrimp , fries and bottled beer like Riley ate with Danny. (Ch. 4)

Serve lobster bisque and fish tacos like when Riley had lunch with Jeannie. (Ch. 6)

CDs Riley found in her dad's RV (Ch. 9):

Alison Krauss

Ricky Skaggs

Classical violin music

Bach or Mendelssohn (Ch. 21)

Indigo Girls

Robin Flower (Amazon has no Robin Flower music so I'm unsure if she was a real singer in the novel. All other music references were real. Maybe it was an inside reference. Or maybe it's this lady.)

" Roll in my Sweet Baby's Arms "

Battzini - Dance of the Goblins

The Beatles

When Jade jammed with Celia's family (Ch. 33):

Play Celtic Scottish Bluegrass like Jasha Trace was described in Ch. 47 (pg. 271)

Play Bonnie Raitt , Jade and Celia's idol (Ch. 52)

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The Silent Sister: A Novel Mass Market Paperback – June 26, 2018

“Powerful…a page-turner to the very end.”― Library Journal In a new novel from the bestselling author, a woman discovers that the sister she believed to be dead is alive, with a dark secret. Riley MacPherson has spent her entire life believing that her older sister, Lisa, committed suicide as a teenager. It was a belief that helped shape her own childhood and that of her brother. It shaped her view of her family and its dynamics. Losing Lisa influenced her entire life. Now, more than years later, Riley’s father has passed away and she’s in New Bern, North Carolina, cleaning out his house when she finds evidence that what she has always believed is not the truth. Lisa is alive. Alive and living under a new identity. But why, exactly, was she on the run all those years ago? What secrets are being kept now, and what will happen if they are revealed? Soon Riley must decide what the past means for her present, and what she will do with her newfound reality. As she works to uncover the truth, her discoveries will put into question everything she thought she knew about her family―and herself. Told with Diane Chamberlain's powerful prose and illumination into the human heart and soul, The Silent Sister is an evocative novel of love, loss, and the bonds among siblings. “Enthralling and gripping.”― Book Reporter

• Book 1 of 1 The Silent Sister
• Print length 464 pages
• Language English
• Publisher St. Martin's Paperbacks
• Publication date June 26, 2018
• Dimensions 4.14 x 1.28 x 7.49 inches
• ISBN-10 1250130654
• ISBN-13 978-1250130655
• See all details

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Editorial Reviews

Praise for The Silent Sister: “ The Silent Sister is a powerful and thrilling novel . This tautly paced and emotionally driven novel will engross Chamberlain's many fans as well as those who read Sandra Brown and Carla Buckley.” ― Booklist “ Hard to put down. ” ― Better Homes and Gardens “A compulsively readable melodrama.” ― Kirkus Reviews “Chamberlain's powerful story is a page-turner to the very end. A must for all mystery lovers and those who like reading about family struggles.” ― Library Journal “…the readers of this tale will be surprised and shocked by the unveiling of a truth that they will never guess up front. Chamberlain has written an excellent novel with well-thought-out plotlines that never lose the suspense lover's interest for one solitary second.” ― Suspense Magazine

About the Author

Product details.

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ St. Martin's Paperbacks (June 26, 2018)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Mass Market Paperback ‏ : ‎ 464 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1250130654
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1250130655
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.9 ounces
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.14 x 1.28 x 7.49 inches
• #5,182 in Sisters Fiction
• #17,766 in Women's Domestic Life Fiction
• #38,194 in Women Sleuths (Books)

About the author

Diane chamberlain.

Diane Chamberlain is the New York Times, USA Today and (London) Sunday Times best-selling author of 27 novels. The daughter of a school principal who supplied her with a new book almost daily, Diane quickly learned the emotional power of story. Although she wrote many small “books” as a child, she didn’t seriously turn to writing fiction until her early thirties when she was waiting for a delayed doctor’s appointment with nothing more than a pad, a pen, and an idea. She was instantly hooked.

Diane was born and raised in Plainfield, New Jersey and lived for many years in both San Diego and northern Virginia. She received her master’s degree in clinical social work from San Diego State University. Prior to her writing career, she was a hospital social worker in both San Diego and Washington, D.C, and a psychotherapist in private practice in Alexandria, Virginia, working primarily with adolescents.

More than two decades ago, Diane was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, which changed the way she works: She wrote two novels using voice recognition software before new medication allowed her to get back to typing. She feels fortunate that her arthritis is not more severe and that she’s able to enjoy everyday activities as well as keep up with a busy travel schedule.

Diane lives in North Carolina with her significant other, photographer John Pagliuca, and their odd but lovable Shetland Sheepdog, Cole.

Please visit Diane's website at www.dianechamberlain.com for her event schedule and for more information on her newest novel, Big Lies in a Small Town, as well as a complete list of her books.

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