An intriguing novel of family secrets and betrayals.
Not all monsters are under the bed.
Jessica, after a failed suicide attempt is referred to a psychiatrist.
At first she is reluctant to reveal the truth behind her fears, but the secrets emerge over several sessions.
Pregnant and vulnerable, she feels she has no-one to turn to. Why is her mother so upset? Is it just
because she will be an unmarried mother, or is there more to it than that?
Jessica soon discovers that she isn't the only one with secrets and some of them should have remained buried...
Out now from Wasteland Press
Excerpt
"Oh, there were complications all right, but they had nothing at all to do with being pregnant."
Professional Reviews
GRABS YOU BY THE THROAT
SILENT SCREAMS
By Annette Gisby
Annette Gisby has created a masterful thriller with her novel, SILENT SCREAMS.
It grabs you by the throat from the very first page and does not let you go until the last page is turned.
Jessica is a troubled young girl whose life is full of secrets, dark secrets that she can’t tell.
She believes she would be better off dead than living in the hell in which she finds herself. She slashes her wrists.
'Someone was calling her, calling her back from the darkness, the emptiness. The voice was faint but getting stronger. She struggled to open her eyes, but they rebelled against the bright lights. Was this heaven, then?’
He is stalking her. He says she has been a naughty girl; naughty girls have to be punished.
‘Footsteps. Footsteps on the stairs. She heard the last stair creaking. Any minute now. She jumped from the bed and dived underneath it. It was useless to hide, she knew he would find her. As her bedroom door opened, she held her breath and peeked out. First she saw the shiny black shoes and the bottoms of black trousers.
She had always wondered about the black. She had always assumed that the devil would wear red.’
If only Jessica could tell the secrets. But who would believe her?
'She tried to scream, but no sound escaped from her locked throat. Her screams, as always, were silent.’
SILENT SCREAMS is Annette Gisby’s first full-length novel but I am sure it won’t be her last. If you like thrillers, then this is one you don’t want to miss. It is powerful.
Reviewed by
Kristie Leigh Maguire
Author of Desert Heat, Emails from the
Edge and co-author of No Lady and Her Tramp.
http://clik.to/Kristie
AN INTRIGUING INSIGHT
REVIEW by Dehanna Bailee, author of the paranormal romance True Nature.
Hidden deep within the layers of family dishonesty and silence, we find Jessica, the victim of a cruel and inhumane act.
This depraved incident will forever change this eight-year olds life, keeping her silent, only to suffer within her own emotions for many years to come.
It takes only her desperate cry for help to begin the chain of events that slowly unravel, revealing to all, the years of cover-ups, deceit, and hidden loathing, which had controlled every aspect of her life.
By the end of the book, we thankfully find that Jessica finds not only her voice, but the inner strength of a grown woman, a survivor, to face her own reality and change her life forever.
Silent Screams offers the reader an intriguing insight into the silence held by most families, unwilling to face the truth of what is hiding beneath the façade of the human emotions. It will challenge the reader with a spectrum of intelligent well-written characters, and a full range of emotional depth.
I personally enjoyed reading Silent Screams by Annette Gisby, and would recommend others to read this book as well.
ROARS FOR SILENT SCREAMS
Abuse...rape...attempted suicide. The mere mention of these words are enough to make a decent person cringe.
In Annette Gisby's powerful novel Silent Screams, the themes present do more than make the reader cringe.
The story of young Jessica incites anger, sadness and disgust. It is not a new story, but Ms. Gisby tells this tale in such a way that it is easy to fall under its spell. The message that Silent Screams conveys brings support and hope to any female who has dealt with such horrible circumstances as the young protagonist.
The reader feels for her. Silent Screams is everything a well written book should be.
About the Reviewer
Mary Gibbs is a published author and owner of two online writing groups. She provides services for writers through her company, Gibbs Ink and enjoys competitive fencing in her spare time. Visit Mary at http://www.marygibbs.com
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Reviews for "Silent Screams"
Reviewed by Nina Osier
12/19/2002
Kept me up until I finished it, halfway through the night. Annette Gisby "gets it right," in spades, as she leads her readers through the convoluted functioning of a family devoted to keeping the truth under wraps - at any cost. I found the ending, with its typically Gisby ironic twist, an especially realistic touch. It is not a comfortable read, because of the horrific subject matter; but it is a compelling one.
My only negative comment (and I'm not sure "negative" is the right word for it) must be that most real-life women in Jessica's position don't come out on the other side as she does, because most never realize what surviving at all proves about their inner strength. To say more would be to spoil prospective readers...and that's the last thing I want to do.
It's a keeper!
Reviewed by Kathleen Walls
2/1/2002
Silent Screams opens up a subject too often kept hidden, incest. The young heroine, Jessica, struggles with her feeling of shame and guilt alone. Her ineffectual father cannot help her and her abusive mother won't. Jessica is forced to use only her own inner resources to emerge a strong self-reliant young woman. But the past still haunts her into adulthood.
Ms. Gisby has created a heroine that you will want to cherish and never forget. Obviously, she has done her homework about the effects of this all too often silent crime. Jessica suffers from guilt and shame for acts over which she had no control. The trusted relative would have gotten away with his persecution except for the strong will of his young victim.
The lies are piled in layers and the plot has more twists and turns than a corkscrew. Fans of V. C. Andrews will rejoice in the style. Any reader with a heart will want to cherish and protect young Jessica. Few will be able to put down this mesmerizing book.
Reviewed by Kathleen Walls (www.katywalls.com), author of Last Step, a novel of romance and murder and the war on drugs, and Georgia's Ghostly Getaways, a travelogue of Georgia's most interesting haunted sites. It will be released soon by Southern Charm Press.
Silent Screams is one of those thrillers that pulls you in by your emotions,
then leads you on a path so scary that you want to close your eyes, yet can't
because you have to keep reading! Annette Gisby has created a sympathetic
character in Jessica Miller, who, due to misplaced guilt and outright fear, has
allowed herself to become a victim in all areas of her life. It was heart wrenching
to witness the unkindness she endured at the hands of others, though in the end it
seemed that they all did their part (however unknowing) in helping her find her
inner strength. Silent Screams is a story of survival, and I enjoyed reading it.
