Silent Cries: A Woman's Journey to Freedom

by Lisa J. Peck

Silent A Woman’s Journey to Freedom delves into the painful and often secret world of domestic violence. Like many real women, Charlene comes to realize her cherished marriage isn’t what it seems. With bravery and the help of steadfast friends she endures the twisted and confusing games of her abusive relationship and navigates maze of laws that both help and hinder her struggle to break free. But getting out is only half the battle. As Charlene moves toward independence, she’ll have to cope with the crazy singles’ world, an ex who won’t let go, and the specter of her past, which threatens to undermine everything she’s worked for.

330 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2007

Reviews

[Beth Lechman · Rating 4 out of 5]

An in depth look at domestic abuse and the effects it has on the abused as well as the family. Unless you have been a victim it is hard to imagine the abuser having two faces. The ones they show the world and the one that the abused sees.

[Rhonda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm only halfway through, what a read. This is a huge trigger for me as a survivor of DV. So many do not understand why victims stay as long as they do, read Charlene's story and hopefully you will have a better understanding. Definitely a book to keep.

[Karen Terry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Silent Cries by Lisa J. Peck. I really like this book because it makes you understand what abused women and men go through to get to feel human again. Charlene thought she had the perfect marriage with Brad but she was wrong. Brad abused her both physically and mentally almost all the time. Brad said he loved her but it wasn't love it was pain, They had 5 kids which Brad assume he knew how to raise the kids better than Charlene. One night he tells her to go see a therapist because she needed to be fixed because he couldn't. That was the best advice he gave her. The therapist helped her see that she had been abused as a child and as a wife. She had a friend named Judy that she would emailed and talked without her husband's knowledge that helped a lot too. Charlene went to school at her husbands suggestion even though he didn't mean it. She decided that she wanted to be a therapist and she took a class about abused that helped too. Charlene found the strength to leave Brad. Brad would try to guilt her into coming back or threaten to take the kids. He was like a stalker husband. She was shun by church because she left Brad because they felt he was a good person. She buys a house for her and her kids and changed her life. She began to go to single events and she loved to dance. She met a lot of men and she found what she had missed in her life after the isolation of being with Brad. She met a man named Dave who treated her with respect. Dave had his flaws too. HE made a comment that maybe she was the reason that Bard abused her because she wouldn't speak to her father who also abused her. Thy broke up . She still had feelings for him. She made a friend online named Shane and she thought was the one. This book was a wonderful read to understand about a woman who began to fly and found herself.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this book
This is a very realistic story of Charlene, the narrator, who is in a scary abusive marriage.
My attention was engaged throughout this emotional book as Charlene tells her story.
Despite the danger Charlene is able to research what steps are needed to free herself from domestic violence and ensure that she keeps her children safe. Sometimes the laws don't seem to be in her favor, but she is a strong independent woman who eventually learns there are people who can help and support her on the way to a new life. Also interesting is the information we learn about online dating and how a maturing woman can form new relationships while raising her family and finding a career.
Though a tough topic to deal with, Silent Cries is an enlightening and even enjoyable book.

[Crystal DeBoard · Rating 3 out of 5]

**Includes Spoilers**

Silent Cries is exactly what the title says it is. It is a very faith-based story of a woman's journey leaving an abusive husband. This book was decent, and I am thankful to the author for giving me the opportunity to read it.

Charlene leaves her abusive husband of ten years, and it tells of the abuse and her struggles making the transition. I was just unable to connect with the main character very well, and honestly, she down right annoyed me at time despite the respect for her strength to leave and the compassion I had for her situation.

I felt like the book went on a little longer than it needed to, especially with some of the long-winded emails.
At the end she marries a man that had thrown up so many red flags and treated her like crap halfway through the book, but it was okay because he had changed, this bugged me tremendously.

[Lisa Cobb Sabatini · Rating 4 out of 5]

Readers experience the confusion, indecisiveness, guilt, determination, and, finally, the sense of freedom that victims of domestic abuse endure in Silent Cries: A Woman's Journey to Freedom by Lisa J. Peck. Written by a woman who survived abuse herself, this work of fiction follows one woman as she slowly gathers her strength to face the truth of her relationship and then navigate the legal process and the societal reactions as she divorces. The book also focuses on the adjustments the protagonist needed to make, especially as she starts dating again, and the important soul searching she needs to do to understand herself and to build healthy relationships with all the people in her life.

[Ron Frampton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book on domestic violence. A story of when a women realizes her marriage is not what it seems.