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Georgian #2
Silent Melody
From the legendary New York Times bestselling author of Heartless comes an exquisite Georgian romance of a transcendent love, “without doubt, one of the most romantic novels ever written.”*
Lady Emily Marlowe is beautiful, independent, and unspoiled. Deaf since childhood, she appreciates her family’s efforts to nurture her spirit, but the man they’ve chosen for her betrothal can never fulfill her. The only one Emily has ever desired is bold and reckless Lord Ashley Kendrick. Her childhood amour inspired her fantasies and vowed never to forget her—even as he left her for a new life in India and a new love.
Seven years and countless dreams later, Ashley has returned a desolate widower to Bowden Abbey and, true to his promise, to Emily. Yet his heedless proposal of marriage has left her unexpectedly conflicted. Though the heat of passion still burns, Emily fears that it’s only a sense of duty—not love—that has brought him to bended knee. And what is she to make of those seven lost years clouded in secrets too dark for Ashley to share?
For Emily, her greatest and only love now becomes one worth fighting for, one of startling revelations and second chances, and one, like a melody, too beautiful for words....
Lady Emily Marlowe is beautiful, independent, and unspoiled. Deaf since childhood, she appreciates her family’s efforts to nurture her spirit, but the man they’ve chosen for her betrothal can never fulfill her. The only one Emily has ever desired is bold and reckless Lord Ashley Kendrick. Her childhood amour inspired her fantasies and vowed never to forget her—even as he left her for a new life in India and a new love.
Seven years and countless dreams later, Ashley has returned a desolate widower to Bowden Abbey and, true to his promise, to Emily. Yet his heedless proposal of marriage has left her unexpectedly conflicted. Though the heat of passion still burns, Emily fears that it’s only a sense of duty—not love—that has brought him to bended knee. And what is she to make of those seven lost years clouded in secrets too dark for Ashley to share?
For Emily, her greatest and only love now becomes one worth fighting for, one of startling revelations and second chances, and one, like a melody, too beautiful for words....
400 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 1, 1997
513 people are currently reading
1890 people want to read
About the author
Mary Balogh
200 books6,337 followersMary Jenkins was born in 1944 in Swansea, Wales, UK. After graduating from university, moved to Saskatchewan, Canada, to teach high school English, on a two-year teaching contract in 1967. She married her Canadian husband, Robert Balogh, and had three children, Jacqueline, Christopher and Sian. When she's not writing, she enjoys reading, music and knitting. She also enjoys watching tennis and curling.
Mary Balogh started writing in the evenings as a hobby. Her first book, a Regency love story, was published in 1985 as A Masked Deception under her married name. In 1988, she retired from teaching after 20 years to pursue her dream to write full-time. She has written more than seventy novels and almost thirty novellas since then, including the New York Times bestselling 'Slightly' sextet and 'Simply' quartet. She has won numerous awards, including Bestselling Historical of the Year from the Borders Group, and her novel Simply Magic was a finalist in the Quill Awards. She has won seven Waldenbooks Awards and two B. Dalton Awards for her bestselling novels, as well as a Romantic Times Lifetime Achievement Award.
Mary Balogh started writing in the evenings as a hobby. Her first book, a Regency love story, was published in 1985 as A Masked Deception under her married name. In 1988, she retired from teaching after 20 years to pursue her dream to write full-time. She has written more than seventy novels and almost thirty novellas since then, including the New York Times bestselling 'Slightly' sextet and 'Simply' quartet. She has won numerous awards, including Bestselling Historical of the Year from the Borders Group, and her novel Simply Magic was a finalist in the Quill Awards. She has won seven Waldenbooks Awards and two B. Dalton Awards for her bestselling novels, as well as a Romantic Times Lifetime Achievement Award.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 411 reviews
November 21, 2017
This was such a huge disappointment. In Heartless, the relationship between honorable and tender Ashley and the fey, deaf/mute Emma was so sweet and had so much promise. I was really looking forward to their story as I am sucker for the hunky hero who wants to protect the heroine at all costs. Mary Balogh must have a personal grudge with these two as she betrays their characters and relationship from the first book.
There are major spoilers below.
Zounds is used 22 times.
I felt like MB did aa George Lucas and she forgot what these two characters were like in the first book, or she wanted to torture the bejeezus out of them and the reader.
Balogh lost an opportunity to create a rare romance between two sweet souls that belonged together. She has the writing expertise to do it, but ick, just not here.
There are major spoilers below.
Zounds is used 22 times.
I felt like MB did aa George Lucas and she forgot what these two characters were like in the first book, or she wanted to torture the bejeezus out of them and the reader.
Balogh lost an opportunity to create a rare romance between two sweet souls that belonged together. She has the writing expertise to do it, but ick, just not here.
December 14, 2018
Reseña completa: https://masromance.blogspot.com/2018/...
Opinión impopular y con el corazón en sangre porque tengo muchas ganas de que sigan apostando por las autoras de siempre y Mary Balogh es una de las damas de la romántica y una de mis autoras favoritas e imprescindibles. Pero toda autora pincha, y para mí, esta serie no es de sus mejores.
No entiendo, en serio, cuando una editorial decide seguir con una autora por qué no lo hace con sus últimas publicaciones porque (y esto creo que es de lógica) cualquier autora evoluciona y mejora; y si te decantas por una publicación muy anterior a todo lo que se ha leído de ella pues creo que es normal que pueda no estar a la altura.
Para mí estamos ante una novela sin hilo y muy desigual.
La pareja promete mucho, pero a mí me ha dejado muy fría y con una primera parte demasiado larga, lenta y sosa. Lo que importa tarda en llegar y lo único memorable son las últimas 80 páginas cuando la novela da un giro que pese a que resulta todo muy previsible, al menos añade un poco de acción.
Emily es una muy buena protagonista, constante, pero la forma en la que la autora soluciona el problema que tiene de ella no me ha gustado. Demasiado fácil… Me viene a la memoria La canción de Annie, una joyita con una protagonista muy similar pero que crece con la novela. Para mí Emily se ha quedado a medias.
Ashley, lo siento, pero no me ha gustado nada. Si pretende dar pena, no lo ha conseguido. Su comportamiento con Emily es malo, y deja mucho que desear, y al final.
Una historia que podría haber sido muy bonita pero que no me ha gustado nada en una novela que me ha sorprendido con una estructura muy desigual.
Opinión impopular y con el corazón en sangre porque tengo muchas ganas de que sigan apostando por las autoras de siempre y Mary Balogh es una de las damas de la romántica y una de mis autoras favoritas e imprescindibles. Pero toda autora pincha, y para mí, esta serie no es de sus mejores.
No entiendo, en serio, cuando una editorial decide seguir con una autora por qué no lo hace con sus últimas publicaciones porque (y esto creo que es de lógica) cualquier autora evoluciona y mejora; y si te decantas por una publicación muy anterior a todo lo que se ha leído de ella pues creo que es normal que pueda no estar a la altura.
Para mí estamos ante una novela sin hilo y muy desigual.
La pareja promete mucho, pero a mí me ha dejado muy fría y con una primera parte demasiado larga, lenta y sosa. Lo que importa tarda en llegar y lo único memorable son las últimas 80 páginas cuando la novela da un giro que pese a que resulta todo muy previsible, al menos añade un poco de acción.
Emily es una muy buena protagonista, constante, pero la forma en la que la autora soluciona el problema que tiene de ella no me ha gustado. Demasiado fácil… Me viene a la memoria La canción de Annie, una joyita con una protagonista muy similar pero que crece con la novela. Para mí Emily se ha quedado a medias.
Ashley, lo siento, pero no me ha gustado nada. Si pretende dar pena, no lo ha conseguido. Su comportamiento con Emily es malo, y deja mucho que desear, y al final.
Una historia que podría haber sido muy bonita pero que no me ha gustado nada en una novela que me ha sorprendido con una estructura muy desigual.
March 3, 2019
Lately, I've spent a lot of time thinking about romance. I feel like such a goober writing romance, but then a discussion with friends alerted me to the fact that while I know what I don't like in romance subplots, I had a much less clear picture of what I do like. And so for the last couple of weeks I've been thinking about this, trying to pick up some tools I might not yet have in my toolbox, taking copious notes, and trying to pick up tips from others.
As part of that I decided I'd take in a couple of Actual Romance Novels. I've hitherto avoided romance novels because of the sex scenes, but Mary Balogh is supposed to be a restrained compared to most, and...well, you can't churn out dozens of bestselling romance novels without getting really good at writing romance, can you?
After reading this one and DNFing another, I've come to the realisation that what I'm after is not in romance novels. Phew.
First of all, if you're not someone who normally reads romance novels, don't start because Suzannah Rowntree logged one on Goodreads so it must be OK. This book wasn't good for me, it wasn't "clean", and I'm afraid I can't recommend it as a work of art either (for one thing, I found the narration style very choppy and repetitive). It had a mute heroine, and I do have some notes now on how that relationship was handled. In some ways well; in other ways, not. There must be a way to write a relationship between a fully functioning human being and a disabled person that doesn't come across as cringeworthily creepy, but this was not it. The relationships in romance novels seem to run on lusty desires, and in both this book and the one I DNF'd, it was horribly disturbing reading about a healthy person desiring, in a very objectifying way, a person who was handicapped and in a much weaker position.
One thing this exercise DID drive home to me was the difference between romantic tension and sexual tension. Couples like Benedick and Beatrice, Lizzie and Darcy, and Margaret Hale and Mr Thornton burn up the page with romantic tension, the well-they-won't-they that revolves around intellectual, spiritual, and emotional fulfillment. Sexual fulfillment isn't necessarily out of the picture, but in these books, the sexual fulfillment was the picture, with a little bit of those other things peeking in around the corner, often in a truncated and perfunctory way. To some extent in this book, and to an even greater extent in the other one that I DNF'd, the sexual tension was used to drive the characters into each other's arms with very little reference to their needs, personhood, or future. I would say that this is the very definition of objectification - making use of someone without reference to their totality as a human being. And it's the engine that seems to drive the romance novels I dipped into last week.
These authors are good at evoking sexual tension. But romantic tension is something a great deal more nuanced, and it takes a much more full-orbed and self-denying view of the other person. And by and large, I don't think they're writing it.
Back to Austen and Shakespeare, then...
As part of that I decided I'd take in a couple of Actual Romance Novels. I've hitherto avoided romance novels because of the sex scenes, but Mary Balogh is supposed to be a restrained compared to most, and...well, you can't churn out dozens of bestselling romance novels without getting really good at writing romance, can you?
After reading this one and DNFing another, I've come to the realisation that what I'm after is not in romance novels. Phew.
First of all, if you're not someone who normally reads romance novels, don't start because Suzannah Rowntree logged one on Goodreads so it must be OK. This book wasn't good for me, it wasn't "clean", and I'm afraid I can't recommend it as a work of art either (for one thing, I found the narration style very choppy and repetitive). It had a mute heroine, and I do have some notes now on how that relationship was handled. In some ways well; in other ways, not. There must be a way to write a relationship between a fully functioning human being and a disabled person that doesn't come across as cringeworthily creepy, but this was not it. The relationships in romance novels seem to run on lusty desires, and in both this book and the one I DNF'd, it was horribly disturbing reading about a healthy person desiring, in a very objectifying way, a person who was handicapped and in a much weaker position.
One thing this exercise DID drive home to me was the difference between romantic tension and sexual tension. Couples like Benedick and Beatrice, Lizzie and Darcy, and Margaret Hale and Mr Thornton burn up the page with romantic tension, the well-they-won't-they that revolves around intellectual, spiritual, and emotional fulfillment. Sexual fulfillment isn't necessarily out of the picture, but in these books, the sexual fulfillment was the picture, with a little bit of those other things peeking in around the corner, often in a truncated and perfunctory way. To some extent in this book, and to an even greater extent in the other one that I DNF'd, the sexual tension was used to drive the characters into each other's arms with very little reference to their needs, personhood, or future. I would say that this is the very definition of objectification - making use of someone without reference to their totality as a human being. And it's the engine that seems to drive the romance novels I dipped into last week.
These authors are good at evoking sexual tension. But romantic tension is something a great deal more nuanced, and it takes a much more full-orbed and self-denying view of the other person. And by and large, I don't think they're writing it.
Back to Austen and Shakespeare, then...
July 11, 2022
Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot/Storyline: 📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑 (varied – maybe between 2-3? I have a harder time judging these on audio, sorry)
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥🔥 (variables at play here, some were vague and I didn’t count them, but there’s various open door scenes so it may feel hotter to you)
Humor: A bit but it’s generally a heavier story
Perspective: Third person from both hero and heroine
(These are all personal preference on a scale of 1-5 (yours ratings may vary depending what gives you feels and how you prefer you sex scenes written, etc) except the Steam Scale which follows our chart from The Ton and Tartans Book Club )
Should I read in order?
You could – this book picks up directly at the end of book 1, Heartless, and both characters are in that book. Though I think you’ll be okay if you jump in here. I did enjoy Heartless more though so I suggest you give it a try!
Basic plot:
Emily has always loved Ashley. She’s utterly heartbroken when he leaves for India and doesn’t return for 7 years. But he does come back, on the eve of her engagement to another man.
Give this a try if you want:
- Mid-Georgian time period (1763)
- Diversity featured – heroine is hard of hearing. She is described as a deaf-mute, though I want to get away from that term. She can communicate, she reads lips, she has learned to read and write.
- Low to mid steam – there are a number of scenes, but they are on vague side
- A bit of friends to lovers feel – the hero and heroine were friends (heroine was a child (15 years) and it was not sexual) before he left for India
- Unrequited love feel – heroine has always loved the hero
- A mix of danger, touch of mystery, and relationship
Ages:
- Heroine is 22, I didn’t catch the hero’s age, but he is a grown man 7 years prior to the start of the story and he goes to India, I want to say he’s near 30?
My thoughts:
I have been putting off this review forever. I just didn’t get into this one much at all. I was rather excited for their story, because Heartless (book 1) had a lot I did like about it, and I enjoyed Emmy and Ashley in that book and their strong friendship and connection.
My annoyance started with how Ashley just “forgot” about Emmy. Like...how? How do you just forget about your deaf sister in law that you had such a special connection with? That you were determined to educate yourself on how to help her upon your return? Just completely absurd.
Someone mentioned maybe this was to show he wasn’t thinking about her sexually when she was underage and then when he came back and she was older he could see her in a new light. But if so, I think it could have switched gears without him forgetting she ever existed, which is just strange.
And then fairly soon, their relationship takes on this kind of “I need you for comfort” manta and Emmy was happy to allow him to use her for comfort repeatedly and honestly the whole thing just felt awkward and was not something I was enjoying.
I tend to not get into super villain-y plots and there was kind of a lot of drama going on here that took away from their relationship as a couple for me. I think this couple had enough to go on within their relationship to have some great push and pull – the separation of 7 years, getting to know each other after the changes that have occurred within them in the last 7 years, and them connecting with her deafness and it really didn’t need all this non stop crazy drama happening.
So, I got bored, and annoyed, and grumpy, and never really liked the book. The sex didn’t feel emotional, it felt more like Ashley was using Emmy to me to make himself feel better, to ‘heal’ himself. So many seemed to dismiss Emmy, even her sister, though I think she loves her, I never got the feeling that she truly knows her or understands her. And the fact that Emmy of course could never talk, everyone knew, her family, etc, that she would never talk until the magic penis came along.
I don’t think this is a bad book – I think it’s probably an emotional and tender love story for many so I do hope anyone that is interested will give it a try. This one just wasn’t for me.
Content warnings:
Locations of kisses/intimate scenes:
Plot/Storyline: 📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑 (varied – maybe between 2-3? I have a harder time judging these on audio, sorry)
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥🔥 (variables at play here, some were vague and I didn’t count them, but there’s various open door scenes so it may feel hotter to you)
Humor: A bit but it’s generally a heavier story
Perspective: Third person from both hero and heroine
(These are all personal preference on a scale of 1-5 (yours ratings may vary depending what gives you feels and how you prefer you sex scenes written, etc) except the Steam Scale which follows our chart from The Ton and Tartans Book Club )
Should I read in order?
You could – this book picks up directly at the end of book 1, Heartless, and both characters are in that book. Though I think you’ll be okay if you jump in here. I did enjoy Heartless more though so I suggest you give it a try!
Basic plot:
Emily has always loved Ashley. She’s utterly heartbroken when he leaves for India and doesn’t return for 7 years. But he does come back, on the eve of her engagement to another man.
Give this a try if you want:
- Mid-Georgian time period (1763)
- Diversity featured – heroine is hard of hearing. She is described as a deaf-mute, though I want to get away from that term. She can communicate, she reads lips, she has learned to read and write.
- Low to mid steam – there are a number of scenes, but they are on vague side
- A bit of friends to lovers feel – the hero and heroine were friends (heroine was a child (15 years) and it was not sexual) before he left for India
- Unrequited love feel – heroine has always loved the hero
- A mix of danger, touch of mystery, and relationship
Ages:
- Heroine is 22, I didn’t catch the hero’s age, but he is a grown man 7 years prior to the start of the story and he goes to India, I want to say he’s near 30?
My thoughts:
I have been putting off this review forever. I just didn’t get into this one much at all. I was rather excited for their story, because Heartless (book 1) had a lot I did like about it, and I enjoyed Emmy and Ashley in that book and their strong friendship and connection.
My annoyance started with how Ashley just “forgot” about Emmy. Like...how? How do you just forget about your deaf sister in law that you had such a special connection with? That you were determined to educate yourself on how to help her upon your return? Just completely absurd.
Someone mentioned maybe this was to show he wasn’t thinking about her sexually when she was underage and then when he came back and she was older he could see her in a new light. But if so, I think it could have switched gears without him forgetting she ever existed, which is just strange.
And then fairly soon, their relationship takes on this kind of “I need you for comfort” manta and Emmy was happy to allow him to use her for comfort repeatedly and honestly the whole thing just felt awkward and was not something I was enjoying.
I tend to not get into super villain-y plots and there was kind of a lot of drama going on here that took away from their relationship as a couple for me. I think this couple had enough to go on within their relationship to have some great push and pull – the separation of 7 years, getting to know each other after the changes that have occurred within them in the last 7 years, and them connecting with her deafness and it really didn’t need all this non stop crazy drama happening.
So, I got bored, and annoyed, and grumpy, and never really liked the book. The sex didn’t feel emotional, it felt more like Ashley was using Emmy to me to make himself feel better, to ‘heal’ himself. So many seemed to dismiss Emmy, even her sister, though I think she loves her, I never got the feeling that she truly knows her or understands her. And the fact that Emmy of course could never talk, everyone knew, her family, etc, that she would never talk until the magic penis came along.
I don’t think this is a bad book – I think it’s probably an emotional and tender love story for many so I do hope anyone that is interested will give it a try. This one just wasn’t for me.
Content warnings:
Locations of kisses/intimate scenes:
March 14, 2009
Quite often, in a romance novel, one of the main couple will get married and then return. This provides a lot of conflict, which is nice, and then something has to happen to remove the wife or husband that is in the way. Usually gives you lots of delicious angst to work with.
So in this book, the Hero Ashley leaves the Heroine Emily, when she is a young girl in love with him and goes to India. He gets married, has a kid, and comes back.
Oh, but of course, the wife and child are dead. A usual conceit to provide the needed angst. Oh but of course the wife never truly loved him and his love for her died quickly. Another usual conceit, but to have them both??? BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE!
He only had sex with his wife ONCE! She wasn't a virgin when they married! And the kid's not his! And his wife is still majorly in love with someone from her childhood! BTW that love was her BROTHER! Who she had incestuous sex with! And then murdered! And she married Ashley because they vaguely look alike! And she cheated on him constantly!
Could she have been any more of a one dimensional villain character? OF COURSE he falls for sweet Emily who is desperately in love with him!
I had many more problems with the book, including the depiction of Emmy, Ashley's desire to have Emily be the girl he wants her to be instead of the girl she is (only slightly resolved), and the DRAMATICS that seemed unnecessary to me.
So in this book, the Hero Ashley leaves the Heroine Emily, when she is a young girl in love with him and goes to India. He gets married, has a kid, and comes back.
Oh, but of course, the wife and child are dead. A usual conceit to provide the needed angst. Oh but of course the wife never truly loved him and his love for her died quickly. Another usual conceit, but to have them both??? BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE!
He only had sex with his wife ONCE! She wasn't a virgin when they married! And the kid's not his! And his wife is still majorly in love with someone from her childhood! BTW that love was her BROTHER! Who she had incestuous sex with! And then murdered! And she married Ashley because they vaguely look alike! And she cheated on him constantly!
Could she have been any more of a one dimensional villain character? OF COURSE he falls for sweet Emily who is desperately in love with him!
I had many more problems with the book, including the depiction of Emmy, Ashley's desire to have Emily be the girl he wants her to be instead of the girl she is (only slightly resolved), and the DRAMATICS that seemed unnecessary to me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 24, 2019
What a disappointment!
Anyone who reads Luke and Anna’s book would want to read Ashley and Emma’s story. As did I!
Sadly, there isn’t much meat to their story so the author feints this way and that before adding a suspense that only made me mad and frustrated for several reasons.
Half the problem I felt is the indecision on how to project Emma. There are times when she’s this fey person best at communion with nature, and then she’s reigning London. She’s actually a smart, canny girl and being disabled in one sense doesn’t impact it one way or the other. Of course, a deaf mute person has more hurdles to overcome. But nothing excuses putting herself in danger and not communicating when she can very well do it.
Anyone who reads Luke and Anna’s book would want to read Ashley and Emma’s story. As did I!
Sadly, there isn’t much meat to their story so the author feints this way and that before adding a suspense that only made me mad and frustrated for several reasons.
Half the problem I felt is the indecision on how to project Emma. There are times when she’s this fey person best at communion with nature, and then she’s reigning London. She’s actually a smart, canny girl and being disabled in one sense doesn’t impact it one way or the other. Of course, a deaf mute person has more hurdles to overcome. But nothing excuses putting herself in danger and not communicating when she can very well do it.
September 30, 2021
3.5 stars. A sequel to the wonderful Heartless, but sadly not as involving as Book 1. The main characters are already established from Book 1. There is Emmy, the young deaf woman with the beautiful and pensive soul, and Ashley, the sad and confused young man who has come back from his years in India as a haunted wreck.
I like all of the main characters, and I loved the revisits with some of the cast from Book 1. The plot is rather involved in this book however, and for me it remained muddy and confusing for way too long. I think readers needed a couple more hints as to what had really happened in Ashley's past. There are a few different characters involved in the back story, and for me the mystery started to drag out and feel frustrating rather than intriguing. Or maybe we needed to be transported to India for some scenes to witness some of the shenanigans over there rather than find out about it all secondhand.
I think the book was also missing enough romance between Ashley and Emmy. They clearly had a soul deep love for each other, but I wanted more romance and overt, loving moments between them to balance the angst. Overall it felt more like a mystery with a happy romantic ending rather than a full-on romance book (which is my preference LOL). So for me this one lacks the magic of Heartless. It was still a worthwhile read, however, and the final ending was quite moving.
I like all of the main characters, and I loved the revisits with some of the cast from Book 1. The plot is rather involved in this book however, and for me it remained muddy and confusing for way too long. I think readers needed a couple more hints as to what had really happened in Ashley's past. There are a few different characters involved in the back story, and for me the mystery started to drag out and feel frustrating rather than intriguing. Or maybe we needed to be transported to India for some scenes to witness some of the shenanigans over there rather than find out about it all secondhand.
I think the book was also missing enough romance between Ashley and Emmy. They clearly had a soul deep love for each other, but I wanted more romance and overt, loving moments between them to balance the angst. Overall it felt more like a mystery with a happy romantic ending rather than a full-on romance book (which is my preference LOL). So for me this one lacks the magic of Heartless. It was still a worthwhile read, however, and the final ending was quite moving.
December 3, 2018
4 Estrellas. Pese a las críticas en contra que he leído sobre este libro, lo he disfrutado y me ha gustado mucho. Puede que lo diga casi siempre, pero con Mary Balogh no soy imparcial, es mi preferida y adoro todo lo que escribe; aunque soy la primera que admite que ha tenido pinchazos en su bibliografía.
El gran problema puede que sea que no entendamos por qué la editorial decidió publicar ahora esta serie, después de más de veinte años desde su publicación original en inglés, puesto que el público lector ha cambiado de gustos en los últimos tiempos. Como sea, aplaudo porque le hayan dado una oportunidad de nuevo a Mary Balogh, pero si me gustaría que publicaran algo más actual próximamente.
“Melodía silenciosa” es un libro que llevo esperando seis meses, desde que leí “Sin Corazón”. Los tintes de romance juvenil se fraguaron en este primer libro. Conocimos a Ashley y Emily, como lectora me enamoré de ellos y me quedé con muchas ganas de su historia. Por aquel entonces el romance era imposible, Emily apenas era una niña y Ashley se fue a la India a labrarse un futuro.
Cuando empieza esta historia, han pasado siete años, Emily es ahora una mujer y Ashley ha vuelto de la India, cambiado, y más maduro, pero para Emily, es el mismo Ash que le robó el corazón cuando era una niña. Por el libro anterior, sabemos que Emily tiene una tara que le impide ser una persona normal, Emily es sorda desde su niñez, y tampoco aprendió a hablar, por tanto la comunicación con ésta dulce e inocente criatura es muy difícil. La suerte para Emily es haberse criado en una familia donde realmente la quieren y la apoyan, lo que es un consuelo, dado que en el siglo XVIII, una persona con una afección como la de Emily era considerada loca, y normalmente recluida en un manicomio.
Sí, Ashley ha vuelto de la India, pero en siete años pasan muchas cosas, entre ellas que Ashley pareció olvidarse de Emily, pues se casó con otra y tuvo un hijo con ella. Ashley trae con él algunos secretos amargos sobre lo que ocurrió en la India, referentes a su esposa, ahora parece un desconsolado viudo. ¿Cómo puede Emily volver a entrar en su corazón, cuando parece que nada podrá sacar al antiguo Ashley que ella conoció?
En este libro tendremos su historia, una historia que puede parecer algo amarga, pero que en el fondo, a mí se me ha hecho muy humana y creíble. Ashley es un hombre atormentado que se echa la culpa de lo sucedido, y no se ve lo suficientemente bueno o limpio para una criatura tan buena y dulce como Emily. En cuanto a Emily, es una joven discapacitada sí, pero es una mujer buena y dócil que ama profundamente a Ashley, pero que también sabe distinguir lo que está bien de lo que está mal, y como cualquier dama joven de su edad, quiere vivir su vida plenamente, y no anteponerse a lo que se espera de ella. Emily tiene mucho amor que ofrecer y está dispuesta a demostrárselo a Ashley, aunque tenga que hacer lo imposible.
En el fondo parece que su romance no debería ser muy difícil, pero en el libro ocurrirán otras cosas de trasfondo que determinarán las decisiones de los protagonistas. Entre ello el secreto que oculta Penshurst, la nueva casa de Ashley, heredada tras su matrimonio con Alice Kersey, así como los nuevos vecinos y amigos, que saben cosas que deberían callarse por el bien de todos. Entre todos estos embrollos se verán envueltos Ashley y Emily. Lo que debiera mantenerlos separados, hará que se unan más. Por supuesto, han sido estos secretos, y lo que se ocultaba sobre la esposa fallecida de Ashley lo que más me ha enganchado a la trama, aunque no en detrimento del romance, que admito me ha gustado bastante.
A pesar de todo, no es la mejor historia de Mary Balogh. Ella tiene libros mucho mejores, y esta serie no pasará a ser una de las mejores de su bibliografía, pero ambos libros me han entretenido y me han gustado mucho. De nuevo, agradezco que nos hayan traído a ésta autora, y ver que las editoriales confían de nuevo en el romance histórico de calidad. Espero que en un futuro no muy lejano, vuelvan a publicarnos algo nuevo de Mary Balogh.
El gran problema puede que sea que no entendamos por qué la editorial decidió publicar ahora esta serie, después de más de veinte años desde su publicación original en inglés, puesto que el público lector ha cambiado de gustos en los últimos tiempos. Como sea, aplaudo porque le hayan dado una oportunidad de nuevo a Mary Balogh, pero si me gustaría que publicaran algo más actual próximamente.
“Melodía silenciosa” es un libro que llevo esperando seis meses, desde que leí “Sin Corazón”. Los tintes de romance juvenil se fraguaron en este primer libro. Conocimos a Ashley y Emily, como lectora me enamoré de ellos y me quedé con muchas ganas de su historia. Por aquel entonces el romance era imposible, Emily apenas era una niña y Ashley se fue a la India a labrarse un futuro.
Cuando empieza esta historia, han pasado siete años, Emily es ahora una mujer y Ashley ha vuelto de la India, cambiado, y más maduro, pero para Emily, es el mismo Ash que le robó el corazón cuando era una niña. Por el libro anterior, sabemos que Emily tiene una tara que le impide ser una persona normal, Emily es sorda desde su niñez, y tampoco aprendió a hablar, por tanto la comunicación con ésta dulce e inocente criatura es muy difícil. La suerte para Emily es haberse criado en una familia donde realmente la quieren y la apoyan, lo que es un consuelo, dado que en el siglo XVIII, una persona con una afección como la de Emily era considerada loca, y normalmente recluida en un manicomio.
Sí, Ashley ha vuelto de la India, pero en siete años pasan muchas cosas, entre ellas que Ashley pareció olvidarse de Emily, pues se casó con otra y tuvo un hijo con ella. Ashley trae con él algunos secretos amargos sobre lo que ocurrió en la India, referentes a su esposa, ahora parece un desconsolado viudo. ¿Cómo puede Emily volver a entrar en su corazón, cuando parece que nada podrá sacar al antiguo Ashley que ella conoció?
En este libro tendremos su historia, una historia que puede parecer algo amarga, pero que en el fondo, a mí se me ha hecho muy humana y creíble. Ashley es un hombre atormentado que se echa la culpa de lo sucedido, y no se ve lo suficientemente bueno o limpio para una criatura tan buena y dulce como Emily. En cuanto a Emily, es una joven discapacitada sí, pero es una mujer buena y dócil que ama profundamente a Ashley, pero que también sabe distinguir lo que está bien de lo que está mal, y como cualquier dama joven de su edad, quiere vivir su vida plenamente, y no anteponerse a lo que se espera de ella. Emily tiene mucho amor que ofrecer y está dispuesta a demostrárselo a Ashley, aunque tenga que hacer lo imposible.
En el fondo parece que su romance no debería ser muy difícil, pero en el libro ocurrirán otras cosas de trasfondo que determinarán las decisiones de los protagonistas. Entre ello el secreto que oculta Penshurst, la nueva casa de Ashley, heredada tras su matrimonio con Alice Kersey, así como los nuevos vecinos y amigos, que saben cosas que deberían callarse por el bien de todos. Entre todos estos embrollos se verán envueltos Ashley y Emily. Lo que debiera mantenerlos separados, hará que se unan más. Por supuesto, han sido estos secretos, y lo que se ocultaba sobre la esposa fallecida de Ashley lo que más me ha enganchado a la trama, aunque no en detrimento del romance, que admito me ha gustado bastante.
A pesar de todo, no es la mejor historia de Mary Balogh. Ella tiene libros mucho mejores, y esta serie no pasará a ser una de las mejores de su bibliografía, pero ambos libros me han entretenido y me han gustado mucho. De nuevo, agradezco que nos hayan traído a ésta autora, y ver que las editoriales confían de nuevo en el romance histórico de calidad. Espero que en un futuro no muy lejano, vuelvan a publicarnos algo nuevo de Mary Balogh.
December 12, 2018
La acción de la historia se sitúa esta vez en la segunda mitad del siglo XVIII, siete años después de lo acontecido en el anterior libro. Quiero comentar que en mi opinión es recomendable leer el anterior libro para entender mejor y con más detalle la historia de los protagonistas, pero no es indispensable pues se puede leer de forma independiente.
A consecuencia de unas fiebres que sufrió a los cuatro años Lady Emily Marlowe quedó sordomuda. Ha vivido desde niña protegida y cuidada por su familia sobre todo por su hermana mayor Anna. En Sin corazón la conocimos cuando llega a Bowden Abbey para vivir con Anna y Luke. Allí conocerá a Ashley el rebelde hermano pequeño de Luke. Ambos inician una fuerte amistad que se interrumpirá cuando Ashley se marche a hacer fortuna a la India. Emily es muy joven, solo tiene quince años, pero a esa edad ya sabe lo que es el amor y ama profundamente a Ashley a pesar de que él, ocho años mayor, solo la ve como a una hermana pequeña. La partida de Ashley le romperá el corazón, pero la vida tiene que seguir y Emily con esfuerzo y dolor superará la partida de Ashley y seguirá con su vida.
Han pasado los años y los dos han seguido con sus vidas. Emily está a punto de prometerse con Lord Powell, un hombre que Luke ha escogido para ella que es tan bueno como cualquier otro y al que parece no importar su discapacidad, Emily desea una vida propia, con marido e hijos al margen de su familia. Pero justo cuando ella ya tiene decidido su futuro, la llegada de Ashley le hará revivir el pasado y replantearse sus deseos y sentimientos.
Ashley, hermano menor del duque de Harndon, ha sido el hermano pequeño, rebelde y disoluto hasta la llegada de Luke, el cual le marcó unos límites y le hizo ver que tenía que hacer algo productivo con su vida, por lo que a los veintidós años decidió marcharse a las Indias para hacer fortuna. Han pasado siete años y Ashley regresa a casa con el alma rota. Su mujer e hijo murieron y la culpa por no haber estado con ellos le destroza el alma. Al volver se reencuentra con su familia, pero también con la niña que un día dejó atrás ya convertida en una mujer. A pesar de que Emily intenta guardar las distancias no puede evitar ver el sufrimiento de Ashley y desear volver el tiempo atrás para ser la confidente y amiga que una vez fue.
Emily es un personaje muy dulce y algo traviesa a la que le gusta escaparse al bosque, una muchacha a la que su familia adora, aunque algunos de sus miembros la consideran rara y discapacitada como si su sordera le restara inteligencia al no poder comunicarse. No muchos de los que la rodean se han dado cuenta de que Emily lee los labios aunque a veces se sienta frustrada e impotente de no poder comunicarse ni expresarse ante los que la rodean, recordemos que en esa época aún no estaba extendido el uso del lenguaje de signos y que muchas de estas personas eran consideradas locas y acababan en asilos o manicomios por el simple hecho de no poder expresarse.
Emily no se siente cómoda entre la multitud ya que su incapacidad para comunicarse y seguir las conversaciones la abruma. Es un ser extraordinario, algo salvaje, valiente e indómito con una fortaleza y ternura increíbles, uno de esos personajes que enamoran. Tiene una forma muy particular de sentir las cosas lo que la hace una persona muy especial.
La relación entre ambos será difícil y complicada, pues a pesar de que Emily sigue amando a Ashley no desea su cariño por compromiso o su sentido del honor, por otro lado Ashley es la única persona que la entiende, con la que comparte su mundo sin necesidad de palabras.
Por su parte Ashley deberá perdonarse a sí mismo y exorcizar los demonios que lo persiguen para poder ofrecerle a Emmy algo bueno y verdadero.
El libro tiene trescientas cincuenta páginas y dos divididas en prólogo más veintiocho capítulos. La narración, al igual que en el anterior libro, está a cargo de un narrador omnisciente en tercera persona. La pluma de la autora es elegante y sencilla y la verdad es que he disfrutado mucho de la lectura de esta serie, por lo que intentaré leer algo más de su obra pronto.
Este libro es un claro ejemplo de la romántica clásica, una heroína valiente, un héroe atormentado y un misterio que resolver, y una historia de amor y superación que todos los amantes del género deberían leer.
Le doy un 4/5.
Reseña en: https://bibliotecariarecomienda.blogs...
A consecuencia de unas fiebres que sufrió a los cuatro años Lady Emily Marlowe quedó sordomuda. Ha vivido desde niña protegida y cuidada por su familia sobre todo por su hermana mayor Anna. En Sin corazón la conocimos cuando llega a Bowden Abbey para vivir con Anna y Luke. Allí conocerá a Ashley el rebelde hermano pequeño de Luke. Ambos inician una fuerte amistad que se interrumpirá cuando Ashley se marche a hacer fortuna a la India. Emily es muy joven, solo tiene quince años, pero a esa edad ya sabe lo que es el amor y ama profundamente a Ashley a pesar de que él, ocho años mayor, solo la ve como a una hermana pequeña. La partida de Ashley le romperá el corazón, pero la vida tiene que seguir y Emily con esfuerzo y dolor superará la partida de Ashley y seguirá con su vida.
Han pasado los años y los dos han seguido con sus vidas. Emily está a punto de prometerse con Lord Powell, un hombre que Luke ha escogido para ella que es tan bueno como cualquier otro y al que parece no importar su discapacidad, Emily desea una vida propia, con marido e hijos al margen de su familia. Pero justo cuando ella ya tiene decidido su futuro, la llegada de Ashley le hará revivir el pasado y replantearse sus deseos y sentimientos.
Ashley, hermano menor del duque de Harndon, ha sido el hermano pequeño, rebelde y disoluto hasta la llegada de Luke, el cual le marcó unos límites y le hizo ver que tenía que hacer algo productivo con su vida, por lo que a los veintidós años decidió marcharse a las Indias para hacer fortuna. Han pasado siete años y Ashley regresa a casa con el alma rota. Su mujer e hijo murieron y la culpa por no haber estado con ellos le destroza el alma. Al volver se reencuentra con su familia, pero también con la niña que un día dejó atrás ya convertida en una mujer. A pesar de que Emily intenta guardar las distancias no puede evitar ver el sufrimiento de Ashley y desear volver el tiempo atrás para ser la confidente y amiga que una vez fue.
Emily es un personaje muy dulce y algo traviesa a la que le gusta escaparse al bosque, una muchacha a la que su familia adora, aunque algunos de sus miembros la consideran rara y discapacitada como si su sordera le restara inteligencia al no poder comunicarse. No muchos de los que la rodean se han dado cuenta de que Emily lee los labios aunque a veces se sienta frustrada e impotente de no poder comunicarse ni expresarse ante los que la rodean, recordemos que en esa época aún no estaba extendido el uso del lenguaje de signos y que muchas de estas personas eran consideradas locas y acababan en asilos o manicomios por el simple hecho de no poder expresarse.
«Las personas tenían unas ideas muy extrañas acerca de la sordera. Suponían que como la persona en cuestión no podía oír, tampoco era capaz de ver.»
«Siempre era ella quien tenía que cargar con la responsabilidad de comprender a los demás. Ella era la rara, la que carecía de habla y de inteligencia. O eso parecía a veces.»
Emily no se siente cómoda entre la multitud ya que su incapacidad para comunicarse y seguir las conversaciones la abruma. Es un ser extraordinario, algo salvaje, valiente e indómito con una fortaleza y ternura increíbles, uno de esos personajes que enamoran. Tiene una forma muy particular de sentir las cosas lo que la hace una persona muy especial.
«Sin embargo, no era como las demás mujeres. Intentar convertirla en una de ellas solo enfatizaría su discapacidad y le provocaría tristeza, además de la sensación de sentirse deficiente. Sí, era distinta, pero no era inferior. ¿Acaso nadie lo entendía?»
La relación entre ambos será difícil y complicada, pues a pesar de que Emily sigue amando a Ashley no desea su cariño por compromiso o su sentido del honor, por otro lado Ashley es la única persona que la entiende, con la que comparte su mundo sin necesidad de palabras.
«Claro que Ashley siempre lo había entendido. Siempre había sabido que había una persona tras el silencio; no solo una persona que oía con los ojos y que respondería con palabras de haber podido, sino una que habitaba un mundo particular y disfrutaba en él de una vida tan plena como cualquier otra persona en su mundo. Con Ashley siempre había tenido un lenguaje. Siempre había tenido la posibilidad de ofrecerle retazos de su persona.»
Por su parte Ashley deberá perdonarse a sí mismo y exorcizar los demonios que lo persiguen para poder ofrecerle a Emmy algo bueno y verdadero.
«Él necesitaba escuchar el silencio. Y también tenía mucho que ofrecer: aceptación, comprensión, la disposición a reconocer la validez del mundo de Emmy. Amor. Pero la amistad era lo primero y lo principal. Si eso era lo único que podía ofrecerle durante el resto de su vida, pondría especial cuidado en no perderla.»
El libro tiene trescientas cincuenta páginas y dos divididas en prólogo más veintiocho capítulos. La narración, al igual que en el anterior libro, está a cargo de un narrador omnisciente en tercera persona. La pluma de la autora es elegante y sencilla y la verdad es que he disfrutado mucho de la lectura de esta serie, por lo que intentaré leer algo más de su obra pronto.
Este libro es un claro ejemplo de la romántica clásica, una heroína valiente, un héroe atormentado y un misterio que resolver, y una historia de amor y superación que todos los amantes del género deberían leer.
Le doy un 4/5.
Reseña en: https://bibliotecariarecomienda.blogs...
June 4, 2021
Lady Emily Marlowe este o tânără curajoasă și plină de bucurie, care luminează viețile celor din preajma ei. O eroină specială! La 4 ani a rămas surdă în urma unui episod de febră, iar de vorbit nu vorbește.
După căsătoria surorii ei Anna, aceasta vine să locuiască la Bowden împreună cu aceasta și soțul ei. Aici îl cunoaște pe Ashley, fratele cumnatului ei. Între cei doi se leagă rapid o prietenie deosebită, iar sentimente mai profunde își fac apariția în sufletul tinerei. Totuși, faptul că ea are 15 ani este o piedică la acel moment.
Ani mai târziu, când Ashley revine din India total schimbat, toată viața ei este dată peste cap. Îl iubește cu o pasiune fierbinte, cu trup și suflet, deși acesta încă o vede o copilă.
O noapte de pasiune duce la anularea unei logodne și o cerere bruscă în căsătorie din partea lui Ashley. Dar tânăra refuză deoarece acesta nu o iubește....
“Cântec tăcut” este un roman de o profunzime aparte, plin de încercări și pericole, presărat cu răsturnări de situație ce aproape că te fac să crezi că nu există speranță pentru acești doi tineri cu care destinul a fost crud. Fiecare își poartă propriile lupte interioare.
Emily este o eroină atipică. Un model de curaj, un personaj ieșit din tiparele vremii.
Ca cititori, ajungem să o cunoaștem datorită gândurilor acesteia, nu a dialogului spiritual.
Fiecare dintre eroii noștri au de purtat bătălii cu ei înșiși, cu membrii propriei familii, cu dușmani văzuți și neștiuti.
Autoarea Mary Balogh a reușit să mă fascineze cu această carte fascinantă!
Avem parte de o mulțime de secrete, adevăruri tăinuite care amenință să iasă la iveală. O acțiune complexă care ține cititorul cu sufletul la gură, uimindu-ne cu gama largă de emoții pe care le transmite și iubirea care îi testează înainte de a le permite celorlalți să se bucure pentru ei.
O poveste desfășurată în tăcere, unde ochii vorbesc în locul buzelor.
După căsătoria surorii ei Anna, aceasta vine să locuiască la Bowden împreună cu aceasta și soțul ei. Aici îl cunoaște pe Ashley, fratele cumnatului ei. Între cei doi se leagă rapid o prietenie deosebită, iar sentimente mai profunde își fac apariția în sufletul tinerei. Totuși, faptul că ea are 15 ani este o piedică la acel moment.
Ani mai târziu, când Ashley revine din India total schimbat, toată viața ei este dată peste cap. Îl iubește cu o pasiune fierbinte, cu trup și suflet, deși acesta încă o vede o copilă.
O noapte de pasiune duce la anularea unei logodne și o cerere bruscă în căsătorie din partea lui Ashley. Dar tânăra refuză deoarece acesta nu o iubește....
“Cântec tăcut” este un roman de o profunzime aparte, plin de încercări și pericole, presărat cu răsturnări de situație ce aproape că te fac să crezi că nu există speranță pentru acești doi tineri cu care destinul a fost crud. Fiecare își poartă propriile lupte interioare.
Emily este o eroină atipică. Un model de curaj, un personaj ieșit din tiparele vremii.
Ca cititori, ajungem să o cunoaștem datorită gândurilor acesteia, nu a dialogului spiritual.
Fiecare dintre eroii noștri au de purtat bătălii cu ei înșiși, cu membrii propriei familii, cu dușmani văzuți și neștiuti.
Autoarea Mary Balogh a reușit să mă fascineze cu această carte fascinantă!
Avem parte de o mulțime de secrete, adevăruri tăinuite care amenință să iasă la iveală. O acțiune complexă care ține cititorul cu sufletul la gură, uimindu-ne cu gama largă de emoții pe care le transmite și iubirea care îi testează înainte de a le permite celorlalți să se bucure pentru ei.
O poveste desfășurată în tăcere, unde ochii vorbesc în locul buzelor.
January 20, 2019
Aunque me ha gustado, no la considero una de las mejores historias de esta autora.
La narración me ha resultado bastante repetitiva en algunas ocasiones, especialmente al inicio de la obra, y el uso de frases cortas interrumpe relativamente la fluidez del ritmo narrativo. Al principio todo se desarrolla con mucha lentitud debido a la escasez de diálogos. Luego la historia va agarrando más fuerza conforme aparecen más personajes y la trama se va enredando.
Los protagonistas son Ashley y Emmy, y, la verdad, es que no terminaron de engancharme. Aunque solo Emmy es sordomuda, ambos parecen hablar solo a través de gestos, puesto que en la mayoría de las ocasiones, las palabras de Ashley no son más que una ficción, y son sus gestos los únicos verdaderos.
Mi percepción es que Emmy carece de personalidad, o al menos de una personalidad profunda y perfilada a lo largo de la historia, quizás porque abunda la expresión de sus pensamientos (como parte del diálogo), pero no tanto de sus sentimientos o de sus luchas; por ejemplo, Annie, la protagonista de "La canción de Annie" (Catherine Anderson), también sordomuda, engancha mucho más como personaje.
El ambiente que se crea alrededor de la historia resulta un poco sofocante y opresivo conforme nos introducimos en la lectura hasta el punto culmen, luego parece irse abriendo poco a poco tornándose más suave, más melancólica.
Una historia para disfrutar en pequeñas dosis.
La narración me ha resultado bastante repetitiva en algunas ocasiones, especialmente al inicio de la obra, y el uso de frases cortas interrumpe relativamente la fluidez del ritmo narrativo. Al principio todo se desarrolla con mucha lentitud debido a la escasez de diálogos. Luego la historia va agarrando más fuerza conforme aparecen más personajes y la trama se va enredando.
Los protagonistas son Ashley y Emmy, y, la verdad, es que no terminaron de engancharme. Aunque solo Emmy es sordomuda, ambos parecen hablar solo a través de gestos, puesto que en la mayoría de las ocasiones, las palabras de Ashley no son más que una ficción, y son sus gestos los únicos verdaderos.
Mi percepción es que Emmy carece de personalidad, o al menos de una personalidad profunda y perfilada a lo largo de la historia, quizás porque abunda la expresión de sus pensamientos (como parte del diálogo), pero no tanto de sus sentimientos o de sus luchas; por ejemplo, Annie, la protagonista de "La canción de Annie" (Catherine Anderson), también sordomuda, engancha mucho más como personaje.
El ambiente que se crea alrededor de la historia resulta un poco sofocante y opresivo conforme nos introducimos en la lectura hasta el punto culmen, luego parece irse abriendo poco a poco tornándose más suave, más melancólica.
Una historia para disfrutar en pequeñas dosis.
August 12, 2024
1 and a half stars
I picked this book up because I loved the only other book I have read by this author. Given that, I expected to love this one too. It started out well. Lady Emily Marlowe is an interesting character and easily draws the reader’s attention and sympathy. Deaf and mute since childhood Emily has a home with her sister Anna and her husband Luke. It is Ashley Kendrick, Luke’s brother though, who holds her heart. But to Ashley , who called her ‘little fawn,’ Emily is more like a young sister. Seven years ago he went to India, married and had a son. And Emily’s dreams died.
So she is contemplating becoming betrothed to Lord Powell. A ball is being held with plans to announce the betrothal. And then the ball is disrupted as Ashley, looking haggard, turns up. Why has he come home? And how will that affect Emily? In the end it has ramifications that no one expected.
Where to start with this review? After the good start this story went down hill fast. Repetitive, slow moving until towards the end, stupid decisions, unbelievable characters and cringe-worthy sex scenes. I nearly gave up on it a couple of times. Overwritten. Wish I had given up. Very disappointing.
I picked this book up because I loved the only other book I have read by this author. Given that, I expected to love this one too. It started out well. Lady Emily Marlowe is an interesting character and easily draws the reader’s attention and sympathy. Deaf and mute since childhood Emily has a home with her sister Anna and her husband Luke. It is Ashley Kendrick, Luke’s brother though, who holds her heart. But to Ashley , who called her ‘little fawn,’ Emily is more like a young sister. Seven years ago he went to India, married and had a son. And Emily’s dreams died.
So she is contemplating becoming betrothed to Lord Powell. A ball is being held with plans to announce the betrothal. And then the ball is disrupted as Ashley, looking haggard, turns up. Why has he come home? And how will that affect Emily? In the end it has ramifications that no one expected.
Where to start with this review? After the good start this story went down hill fast. Repetitive, slow moving until towards the end, stupid decisions, unbelievable characters and cringe-worthy sex scenes. I nearly gave up on it a couple of times. Overwritten. Wish I had given up. Very disappointing.
August 17, 2018
QUE
BONITO
LIBROOOO!!!
La historia de Ashley y Emily es de las más bonitas cada vez que estaban juntos me hacían suspirar forman una pareja súper tierna.
Su historia comenzó en el libro anterior Emmy es hermana pequeña de Anna la prota de Sin corazón y es sordomuda y Ashley el hermano menor de Luke también prota de ese libro. Cuando se conocen ella tiene 14 años es una niña dulce, libre y un poco rústica y Ash tiene 22 años es rebelde a tomado malas decisiones y no sabe qué hacer con su vida pero tiene un encanto.. ella desde que lo ve se enamora de él y se vuelven los mejores amigos, él le cuenta sus problemas y ella siempre lo está escuchando. Descubren una manera para comunicarse con señas y gestos que ellos sólo saben.
Cuando Ashley se va a la India un año después de conocerse le promete que va a volver pero a ella se le rompe el corazón porque siente que se le fue su alma gemela la única persona que la entiende y que la conoce de verdad al igual que ella lo conoce a él.
Él regresa 7 años después viudo, con toda su familia muerta en la India, atormentado, roto y escondiendo un secreto, él sólo quiere refugiarse con su familia y encontrar la paz que sabe que está en la casa de su hermano pero no tiene idea que es. Se encuentra con una Emmy que es toda una mujer y comprometida. Él no sabe porque la olvidó todos estos años si era su mejor amiga.
Este era un libro para ser un 5 estrellas pero hubo cosas que no me gustaron como el misterio de la familia de la esposa de Ashley le quitaron mucho protagonismo al romance que era lo mejor del libro y algunas actitudes de los protagonistas sobre todo de Emmy pero que a la vez entendía porque lo hacía.
Y todavía no me puedo acostumbrar a la ambientación y vestimenta del sigo XVIII con pelucas, polvos en la cabeza y peinados extravagantes prefiero la regencia.
BONITO
LIBROOOO!!!
La historia de Ashley y Emily es de las más bonitas cada vez que estaban juntos me hacían suspirar forman una pareja súper tierna.
Su historia comenzó en el libro anterior Emmy es hermana pequeña de Anna la prota de Sin corazón y es sordomuda y Ashley el hermano menor de Luke también prota de ese libro. Cuando se conocen ella tiene 14 años es una niña dulce, libre y un poco rústica y Ash tiene 22 años es rebelde a tomado malas decisiones y no sabe qué hacer con su vida pero tiene un encanto.. ella desde que lo ve se enamora de él y se vuelven los mejores amigos, él le cuenta sus problemas y ella siempre lo está escuchando. Descubren una manera para comunicarse con señas y gestos que ellos sólo saben.
Cuando Ashley se va a la India un año después de conocerse le promete que va a volver pero a ella se le rompe el corazón porque siente que se le fue su alma gemela la única persona que la entiende y que la conoce de verdad al igual que ella lo conoce a él.
Él regresa 7 años después viudo, con toda su familia muerta en la India, atormentado, roto y escondiendo un secreto, él sólo quiere refugiarse con su familia y encontrar la paz que sabe que está en la casa de su hermano pero no tiene idea que es. Se encuentra con una Emmy que es toda una mujer y comprometida. Él no sabe porque la olvidó todos estos años si era su mejor amiga.
Este era un libro para ser un 5 estrellas pero hubo cosas que no me gustaron como el misterio de la familia de la esposa de Ashley le quitaron mucho protagonismo al romance que era lo mejor del libro y algunas actitudes de los protagonistas sobre todo de Emmy pero que a la vez entendía porque lo hacía.
Y todavía no me puedo acostumbrar a la ambientación y vestimenta del sigo XVIII con pelucas, polvos en la cabeza y peinados extravagantes prefiero la regencia.
September 27, 2018
3.5
Precioso 😍😫 Ellos eran tan adorables 😍😍😍😍 me encantó la dinámica entre ellos, su necesidad y apoyo. Las personalidades y su historia en general.
Pero este libro tiene dos puntos flojos. La primera vez que están juntos la actitud de Ashley es sumamente egoísta y mezquina. No había motivo ni razón para hacerlo y aprovecharse de su inocencia. Que si que ya es adulta y shalala pero siempre sentí que el se aprovechó de su gentileza y amor a pesar de que el ni siquiera la quería.
La otra cosa que no me gustó fue el misterio del final con la ex esposa. Me resultó sumamente bizarro y además le resta mucho a su historia de amor y le quitó el romance que mi alma necesitaba.
En fin, me gustó y fue mucho mejor que el primero.
Precioso 😍😫 Ellos eran tan adorables 😍😍😍😍 me encantó la dinámica entre ellos, su necesidad y apoyo. Las personalidades y su historia en general.
Pero este libro tiene dos puntos flojos. La primera vez que están juntos la actitud de Ashley es sumamente egoísta y mezquina. No había motivo ni razón para hacerlo y aprovecharse de su inocencia. Que si que ya es adulta y shalala pero siempre sentí que el se aprovechó de su gentileza y amor a pesar de que el ni siquiera la quería.
La otra cosa que no me gustó fue el misterio del final con la ex esposa. Me resultó sumamente bizarro y además le resta mucho a su historia de amor y le quitó el romance que mi alma necesitaba.
En fin, me gustó y fue mucho mejor que el primero.
February 27, 2019
Truly a Disappointing Read!
Not in a mood of writing a review after this disaster read so please check Vintage Review- 👇
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Not in a mood of writing a review after this disaster read so please check Vintage Review- 👇
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
November 22, 2015
We first met Emily and Ashley in Heartless, she is Anna's youngest sister and he is Luke's younger brother. Emily is deaf mute, in Heartless she knew a lot of things but had trouble expressing herself. She felt quite at ease with Ashley and hero worshipped him. She was naturally devastated when he decided to grow up a bit and travel the world.
A few years have passed between the end of Heartless and the beginning of Silent Melody. Anna and Luke are happily married and Emily lives with them. Luke has tried to offer her the same opportunities other young girls have and so she has had some suitors and is now thinking of accepting an offer from one of them.
Ashley has been in India, he got married and had a son there. Now he has returned to England and his arrival coincides with the ball announcing Emily's engagement. Ashley's past has made him a bitter and unhappy man. It is not easy for him to speak about what happened in his life but he and Emily still share a special bond. Feeling his pain she tries to help and that leads them to an intimate moment who seems more about comfort than love. Because of that Emily refuses to marry him, she knows he still sees her has the young girl he left behind.
Ashley will have to deal with his demons and to see Emily in a new light for them to find a HEA and the journey towards that is a memorable one. I think Balogh did a superb job portraying Emily's disability, she is never a lesser character because of it, she doesn't have special treatment and in fact she doesn't feel less than the others. The only thing I didn't much care about was the villain. I would have been quite happy just to have Emily and Ashley dealing with their feelings and, of course, to see how well Luke and Anna work as a couple a few years after they had their own story.
Grade: 4.5/5
PS. Balogh has an old book being reissued this month, it's called A Christmas Promise and I haven't read it yet. It might be just the thing to get me in the right mood for the holidays...
A few years have passed between the end of Heartless and the beginning of Silent Melody. Anna and Luke are happily married and Emily lives with them. Luke has tried to offer her the same opportunities other young girls have and so she has had some suitors and is now thinking of accepting an offer from one of them.
Ashley has been in India, he got married and had a son there. Now he has returned to England and his arrival coincides with the ball announcing Emily's engagement. Ashley's past has made him a bitter and unhappy man. It is not easy for him to speak about what happened in his life but he and Emily still share a special bond. Feeling his pain she tries to help and that leads them to an intimate moment who seems more about comfort than love. Because of that Emily refuses to marry him, she knows he still sees her has the young girl he left behind.
Ashley will have to deal with his demons and to see Emily in a new light for them to find a HEA and the journey towards that is a memorable one. I think Balogh did a superb job portraying Emily's disability, she is never a lesser character because of it, she doesn't have special treatment and in fact she doesn't feel less than the others. The only thing I didn't much care about was the villain. I would have been quite happy just to have Emily and Ashley dealing with their feelings and, of course, to see how well Luke and Anna work as a couple a few years after they had their own story.
Grade: 4.5/5
PS. Balogh has an old book being reissued this month, it's called A Christmas Promise and I haven't read it yet. It might be just the thing to get me in the right mood for the holidays...
January 17, 2019
SINOPSIS: Lady Emily Marlow, sorda des de la niñez, está a punto de convertirse en una mujer y su cuñado le está buscando un buen marido. Pese a su condición, Emily nunca se ha sentido frenada, sino que ha aprendido a comunicarse y hacer ver la importancia del silencio. Hace siete años se enamoró de Ashley Kendrick, el amor de su infancia. Él regresa de la India donde se casó y tuvo un hijo, pero las cosas han cambiado, ya no es el que fue entonces y su esposa e hijo murieron, así que regresa como viduo a Bowden Abbey donde resurgen sentimientos del pasado.
OPINIÓN: Empiezo esta reseña diciendo que aunque es una historia distinta a la del libro Sin Corazón, aparecen los mismos personajes y es la historia siete años después del primero, así que os aconsejo leer primero Sin Corazón porque conoceréis mejor a los personajes y entraréis de lleno en la historia.
Me ha gustado mucho, sin duda todo un reto ya que la protagonista, Emily es sorda y no puede hablar, por lo tanto mostrar sus sentimientos es realmente complicado. Pero la autora consigue hacerlo de una forma mágica que hace que le cojas un cariño inmenso al personaje.
He disfrutado de la historia de principio a fin, es una historia romántica de época así que hay cosas que son totalmente distintas a cómo las hacemos hoy en día, como el matrimonio, que los hombres cortejen a las mujeres y que estos muestren sus sentimientos.
Si os gusta la romántica este libro os va a gustar mucho, la autora escribe de una forma maravillosa. Tanto que he disfrutado de los personajes secundarios de igual manera que los primeros. Me encantan lady Sterne y lord Quinn, son muy divertidos y dan chispa a la historia.
OPINIÓN: Empiezo esta reseña diciendo que aunque es una historia distinta a la del libro Sin Corazón, aparecen los mismos personajes y es la historia siete años después del primero, así que os aconsejo leer primero Sin Corazón porque conoceréis mejor a los personajes y entraréis de lleno en la historia.
Me ha gustado mucho, sin duda todo un reto ya que la protagonista, Emily es sorda y no puede hablar, por lo tanto mostrar sus sentimientos es realmente complicado. Pero la autora consigue hacerlo de una forma mágica que hace que le cojas un cariño inmenso al personaje.
He disfrutado de la historia de principio a fin, es una historia romántica de época así que hay cosas que son totalmente distintas a cómo las hacemos hoy en día, como el matrimonio, que los hombres cortejen a las mujeres y que estos muestren sus sentimientos.
Si os gusta la romántica este libro os va a gustar mucho, la autora escribe de una forma maravillosa. Tanto que he disfrutado de los personajes secundarios de igual manera que los primeros. Me encantan lady Sterne y lord Quinn, son muy divertidos y dan chispa a la historia.
October 1, 2010
There were many good things about this book and I am glad I read it (the first part was fantastic). I liked the fact that even though this book was a sequel to a book I haven't read it wasn't bogged down with lots of boring back story, also I loved the fact that Ashley had the compassion to look past Emmy's affliction and see her true self as no one else did. I just wish the book was more centered on those things than all of the crazy outside conflicts. My main complaint is that it started out so darned good and I truly cared about the characters and could not put it down but towards the end I wasn't feeling much of anything, I didn't laugh, I didn't cry, I didn't truly care and just wanted to get the book over with. I was left feeling very disappointed. I'm sure I'm in the minority on this one, ah well, we can't all like the same things all the time, I guess.
February 24, 2023
Me gustó muchísimo la protagonista Emily no he leído el primero pero en el prólogo queda muy claro que ella tenía 14 o 15 años y el ya tenía veinte y pocos o sea para mí la decisión de la autora que él trate de hacerse una vida lejos me parece bien ella está muy chiquita...
Y bueno el regreso de Ashley cambia todos los planes de Emily y retoman su relación como amigos y más...a mi me gustó mucho la historia entre ellos aunque el protagonista no me gusto casi nada esta demasiado atormentado y es muy cínico pero bueno ella me encantó y tienen sus momentos muy bonitos.
Y bueno el regreso de Ashley cambia todos los planes de Emily y retoman su relación como amigos y más...a mi me gustó mucho la historia entre ellos aunque el protagonista no me gusto casi nada esta demasiado atormentado y es muy cínico pero bueno ella me encantó y tienen sus momentos muy bonitos.
February 11, 2014
4.5 stars
I’m a sucker for books where I feel connected to the characters - so even if there are a lot of strikes and annoyances with the plot, the writing style, etc etc..if I connect with the characters – then it’s a winner for me. That is the case with this book. I say this so anyone reading this review knows that my opinion of it might be a little swayed and even nonsensical since there were plenty of strikes in this book for me as well.
Some of the strikes:
1) The pace of the book, especially in the beginning, was like quicksand. There were so much repetitive internal monologues! Perhaps it was necessary since Emmy couldn’t talk, but there was a lot of it for Ashley too!
2) Anna still annoyed me. She meant well but her coddling of Emmy was both irritating and insulting (and she just didn’t see that.) The only people who I thought really understood Emmy were Ashley (of course), Luke, Lady Sterne, and Lord Quinn.
3) I didn’t like Ashley insisting that he wished Emmy was still his little fawn and that he was fond of her like a brother would a sister or that he thinks of her as the little girl of fourteen. After the night they spent in the falls..I wish he would stop referring to these incestuous, pedophilic thoughts.
4) The only thing that kept the H/h apart after that night was really all a misunderstanding. What they believed about their love for each other was far from the truth because they were both not being honest with each other and were trying to protect each other in a wrong way. This point is a strike and a hit. I like the angst this created for both the H/h, but as with most misunderstanding plots, it also creates frustration for the readers.
WHAT I LOVED!!
1) I absolutely loved Ashley and Emmy in this book as I knew I would when I read Heartless! The connection they had was so sweet and tender. Although there is that ick factor in that Ashley had started to feel stirrings towards Emmy when she was only fourteen and he was a man in his early twenties – I was able to forgive it because his feelings for her up to his leaving for India was purely innocent. It was that goodbye kiss when she was only fourteen that made it icky...but by the time he came back, Emmy was an adult so it was acceptable for his to be attracted to her then. I loved it when Ashley would just give her a light kiss, almost a peck, and he seemed almost lost in it as if the action was involuntary. SO SWEET!!
2) Lady Sterne and Lord Quinn’s love story and matchmaking schemes were once again so entertaining to watch. They are an adorable couple even without their sneaky plans.
3) The mystery behind Lady Alice’s past and death was intriguing and unexpected turn of events at the end of the book. This captivated me in the second half of the book and the truth was a little shocking.
4) I liked the characters we me at the end, especially Sir Henry and I thought Katherine’s little boy, Eric, was adorable – and I want a book about him when he grows up (will probably not happen considering how old this book is.)
5) Luke’s part in all of it as the head of the family was well done. I liked how he handled both Ashley, Emmy, and everything else – with command, understanding, and compassion.
When the story left Bowden Abbey and it started to become almost like a courtship in London and then Penhurst. I enjoyed it even more at this point because we got to see jealousy, longing, and more shared moments between the H/h as man and woman without being shadowed by their relationship as man and child as it seemed to happen in Bowden.
To be honest, the writing style was a little difficult to get through compared to other Balogh books because the internal monologues slowed me down (again, it felt repetitive and at times boring.) Though the delivery left something to be desired, the crux of the story, however, was great, our H/h were enchanting, and the mystery and new characters added a lot flavor…so as much as I can understand why others didn’t love it like I did, I have to disagree with them and say it was so worthwhile. I would hate to have missed out on these unforgettable Balogh characters.
I’m a sucker for books where I feel connected to the characters - so even if there are a lot of strikes and annoyances with the plot, the writing style, etc etc..if I connect with the characters – then it’s a winner for me. That is the case with this book. I say this so anyone reading this review knows that my opinion of it might be a little swayed and even nonsensical since there were plenty of strikes in this book for me as well.
Some of the strikes:
1) The pace of the book, especially in the beginning, was like quicksand. There were so much repetitive internal monologues! Perhaps it was necessary since Emmy couldn’t talk, but there was a lot of it for Ashley too!
2) Anna still annoyed me. She meant well but her coddling of Emmy was both irritating and insulting (and she just didn’t see that.) The only people who I thought really understood Emmy were Ashley (of course), Luke, Lady Sterne, and Lord Quinn.
3) I didn’t like Ashley insisting that he wished Emmy was still his little fawn and that he was fond of her like a brother would a sister or that he thinks of her as the little girl of fourteen. After the night they spent in the falls..I wish he would stop referring to these incestuous, pedophilic thoughts.
4) The only thing that kept the H/h apart after that night was really all a misunderstanding. What they believed about their love for each other was far from the truth because they were both not being honest with each other and were trying to protect each other in a wrong way. This point is a strike and a hit. I like the angst this created for both the H/h, but as with most misunderstanding plots, it also creates frustration for the readers.
WHAT I LOVED!!
1) I absolutely loved Ashley and Emmy in this book as I knew I would when I read Heartless! The connection they had was so sweet and tender. Although there is that ick factor in that Ashley had started to feel stirrings towards Emmy when she was only fourteen and he was a man in his early twenties – I was able to forgive it because his feelings for her up to his leaving for India was purely innocent. It was that goodbye kiss when she was only fourteen that made it icky...but by the time he came back, Emmy was an adult so it was acceptable for his to be attracted to her then. I loved it when Ashley would just give her a light kiss, almost a peck, and he seemed almost lost in it as if the action was involuntary. SO SWEET!!
2) Lady Sterne and Lord Quinn’s love story and matchmaking schemes were once again so entertaining to watch. They are an adorable couple even without their sneaky plans.
3) The mystery behind Lady Alice’s past and death was intriguing and unexpected turn of events at the end of the book. This captivated me in the second half of the book and the truth was a little shocking.
4) I liked the characters we me at the end, especially Sir Henry and I thought Katherine’s little boy, Eric, was adorable – and I want a book about him when he grows up (will probably not happen considering how old this book is.)
5) Luke’s part in all of it as the head of the family was well done. I liked how he handled both Ashley, Emmy, and everything else – with command, understanding, and compassion.
When the story left Bowden Abbey and it started to become almost like a courtship in London and then Penhurst. I enjoyed it even more at this point because we got to see jealousy, longing, and more shared moments between the H/h as man and woman without being shadowed by their relationship as man and child as it seemed to happen in Bowden.
To be honest, the writing style was a little difficult to get through compared to other Balogh books because the internal monologues slowed me down (again, it felt repetitive and at times boring.) Though the delivery left something to be desired, the crux of the story, however, was great, our H/h were enchanting, and the mystery and new characters added a lot flavor…so as much as I can understand why others didn’t love it like I did, I have to disagree with them and say it was so worthwhile. I would hate to have missed out on these unforgettable Balogh characters.
August 20, 2016
Here's another Mary Balogh classic (from 1997) now available in audiobook format, and of course Rosalyn Landor does her usual excellent job.
It takes a courageous author to write a deaf heroine who can neither read nor write. We know from the previous book in this series, Heartless, that Lady Emily can read lips fairly well and that she has devised hand signals to communicate with Lord Ashley, whose brother the Duke of Harndon is married to Emily's sister Anna. As this book opens, Ashley has been in India for seven years, and Emily is on the verge of marrying a proper young man who is fond of her. But then, Ashley returns unexpectedly, in a most dramatic manner, without his wife and infant son.
With a hero and heroine unable to speak with one another, it is inevitable that a lot of the story takes place in Emily's mind, which consequently makes for rather slow going in the first half or so of this book. With Balogh's expert characterization and Landor's beautiful narration, however, I found myself completely immersed in the story.
Eventually, though, things do pick up, and there are good secondary characters and plotlines, including a mystery and an adorable senior-citizen romance (the older I get the more I enjoy those!).
I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this book, although not quite as much as Heartless. I recommend both of them to all Mary Balogh fans.
It takes a courageous author to write a deaf heroine who can neither read nor write. We know from the previous book in this series, Heartless, that Lady Emily can read lips fairly well and that she has devised hand signals to communicate with Lord Ashley, whose brother the Duke of Harndon is married to Emily's sister Anna. As this book opens, Ashley has been in India for seven years, and Emily is on the verge of marrying a proper young man who is fond of her. But then, Ashley returns unexpectedly, in a most dramatic manner, without his wife and infant son.
With a hero and heroine unable to speak with one another, it is inevitable that a lot of the story takes place in Emily's mind, which consequently makes for rather slow going in the first half or so of this book. With Balogh's expert characterization and Landor's beautiful narration, however, I found myself completely immersed in the story.
Eventually, though, things do pick up, and there are good secondary characters and plotlines, including a mystery and an adorable senior-citizen romance (the older I get the more I enjoy those!).
I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this book, although not quite as much as Heartless. I recommend both of them to all Mary Balogh fans.
September 15, 2020
So.... I have had this book on my shelf for so long and I have wanted to read it so bad.
I was excited to see how Emily communicated and related to others.
Sadly, it was a very slow moving plot, not as fun as I was hoping and Ashley was very frustrating.
I was excited to see how Emily communicated and related to others.
Sadly, it was a very slow moving plot, not as fun as I was hoping and Ashley was very frustrating.
July 7, 2024
Review from 2016
A+ for narration; B for content - 4.5 stars rounded up.
Silent Melody is the sequel to Heartless, which was one of my favourite audiobooks of 2015. In that story, Lucas Kendrick, Duke of Harndon, gradually reconnects with the family he had fled from a decade earlier, and I particularly enjoyed listening to the way the author has Luke repairing his fractured relationship with his wayward younger brother, Lord Ashley. Towards the end of Heartless, Ashley leaves England to take up a position with the East India Company, eager to make something of himself and of his life. Even though he leaves behind him a family he loves and who loves him dearly, he is in good spirits and ready to take on the new challenges he is sure to face.
As well as leaving Luke, his wife and their infant daughter, Ashley also has to say goodbye to Lady Emily Marlowe, who, at fifteen, has been his constant companion during the year he has been living at the ducal seat. Emily is the sister of Luke’s wife, Anna, and she is unable to hear or speak as the result of a severe childhood illness. Yet Ashley and Emily have forged a special bond; she cannot read or write which naturally means communication is difficult, but the pair have begun to develop a system of signing, and also have a kind of sixth sense where the other is concerned, always knowing when they are near and often able to understand each other without the need for words.
Ashley remains in India for seven years, during which time he marries and has a son, and Emily also moves on with her life. She longs for a home and children of her own, and is on the point of becoming engaged to a kind, eligible young man when Ashley returns home unexpectedly, alone, haggard and clearly weighed down by many things, not least of which are the tragic deaths of his wife and son a year earlier. Emily is thrown off balance somewhat, as is Ashley, who almost doesn’t recognise the beautiful, poised young woman who has replaced the unconventional, passionate child-of-nature he left behind.
Emily doesn’t know whether to be glad to see him or angry with him for reminding her of the love she knew was – and is – that of a woman for a man and not simply a childish infatuation. Their connection is as strong as it ever was, yet their old comfortable relationship is gone, and neither quite knows how to interact with the other. When a moment of comfort turns physical, it seems there is only one option – but one of the things that defines Emily’s character is her refusal to let circumstance or her disabilities define or restrain her. She’s determined to live her life in her own way, refusing Ashley’s offer of marriage after he compromises her because she knows he still sees her as the girl he left behind.
That the main obstacle in the path of the romance is a misunderstanding – Emily believes Ashley to be still in love with his dead wife and he believes he isn’t good enough for her – is something I normally find frustrating; but there is enough to enjoy in terms of the characters, their relationships and in the way that Emily and Ashley gradually reclaim their previous closeness that mean the Big Mis isn’t overwhelming. The last third or so of the book contains a strong element of mystery as Ashley realises that if he’s to come to terms with what happened to his family in India, he must find answers closer to home.
I enjoyed the audiobook very much, although things do take a while to get going. I don’t normally find slow-moving stories to be a problem; in fact, I usually like it when an author takes time to set up the characters and the background to the story – but I can’t deny that I would have liked things to have moved a little faster in the early stages of this book. I suspect that may be because there is a lot of description and introspection and not a huge amount of dialogue at this point; and though Rosalyn Landor does a splendid job with the narrative, giving it just the right amount of expression and emotion and differentiating perfectly between narrative, speech and thought, the amount of introspection does slow things down rather too much. In fact, the degree of internalisation and reflection borders dangerously on navel-gazing at times, and is the main fault I found with the book as a whole; it can be overly wordy.
The real strengths of the story lie in the central relationships; not just the romance, which is very well written, but those between Luke and Ashley and – possibly my favourite – between Luke and Emily. Unlike Anna, who still regards Emily as a child and tries to cosset and protect her, Luke treats her like an adult and knows that sometimes she needs to be made to do difficult things – even though they’re hard on her – like when he teaches her to read and write. This is one of the things that made him such a great hero in the earlier book – his air of command is tempered by compassion and understanding and he instinctively knows when to push and when to back away. There’s a sweet secondary romance between two older characters, Lord Quinn and Lady Sterne, an engaging set of minor characters, and while the identity of the villain of the piece is obvious, it all makes for an entertaining and occasionally tense listen.
I really can’t find anything to fault in Rosalyn Landor’s performance, which is flawless. Her portrayals of Luke and Ashley are especially good – they sound alike enough to be related, but not so similar that it’s hard to tell them apart. She captures Luke’s quietly commanding nature superbly; this is a man who never has to raise his voice, but who is quite obviously not someone to be crossed. Lord Quinn and Lady Sterne are also wonderfully realised, he bluff and hearty, she no-nonsense but clearly devoted to the man she loves. Ashley is by turns angry, despairing and loving, and Ms Landor does a superb job with Emily’s limited speech, sounding convincingly like someone who is learning to speak without any aural points of reference. As I said earlier, there seems to be a more than usual amount of narrative in the story, I suspect because with one of the protagonists being unable to speak, we are instead privy to her thoughts and feelings which tend to take longer to express. But even taking into account the reservations I have expressed, Silent Melody is a lovely, romantic story, the characters are engaging and well-rounded, and with the added benefit of Ms Landor’s wonderful narration, adds up to thoroughly enjoyable listening experience.
A+ for narration; B for content - 4.5 stars rounded up.
Silent Melody is the sequel to Heartless, which was one of my favourite audiobooks of 2015. In that story, Lucas Kendrick, Duke of Harndon, gradually reconnects with the family he had fled from a decade earlier, and I particularly enjoyed listening to the way the author has Luke repairing his fractured relationship with his wayward younger brother, Lord Ashley. Towards the end of Heartless, Ashley leaves England to take up a position with the East India Company, eager to make something of himself and of his life. Even though he leaves behind him a family he loves and who loves him dearly, he is in good spirits and ready to take on the new challenges he is sure to face.
As well as leaving Luke, his wife and their infant daughter, Ashley also has to say goodbye to Lady Emily Marlowe, who, at fifteen, has been his constant companion during the year he has been living at the ducal seat. Emily is the sister of Luke’s wife, Anna, and she is unable to hear or speak as the result of a severe childhood illness. Yet Ashley and Emily have forged a special bond; she cannot read or write which naturally means communication is difficult, but the pair have begun to develop a system of signing, and also have a kind of sixth sense where the other is concerned, always knowing when they are near and often able to understand each other without the need for words.
Ashley remains in India for seven years, during which time he marries and has a son, and Emily also moves on with her life. She longs for a home and children of her own, and is on the point of becoming engaged to a kind, eligible young man when Ashley returns home unexpectedly, alone, haggard and clearly weighed down by many things, not least of which are the tragic deaths of his wife and son a year earlier. Emily is thrown off balance somewhat, as is Ashley, who almost doesn’t recognise the beautiful, poised young woman who has replaced the unconventional, passionate child-of-nature he left behind.
Emily doesn’t know whether to be glad to see him or angry with him for reminding her of the love she knew was – and is – that of a woman for a man and not simply a childish infatuation. Their connection is as strong as it ever was, yet their old comfortable relationship is gone, and neither quite knows how to interact with the other. When a moment of comfort turns physical, it seems there is only one option – but one of the things that defines Emily’s character is her refusal to let circumstance or her disabilities define or restrain her. She’s determined to live her life in her own way, refusing Ashley’s offer of marriage after he compromises her because she knows he still sees her as the girl he left behind.
That the main obstacle in the path of the romance is a misunderstanding – Emily believes Ashley to be still in love with his dead wife and he believes he isn’t good enough for her – is something I normally find frustrating; but there is enough to enjoy in terms of the characters, their relationships and in the way that Emily and Ashley gradually reclaim their previous closeness that mean the Big Mis isn’t overwhelming. The last third or so of the book contains a strong element of mystery as Ashley realises that if he’s to come to terms with what happened to his family in India, he must find answers closer to home.
I enjoyed the audiobook very much, although things do take a while to get going. I don’t normally find slow-moving stories to be a problem; in fact, I usually like it when an author takes time to set up the characters and the background to the story – but I can’t deny that I would have liked things to have moved a little faster in the early stages of this book. I suspect that may be because there is a lot of description and introspection and not a huge amount of dialogue at this point; and though Rosalyn Landor does a splendid job with the narrative, giving it just the right amount of expression and emotion and differentiating perfectly between narrative, speech and thought, the amount of introspection does slow things down rather too much. In fact, the degree of internalisation and reflection borders dangerously on navel-gazing at times, and is the main fault I found with the book as a whole; it can be overly wordy.
The real strengths of the story lie in the central relationships; not just the romance, which is very well written, but those between Luke and Ashley and – possibly my favourite – between Luke and Emily. Unlike Anna, who still regards Emily as a child and tries to cosset and protect her, Luke treats her like an adult and knows that sometimes she needs to be made to do difficult things – even though they’re hard on her – like when he teaches her to read and write. This is one of the things that made him such a great hero in the earlier book – his air of command is tempered by compassion and understanding and he instinctively knows when to push and when to back away. There’s a sweet secondary romance between two older characters, Lord Quinn and Lady Sterne, an engaging set of minor characters, and while the identity of the villain of the piece is obvious, it all makes for an entertaining and occasionally tense listen.
I really can’t find anything to fault in Rosalyn Landor’s performance, which is flawless. Her portrayals of Luke and Ashley are especially good – they sound alike enough to be related, but not so similar that it’s hard to tell them apart. She captures Luke’s quietly commanding nature superbly; this is a man who never has to raise his voice, but who is quite obviously not someone to be crossed. Lord Quinn and Lady Sterne are also wonderfully realised, he bluff and hearty, she no-nonsense but clearly devoted to the man she loves. Ashley is by turns angry, despairing and loving, and Ms Landor does a superb job with Emily’s limited speech, sounding convincingly like someone who is learning to speak without any aural points of reference. As I said earlier, there seems to be a more than usual amount of narrative in the story, I suspect because with one of the protagonists being unable to speak, we are instead privy to her thoughts and feelings which tend to take longer to express. But even taking into account the reservations I have expressed, Silent Melody is a lovely, romantic story, the characters are engaging and well-rounded, and with the added benefit of Ms Landor’s wonderful narration, adds up to thoroughly enjoyable listening experience.
March 9, 2022
В аристократично английски семейство от 18-ти век се ражда глухоняма дъщеря. И тя е героинята на този любовен роман. Баба Мери си знае работата и се е справила с образа просто отлично, показвайки, че ако има любящи близки, Еми може да разцъфне в добро и силно същество с богат вътрешен живот и да намери голямата любов.
Ашли се справя доста зле със собствения си живот, но е един от малкото, които не само разбират “езика” на Еми, но я закриля и я учи да се изразява и общува. В крайна сметка какво е любовта, ако не разбиране и приемане? Тя му дава силата на мълчанието и съзерцанието, а той на нея - умението да изрича думи, както и безусловна подкрепа и приемане.
Стига да не беше не особено интересно развитата “загадка”, откъснатият от действието злодей и някои не особено психологически обосновани и нелогични постъпки на героя в миналото (тук стремежът към “моралност” е малко прекален), би била далеч по-интересна книга. Но и така задушевните моменти са много добре пресъздадени.
Също така поведението на героите е твърде либерално. за епохата и класата им, особено в семейството на героинята. Това стои доста нелогично в един ключов момент, но иначе са сладури.
“Silence, he realized, was more than an absence of speech.”
“Life had to have quality and dignity.”
Ашли се справя доста зле със собствения си живот, но е един от малкото, които не само разбират “езика” на Еми, но я закриля и я учи да се изразява и общува. В крайна сметка какво е любовта, ако не разбиране и приемане? Тя му дава силата на мълчанието и съзерцанието, а той на нея - умението да изрича думи, както и безусловна подкрепа и приемане.
Стига да не беше не особено интересно развитата “загадка”, откъснатият от действието злодей и някои не особено психологически обосновани и нелогични постъпки на героя в миналото (тук стремежът към “моралност” е малко прекален), би била далеч по-интересна книга. Но и така задушевните моменти са много добре пресъздадени.
Също така поведението на героите е твърде либерално. за епохата и класата им, особено в семейството на героинята. Това стои доста нелогично в един ключов момент, но иначе са сладури.
“Silence, he realized, was more than an absence of speech.”
“Life had to have quality and dignity.”
March 31, 2021
Me costó conectar con los protagonistas. Y recién en los últimos capítulos me engancho hasta el punto que no lo solté hasta que termine el libro
August 22, 2019
Me ha gustado bastante el libro porque temía que no me fuera a gustar. Es una historia sin dudas larga y un tanto compleja, comenzando con la protagonista que es sorda y su familia la alienta a llevar una vida normal. Lo interesante comienza cuando se enamora del hermano de su cuñado y este parte a hacer vida en otro país, solo siete años después regresa, viudo y con mucha culpa a sus espaldas. Entonces los sentimientos que quedaron pendientes con la joven que lo escuchaba comienzan a renacer, pero los enredos no están lejos y hay muchos misterios que resolver. En fin, que me agradaron mucho los personajes, ellos se comprenden el uno al otro, en ruido o en el silencio y consiguen hacerse entender en un idioma especial, me encantó ver eso. Y sobre todo el lugar que le da la autora a todo/as.
July 30, 2016
4.5 "There is More to Love Than Just Words" Stars for the story and the narration!
What a unique story line! This little gem of a historical romance grabbed my attention from the very beginning and kept me enthralled throughout the entire story. Moreover, in addition, to a touching romance and the empathetic handling and portrayal of a disabled heroine as a capable and loving woman which genuinely tugged at my heartstrings, Mary Balogh also manages to infuse an interesting and intriguing suspenseful arc into this already stellar romance. Moreover, this is a great title to pick up in audiobook format as Rosalyn Landor's experienced and well-done narration further enhances the magic of this story.
First off, for those that are wondering if this book can be read as a standalone, yes it can. Although this is book 2 in the Georgian series, and the hero and heroine are the siblings of the main characters from book 1, Heartless, the romance is fully contained in this book and I had no trouble following the background without having read or listened to Heartless.
Lady Emily Marlowe is death and mute. While many would think this fact devastating, Emily has actually led a pretty free and independent life as a result. Unconstrained by the typical customs of the day that prohibited women from running around with their hair down and otherwise being free to do what they wanted to do, Emily has spent many years running around her
sister's estate and painting. Interestingly, the one person who never viewed her as limited and always understood her better than anyone else was Lord Ashley Kendrick, the younger brother of Lucas Kendrick, Duke of Harndon, who married Emily's sister.
But Emily's romantic fantasies are shattered when Ashley decides to leave for India to build his own wealth. After a while of being gone Emily's hope for a future with Ashley is further dashed when she finds out that he has married another woman. It is amongst this backdrop that seven years after he left, Emily is finally ready to try to find a husband. She quickly finds herself with suitors, bearing their own unique reasons for wanting to pursue and deaf and mute woman, when Ashley returns to the vast surprise of his family and carrying a number of closely held secrets. Will his reappearance dash her family's well orchestrated efforts to find Emily a husband, or will Ashley's secrets render possible a HEA that could rival Emily's childhood dreams?
The experienced and well-known historical romance narrator, Rosalyn Landor, performs an above average narration in Silent Melody. Ms. Landor is a pro and she always manages to create easily distinguishable voices for each on of the cast members making it easy to sit back and enjoy the listen. In Silent Melody I was particularly impressed with Ms. Landor's depiction of Emily. Managing to sound just like a deaf person learning to talk for the first time, Ms. Landor brought a an extra sense of authenticity to this inspiring tale.
All in all, Silent Melody is a creative and inspiring tale with a rock solid narration, making this a must listen audiobook for the historical romance enthusiast.
Source: Review copy provided in exchange for an honest review.
What a unique story line! This little gem of a historical romance grabbed my attention from the very beginning and kept me enthralled throughout the entire story. Moreover, in addition, to a touching romance and the empathetic handling and portrayal of a disabled heroine as a capable and loving woman which genuinely tugged at my heartstrings, Mary Balogh also manages to infuse an interesting and intriguing suspenseful arc into this already stellar romance. Moreover, this is a great title to pick up in audiobook format as Rosalyn Landor's experienced and well-done narration further enhances the magic of this story.
First off, for those that are wondering if this book can be read as a standalone, yes it can. Although this is book 2 in the Georgian series, and the hero and heroine are the siblings of the main characters from book 1, Heartless, the romance is fully contained in this book and I had no trouble following the background without having read or listened to Heartless.
Lady Emily Marlowe is death and mute. While many would think this fact devastating, Emily has actually led a pretty free and independent life as a result. Unconstrained by the typical customs of the day that prohibited women from running around with their hair down and otherwise being free to do what they wanted to do, Emily has spent many years running around her
sister's estate and painting. Interestingly, the one person who never viewed her as limited and always understood her better than anyone else was Lord Ashley Kendrick, the younger brother of Lucas Kendrick, Duke of Harndon, who married Emily's sister.
But Emily's romantic fantasies are shattered when Ashley decides to leave for India to build his own wealth. After a while of being gone Emily's hope for a future with Ashley is further dashed when she finds out that he has married another woman. It is amongst this backdrop that seven years after he left, Emily is finally ready to try to find a husband. She quickly finds herself with suitors, bearing their own unique reasons for wanting to pursue and deaf and mute woman, when Ashley returns to the vast surprise of his family and carrying a number of closely held secrets. Will his reappearance dash her family's well orchestrated efforts to find Emily a husband, or will Ashley's secrets render possible a HEA that could rival Emily's childhood dreams?
The experienced and well-known historical romance narrator, Rosalyn Landor, performs an above average narration in Silent Melody. Ms. Landor is a pro and she always manages to create easily distinguishable voices for each on of the cast members making it easy to sit back and enjoy the listen. In Silent Melody I was particularly impressed with Ms. Landor's depiction of Emily. Managing to sound just like a deaf person learning to talk for the first time, Ms. Landor brought a an extra sense of authenticity to this inspiring tale.
All in all, Silent Melody is a creative and inspiring tale with a rock solid narration, making this a must listen audiobook for the historical romance enthusiast.
Source: Review copy provided in exchange for an honest review.
December 13, 2017
*sighs* I get very tired of heroines with disabilities being super intuitive and in tune with the natural world and compared to nymphs and sprites and fey things. If there had been one more line about Emily's "speaking eyes" and how Ashley could just naturally understand what she meant, I would have gently pitched the book across the room. She's just too perfect. Annie's Song by Catherine Anderson, although not without flaws, had a better portrayal of a deaf heroine and the issues it raises with both the heroine and hero.
On a technical note, the book suffered from what a great many mystery novels suffer from--that you can guess the villain simply because he is the newly-introduced stranger who has no other reason to be present.
On a technical note, the book suffered from what a great many mystery novels suffer from--that you can guess the villain simply because he is the newly-introduced stranger who has no other reason to be present.
July 9, 2015
I wanted to love this as much as my friends did, but I just didn't. I don't know if it was the writing or what, but I didn't feel the romance between Ashley and Emily. I thought their love scenes were awkward and one-sided. Nor did I feel that Emily was ever engaged in the act.
March 12, 2025
Compleja, dulce, redonda. Está no es la típica novela romántica histórica; se ambienta en Inglaterra a mediados del siglo XVIII; época de moda "a la francesa: pelucas, empolvados y tontillos; atavios para el afuera y que eran máscaras de lo privado.
Y la protagonista es sordomuda, aquí no hay un diálogo real pero si la descripción de los diálogos que por señas y miradas van inventando Ashley y Emily en la medida que su relación va avanzando.
Es muy interesante el desarrollo que la autora realiza en este libro, ya que ha tomado caminos indirectos para contarnos muchas cosas: diálogos y chismes a través de amigos vecino y criados; descripciones de gestos, mucha visualización de las estancias.
Pero además es una novela thriler: Ashley vuelve de la india viudo y culposo por la muerte de su esposa- quien era detestable y se odiaban- : el no había estado en casa la noche del incendio; en inglaterra la mala suerte lo perseguía igualmente: extraños incidentes se daban a su alrededor: desentrañar la red de silencios sociales no iba a ser tarea fácil, a menos, claro, que contase con el amor incondicional de alguien que sabía escuchar el silencio.
Muy buena.
Y la protagonista es sordomuda, aquí no hay un diálogo real pero si la descripción de los diálogos que por señas y miradas van inventando Ashley y Emily en la medida que su relación va avanzando.
Es muy interesante el desarrollo que la autora realiza en este libro, ya que ha tomado caminos indirectos para contarnos muchas cosas: diálogos y chismes a través de amigos vecino y criados; descripciones de gestos, mucha visualización de las estancias.
Pero además es una novela thriler: Ashley vuelve de la india viudo y culposo por la muerte de su esposa- quien era detestable y se odiaban- : el no había estado en casa la noche del incendio; en inglaterra la mala suerte lo perseguía igualmente: extraños incidentes se daban a su alrededor: desentrañar la red de silencios sociales no iba a ser tarea fácil, a menos, claro, que contase con el amor incondicional de alguien que sabía escuchar el silencio.
Muy buena.
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