Silenci

by R.M. Sayan

Speak no evil.

In Abadosos, nobody speaks of the werewolves—in fact, nobody likes to speak.

Joaquím is attacked by a werewolf on a full moon in which he foolishly forgets to take shelter. But he lives to see the light of day, mostly unscathed.

Nursed back to health with the help of his friend Zarif and his cousin Remei, he lives on unknowing whether he was bitten or not. But the curse of the lycanthrope proves to be more complex than it appears, and Joaquím begins to doubt not only himself, but those close to him and everything he knows about his hometown. The pressure and paranoia cloud his way, and nobody seems to have answers to his questions.

After all, in Abadosos, nobody speaks.

A suspenseful fantasy novella with a dash of slow-burn m/m romance.

Genres: Werewolves, Paranormal, Queer

71 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 30, 2019

About the author

R.M. Sayan is a writer of queer spec across most genres, with a soft spot for classic fantasy in the style of movies like Ladyhawke (1985) and Willow (1988). Favorites are hard to choose, but some books that he never stops thinking about are The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien, The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins, and The Elementals by Michael McDowell. He currently resides in Cajamarca, Peru, and enjoys hiking, origami, and his wife.

Reviews

[Elaine White · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this was an interesting concept, I felt there was something missing.
I thought, from the wording of the blurb, that no-one in Abadosos could or did speak at all. But it seems that they just took the route of speaking as little as possible. Yet, there is actually a lot of dialogue in the book. Much more than I'd anticipated and people did tend to waffle on, once they started talking, particularly the priest and others.
The story is historical, taking place during the 1300's and I wasn't overly keen on the modern speech patterns adopted, which didn't fit the historical setting. I also wasn't quite sure where the story was going, as it kept repeating the importance of silence - despite the talking - and the threat of werewolves. While it started well, it faded quickly into a slow plot that didn't go anywhere for quite a while. It didn't pick up until about 50%. I'd already wanted to DNF it, by that point, just because it wasn't working for me as a full and cohesive story.
As a debut book, however, I appreciate the originality of the story - so different from other werewolf stories, and with a clever twist that came after the halfway mark - so I'd be willing to give the author another try, in the future. As a YA story, it's good. I think I was just expecting something more than what I got.

[A.A. Fairview · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wonderful ideas and competent execution, but so short it's hard for these things to have much depth. I will admit when I read historical fiction, I like there to be more description of the setting and the world. Silenci is much too short for us to settle into the world and moves quickly from one beat to the next. In a similar vein, none of the characters are especially deep, filling their stock rolls as hunter, doting wife, feral child, ect. That being said I did really enjoy the relationships presented in the text. The core of the novella is love both romantic and platonic. It's just a shame that the book is so short and the reader doesn't have a lot of time with these relationships.
For a short read you can knock out in an hour, I would recommend it.

[Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so fun! A queer werewolf love story set in medieval Spain. I read it in an evening and enjoyed the lycanthropy, the way the chapters were structured around the moon, and the sweet romance at the end.

[Lorena Martinez · Rating 5 out of 5]

For a short story of 75 pages, I didn't think there would be so many twists, especially when people were pointing fingers on 'who' is the werewolf residing in the village is.
The romance I thought was kind of fast in the end, but it is an already established drifted friendship,
and with power of nostalgia and physical and emotional risks, I thought it was ok romance.
It was a story I enjoyed since the villagers are so afraid of the lycanthrope, that it builds a fear to develop relationships since anyone could be a werewolf and the people you love could die after a full moon or worse betray your trust. So, in essence this about the decisions the main character and rest of the villagers make about being emotional vulnerable.

[Sebastian Vidal · Rating 5 out of 5]

For someone who had stopped reading Fantasy this is a great book to start again or even just to start because, it’s not a world full of dragons and elfs and magic but a realistic world with just werewolves and the trouble that they come with. A very catchy story that will keep you wanting more and gives you more. Enjoyed every minute of this book and hated the author every minute of it too. I recommend this book to any kind of reader because it has something for everyone.

[Aurora]

I've been stuck at chapter 5 (25% in) for half a year now; time to give up the ghost.

[Swan ౨ৎ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it!!

It’s a cute slow burn werewolf story!! I loved it so much especially the end!! Definitely a good novella I would recommend to anyone ❤️

[Amarinske · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was entertaining but not the best thing I've ever read. There was a mistake in the spelling of church jargon and I wish this had been longer.
Where it ended felt like the start of the actual story to me. This kinda just felt like a combination of a prologue and also just a story that needed more space to be told.

[Anna Macke · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remember finding this inoffensive. Literally couldn't tell you anything else about it.