The Quality of Silence by Rosamund Lupton
Serena, Grade 12
Rating: 3.5/5
“The Quality of Silence” by Rosamund Lupton starts with Yasmin and her daughter Ruby at Fairbanks Airport. Yasmin can’t get in touch with her husband, Matt, who is a filmmaker working in Alaska, and who they are supposed to meet. They soon hear that there was a terrible accident in the village he was staying at, and are told that he is dead. Despite all of the evidence from the police, Yasmin refuses to believe her husband is dead and decides to go find him herself. We also get to see things from Ruby’s perspective. Ruby, who is 10-years-old and deaf, isn’t aware of everything that is going on, and thinks that she and her mom are just going to meet her dad.
Soon enough, Yasmin and Ruby are in a huge truck on the way to find Matt. They think that the extremely cold weather and horrific road conditions are all they have to worry about, but when many other unexpected things happen on the way, they are not so sure that they will be able to make it. They know they can’t trust everyone they meet, but they may have to if they want to see Matt again. On top of all of this, Yasmin struggles to get Ruby to understand the situation, as she wants to protect her and her innocence, but knows that she will eventually find out the truth. Many times along the way, Yasmin wonders whether or not she is in denial or if there is actually a chance that her husband is alive.
I give this book a 3.5/5. I enjoyed the relationship portrayed by Yasmin and Ruby, especially how it develops as the story goes on. I also really enjoyed the setting of the book and the mood it created for the plot. I would recommend this book to those who like adventure books and want to read about family and mystery.