The Silent House by Nell Pattison

☆☆☆☆
ebook, 387 pages
Expected publication: March 5th 2020 by Avon Books UK
About the Book:
If someone was in your house, you’d know. Wouldn’t you? But the Hunter family are deaf, and don’t hear a thing when a shocking crime takes place in the middle of the night. Instead, they wake up to their worst nightmare. The police call Paige Northwood to the scene to interpret for the witnesses. They’re in shock, but Paige senses the Hunters are hiding something. One by one, people Paige knows from the Deaf community start to fall under suspicion. But who would kill a little girl? Was it an intruder? Or was the murderer closer to home?

Only when Elisha snapped, ‘I’m deaf, not stupid,’ did the officer shut up and let me take over.

Full disclosure here, I am deaf and I wanted to read this because I am deaf. As far as I know the author isn't deaf BUT...
After studying English at university, Nell Pattison became a teacher and specialised in Deaf education. She has been teaching in the Deaf community for 12 years in both England and Scotland, working with students who use British Sign Language.

I could tell very quickly that the author knew what she was writing about, as far as the deaf community goes. How we struggle to find work (I am lucky that way) and communicate with those who aren't deaf. One of my favourite quotes from the book goes something like this...
Contrary to popular belief, lip reading isn’t easy when you don’t know the context of what people are talking about, and only twenty per cent of English speech sounds can be seen on the lips – my brain has to fill in the rest. I read lips and reading that made my day!

The Silent House is a slow burning police procedural that is quite atmospheric. Paige is a sympathetic addition to the case. And although I liked Laura as a protagonist, her propensity to ignore problems was a little frustrating. There is definitely a sinister element to the unfolding story. While the first two thirds of the novel are a little slow, the final third moves at a blistering pace. With unexpected twists and stunning turns, Nell Pattison brings this spellbinding mystery to an absolutely jaw-dropping conclusion. A fantastic debut that I really enjoyed and highly recommend to fans of the genre.

Thank you NetGalley, Nell Pattison and Avon Books UK for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an impartial review; all opinions are my own.

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