The Quiet Child audiobook

An easy read that I got through pretty quickly. A bit slow in the middle but the last 1/3 is great! Starts off with a kidnapping that could so easily be like so many other missing children, traumatised parents, stories... and if it had been just that I would've switched off early doors. But there's quite a bit more to this one and worth getting right to the end. I read someone else refer to a Hitchcock type TV story and I was transported back to Tales of the Unexpected.......

I am going to try to review The Quiet Child as vaguely as possible, because it is a book that could easily be spoiled with too many details and if you like dark and twisty thrillers, you will want to go into it not knowing too much about it. It's set in 1954 Cottonwood, California--interesting to me because Cottonwood is a real town and I lived in nearby Redding as a child--so the town and landscape felt familiar--even if I lived there in the 1970s. Cottonwood is a small town where everyone knows each other, or about each other, which has not been easy on the McCray family as most of the town believes that their six-year-old son, Danny, is the cause of illness and other maladies in the town and he is regarded with suspicion. This isn't easy on his parents--his mother is suffering and weakening from her own illness and his father, Michael, a local high school teacher is trying to cope. While Michael is getting ice cream from the store with Danny and Sean (Danny's 10-year-old brother), a stranger drives off with Michael's car and the boys. Local plumber and part-time Cottonwood Sheriff Jim Kent, along with two Shasta County Sheriff's detectives vow to bring them home--despite the rumors and negative feelings of the town about Danny.I like the historical aspects of police work in the 1950s--it definitely doesn't make crime solving easy, not having the technology we have today. The author keeps the perspective bouncing around several different characters and keeps the chapters short, building the tension steadily and making the pages fly by. There were several twists and although I had parts figured out, there were some things I did not see coming--which I always enjoy. The book is unsettling--after all it is missing children and it seems that besides their mother and the sheriff, not a lot of people seem to really want Danny back in town--which is something that made me stop and think a bit. The story and its ending have some ambiguity--but it works in this case. This is my first book from John Burley (it's his third), but with storytelling like this, I am sure it won't be my last. You can see my full review and a recipe inspired by my reading on my blog post here: http://kahakaikitchen.blogspot.com/20...Note: A review copy of "The Quiet Child" was provided to me by the author and the publisher, Harper Collins, via TLC Book Tours. I was not compensated for this review and as always, my thoughts and opinions are my own.

“The Quiet Child” by John Burley is a book filled with non-stop suspense, mystery, suspicion, and surprises. It is difficult to write a review without spoilers because every event is tied to another. In the summer of 1954, the residents of the small town of Cottonwood in California are shaken by the blatant daylight kidnapping of two children; the family car was stolen with Danny and Sean McCray inside. The search for the boys is complicated because the younger boy, Danny, is a “quiet child” and does not speak. A dark cloud hangs over the residents of Cottonwood as they struggle with a multitude of concerns, the kidnapping of course, but also the economy, the quality of life in the small town, and the health and well-being of friends and family. Things are much more complicated than they seem on the surface, and that ambiguity is the gripping part of the story. Burley has constructed a story so compelling and so full of twists, turns, and startling revelations that it is difficult to describe more of the plot without giving away critical details. Just be advised that each page contains a tiny kink, a compelling question, or an unanticipated turn. The plot is unpredictable and compelling, and every action has a dark side and an unexpected consequence. Burke drops the details slowly, bit by bit, throughout the narrative. Just when things seem to be coming together, here comes another complication. No one is truthful, and not everything is as it appears. “The Quiet Child” is as compelling as it is deceptive; nothing is as it seems. Tension, anticipation, and suspense drag readers into the story. I could not put it down; I was stunned on every page. And yes, it ends with a HUGE bombshell. I heard John Burley speak about “The Quiet Child” at The Book Carnival in Orange, Ca. He is an interesting speaker, and his book is unforgettable.

Wow! A pretty dark plot and I certainly didn't see what was coming at the end! Quite an excellent psychological thriller!

This is an amazing psychological thriller. Although you may probably guess fairly early on who is at fault for the children's disappearance, there is a surprising twist at the end. I think the author captured the essence of small town American in the 1950s. The only problem that I had at first was trying reconcile the mention of Interstate 5. When I was growing up in the 1950s, we never said Interstate...in fact, I don't think Eisenhower signed the Interstate program into existence until the 1956, yet the book takes place in 1954. Even highways we might recognize as Interstates now probably were referred to as Route something else in those days. So that threw me off a little bit, but everything else seemed spot on for the time. Just a great book...it kept me up last night finishing it.

I’m not sure how to describe this book. Not your run of the mill mystery/thriller. Kind of reminded me of a Twilight Zone episode. Definitely kept me engaged! First time reading this author and will be reading more.

This was different! So sad. Well written. Sometimes hard to continue but also couldn't put it down. Three and 3/4 stars, rounded up to 4.

That book was... haunting? Comforting? I don't know, but it'll stick with me. Amazingly well crafted and I loved the shifting viewpoints.

Cottonwood, California is a small town. The kind of town too small for its own police force, where the sheriff and the firemen are volunteer. The kind of town where everyone knows everyone's name and everyone's stories. Kate McCray has always called Cottonwood home, even before she was a McCray. So of course everyone knows Kate and her husband, Michael. And when Kate becomes sick, everyone sympathizes. But Kate and Michael have two sons, Sean and Danny. And Danny doesn't speak. Not only that, but ever since Danny was born, people in Cottonwood have been getting sick. And small town gossip says it's something to do with Danny. So when Danny and Sean are kidnapped, some people think maybe it's for the best that Danny is gone. In spite of all of that, Sheriff Jim Kent is determined to find the boys. Even when almost a week has gone by without any clue as to their whereabouts, he isn't ready to give up. It's not until Michael takes off on his own, though, that Jim gets his first big lead. The Quiet Child makes for a great latest from Burley.First, there are the twists I've come to expect from one of his books. And yes, there are twists here. And even though I had them figured, it actually didn't make the book any less gripping.Second, there's the setting. Not only is this set in a tiny town where everyone knows everyone, it's set in the 1950s. Which makes tracking down two missing boys a different sort of animal than today. And I really appreciated the attention to detail in that regard. There's a piece where Kent and the two detectives assigned to the case end up having to trace a phone call that really brings this home for the reader.Finally, though, this is a story about family. It's about how far you'd go to protect the people you love. Michael is our predominant narrator here and he's struggling. He's struggling as a father and as a husband. His wife is dying, his youngest son doesn't speak, and he knows all too well what the townspeople say about the boy. As the story builds, it becomes clear just why people have attached this superstition to the boy who, by all accounts (and by the pieces we get from his POV), is a good kid. And yet, as the reader you have to wonder if there's merit to the belief that he could be causing the town so much pain. And why.Not that Burley gives us a why in the end. Which is ok too, because it means this is one that sticks with you!

I have really enjoyed the other book that I have read by this author. So, I went into this book with high expectations. I ended up being drawn right into the story right away. I actually read this entire book on my three hour flight last week. It's kind of hard to talk about this book without giving away spoilers, so I'm not going to try. There are a few surprises and the book definitely took a turn that I wasn't expecting. I had to sit on it for a few days to really digest the story and the ending. To be honest, I'm still not sure how I feel. And maybe that is what the book was supposed to do...be one that will stick with me for a long time. I liked it and I didn't at the same time. I was kind of disturbed by some of the events in the story. But at the same time, I had to applaud one decision that Michael made because in the end it had a positive result, but for a huge price. I'm definitely recommending this story. It's well written and I loved the setting. Give it a try and see what you think.