The Silent Treatment

The Silent Treatment by Abbie Greaves is a painful, yet hopeful story about a dysfunctional family, and how a husband and wife each learn to find their voice after 40 years of hiding their truths. What makes The Silent Treatment interesting is that for the first two-thirds of the book, the husband is telling the story of their marriage, while in the final third of the book, the wife tells the story of their marriage from her perspective. Both are sure that their passivity and failure to speak up is to blame for all the misfortunes that had befallen them. Though they both love each other deeply, neither were able to turn to each other for council and support, until it was far too late. This book was riveting and after a bit of a slow start, it drew me in so deeply, it was difficult to step out of the world of these characters without feeling lingering vestiges of their sadness and pain. The dueling perspectives reminded me of the books The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, and The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessey, by Rachel Joyce, which were just as excellent as this title. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 on our Ripe Reads Goodreads group for literature featuring mature adult characters.

Hardcover 304 pages, Audiobook 9 hours 26 minutes