Customer Reviews

Beyond the Quiet

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

I'm only a few pages away from finishing this book and so far not totally impressed. It was a pretty easy read and the story kept me interested. But to me a lot of what the main character does is questionable. Why didn't she report the assault by Rick at the open house?!! I thought the whole "Terry" thing very creepy. There's no way I would've jumped into that relationship so quickly...he was borderline stalking her at the beginning. Then there were the explicit sex scenes...I'm no prude...but the author went into way too much detail in some of the scenes. Overall, not too bad for a free book!

I had my doubts about this book from the description. I usually don't go for the sad stories, but in this case I'm so very glad I read it. Lisa was my type of character from beginning to finish. She didn't just follow along with some male, she didn't fall back depend on others yet she also showed a real human side. The author showed us it's okay to be mad at the ones we love, to question everything and find out how to live and love on our own. This story had everything from betrayal to true love, all without staying in a stereotype. Loved it and definitely look forward to reading more from this author.

I don't quite know where to start with this review because there was just so much in this book that was "off". The main character was such a weak person most of the time yet she had a co-worker that was at least 10 years younger who couldn't stand it that she wouldn't jump into bed with him? Plus a man she meets who immediately falls in love with her. She must really be something...yet she's not. She loses her husband and immediately falls "in love" with this man who keeps calling her. Yet, all they really do is have sex. All the time. In intimate detail. I really didn't need to know every little thing. People do still have imaginations although many writers, like movie producers, think we need to have every last detail of what goes on. If there was actual love between Lisa and Terry, I didn't see it.

From close to the beginning, it was obvious what was going to happen with Jenna and Marsh. Again, these characters weren't likeable or intelligent in any way.

A big deal was made about Lisa and how she dressed to look successful. She also acted proper. Yet there were a couple of times she cussed which didn't fit her character at all. It was just kind of tossed in there. And for being so proper it made no sense that she wouldn't report Rick. Plus they called 911, left her car there, and no one contacted her? There were quite a few things like that which made no real sense.

At the end, after finally settling things with her daughter, Lisa said she couldn't wait to move near her and enjoy life with her grandchild and grandchild-to-be, yet all of a sudden she switched and told her daughter to expect her when she saw her. She had things to see. What was that all about? Her daughter probably would've told her to go jump in a lake at that point! And no one would blame her. Lisa changed her mind at the drop of a hat. The whole thing with Terry was odd and unbelievable too. The book just seemed to get more outrageous as it went on. At the beginning I felt bad for Lisa but the more I read the less I cared. None of the characters were believable and most were not at all likeable. Glad I didn't pay for this one.

This book was well-written enough to catch and hold my interest. I finished it for only one reason...to see how many times I'd have to suspend my disbelief and substitute creative license for reason.

Overall, I got impatient with it early on. There were too many things that Lisa did that I just couldn't wrap my mind around. For one thing, not reporting Rick's attack left me wondering. And that he disappears and then pops up again to stalk her isn't believable to me. There was no reason, even that he was supposed to be egomaniacal. There seemed to be no motive for Rick's continuous following Lisa around.

The daughter, Shanna, needed a good spanking when she was little. A total and complete brat, I just couldn't stand it a minute longer. For one thing, a daughter who has a lifelong attitude of condescension, and then wants Lisa to relocate to babysit (at the first visit she mentions this) and then for compassion when she's bleeding... well, that's a daughter that would have a big KMA in my book. I thought her to be a huge spoiled brat with repeated, "okay mom, go live your own life" type thinking - and sometimes saying. I kept thinking I wish she would, and stop trying for "to win back her affection."

The Terry thing was just too strange to be true. Regardless of love at first sight, it was a very weird "true love" so fast on his part. There was so much to laugh about with this union, but my laugh out loud moment was when he died and his wife telling Lisa about the insurance policy in Lisa's name and that "he took it out three weeks before he died." Try getting a life insurance policy when you are terminally ill.

Okay, I really don't know what to say about the Mac/Jenna/Marshall thing as there is not just one thing and it would take a discourse longer than space allows here. Same with the Maggie/Stan thing.

The most entertaining thing about this book was how unbelievable everything was.

The main character Lisa acted immaturely and seemed bipolar many times throughout the book. However, what I really didn't like was how many vulgar innapropriate and dirty scenes there were. It was quite disturbing and only suitable for adults.

I downloaded this to my kindle for free, but I would not recommend reading it, even for free. For me, the main character was immature, even though she was in her mid 40s, and I just couldn't relate to her. The plot line about her husbands death and secret life was the only good thing about this book. I wish the book would have focused on that instead of breaking off into many other subplots. The parts about her stalker/sexual assault and her new lover (with over-the-top-make-you-uncomfortable descriptions) were bad.

This beautifully written book is not your typical storybook romance, but may be more typical of romance in the real world than we, as readers, care to admit. Lisa, the main character, has just lost her husband and has a strained relationship with her only daughter. As she tries to bring her life back to some semblance of normalcy after her husband's prolonged illness, she finds evidence that her life that she tried so hard to make perfect was anything but. This is a mid-life coming of age story. As the story unfolds bit by bit, you feel like you are on the journey of discovery with Lisa as she learns, cries and eventually comes to terms with her life. It's not a, "happily ever after" story, but it is a, "finally able to pursue happiness" one, whether or not you ever find it at all. If you enjoy growing with a character, you'll like this book. Some of the romance scenes may be a bit too detailed for some readers, but the ability to indulge in romance is a vital element in this book. Worth the time to read.

In Brenda Hill's novel, Beyond the Quiet, a grieving widow, Lisa, discovers that her husband led a secret life, deceived her, and took away her financial security. Further, she learns that her husband's brother and his wife, whom she had always loved and trusted, were privy to this betrayal. In the midst of her shock and anguish, she meets another man, Terry. She finds full-on love and passion for the first time in her life. For a few short months, she knows what it's like to love and be loved by someone who truly cherishes her.

Beyond the Quiet is a well-written book that starts with a sedate pace but soon lays out twists and turns that pull the reader into the tale. I soon became emotionally invested in the outcome.

Her husband's death marks the beginning of a journey of enlightenment for Lisa as she is forced to re-examine her marriage, her relationship with her daughter, her capacity for forgiveness, and her automatic lifelong responses to pain and heartache, which were not healthy. She struggles to feel deserving of the joy she discovers with Terry, at the same time trying to establish some autonomy and control over her own destiny.

The erotic scenes between Lisa and Terry are handled with heat, finesse, and tenderness. There is poignancy in Lisa being able to finally experience true closeness, and being able to throw off a lifetime of undeserved shame about her body. Also compelling was Terry's insistence that they enjoy the rare gift of love that was bestowed upon them by fate, an insistence that finally overcame Lisa's reticence and gave her some of the happiest times she had ever known.

Real life simply does not always have happy endings, and this book is very much like real life. I won't include any spoilers in this review; however, I will say the ending of this book had me raving in disappointment. I have never been happy with a Nicholas Sparks ending either, but must concede that he, too, tells a riveting tale. The ending, while not to my liking, was a satisfactory conclusion that neatly tied up any loose ends and echoed hope for Lisa's future. With a bit of pouting, I will admit it is the author's choice to take the story where she will, and this is a great story. I would have no problem recommending this book and feel it was a very well-crafted and engaging work. I certainly would read other books by this author.

This book started off so well and I thought I was in for a real treat. Lisa, who has just lost her husband after a long illness, is going to be tested many times and she has a right to feel the way she does about those tests. I had a real problem with how she was portrayed. She worked hard all her life and never got the appreciation from her family that she deserved. Well...Ms Hill took this character and made her behave in a manner that she just wouldn't have. I had a very hard time believing both Lisa and her dead husband would have exhibited some of the behavior they did. I can fully believe the affair, but not the behavior Max exhibited in the sexual matters of their life, or the financial matters. It was Ms Hill job to make me believe this, and I just didn't. I also didn't buy Lisa's behavior with her daughter. This character just wasn't that selfish in the beginning. There were too many excuses made for her to behave selfishly where her daughter was concerned and I didn't believe them. This book read like Ms Hill lost her characters somewhere, (perhaps deleted them accidentally?) and found new ones and just changed their names so she could finish her story. I am deleting this book from my archives because I will never read it again, and I do love to read a good story over and over. This is one that left a bad taste in my

Ms Hill is a very good story-teller and I will give her another chance. I just hope she doesn't do with another book what she did with this one. I hope she keeps her characters true to who they are when she starts a story, and allow them to keep their dignity. I also hope that she understands that when it comes to sexual scenes, there can be TMI for the type of book she wrote here. It added nothing to the story or the understanding of the characters. She had scenes that are fine for erotica, but this wasn't supposed to be one of those.

I would pass on this book if you have to pay for it. I didn't, it was a free download and I'm glad I didn't waste my money on this as there are too many far better books out there to read.

I also got this book as a kindle freebie. Much to my surprise, as I started the book it was set in my hometown. Everything was accurate down the the smallest detail. It was very surreal. The story line was engaging and I couldn't put it down.
I read it in one afternoon. The only thing I would change is the amount of sex scenes in the book, but I can just skip those. It is well written and very easy to lose yourself in the characters lives. A great read! I will be reading Brenda's other
books, in fact, I have already purchased her first novel.