The Second Silence [Hardcover]

Eileen Goudge (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2000

A mother's worst nightmare brought to life unites a family in this searing, taut new novel by the bestselling author of One Last Dance.

Romantic, suspenseful, and utterly compelling, The Second Silence takes us into the breaking heart of Noelle Van Doren, whose only child is snatched from her by her estranged husband, Robert, a powerful real estate developer. As Noelle, Mary, and Charlie, her long-estranged parents, frantically peel away layers of mystery regarding Robert's past, the lives of each begin to change in unexpectedly wrenching ways. For Charlie and Mary, the years apart have made them realize that one's first love is often one's best love, but now new obstacles stand in their way. Noelle is astonished to discover her ability to open her heart to a new love.

An engrossing drama, her most suspenseful yet, Eileen Goudge's The Second Silence will keep readers transfixed from beginning to end.

Praise for One Last Dance:

"Goudge's characters leap from the page ready to engage readers [in] rapid page-turing and late nights..."--Denver Rocky Mountain News

"A writer who knows how to entertain." --Kirkus Reviews

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In her seventh novel, best-selling Goudge (One Last Dance) delivers every modern cliche required to satisfy readers who like their fiction titillating and predictable. Recovering alcoholic Noelle Van Doren informs her domineering, philandering husband, Robert, that she wants a divorce. Robert is an unscrupulous real estate developer whose deals routinely destroy historical buildings and damage the environment, and he doesn't like rejection. He avenges himself on Noelle by inviting her to dinner at a popular restaurant where he slips a drug into her soda that makes her appear to be drunk. He then snatches their five-year-old daughter, Emma, and embarks on a campaign to discredit Noelle and gain sole custody. Meanwhile, Goudge interweaves the story of Mary and Charlie, Noelle's long-divorced parents. Mary conceived Noelle while still in high school. Though she and Charlie attempted to make a go of their marriage, they were thwarted by family interference. The pair are reunited in the quest to exonerate Noelle of Robert's unfair accusation that she is an unfit mother. The novel's central issues are noble but executed without imagination: power-hungry Robert is the perfect villain; Noelle the passive wife and mother finding the strength to take control of her life; and Mary and Charlie's reignited romance proves that first love is best. Peripheral characters include Noelle's teenage sister, Bronwyn, who is deflowered with care and sensitivity by wrong-side-of-the-tracks Dante, a misunderstood fellow with "a bad-boy smile and bedroom eyes" who's caught up in Robert's evil plan. The narrator's voice alternates between folksy and New Age therapy speak, yielding few surprises in this glorified Harlequin romance. 4-city author tour. (June)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Fans will be elated to see the seventh novel in 11 years by Goudge (Thorns of Truth). In a small New York town, Noelle Van Doren struggles to separate from her powerful husband, Robert, and regain custody of the young daughter he's taken from her. Her parents, former schoolmates of Robert who divorced as teenagers, unite in their efforts to help her, as do other family members. New and old loves emerge from the deadly shadow cast by "Mr. Perfect" (i.e., Robert). Goudge delivers romance, a variety of relationships, and suspense in one appealing package. Public libraries of all sizes will need to get this title.
-DRebecca Sturm Kelm, Northern Kentucky Univ. Lib., Highland Heights
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Viking Adult; 1ST edition (June 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670891592
• ISBN-13: 978-0670891597
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,744,200 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I was born on the Fourth of July, and it's been fireworks ever since. I began writing at age eight, with short stories and poems, and I haven't looked back since. From the early days of mostly collecting rejection slips, I went on to publish thirty-two novels for young adults, thirteen (and still counting) of women's fiction, as well as numerous short stories and magazine articles, and one cookbook.

Often I'm asked where I get my ideas. Fortunately, I have a wealth of life experiences to draw from. Starting when I dropped out of college to get married, at age eighteen. Two years later I was divorced, with a baby son and no means of support. I ended up briefly on welfare, and stood in line for government surplus food. But every cloud has its silver lining, and this one led to my determination to make it as a professional writer. I borrowed a typewriter, and lacking a desk, plunked it down on the living room floor. The rest, as they say, is history.

Following a string of young adult novels, I published my first adult novel, GARDEN OF LIES, in 1986. The saga of baby girls switched at birth---one rich, the other poor---went on to enjoy a combined total of 16 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, in hardcover and paperback. Though there's no such thing as an overnight success, I felt like one, having gone in a matter of months from not knowing how I was going to pay the rent to wondering what I was going to do with all that money. The first thing I did was fulfill a fantasy born of years of wearing hand-me-downs: I walked into Saks Fifth Avenue and bought a dress...without even looking at the price tag!

I've since gone on to write many more novels. My most recent, which came out in June of '07, is WOMAN IN RED, a very special story about a woman just out of prison and a man struggling to get back on his feet after losing his wife on 9/11. Look for it in trade paperback in May of this year. I also have another hardcover coming out,in June, titled DOMESTIC AFFAIRS ---a Cinderalla story in reverse: Riches to rags but with a happy ending. I'll be posting sample chapters on my website at www.eileengoudge.com, so stay tuned. I would love to hear your comments once you've read the book! And, remember, there's always more where that came from...

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ms. Goudge has a gift for language., July 17, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Second Silence (Hardcover)

I am always amazed at how an author can change hats and carry me off to another world. Eileen Goudge has often transported me into wonderful worlds where the characters become people I can imagine right next door. The Second Silence proves that she can step out of a more typical mold and create characters and situations that are very real and intense. I felt like I knew these people. I can only imagine how hard it is fit the puzzles of a book together. In my opinion Ms. Goudge is one of the best. Her use of our language should be studied by other authors. As I enjoy reading her stories, I also feel as though I am enjoying literature worthy of a great writer. Eileen Goudge is a great writer. You'll love reading this book if you love language, emotion, conflict and resolution. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did.

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Goudge always delivers, June 5, 2000

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Second Silence (Hardcover)

In Burns Lake, New York, after eight years of marriage, Noelle Van Doren informs her spouse Robert that their relationship is over. No one messes with Robert, a cruel developer who willingly destroys people, historical sites, and the environment. Robert refuses to go quietly. He concocts a plan to make Noelle look like a drunken loser. He abducts their little girl Emma more as a punishment of Noelle than for any love of the child.

If it only involved her, Noelle would have probably accepted Robert's scheme without a whimper. However, no one will harm Emma without Noelle interceding. With the help of her parents, who divorced long ago in spite of their love for one another, Noelle begins to fight back in an attempt to regain her reputation and more importantly, her beloved Emma.

Best selling author Eileen Goudge provides her fans with a suspense-laden relationship drama. The story line is exciting and entertaining even as it switches between the modern Van Doren subplot and that of the 1969 tale involving Noelle's parents. The charcaters are for the most part genre stereotypes. The odious Robert is made so amoral that he turns into a caricature of a villain. Still with Ms. Goudge's talent she makes the duel themes of second chances at love and redemption succeed in an engaging tale.

Harriet Klausner

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pleasant surprise on first encounter, August 5, 2002

By 

G. Bowser "gloryb28" (NEW YORK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Second Silence (Paperback)

It amazes me how 10 people can read the same book and either love it or hate it. This is the first book by Goudge that I have read; I went into it cold and did not read the reviews until I finished it. Not being an avid reader of romance books, it was a surprise to see that it was combined with my favorite genre: mystery-thriller. You can get the details from other reviewers if that is what you are looking for but I say, read it and judge it for yourself. True, it may sound like a soap opera but aren't our lives the basis for those soaps?Every body has to make decisions that ultimately affect the lives of others and your decisions will have great impact that you never in your life could imagine. In this story, decisons made 4 generations ago lead to a terror-riden climax with a beautiful ending. See if you can identify with the different characters in your own family's generations. I did and saw a lot of "what if"s as we all do. Enjoy the book just to get away from all the stress and obscentities of today's pressures.At least you can put the book down but you can't put your own life on hold!!