Soundless Review

Soundless by Richelle Mead (268 pages)
My Rating: 3.5 Stars
Date Read: 14 April 2016

Synopsis:

In a village without sound…

For as long as Fei can remember, no one in her village has been able to hear. Rocky terrain and frequent avalanches make it impossible to leave the village, so Fei and her people are at the mercy of a zipline that carries food up the treacherous cliffs from Beiguo, a mysterious faraway kingdom.

When villagers begin to lose their sight, deliveries from the zipline shrink. Many go hungry. Fei and all the people she loves are plunged into crisis, with nothing to look forward to but darkness and starvation.

One girl hears a call to action…

Until one night, Fei is awoken by a searing noise. Sound becomes her weapon.

She sets out to uncover what’s happened to her and to fight the dangers threatening her village. A handsome miner with a revolutionary spirit accompanies Fei on her quest, bringing with him new risks and the possibility of romance. They embark on a majestic journey from the peak of their jagged mountain village to the valley of Beiguo, where a startling truth will change their lives forever…

And unlocks a power that will save her people.

My Review:

I very much enjoyed this novel. The story was so fresh and different than what I have been reading recently. Plus, it's a standalone!!

I enjoyed how Mead attempts to put words to gaining the ability of hearing after coming from a society that has been deaf for centuries. It explored how a person would be able to deal with suddenly being able to hear out of nowhere.

Though I enjoyed this novel, it was not my favorite of hers. There were moments, especially at the end, that I would have liked to see expanded and explained more. I felt like there wasn't enough build up to it for the ending she gave it. It was very reminiscent of a fairy tale where everything gets resolved very quickly.

I wished that more of the magical aspects that were introduced into the story were both introduced earlier and worked into the story more.

That being said, I loved the relationships between the characters, especially between the two sisters. Fei's relationship with Li Wei could have been built up and explained a bit more, thought.

Overall, I enjoyed it, but, like I said, it wasn't my favorite.