Thank you to Wednesday Books for sharing a copy in exchange for my honest review! So sorry for the late review.
They use magic to silence the world. Who will break the hush? Seventeen-year-old Shae has led a seemingly quiet life, joking with her best friend Fiona, and chatting with Mads, the neighborhood boy who always knows how to make her smile. All while secretly keeping her fears at bay… Of the disease that took her brother’s life. Of how her dreams seem to bleed into reality around her. Of a group of justice seekers called the Bards who claim to use the magic of Telling to keep her community safe. When her mother is murdered, she can no longer pretend. Not knowing who to trust, Shae journeys to unlock the truth, instead finding a new enemy keen to destroy her, a brooding boy with dark secrets, and an untold power she never thought possible. I wanted so badly to like Hush. It's a compelling concept--an illness spread by ink, where telling stories and speaking certain words is forbidden. Unfortunately, I just couldn't get hooked no matter how many times I tried to pick it up. I'm a big proponent for finishing all the books I start. I don't often DNF. So I finished Hush, but it took me over 4 months. Here's a bit of a rude thought I had... sometimes when I read a book written by a celebrity, I wonder if they got published because of true talent or because of connection. Jury's out on this one. As I mentioned, the book doesn't lack conceptually, but in execution. It took 150 pages for anything resembling a plot to set in, and didn't even make up for it with worldbuilding. I don't really understand the magic, the history of the world, or anything else that could be considered notable and original. So much got crammed into the last half of the book--there's something to be said for the reader being in the narrator's mentality, but my word, do we really have to go through it *all* with them? Shae has to learn all about the Bards and we go through that with her for most of the book. Not having any background information until she learns it means that the story's stakes rely on readers being invested in Shae herself. I didn't view Shae as an especially interesting narrator either, but that might just be me holding her to a heightened standard. The moment her training montage started, around 40% through the book, was the beginning of the plot and her intrigue as a narrator. Unfortunately, that was also the beginning of her misplaced insta-love romance. Authors, I love you, but readers do have appreciation for platonic friendships and books with no romance! Not all fantasy novels need a tall-dark-and-handsome love interest. Hush is fairly appropriate for younger teens, despite seeming kind of dark at the outset. There's brief depictions of "madness" and some violence, but not that many graphic images. I wouldn't call Hush an especially sparkling novel... it just didn't speak to me. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't pick it up! This could just be me wanting an inciting incident to actually incite something instead of having to wait 50 pages. I think Hush could also be considered a coming of age novel, which is something I typically dislike mixed into my high fantasy books. Shae leaves her village and learns the truth about her world. On the basis of "it's not you, it's me," I'm giving Hush 3 stars.
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The BaronessHey, I'm Shreya! I love to read, write, travel, and drink tea. Disclosure: I am an affiliate of bookshop.org and I will earn a small commission if you click the above link and make a purchase.
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