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infinite_kay's review
4.0
I wasn’t sure what to expect from Speechless : the cover, suiting the title perfectly, says very little about the book.
I’m happy to report that I was very pleasantly surprised. From the start, Chelsea isn’t a really likable character. She is shallow, likes to gossip behind everyone’s back and definitely thinks she’s a little better than most. She talks because she likes the attention, not giving a second thought to the consequences of her actions Chelsea is, without a doubt, a mean girl.
When her words both endanger other kids and put her at the bottom of the social scale, Chelsea’s decision to stop talking is the best she could have made. Sure, it’s not easy: her family, her teachers and the other kids mostly don’t get it. But her silence gives her a new perspective on the way she acts and thinks. The change is realistically slow, but as Chelsea gets rid of her old ways, it gets slowly easier to like her and root for her. I could only imagine how hard it was not to talk in some of these situations. Whether you like her or not, you can certainly admire her determination. If I’m being honest, I’m not sure I could have done the same!
I also appreciated the cast of characters surrounding her. Her parents’ worrying felt true (I’m a bit tired of conveniently absent parents, though I know they are also needed in the YA fictional world), and I liked that not all of her teachers reacted the same way. I loved her new friends. Asha was perfectly sweet, and Andy was angry without being unreasonably spiteful. As for Sam, he was just that good, sweet, charming guy you just know Chelsea will develop feelings for. It was sweet, really!
I felt contented when I read Speechless‘ last pages. The story offered a nice progression, and Chelsea’s transition from mean girl to mostly-good girl was believable. I do wish some of the characters had been more developed, but all in all, it was a good read that left me in a positive mood.
I’m happy to report that I was very pleasantly surprised. From the start, Chelsea isn’t a really likable character. She is shallow, likes to gossip behind everyone’s back and definitely thinks she’s a little better than most. She talks because she likes the attention, not giving a second thought to the consequences of her actions Chelsea is, without a doubt, a mean girl.
When her words both endanger other kids and put her at the bottom of the social scale, Chelsea’s decision to stop talking is the best she could have made. Sure, it’s not easy: her family, her teachers and the other kids mostly don’t get it. But her silence gives her a new perspective on the way she acts and thinks. The change is realistically slow, but as Chelsea gets rid of her old ways, it gets slowly easier to like her and root for her. I could only imagine how hard it was not to talk in some of these situations. Whether you like her or not, you can certainly admire her determination. If I’m being honest, I’m not sure I could have done the same!
I also appreciated the cast of characters surrounding her. Her parents’ worrying felt true (I’m a bit tired of conveniently absent parents, though I know they are also needed in the YA fictional world), and I liked that not all of her teachers reacted the same way. I loved her new friends. Asha was perfectly sweet, and Andy was angry without being unreasonably spiteful. As for Sam, he was just that good, sweet, charming guy you just know Chelsea will develop feelings for. It was sweet, really!
I felt contented when I read Speechless‘ last pages. The story offered a nice progression, and Chelsea’s transition from mean girl to mostly-good girl was believable. I do wish some of the characters had been more developed, but all in all, it was a good read that left me in a positive mood.
bookishmadness's review against another edition
5.0
What it's about: A teenage girl who can't keep secrets decides to take a vow of silence after she almost gets a boy killed because she couldn't keep a secret.
What I thought: I was worried that this book was going to annoy me that Chelsea couldn't talk. I know, that's the whole point of the story, but still, I wasn't sure how it was going to go. But I don't even know why I worried because Hannah Harrington is an amazing writer and she wrote this story perfectly! This story made me cringe, made me laugh but most of all, made me cry (in a good way of course!).
The good: Chelsea Chelsea Chelsea. WOW. What a fantastic character. I absolutely love when characters make a massive personality/life change and this was it. Chelsea starts being popular and stuck-up, judging people by their looks, only caring about parties and shopping and ignoring school. As she struggles through her vow of silence, she learns about what it is like to be on the receiving end of the bullying. She learns about people by watching and listening, and learns not to judge. The changes she goes through is tremendous and Chelsea is a strong character who takes it all in her stride. All the supporting characters are amazing, I wanted to be part of their little group. Sam, yes it is obvious from the beginning that Chelsea will develop feelings for me, but that doesn't make it any less lovable!
The bad: I was slightly annoyed that it took Chelsea so long to move on from her friendship with Kristen. Yes, they were best friends for ages, but even Chelsea could see most of it was a lie, but she clung on for so long, I wanted to slap her a bit.
Rating: 5 bookstacks
What I thought: I was worried that this book was going to annoy me that Chelsea couldn't talk. I know, that's the whole point of the story, but still, I wasn't sure how it was going to go. But I don't even know why I worried because Hannah Harrington is an amazing writer and she wrote this story perfectly! This story made me cringe, made me laugh but most of all, made me cry (in a good way of course!).
The good: Chelsea Chelsea Chelsea. WOW. What a fantastic character. I absolutely love when characters make a massive personality/life change and this was it. Chelsea starts being popular and stuck-up, judging people by their looks, only caring about parties and shopping and ignoring school. As she struggles through her vow of silence, she learns about what it is like to be on the receiving end of the bullying. She learns about people by watching and listening, and learns not to judge. The changes she goes through is tremendous and Chelsea is a strong character who takes it all in her stride. All the supporting characters are amazing, I wanted to be part of their little group. Sam, yes it is obvious from the beginning that Chelsea will develop feelings for me, but that doesn't make it any less lovable!
The bad: I was slightly annoyed that it took Chelsea so long to move on from her friendship with Kristen. Yes, they were best friends for ages, but even Chelsea could see most of it was a lie, but she clung on for so long, I wanted to slap her a bit.
Rating: 5 bookstacks
shizbizz's review
5.0
Finally a well written book with perfectly flawed characters! this is the kind of book you can breeze through and feel content at the ending. I adored reading it, just fabulous :D
secretmagic's review against another edition
5.0
This book was fantastic! Not only does it approach the idea of anti-discrimination (and fabulously - attacking people is not good!) But it's was also a really cute and heartfelt story about living with mistakes and learning to get past that - changing your image of yourself and becoming a better person.
I adored that main character, Chelsea, just continued to grow. You judge her immediately for the rumours and gossip she spreads and then you see just how much those same pieces of gossip tore her apart. I loved that she never moved backwards. Often YA contemporaries have this pattern when the main character falls back on their old ways before realising they really were heading in the right direction before - but Chelsea doesn't waver and she just keeps improving. It was so good to watch unfold.
I think I'm a little in love with Sam. Not only was he a nice bloke, but a really good friend. I liked him a lot.
I've heard amazing things about Hannah Harrington's other book Saving June - if it's anywhere close to being as awesome as Speechless I'll be running off to get a copy VERY soon!
5/5 stars
I adored that main character, Chelsea, just continued to grow. You judge her immediately for the rumours and gossip she spreads and then you see just how much those same pieces of gossip tore her apart. I loved that she never moved backwards. Often YA contemporaries have this pattern when the main character falls back on their old ways before realising they really were heading in the right direction before - but Chelsea doesn't waver and she just keeps improving. It was so good to watch unfold.
I think I'm a little in love with Sam. Not only was he a nice bloke, but a really good friend. I liked him a lot.
I've heard amazing things about Hannah Harrington's other book Saving June - if it's anywhere close to being as awesome as Speechless I'll be running off to get a copy VERY soon!
5/5 stars
lorilaws's review
5.0
Speechless by Hannah Harrington hit a little close to home for me. I had a hard time in high school. I had a really close nit group of friends going in but our friendship just seemed to fall apart that first year. Then things just got ugly. I’m sure today it would be referred to as bullying now, but at that time and in a super small school bullying wasn’t something you heard about often. Like Chelsea, I definitely wasn’t innocent. I did my fair share of name calling, but others just crossed a invisible line into being hateful and hurtful. So, that’s my long winded way of saying that Speechless was very real to me and I loved every page.
What’s so great about Speechless is that it’s about some serious topics, but there’s also some undertones that make the story sweet. I loved watching Chelsea make new friends and really come into her own with them. Man, I remember what it was like to pretend to love things just to fit in with your ‘friends’. I also remember how amazing it was when I realized I didn’t have to do that. Being a teenager was the worst, wasn’t it? It was pretty amazing seeing Chelsea make these realizations and really start to be herself. Plus, there’s a pretty adorable and swooney romance.
Chelsea was a very, very well done character. She was so strong. She definitely made mistakes, but she learned from them and came out a better person because of them. She’s the kind of character that teenagers should be reading about. You would be hard pressed to not see a little bit of yourself in her. Her growth throughout the story was extraordinary. She was very admirable and just a pleasure to spend 260 pages with.
Hannah Harrington has solidified her place in the YA contemporary genre with Speechless. It’s a beautiful story with an important message. I can’t recommend it enough.
What’s so great about Speechless is that it’s about some serious topics, but there’s also some undertones that make the story sweet. I loved watching Chelsea make new friends and really come into her own with them. Man, I remember what it was like to pretend to love things just to fit in with your ‘friends’. I also remember how amazing it was when I realized I didn’t have to do that. Being a teenager was the worst, wasn’t it? It was pretty amazing seeing Chelsea make these realizations and really start to be herself. Plus, there’s a pretty adorable and swooney romance.
Chelsea was a very, very well done character. She was so strong. She definitely made mistakes, but she learned from them and came out a better person because of them. She’s the kind of character that teenagers should be reading about. You would be hard pressed to not see a little bit of yourself in her. Her growth throughout the story was extraordinary. She was very admirable and just a pleasure to spend 260 pages with.
Hannah Harrington has solidified her place in the YA contemporary genre with Speechless. It’s a beautiful story with an important message. I can’t recommend it enough.
icarriebooks's review
4.0
Chelsea Knot can't keep a secret for longer than five minutes and after exposing a rather large and personal secret and then seeing the effects it has on people. Chelsea decides to take a vow of silence so she can never tell another secret.
Speechless is one of those books that grabs you from the very first page and doesn't let go until the very end.
The book starts with Chelsea learning of a secret that she sees at a friend's new year party and after spilling this secret and seeing the devastating effects it has on people. Chelsea decides that taking a vow of silence will be the best way for her to never tell a secret again.
Once she starts her vow of silence Chelsea is soon made an outcast in her school and finds out that the people who she though her were friends won't stand by her. However Chelsea soon finds out that there are real friends who will stand by her and she even discovers love.
The writing style of Hannah Harrington makes the book run along at a good pace and there is humor dotted throughout the book. Hannah also manages to portray how difficult being at school while being a teenage can actually be.
Speechless is one of those books that grabs you from the very first page and doesn't let go until the very end.
The book starts with Chelsea learning of a secret that she sees at a friend's new year party and after spilling this secret and seeing the devastating effects it has on people. Chelsea decides that taking a vow of silence will be the best way for her to never tell a secret again.
Once she starts her vow of silence Chelsea is soon made an outcast in her school and finds out that the people who she though her were friends won't stand by her. However Chelsea soon finds out that there are real friends who will stand by her and she even discovers love.
The writing style of Hannah Harrington makes the book run along at a good pace and there is humor dotted throughout the book. Hannah also manages to portray how difficult being at school while being a teenage can actually be.
hdbblog's review
4.0
To be honest, the very first thing I noticed about Speechless was the gorgeous cover. I realize you might find that a little odd. There are no faces, no swirls, no fancy typeface to draw in the reader. However it is exactly the lack of all those accoutrements that caught my eye. Simplistic. Beautiful. A blank slate. Then, the synopsis. Thank you whoever wrote this! Thank you so very much for not giving away the entire plot in a few paragraphs. I promise you, vague or not, this synopsis is perfection. Speechless holds much more than you are expecting.
Chelsea Knot is definitely not a perfect person. What she is, is realistic. A girl who is flawed, selfish, and raw. Harrington starts out the book by showing us a Chelsea that is pretty easy to dislike. One who spreads rumors, and hurts people. However as she learns the error of her ways, she grows by leaps and bounds. The Chelsea at the end of Speechless is an entirely different person, and just being there for her journey will make you fall in love. In fact, the entire cast of characters that support Chelsea in her time of need are easy to love. I could go on and on about Asha, Sam, Dex and Lou, but I won't. I'll let you meet them for yourself.
What I loved most about this book is that Chelsea's story is full of hope. It is full of growth, and understanding. Speechless touches on tough topics, and it does it well. Instead of relying on angst to draw the reader in, we get to dive deep in Chelsea's head and learn right along with her. There is a message here, that bridges that gap between all ages that might pick up this book. I think Harrington says it best with: "Hate is... it's too easy," he says. "Love. Love takes courage."
Despite it taking some time for me to feel the writing style of the book, I soon became immersed. In fact, a sigh escaped my lips when I reached the last page. A sigh of contentment at how perfectly this book is paced, and executed. Even the romance in this book is spot on, and builds slowly. Gorgeous. Speechless has just further cemented my opinion that Hannah Harrington is a master of her craft.
Chelsea Knot is definitely not a perfect person. What she is, is realistic. A girl who is flawed, selfish, and raw. Harrington starts out the book by showing us a Chelsea that is pretty easy to dislike. One who spreads rumors, and hurts people. However as she learns the error of her ways, she grows by leaps and bounds. The Chelsea at the end of Speechless is an entirely different person, and just being there for her journey will make you fall in love. In fact, the entire cast of characters that support Chelsea in her time of need are easy to love. I could go on and on about Asha, Sam, Dex and Lou, but I won't. I'll let you meet them for yourself.
What I loved most about this book is that Chelsea's story is full of hope. It is full of growth, and understanding. Speechless touches on tough topics, and it does it well. Instead of relying on angst to draw the reader in, we get to dive deep in Chelsea's head and learn right along with her. There is a message here, that bridges that gap between all ages that might pick up this book. I think Harrington says it best with: "Hate is... it's too easy," he says. "Love. Love takes courage."
Despite it taking some time for me to feel the writing style of the book, I soon became immersed. In fact, a sigh escaped my lips when I reached the last page. A sigh of contentment at how perfectly this book is paced, and executed. Even the romance in this book is spot on, and builds slowly. Gorgeous. Speechless has just further cemented my opinion that Hannah Harrington is a master of her craft.
alysses's review
3.0
3.5
I was drawn in by the cover. You might be thinking it’s plain or simple but to me it’s one of the most powerful covers out there. Just look at it for a while. Powerful.
I was then drawn in by the intriguing synopsis. A girl speaks one word too many, places lives in jeopardy and decides to take a vow of silence. I’m thinking, “OK, this is going to be deep! Let’s see what it’s about.” And I did.
I finished this book about a week ago and I’ve been mulling it over, trying to decide how I felt and finding it hard to put those feelings into words.
I felt that the book was written well. There are very strong messages laced within the pages of Speechless. Chelsea Knot is a born gossiper. She loves to talk about everyone under the sun. It’s not until her mouth instigates a beating resulting in one of her classmates nearly dying from that beating that she steps back and realizes that her mouth is dangerous.
Chelsea’s obnoxious and toxic right from page one. On the flip side you feel her remorse almost immediately after she realizes what she set in motion. This is why I didn’t hate Chelsea, but I didn’t like her very much. Imagine my surprise when Chelsea picks up an article where she reads of an individual who took a vow of silence for spiritual reasons and Chelsea thinks a vow of silence is exactly what she needs to set herself straight.
It was interesting to see how things played out from that point forward. Chelsea, losing all of her cool friends as they all turn their backs on her in a most nasty fashion, finds friendship and peace in the most unexpected people and places. I really liked all of the secondary characters. They were well developed, incredibly likable and accepting. They were honest to goodness good people and that too was refreshing. The most interesting secondary character introduced in this book was Asha. Asha had a great soul and a knack for making everyone around her comfortable and wanted. She saw the good in Chelsea, didn’t think she deserved all that was happening to her, and convinced her crew to give her a chance. Unfortunately, we don’t really get to know Asha as much as I would have liked to and although Chelsea admits that she never talks about Asha’s personal life, she never really tries to find out more about her either.
Chelsea’s journey was an impressive one. It was a time for growth and restraint. She kept her vow for a month and knew that she wanted her first words to be important and worth speaking. The story however, fell short when Chelsea finally does speak and goes back to being who she was when she first started her journey. She wasn’t as obnoxious or as nasty but it was noticeable. Disappointing. It could possibly be that the author wanted us to appreciate the steps Chelsea took to improve her character but at the same time realize that you can’t change that drastically within a month's time and that it will be a work in progress for a long time to come. This is me looking at it with a positive outlook. Trying to spin it so that it could be as positive as possible… This is me trying to convince myself… Hmmm…
Another let down was some of the language used in this book. I don’t only read these books for entertainment purposes. I read them in hopes of introducing a great read to my son and my nieces. I personally wouldn’t want them reading some of the words in here and I know for a fact they wouldn’t like to read them either. It wasn’t necessary and could have been edited out and perhaps the final copy will have it taken out. Who knows?
Overall, because of the many positives that our young people can walk away with, primarily that words hurt, tear down and ruin lives, coupled with the great Q&A included at the end of the book that can spark up great conversations, I can’t help but to recommend that everyone read this book.
ARC was provided by Harlequin Teen via NetGalley.
I was drawn in by the cover. You might be thinking it’s plain or simple but to me it’s one of the most powerful covers out there. Just look at it for a while. Powerful.
I was then drawn in by the intriguing synopsis. A girl speaks one word too many, places lives in jeopardy and decides to take a vow of silence. I’m thinking, “OK, this is going to be deep! Let’s see what it’s about.” And I did.
I finished this book about a week ago and I’ve been mulling it over, trying to decide how I felt and finding it hard to put those feelings into words.
I felt that the book was written well. There are very strong messages laced within the pages of Speechless. Chelsea Knot is a born gossiper. She loves to talk about everyone under the sun. It’s not until her mouth instigates a beating resulting in one of her classmates nearly dying from that beating that she steps back and realizes that her mouth is dangerous.
Chelsea’s obnoxious and toxic right from page one. On the flip side you feel her remorse almost immediately after she realizes what she set in motion. This is why I didn’t hate Chelsea, but I didn’t like her very much. Imagine my surprise when Chelsea picks up an article where she reads of an individual who took a vow of silence for spiritual reasons and Chelsea thinks a vow of silence is exactly what she needs to set herself straight.
It was interesting to see how things played out from that point forward. Chelsea, losing all of her cool friends as they all turn their backs on her in a most nasty fashion, finds friendship and peace in the most unexpected people and places. I really liked all of the secondary characters. They were well developed, incredibly likable and accepting. They were honest to goodness good people and that too was refreshing. The most interesting secondary character introduced in this book was Asha. Asha had a great soul and a knack for making everyone around her comfortable and wanted. She saw the good in Chelsea, didn’t think she deserved all that was happening to her, and convinced her crew to give her a chance. Unfortunately, we don’t really get to know Asha as much as I would have liked to and although Chelsea admits that she never talks about Asha’s personal life, she never really tries to find out more about her either.
Chelsea’s journey was an impressive one. It was a time for growth and restraint. She kept her vow for a month and knew that she wanted her first words to be important and worth speaking. The story however, fell short when Chelsea finally does speak and goes back to being who she was when she first started her journey. She wasn’t as obnoxious or as nasty but it was noticeable. Disappointing. It could possibly be that the author wanted us to appreciate the steps Chelsea took to improve her character but at the same time realize that you can’t change that drastically within a month's time and that it will be a work in progress for a long time to come. This is me looking at it with a positive outlook. Trying to spin it so that it could be as positive as possible… This is me trying to convince myself… Hmmm…
Another let down was some of the language used in this book. I don’t only read these books for entertainment purposes. I read them in hopes of introducing a great read to my son and my nieces. I personally wouldn’t want them reading some of the words in here and I know for a fact they wouldn’t like to read them either. It wasn’t necessary and could have been edited out and perhaps the final copy will have it taken out. Who knows?
Overall, because of the many positives that our young people can walk away with, primarily that words hurt, tear down and ruin lives, coupled with the great Q&A included at the end of the book that can spark up great conversations, I can’t help but to recommend that everyone read this book.
ARC was provided by Harlequin Teen via NetGalley.