A review by kfriend
In Silence She Screams by Amo Jones
5.0
Jaw dropping, consuming, perplexing and unforgettable. In Silence She Screams may do just that- have you screaming into the silence as you lay bare, heart bleeding, soul raw. It’s a dark and twisted puzzle and beautiful but disturbing love story, one that cuts deep, and then cuts deeper. And a story that showcases the very best of Amo Jones’ writing- bold, unapologetically gothic, ferociously told, and dynamically mind bending. And most certainly my favorite of the series. Brava!
Combining all of these worlds I knew it would be a TRIP. And what a trip it was. THESE CHARACTERS! Lord these characters. Complicated, toxic, broken, unapologetically unredeemable- and they will own you. They are magnetic in their self-actualization, in their assertive energy. Each is a commanding force, they’ll spit you up and chew you out long before you figure out the depths of their hearts- before they themselves even know who and what they are. It’s what I love so much about Amo’s character writing- her characters are frenetic and volatile, so wrapped up in their own games and mired in their own baggage, that their journey is often a surprise to them, too.
Lilith is perhaps the most beautiful encapsulation of that character approach. What a heroine, my goodness. She’s this story’s center- it’s ethos, pathos, and logos- which is a shock in and of itself since she really doesn’t have any of those. She feels nothing, she can’t be trusted, and her instincts aren’t anywhere close to logical. She seemingly has no heart, yet somehow Amo lets us feel it beat. We’re in her head, yet she’s a mystery to us. She’s more than complicated- she’s an inception level puzzle. She’s twisted, volatile, deranged and unpredictable. She makes Harley Quinn seem tame. But despite the stoic darkness that Amo uses to accentuate her “otherness” we connect with her so deeply. As this story unfolds we explore the nature vs. nurture aspect of LIlith’s soul- and discover that the atrocities she’s committed are nothing compared to the horrific acts she’s endured. Unpacking her pains doesn’t soften her- Amo let’s her be a dark queen. And I loved how unmovable she is- she owns her scars, embraces them in fact. She’s an unbreakable force- and I don’t think we’ve ever had an Amo heroine as terrifying or as moving. Her brokenness is her ammunition.
And then we have Eli and Kyrin- also broken, all struggling with their own demons. Kyrin is a dark king- broody, possessive, detached, cold and calculating. He makes some hard and unexpected decisions - ones that frustrate and invigorate me in his boldness. And then there is Eli- the character who surprised me most. He just vibrates with energy- and while he has the dark capacity of his lovers, he’s also the light. The easiest to love, the easiest to give love. He’s the sinister teddy bear, and in many ways, the catalyst to the feelings this throuple find. Of course, it’s “feelings” on their terms- carnal, raw, unshaped and even unfamiliar. Unsettling and toxic, perhaps, but just perfect for them. They are all broken pieces- jagged, sharp edged, dangerously cracked- but together their sharp edges fit into a perfect whole. Together they find the strength and safey to conquer their demons- to confront the parts of themselves they’ve buried. Their connection is spiritual, complicated, MESSY- and completely enthralling.
Like so many other Amo Jones books, this plot in this story redefines dark suspense. To say there are twists and jaw dropping surprises is an understatement- this story is more like walking on broken glass, bleeding as you try to figure out just what the heck was broken. I’ve learned to trust Amo and her vision, but this one challenged me in that. The story goes where I don’t expect it, and the pain that we experience in the past and present is pretty soul-shattering. Fair warning on triggers- the darkness felt even more macabre and unsettling than I’ve experienced in Amo before- it hurt me physically just to read it. This story is a big ole complicated puzzle- one where we’re missing most of the pieces. But the way it comes together- MIND BLOWN. I thought I knew- but I knew nothing. And in the end, lurking beneath all the dark bravado, all the gritty pain and emotional terrors, there is a unique and morbidly beautiful love. An epic love.
Amo Jones always somehow unsettles and inspires- she drowns us in pain and brokenness only to help us find peace and beauty in it. And our characters don’t survive- they thrive, they are somehow freed by it. Because the love they find together helps them capture the dark, their trauma, their pain- their love helps them somehow swallow it, embrace it into their being in ways that empower, rather than degrade. That’s the power of love- even if it doesn’t look anything like our romanticized version of it. Because in Amo’s worlds, love can grow even in the darkest of places, even from within utter depravity, even when the lovers have no feelings or heart. This is a love that we can not understand truly- but we can FEEL- every last scream. Every last word. Until the shocking end.
That ending. No words- only a fractured heart and breathless silence. I sit here speechless and torn apart, but I’m also hopeful and tender. And that is just the magic of Amo Jones- how somehow dredging through the darkness with her merciless carnies, I find a sense of peace and optimism. Hands down my favorite in the series!
Combining all of these worlds I knew it would be a TRIP. And what a trip it was. THESE CHARACTERS! Lord these characters. Complicated, toxic, broken, unapologetically unredeemable- and they will own you. They are magnetic in their self-actualization, in their assertive energy. Each is a commanding force, they’ll spit you up and chew you out long before you figure out the depths of their hearts- before they themselves even know who and what they are. It’s what I love so much about Amo’s character writing- her characters are frenetic and volatile, so wrapped up in their own games and mired in their own baggage, that their journey is often a surprise to them, too.
Lilith is perhaps the most beautiful encapsulation of that character approach. What a heroine, my goodness. She’s this story’s center- it’s ethos, pathos, and logos- which is a shock in and of itself since she really doesn’t have any of those. She feels nothing, she can’t be trusted, and her instincts aren’t anywhere close to logical. She seemingly has no heart, yet somehow Amo lets us feel it beat. We’re in her head, yet she’s a mystery to us. She’s more than complicated- she’s an inception level puzzle. She’s twisted, volatile, deranged and unpredictable. She makes Harley Quinn seem tame. But despite the stoic darkness that Amo uses to accentuate her “otherness” we connect with her so deeply. As this story unfolds we explore the nature vs. nurture aspect of LIlith’s soul- and discover that the atrocities she’s committed are nothing compared to the horrific acts she’s endured. Unpacking her pains doesn’t soften her- Amo let’s her be a dark queen. And I loved how unmovable she is- she owns her scars, embraces them in fact. She’s an unbreakable force- and I don’t think we’ve ever had an Amo heroine as terrifying or as moving. Her brokenness is her ammunition.
And then we have Eli and Kyrin- also broken, all struggling with their own demons. Kyrin is a dark king- broody, possessive, detached, cold and calculating. He makes some hard and unexpected decisions - ones that frustrate and invigorate me in his boldness. And then there is Eli- the character who surprised me most. He just vibrates with energy- and while he has the dark capacity of his lovers, he’s also the light. The easiest to love, the easiest to give love. He’s the sinister teddy bear, and in many ways, the catalyst to the feelings this throuple find. Of course, it’s “feelings” on their terms- carnal, raw, unshaped and even unfamiliar. Unsettling and toxic, perhaps, but just perfect for them. They are all broken pieces- jagged, sharp edged, dangerously cracked- but together their sharp edges fit into a perfect whole. Together they find the strength and safey to conquer their demons- to confront the parts of themselves they’ve buried. Their connection is spiritual, complicated, MESSY- and completely enthralling.
Like so many other Amo Jones books, this plot in this story redefines dark suspense. To say there are twists and jaw dropping surprises is an understatement- this story is more like walking on broken glass, bleeding as you try to figure out just what the heck was broken. I’ve learned to trust Amo and her vision, but this one challenged me in that. The story goes where I don’t expect it, and the pain that we experience in the past and present is pretty soul-shattering. Fair warning on triggers- the darkness felt even more macabre and unsettling than I’ve experienced in Amo before- it hurt me physically just to read it. This story is a big ole complicated puzzle- one where we’re missing most of the pieces. But the way it comes together- MIND BLOWN. I thought I knew- but I knew nothing. And in the end, lurking beneath all the dark bravado, all the gritty pain and emotional terrors, there is a unique and morbidly beautiful love. An epic love.
Amo Jones always somehow unsettles and inspires- she drowns us in pain and brokenness only to help us find peace and beauty in it. And our characters don’t survive- they thrive, they are somehow freed by it. Because the love they find together helps them capture the dark, their trauma, their pain- their love helps them somehow swallow it, embrace it into their being in ways that empower, rather than degrade. That’s the power of love- even if it doesn’t look anything like our romanticized version of it. Because in Amo’s worlds, love can grow even in the darkest of places, even from within utter depravity, even when the lovers have no feelings or heart. This is a love that we can not understand truly- but we can FEEL- every last scream. Every last word. Until the shocking end.
That ending. No words- only a fractured heart and breathless silence. I sit here speechless and torn apart, but I’m also hopeful and tender. And that is just the magic of Amo Jones- how somehow dredging through the darkness with her merciless carnies, I find a sense of peace and optimism. Hands down my favorite in the series!