Soundless
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4.2 • 33 Ratings
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
A NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER
From Richelle Mead, the #1 internationally bestselling author of Vampire Academy and Bloodlines, comes a breathtaking new fantasy perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo, Laini Taylor and Sabaa Tahir.
"Fans of characters like Rose Hathaway and Sydney Sage will flock to this impressive stand-alone novel."
--Booklist
For as long as Fei can remember, there has been no sound in her village, where rocky terrain and frequent avalanches prevent residents from self-sustaining. 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 and many go hungry. Fei’s home, the people she loves, and her entire existence is plunged into crisis, under threat of darkness and starvation.
But soon Fei is awoken in the night by a searing noise, and sound becomes her weapon.
Richelle Mead takes readers on a triumphant journey from the peak of Fei’s jagged mountain village to the valley of Beiguo, where a startling truth and an unlikely romance will change her life forever....
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Fei lives in a mountain village whose inhabitants have been deaf for generations, relying on artists like her for their daily news. Isolated by rockslides and unable to descend the mountain, the villagers depend on food supplied via a pulley system from the kingdom below. The price of survival is the mountain's gold and silver, and the majority of the population works in the mines. But now Fei's people, including her beloved sister, are starting to go blind, which will mean their extinction. After a vivid dream, Fei wakes with the gift of hearing and struggles to comprehend the new sensation of sound. She and her childhood friend Li Wei embark on a desperate effort to avert her people's horrifying fate. Like her heroine, Mead (the Vampire Academy series) paints with a delicate brush (when Fei sees brightly colored silk for the first time, readers feel it as an explosion of the senses), creating a fablelike story that melds folktale, sacrifice, romance, and the stark realization of humanity's capacity to exploit others for profit. Ages 12 up.
Customer Reviews
A Richelle Mead Must-Read
Soundless is a beautiful creation that only could have come from a Richelle Mead book. Soundless is about Fei, a girl from an isolated village on a mountain in China that has long ago lost the ability to hear and her quest to find answers (and help) when a mysterious illness is spreading through her village. The book has adventure, edge-of-your-seat moments, sisterly love, and a touch of romance for the hopeless romantic reader (though it is NOT a main plot of the book). Fei is a brave, intelligent heroine (a staple of a Mead novel). I personally loved the mystery of why the village lost their hearing and the illness that was spreading.
I definitely enjoyed Soundless. If you're a Richelle Mead fan, you should, for sure, read this new book.
-I was a lucky winner of an ARC of Soundless at Yallwest this past April and I read the (full) book in June while on a cruise with my Girl Scout troop (reading with a nice view, what more can a nature loving bookworm ask for).
Good
The book is good,but expect better.
A Disappointment!
I was lucky enough to receive Soundless: A Sneak Peak by Richelle Mead. I have been looking forward to this book since it was announced. Fei and her sister Zhang Jing are apprentices in the art program. They get better lodging, food, and clothing. They take the news of the previous day and put it into pictures for the whole village to look at (they are stationed all around the village to observe only). The villagers all lost their hearing many years ago. Everyone speaks using sign language. Now some of the villagers are losing their eye sight. It is mostly the miners which means that less precious metals are coming out of the mines. What they mine is sent down the mountain (via zip line) to pay for their supplies (food). Their rations are being cut (because of less precious metals). Now Zhang’s sight is going (her observation post is in the mine) and Fei is afraid her sister will get thrown out of the program (which means she will be a beggar since their parents are deceased). Something needs to be done to help the people in the village (they live on a mountain that is impossible to climb up or down). Li Wei is a miner (and talented carver). He is in love with Fei (and Fei with Li) but they cannot be together (because Fei joined the artists). What is going to happen to the villagers? Is there a way to improve life for everyone? Why are people losing their sight (something in the mines)? Will Fei and Li ever be able to be together?
I just received a sneak peak of the book, but it was enough to tell me that I was not going to enjoy this book. The romance portion seems to dominate the book. I cannot believe that this is the same writer who wrote those other wonderful books. I was just disappointed. I can only give Soundless 2.75 out of 5 stars. Maybe it gets better. I just did not enjoy what I read. The story seems very simple and it lacks depth. The story reminded me of fairytales I read when I was younger. I think younger readers (tweens) will enjoy this novel more than the adults.
I received a complimentary copy of Soundless from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.