I enjoyed the psycho tendencies and unorthodox characters/relationships. I was hooked from the start and was pleased with the development of the backstory. Too much was given away in the blurb resulting in less shock moments, and I was able to work out some of the twists although some were still unexpected. It was gritty and raw, but I would’ve enjoyed more suspense.

Thank you to NetGalley & Datura for the ARC.

Thank you Netgalley and Datura Books for the ARC!

I'm usually not so much into books not playing in modern days - not anymore, at least - but sometimes, I am making an exception. This time, the blurb and cover had been drawing me in, and I've decided I just had to read this book.

And, what can I say - this story did deliver! This book was eerie, haunting, and intense, and I surely will keep thinking about it, that much is for sure. Alice was also such an interesting character in my opinion, I could simply not not feel for her, poor girl had gone through so much! This was surely a slow-burn, and sometimes more felt like a drama than a thriller, but it was unsettling in a good way. Even when you might not read books like this usually, give this one a chance! I promise you are not going to regret it!

Release: August 19, 2025
Author: Sandra J. Paul
Publisher: Datura

Rating: 4 ★ 

Set in the fall of 1980, this story follows Alice, a 22-year-old woman who was born mute and has lived an extremely sheltered and isolated life under the control of her cold, manipulative mother and her strict, intimidating father. Her only connection to the outside world is through her neighbor and best friend, Hailey, who knows sign language and offers Alice a rare sense of comfort and trust.
When Alice’s father falls gravely ill with terminal cancer, she is tasked with taking care of him. During his final days, as he drifts in and out of consciousness under heavy medication, he starts revealing chilling secrets—specifically, that he may have murdered multiple women. At first, Alice doesn’t know what to believe, but the weight of the revelation pushes her to confide in Hailey.
The two set out to retrace the paths her father once traveled as a salesman, and what they uncover suggests a disturbing pattern that links him to several missing women. As they dig deeper, the truth starts to unravel not just about his crimes, but about Alice herself—especially why she lost her voice in the first place, and how her own past is more connected to her father’s dark secrets than she ever realized.
This is a tense and emotional psychological mystery that blends true-crime elements with a coming-of-age reckoning, perfect for readers who enjoy deeply layered characters and slow-burning suspense like Bright Young Women.
This book completely pulled me in! I had a hard time putting it down once I started. The story follows Alice, a young woman who was born mute and has been hidden away from the world by her controlling parents. She’s been told that if anyone ever found out about her, she’d be locked up. So she’s grown up in total isolation—until a new neighbor, Hailey, moves in next door. Slowly, a quiet friendship forms between them, and when Alice’s father dies and makes a shocking confession, the two girls set out to uncover the truth about his past.
The pacing is fast and steady—it never felt like it dragged—and the relationship between Alice and Hailey is the emotional heart of the book. There’s suspense, mystery, and some truly surprising moments, especially toward the end. At times it did feel a bit like a young adult mystery (think Nancy Drew with darker twists), and there were moments where I had to suspend a bit of disbelief, especially about how quickly Alice jumps into investigating. But overall, it was such a compelling read that I didn’t mind.
If you’re into emotional thrillers with strong characters and a touch of coming-of-age, this one’s worth picking up. It’s a story about secrets, friendship, and finding your voice—even when you can’t speak.

Favorite quote:
"Kept from the outside world by her cruel mother and overbearing father, her only friend is her neighbor Hailey with whom she communicates through sign language."

𝗤𝗨𝗜𝗖𝗞 𝗣𝗟𝗢𝗧 𝗣𝗘𝗘𝗞
Alice has been locked away by her controlling parents, mute and isolated from the world. Despite her silence and confinement, she refuses to be trapped in ignorance, and pushes beyond the walls of her childhood to find answers.

𝗛𝗢𝗡𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗢𝗣𝗜𝗡𝗜𝗢𝗡
Obsessed with the book cover and premise and so glad I didn’t read the summary and blurb which I think revealed way too much of the plot!

The vibe is suspenseful and emotionally tense, but there’s a lightness. It’s character‑driven, bingeable and no popcorn melodrama.

Alice’s parents were horrendous, and it’s their behavior that really propels the story. Alice was such a unique character - I loved her quiet strength and felt her loneliness. Hailey was the light she needed, but I did find her a bit questionable… maybe I’m just naturally suspicious!

The story reads almost in two parts. The first half is slow suspense, and then things pick up with Alice and Hailey playing detective. But as things unfolded, nothing really surprised me.

It’s an emotional unraveling rather than a twisty “whodunnit.” I was hoping for one huge wow or twist, but apart from the ambiguous ending, it didn’t come.

𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗧𝗛 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗?
The light eerie vibe was addictive and the suspense at the start grabbed me. Go in for the atmosphere, not the twists. Just don’t read the blurb!

Thank you Datura and NetGalley for this #gifted ARC.

🎧 Narrated by Eve Passeltiner
📖 Publishes 08•19•25 | 432 pages | 11h 8m

Chilling psychological thriller. Alice is a mute young woman living in horrible circumstances. With cruel and neglectful parents who have convinced her that her disability has made her at risk of being institutionalized if found out, Alice has no life outside the walls of her home. When Alice makes contact with a neighbor and develops an unlikely relationship with her, her life is forever changed. Dark thriller that is impossible to put down.

Did not enjoy this book. Pacing was too slow, and 1/3 of the book was spent with the FMC being in a house arrest position with her “horrible” parents. Would have love it if there was a deep dive into the emotions or impactful incidents. It was not translated how bad the parents were but merely written out in words and not feels. Because of this, I was not able to empathise or connect with the FMC, and her parents were merely as bad as they were said with barely any substantial internal struggle/push pull of love and hatred.

I wanted to love this book. After reading what it was about is the thing which made me want to read it. This was just “OK” for me. I didn’t meet my expectations. However, this is just my opinion. Please read and decide for yourself.

I love a good serial killer thriller, and this one was so good. Dark, emotional, and full of twists. I couldn’t put it down. Alice’s silence made everything more haunting, and that ending gave me chills.

Tropes I loved:
🧏‍♀️ Mute FMC
🧬 Toxic family
💊 Deathbed confession
🛣️ Road trip mystery
🕵️‍♀️ Serial killer reveal
🧠 Suppressed trauma
🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Ride-or-die best friend

If you love true crime vibes and books like Bright Young Women, you’ll probably tear through this one like I did. It’s set in the fall of 1980 and follows Alice, who’s mute and basically isolated from the world, until she stumbles on the horrifying truth that her dad might be a serial killer. When he starts confessing on his deathbed, Alice and her only friend Hailey hit the road to uncover if it’s real. Creepy secrets, shocking twists, and that final reveal about Alice’s voice? Whew. It’s a sharp, chilling read that stuck with me.

A big thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this book!! It was so good!! I have so many questions after what happened at the end of the book!! What happened after the end? I love a good serial killer themed book!! I love Hailey and Alice’s story. I felt a little bit like Alice in this story. I sometimes feel very misunderstood in some ways and to know that a character had gone through a mute phase, I can relate to that and felt very comforted by it. This book was fantastic and I enjoyed every minute of it and it won’t be a book I won’t soon forget at all. This author is very talented in writing and it was very fun to read and imagine what happened next. My imaginative side went wild with this book. It made me feel less alone in this world so thank you for writing this book again!!

Many thanks to netgalley, the author and Datura books for approving my request to read this book.

Alice is mute and has never left her family home in her young life spending all her time with her alcoholic mother and her father who is a travelling salesman. She sparks up a friendship when Hailey a new neighbour moves into the house opposite theirs after Alice teaches her ASL.

After suddenly finding herself alone in the world after her father dies and her mother is arrested Alice enlists Haileys help to untangle the strands of her life.

I thought the premise of the book was really intriguing but at some parts it did read more like a romance/young adult story rather than a psychological thriller in my opinion though it did keep me reading until the end.

Overall a quick easy read that was quite enjoyable.

Read in 2 hours and 32 minutes.

I appreciate NetGalley for the ARC but I really didn’t like this book.

It was the equivalent of poverty p**rn mixed with if the Grimm Brothers had their version of Cinderella taking place in a disused slaughterhouse.

There’s enough darkness in the world: I don’t understand why someone would enjoy writing something so grimy that doesn’t provide a ‘moral of the story’ or philosophical views- what was the point?

Alice is a mute prisoner in her family home, forbidden to leave by her drunkard stay-at-home mother and her terrifying travelling salesman father.
She doesn’t remember her murky past but she hates her miserable present, and dreams of escaping, despite her parents’ threats.

One day, she discovers that her father is dying of cancer, and everything changes.

As he writhes in agony and screams the house down, she becomes obsessed with the young woman next door, who communicates by notes held up to their windows and clumsy signing.

When Alice uncovers her deceased fathers journals and realises that he’s a long-term serial killer, she concocts a plan with neighbour Hailey to return to the towns where murders took place, and prove it was him.

SPOILERS BELOW.

Despite their dramatic manifesto, they go to one (1) town, match the initials in her father’s journal with a missing girl that looks eerily similar to Alice, and decree “jobs a gooden” immediately.

The police unsurprisingly swarm over the journals, inform Alice of her past, and *they* are the ones who take charge and visit other towns to investigate the murders.

Everything else carries on without her so, yes, Alice found the journals and showed the police, but it was hardly The Great Adventure.

Plus, I find it more than a little disturbing that Hailey plucks this naive unworldly woman from her house-arrest, and then makes moves on her, declaring them in love?
Is that not predatory enough, without Hailey revealing that she knew all about Alice’s dad, Jack, after all, even before she groomed his kid?

It’s such a weird ending that seemed to be built around amping up the shock factor without really providing any resolution.

I may be biased as I didn’t enjoy Girl A either (which is a similar vibe) but at least the siblings didn’t shack up with the first person they saw (literally) outside of their parents.

I’m bitterly disappointed as this book could’ve been so much more than a lump of c-roll footage spliced together.

None of the characters are likeable- none.
Even the women that I’m supposed to be sorry for were so 2D that I could see straight through their flimsy personalities.

Enjoy at your own risk but I *will* judge you.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 3/5 STARS

this was... anticlimactic. it sounded intriguing up until i realized that the blurb IS the story. aside from some suspenseful moments and interesting plot points, there really wasn't anything to grab onto. it's not that it's a bad book, it just wasn't giving... thrill. it is a quick read though.

the first half of the book, you're pretty much learning about Alice and her invisible life. she was never let out of the home or allowed to interact with anybody outside of her parents, despite being mute. while they weren't well off, she lives comfortably tucked away. she yearns for more though. and then Hailey moves in next door. the story picks up a little from there.

i was hoping for more. it's very, very slow-burn and slow-going. i will say, though, that the author really knows how to paint a picture. it was easy to imagine the story and immerse yourself into Alice's shoes. so if you like a book where you're able to visualize it like a movie, this would be for you.

would i recommend this? depends on the audience and what recommendations they're searching for. i'm still glad i read it and would encourage those who like true crime to give it a chance. you might even enjoy it more than i did!

a big 'thank you' to Datura Books for allowing me the opportunity to read an advanced copy via NetGalley. i leave this review voluntarily. all thoughts are opinions are my own.

Alive lives in seclusion, isolated by her mutism, without leaving the house, interacting only with her alcoholic mother and her salesman father.
Although not everything is perfect, Alice is relatively content until the new neighbour Hailey arrives. Then she begins to consider leaving her confinement.
When her father is dying, she uncovers secrets that make her suspect he is a serial killer. With his diaries and Hailey's help, she decides to go in search of the truth.
The premise is intriguing and during the first third I was hooked with a claustrophobic atmosphere where the main character lives more in her thoughts than in real life.
Then for some reason it lost interest, perhaps because the plot slowed down during the road trip and the romance to resume with the investigation and a not entirely satisfactory conclusion.
I expected more, but overall it's a slow-burning psychological thriller with a good ambience and a plot with family secrets and a twist or two that even if you could have seen it coming, manages to hold your attention.

Alice is 24 years old, mute and has been a prisoner in her own home her whole life. If that isn’t intriguing enough, she discovers that her father may be a serial killer… This book drew me in from the beginning. It was chilling and the atmosphere of the book was very tense for me.

A neighbor Hailey moves in who is invested in helping Alice navigate this discovery. Together they investigate her father’s potential crimes to get to the truth.

Parts of this story I was completely immersed in and at other times it felt like a YA book. Alice just seemed so much younger than 24 due to her isolation from the world. I felt that the love story was completely unnecessary and didn’t add any value to the story. It felt out of place in this high pressure intense situation. Overall though it was a good book that I enjoyed.

3.75 ⭐️

A haunting psychological thriller with a slow-building sense of dread. Sandra J. Paul weaves emotional depth into every layer of suspense, pulling me in completely.

“The Girl Without A Voice” was set in fall 1980 and centered on Alice, a 22-year-old woman born mute. Her parents convinced her, and nearly everyone, that she was always voiceless and kept her isolated in their home. Her only connection to the outside world was through books and watching soap operas in secret. When her dad was diagnosed with cancer, Alice stayed by his bedside and learned of a horrific secret.

Paul fabricated an extremely unique premise- a mute woman uncovering her father’s dark past made for an original set up that immediately grabbed my attention. I loved the small town setting. It set a chilling tone and a moody and claustrophobic atmosphere. Even more, the emotional depth of Alice’s internal world of loneliness/isolation, confusion and desire to find the truth was beautifully portrayed with sensitivity and realism. I liked how this story blended psychological tension, dark family secrets, and a chilling journey toward self-discovery. Moreover, this story’s tone dealt with heavy and mature themes like emotional abuse, isolation, and the lasting impact of childhood trauma. It explored how past wounds shape identity, relationships, and trust.

“The Girl Without a Voice” echoed the tone of Emma Donoghue’s “Room,” but unfolded at a more gradual, slow-burning pace. This is a great book for readers who like slow-building, atmospheric suspense with deep-rooted family secrets and emotional tension.

Grateful to NetGalley and Datura for the early read in return for an honest review.

I felt so bad for Alice heart felt read she really had such a hard life !!!! To take care of a man that was never really in your life is such heartbreaking but you have to have a forgiving heart to do as such I love this read touched me and so many ways !! Thank you thank you

I went into A Girl Without a Voice by Sandra J. Paul blind…and I’m glad I did. The story follows Alice, a 24-year-old mute woman, who has been isolated as far back as she can remember by her parents. When her father who has cancer dies, a series of events unfold that lead her to connect with her neighbor Hailey and begin uncovering long-buried family secrets. What starts as a quiet, unsettling story gradually shifts into a gripping mystery/thriller in the second half. There were several twists that surprised me, which may not have had the same impact if I’d read the description first. It’s a fast-paced and absorbing read that kept me hooked until the end.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing the eARC. #AGirlWithoutAVoice #netgalley

So Alice is not twenty-two as described in the blurb, since her twenty-fourth birthday is referenced several times as being in the past. Just had to get that out there, first. Second, the blurb pretty much gives away the entire story, and any sharp reader will infer the rest. So I was hoping that there would be more revealed in the story as a surprise, but unfortunately, there wasn't. Alice is mute and kept locked up in her house, never having left except to go out in the garden. Even she comes to realize eventually that this isn't' normal but she doesn't rebel or escape, she just accepts that this is her life. She sees a new neighbor, Hailey, and they communicate through their windows, and apparently also fall in love at first sight. Yeah, it's also part love story.

Alice's father dies, again, not a spoiler, and right before doing so, rambles about what he did to the others. Not exactly a murder confession, but strange enough that Alice goes through his belongings and finds his journals from his years as a traveling salesman. Also, this is set around 1980, one of the few details not referenced in the blurb. And also, her father doesn't die until halfway through the story, and it's very slow-paced until that point. Alice and Hailey go through the journals and believe they find clues to crimes he committed every year. Rather than hand it over to the police, and you know, tell the world what happened to her, they go on a road trip to see if they can find 'real evidence' before turning to the authorities. Sure.

So that's about it, and I'm sure you realize, to some degree, why she was rendered mute. If you're looking for a satisfying conclusion, you won't get one. It seriously just ends, and you're like, I read this entire story to end up with that conclusion?? Highly frustrating. This could have been executed in a much better way. There's barely any action and no suspense. And then it ends. No, thank you.

This book was SO GOOD!! I’m off for the summer because I’m a teacher so I tons of reading time and I read this book in half a day! I just kept going and didn’t want to stop. Those are the best books! The characters are great and well developed and it’s just a great story. Go read it!!