Silencing Anna

**Thank you to Net Galley and 3P Publishing for the Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an unbiased review.**

Trigger Warning: domestic violence, anger issue, loss of a partner, coma patients.

The book draws you in from page 1! It’s written simply and makes you want to read it more and more. Sadie Mitchell’s penmanship hooks you instantly. The books oscillates between the past and the present and the writing is precise and engaging. When the story moves from Dylan to James to Anna’s current situation initially, not once do you feel like the preceding part should go on, or that the upcoming part is something you are not looking forward too. One is not more interesting than the other and that to me is purely due to how brilliantly the author has made each part intriguing and interesting. The characters are well developed and you can almost imagine them in your head. As the story progresses there is enough mystery to keep you engaged. What happened to Dylan? How did James get abusive? What did Anna do? How did she end up here? What is Pam up to, what is her role? These questions haunt you and you want to keep reading more. This is a hard to put down book. The book starts with this sentence “It’s important to take stock of your life.” This book will like make readers do just that especially if they are in a situation like Anna’s. There are many pointers in this book that would help a lot women identify abusive partners, or at least make them stop and wonder. That in itself is a big accomplishment for a book that’s written as a fictional one. The one aspect of abuse this book captures really well and makes you think hard about it is what happens when the abused becomes violent in response to the abuser, is the abused also be called an abuser in that situation or is it more like self defense. Does allowing it to happen make you responsible for it? Sadly I felt like Anna didn’t always make the smart choice and find her way out of the situation before it escalated to a violent one. It is very disturbing to see a pattern, in all books with such subjects, of how abused women will keep going back to the abuser hoping they have changed, hoping that the ‘good’ guy they see glimpses of is real and the monster is now gone. At times I did feel like Anna probably needed help too, whether her behavior was purely a reaction to her abusive relation or something hidden deep within her is food for thought. I felt myself trying to understand and decide if she added fuel to the fire and does it make her somewhat responsible too? Not that it can be an excuse for the abuser. Her only responsibility is for not walking away, not breaking the cycle. What is even better is that the book makes you realize that none of what she did or said warranted James’ behavior. It makes you see her as not only a victim but someone who could stand up for herself and react instead of silently taking the abuse. The book makes you think hard and makes you assess and almost create a plan in your head of what you would do if you were ever in such a relationship, what your exit strategy would be. This is the biggest reason that I highly recommend reading this book. The twist in the final 3 chapters of the book was completely unexpected and was handled beautifully. The point of view of a person being fully aware of everything around then but being trapped in their own body while in a coma is well presented and thought provoking. I am conflicted about the fates of James and Pam, but I don’t know if any ending would be satisfying given the nature of the story. All in all, the book is well researched and believable. This is probably the longest review I’ve ever written which is not surprising since I completely loved this book. Take a bow Sadie Mitchell, this book is a winner.

Thank you 3p Publishing for this amazing book. I really enjoyed the book. It's the cover and description of the book that initially attracted me to request an ARC, but I was totally gripped with the book all along. Kudos to the author. I am half way through the book, with only 30 pages to finish. SO far so good.

Thank you NetGalley and 3p Publishing for letting me read Silencing Anna by Sadie Mitchell for an honest review. All opinions are my own!

My first time reading Sadie Mitchell, I don't regret it! Good job!

One word to describe it : WOW!
Anna is in a coma, this is her life before and during that time. You get to know her, her life, people in it, things that happened...
It's deep, moving! Well written! I was hooked from page 1! I couldn't put it down, I wanted to know more!
Warning : about abuse, violence...

I will read more by this author!

Review shared online on NetGalley, Twitter, Goodreads, Amazon when published.

3p Publishing now on my favorite list, I will request more and hope to get approved again! Thank you!

Anna Bright suffers from "locked-in" syndrome. She can hear everyone in her hospital room, but has no ability to move or communicate with the outside world. Machines keep her alive. Everyone who visits her is convinced that she became this way during a murder attempt by her boyfriend, James.

But this is not really true - she actually did slip and fall and hit her head on the toilet in a hotel room! James faces prison time. Anna faces a life of "nothing", missing her teaching job, friends and family. Although James did not directly cause her to hit her head, their relationship went from something great to something dark and toxic.

Anna met James through her best friend's brother. They went out - he showered her with gifts, expensive hotels and meals.


Dylan, who Anna went out with before James was the light & love of her life. She met Dylan at uni and it was love at first sight. After 6 years together, they were planning their wedding when Dylan was killed in a motorcycle accident. Had she recovered from this tragedy?


Meanwhile, Anna had improved to a point where she could see and do the hand squeeze to answer
questions. It didn't last except Pam, a nurse no one liked, was on to the fact that James wasn't directly at fault. However, she never told anyone.


Every step that James took from friend to abuser should have told Anna to GET OUT! He was awful - the reader will feel the anger and pain reading about their relationship after she moved in with him. Additionally, his parents were not supportive to Anna.


Eventually Anna's condition has deteriorated, Actually to the point when she needed CPR. Friends and family gathered at the hospital, "she would have loved that", "...do you know what her favorite song was"?

It certainly looks grim for Anna - also for James. (By this time no one really cares about him).

Pam, the "mean" nurse confides in Anna (as Anna can only hear her)…


And the fireworks begin! A truly mind blowing conclusion that you won't see coming! This book is definitely a MUST READ!!!
Many thanks to 3P Publishing and NetGalley for a wonderful roller coaster ride!!!!!

Thanks to Netgalley for my copy.

This is a very well researched story of emotional and physical abuse. It drew me in from the beginning and kept my interest throughout. The author captures the fear that Anna must have felt at the hands of her abuser and then whilst in the hospital beautifully.

This book had me hooked from the very beginning and I thought that it was really well written and engaging. It did bring up some emotions and thoughts for me, so it might be triggering for some people. Anna is in a coma in present day and the story cuts to scenes from her past that provide background on how she came to be where she is now. The author’s writing style made the various points in time flow really well together and easy to follow despite the different story lines that were taking place. Even though there were parts that were a little difficult for me personally I did enjoy reading this book and would recommend it. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for a copy of this in exchange for a review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to review Silencing Anna. I found the beginning part of this novel to be a bit choppy but about a third of the way through, the author hit her stride. I found the characters to be believable and the story engaging. At times the abuse scenes seemed a little contrived while other times, they felt authentic. Overall I’d give this book three stars.

This was a unique book because the main character, Anna, was in a coma. The story focuses on the time before she was in the coma and during the coma when she is aware of everything going on around her, but cannot voice what she is feeling. The premise was intriguing to me and I am glad that I went with my instinct, as this book was amazing!