Have you been searching for a gripping and thought-provoking read? Look no further than "When We Were Silent" by Fiana Phillips. Despite my initial doubts about a heavy topic, I was thoroughly captivated by India Mullen's exceptional narration. Her voice is truly remarkable, and it drew me in from the start. In fact, she has now become my favorite audiobook narrator.

The novel takes place in Dublin and tells the stories of several girls who attend the prestigious Highfield Manor School. The two main characters, Shauna and Louisa (Lou), will leave you heartbroken by the traumas they have endured in their young lives. Fast forward thirty years, and Lou faces a life-changing decision that will have profound consequences for herself and her daughter. Does she have the courage to confront Highfield Manor and its current and past teachers?

Phillips' book is a potent and emotionally charged narrative, bravely tackling the challenging themes of exploitation and retribution. These are issues that often go unspoken, but this novel shines a piercing light on them. It is a must-read for those seeking a story that will leave a lasting impression. I cannot stress its importance enough. Give it a chance, and you will be moved. ( )

Learning to Swim is a great book focusing three generations of women learning to deal with life's struggles. All three characters are lovable and well developed. The story begins when Gabby decides it's time to leave her loveless marriage. She sets out with her teenage daughter to find a fresh start and to take care of her ailing mother, Ida. Ida is a high achieving, sassy woman who is struggling with the realities of ageing that require her to rely on her daughter. The story is heartwarming and well written. The writer draws you in and my only complaint is it left me wanting more. I would have loved to see more development of Ida's story as a young woman, what shaped her and led her to an Olympic gold medal. I felt like the second have of the book was a little rushed and a lot of the story line played out too quickly. But it was a great novel and I would look for more from this author. ( )

Gabrielle is firmly in the sandwich generation - she has an ailing mother, Ida, who needs heart surgery and an anxious teen daughter, Juniper. Gabrielle has also just jumped out of her loveless marriage and is trying to figure out who she is on her own. Add in a difficult relationship with her mother and things are challenging to say the least. I was sad to reach the end of the novel because I wanted more interaction with the three generations. At the same time, I felt that there were such good resolutions to all the challenges the three women faced. My only complaint was the absolute speed with which the final portion of the story sped by. Law doesn't work that fast. ( )

What a great debut effort by a new author! The beginning part of the story, the ... build up to where we spend most of our time was a little less engaging as I would like to see intros, and maybe I wouldn't keep going if it wasn't for this review project, but, much like others are saying, it's because it feels like a piece of the story is missing. I wouldn't be upset with an additional 50 pages or so with what happened to the mother character back in the "original" hometown.

Once we get to the Southwest, clearly Dugan finds her grove and really tells a great story, three times over. The grandmother feels fully lived in, her life is fleshed out and presented beyond the page, the mom, yeah, I'd add a few more pages with the "boss" just because that first interaction feels so out of left field. Obviously, mom needs a job, but it's just ... oh and we are here. Plus things like their house. It's fine, it's just thin.

And as for the third story in this -- the granddaughter, along with what someone else said, it does feel most focused on, the coming of age tale, I mean you get a love interest for all these women, but it does feel like the life of Grandma is complete, the life of the granddaughter is complete, but the mom is sandwiched in the middle, dealing with other family, which I would love more on. Tell me about the half (?) brother. There was so an opportunity there to fight the will, or you know drop this bomb about the fidelity of g-ma!

It's good, the protentional is here for great, and someone call up a movie theater or Amazon or whoever is doing this -- could clearly make a 10 part thing out of this no problem. ( )

Learning to Swim is a novel about mothers, daughters, and granddaughters. While the perspective shifts between the grandmother, mother, and teenage daughter, each character has something to learn from the others. The characters were fun to read about and I was rooting for each of them in different ways, but I wish it had been longer. Each character could have been draw out more. Especially the side characters could have been fleshed out. The main story was well written and showed the struggles of the "sandwich generation" particularly well. ( )