View source for Saving Silence by Gina Blaxill

{{infobox2
|title=Saving Silence
|author=Gina Blaxill
|reviewer=Robert James
|genre=Teens
|rating=4.5
|buy=Yes
|borrow=Yes
|isbn=978-1447208846
|pages=304
|publisher=Macmillan Children's Books 
|date=September 2013
|aznuk=1447208846
|aznus=1447208846
|cover=1447208846 
|website=http://ginablaxill.wordpress.com
|video=
|summary=Tense, pacy and exciting thriller with great character development.
}}
Sam moved to London fairly recently and has struggled to settle in. Imogen has never had problems making friends, she's a former head girl and a school sports star. She's tried to make friends with Sam, however, but he doesn't seem interested - until one night when he approaches her out of the blue, only for someone to speed towards him and try to knock him over. Imogen saves his life - but why would anyone try to kill him? And has she put herself in danger by getting involved? With Sam reluctantly telling Imogen a secret, the pair are left frantically trying to save themselves from some seriously nasty people.

This bears several resemblances to the first book I read by Blaxill, [[Forget Me Never by Gina Blaxill|Forget Me Never]]. Like that, it’s a thriller told as a dual narrative between a boy and a girl, with a touch of romance in the air. If anything, it’s better than the entertaining ''Forget Me Never'', with a stronger supporting cast to go with a great pair of leads. I also really like the way that the romance is present but never comes close to overshadowing the main plot here.

One of Blaxill’s real strengths for me is the character development she manages to portray in a genre which is generally full of plot-driven novels. While the story here is an intriguing one, I loved the way that both leads – particularly Imogen – grow over the course of the book, as does one particular supporting character. The protectiveness the main characters feel towards their families is very realistic, while she also captures the setting of London and the terror of the gang violence very well.

This is highly recommended as a pacy and exciting thriller. I'm certainly looking forward to Gina Blaxill's next book!

I think fans of this would really like other teen thrillers like the [[When I Was Joe by Keren David]] trilogy and [[Dark Eyes by William Richter]]. For another wonderful heroine called Imogen, check out [[Bruised by Sarah Skilton]]. (It's a tenuous link, but it's such a fantastic book that I'll take any opportunity I can to recommend it!

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