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Silence #2

Broken Silence

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Four years after Oakley left for Australia, the trial is ready to begin. After coming to the decision that she needs to face her abusers to finally be able to move on, Oakley and her family return to England to give evidence in person.

Oakley's love for Cole never faded, but after four years apart how will Cole react to her being back? Can they put the past behind them in order to get their happy ending?

251 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 21, 2013

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About the author

Natasha Preston

48 books13.6k followers
#1 New York Times Bestselling Author of The Cellar and The Cabin. Romance and YA Thriller writer, boy mum, Tom Hardy enthusiast. Always buried in a book and a glass of wine.

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5 stars
8,976 (46%)
4 stars
5,975 (30%)
3 stars
3,337 (17%)
2 stars
868 (4%)
1 star
264 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 927 reviews
17 reviews4 followers
January 12, 2014
The book, "Broken Silence", was by far one of the best, more realistic books I've ever read. The story is about a girl who grew up being sexually abused by her dad and his friend, from the age of five to thirteen. Through those years Oakley was completely silent and would not talk to anyone until it finally stopped. The story starts in Australia where Oakley, her mom, and her brother, Jasper, moved from England after Oakley had finally gone to the police about the situation at 16. It's four years later now. Oakley is still deeply in love with her old boyfriend, Cole, and the trials for her dad and his friend, Frank, would be starting soon. Originally Oakley was going to give evidence to the court through video but now she decided to go back to England and face her fears. She was afraid of facing her dad in court, but even more afraid of how Cole felt about her anymore. Her mother emailed her best friend, Jenna (Also Cole's Mom), and let her know they were coming back for the trials. Unfortunately, Jenna's internet went down and did not get the message so Oakley and her family showed up unannounced which took Cole by surprise. When him and Oakley talked for the first time he yelled at her for leaving him behind because he would have went with her. She didn't want him to come though, because he had plans to go to the University. Cole was still very much in love with Oakley and eventually they got back together. During the trials Oakley's first time on the stand and looking at her dad for the the first time again she passed out and was taken to the hospital. She just had an anxiety attack and had a concussion from hitting her head. The trials were rough because they couldn't find the evidence of her dad taking pictures of her on his computer so he tried to convince the jury she was doing it for attention and that's why she mute herself and then came up with this story. In the middle of her giving her evidence though, a man came through the doors and approached the judge. The man had finally hacked into her dad's computer well enough and found the pictures. Eventually, her dad was sentenced to life and Frank changed his plea to guilty and was sentenced 10 years. After they went home to celebrate the police knocked on the door and arrested Cole because Oakley had to admit that they had sex when she was fifteen. Oakley got the whole town involved and eventually they let Cole go with no charges. Since the trials were over this meant Oakley would have to return to Australia but instead her mom went back to Australia, sold the house, and returned with her new boyfriend, Miles. Oakley moved in with Cole and at the end of the book they were pregnant!

Oakley and Cole are the people who tell the story in this book. You see it from both of their perspectives which makes it very interesting. Oakley is a very strong, smart, and brave girl. She faces her fears by trying to face her dad in court. Although she may have failed the first time she still went back and did what she was there to do. Cole is a very open person. He likes to joke around and have fun with Oakley. He also is very much in love with her and is deathly afraid of losing her. Jasper is Oakley's brother who happens to be very protective of her, especially after what her dad did. He tries to make himself look good to other people a lot, too. Jasper had a very hard time controlling his anger while watching the trials.

The setting of this book takes place in our era. It was so modern in fact, it mentioned One Direction and Justin Bieber. The story starts out in Australia and eventually moves to England where the trials take place. There Oakley and Cole jump around from Court, to Cole's parents, to Oakley's Aunt Ali and the house the Cole just bought.

I believe the theme of this book is saying that everyone is faced with hard times and tragedies in their lives but that is when you have to look them in the eye and show them you are stronger. In other words, be brave.

I would recommend this book to people around the age of 16. Cole and Oakley are in their twenties now so they are a little more mature. It was a very good book and I rated it a five!
2 reviews2 followers
January 12, 2014
Thank you for giving survivors of sexual abuse a voice!!!

As a survivor of family sexual abuse myself, I really connected with this story! it was written so well! It seems that the author was writing from personal experience. If not, she really did her research. (although Oakley's thoughts would be difficult to emulate without personal experience). So glad these books were written....it shows that anything that doesn't kill you, makes you stronger....and that even from those bad experiences, good can happen... Thank you Miss Preston for giving us a voice!!!
Profile Image for Azeezat Adeola.
Author 1 book8 followers
January 6, 2014
I just... I really don't want to be negative, but I found this even more frustrating of a read than the first book.
The timing was really.... I don't know how to articulate it... time just seemed to skip ahead in a jarring/ jerky sort of way.

There was more poor grammar and quite a few typos, and I could feel myself getting annoyed with the way things played out.

There was a lot of melodrama around the court case, where it could have been more effective to show the emotions in a different way. It really got to me how Oakley's emotions never rang true for me.

:/

It's disappointing because this was a great premise, and with more attention to detail, and fleshing out if the characters (giving readers a chance to understand what motivated them) it could have been a lot better.
Profile Image for Michelle.
1,480 reviews214 followers
September 1, 2023
This follows on from Silence which I really enjoyed and to be honest this is a decent follow up.

It's a YA series and a bit predictable and cheesy but it's an easy read that requires zero concentration.

There are two more books in the series which I will read at some stage.

Three stars.

At the time of positing this series is available on Kindle Unlimited.
Profile Image for Phoenix Wilkins.
106 reviews1 follower
February 15, 2020
This was a wonderful and an amazing book. Showing how a girl can overcome abuse. Anyone can overcome anything. Oakley came a long way and made it through. It was a lovely story. In the end I'm happy that she finds happiness. She needed that. She's able to move forward with her life. What makes it even better is that it's in Cole's point of view as well. Their love is so strong. They still love each other even though they haven't been together for 4 years since she moved to Australia. The first book was emotional at the end and I admit that it made me cry at the end of the first book. But this one is so great and has a happy ending. I was worried Cole found someone else while Oakley was away but no that's not the case. He never forgot about her. Oakley's dad gets sentenced to prison for life and Frank gets 10 years. That's just because Frank pleaded guilty but I still think he should have had more years but it's good that those two were put away after what they did to Oakley. Cole and Oakley move in together and in the end we even find out they she's going to have a baby with him. That fills my heart with Joy for them. Now their story is over but I guess I will have to continue with Jasper's story now. I have heard that in Jasper's story we even get to hear a little bit about Cole and Oakley's child that they have together.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Jennifer.
2,239 reviews37 followers
January 2, 2014
Broken Silence was just not as good as the first book Silence. In Silence you had the layer of Oakley not speaking to anyone. Well since she spoke at the end of the first book there wasn't that aspect. It was just the trial and Oakley and Cole trying to figure things out.

Really the book seemed like a lot of Oakley and Cole hanging out and a lot of Oakley worrying about the trial. But what if they get off? What if they don't go to jail? I know there is a ton of evidence against them, but what if that is not enough??? It was a little tedious for me at times. As in the first book the writing did not make me connect with the characters as much as it could have. It wasn't horrible, but it was a lot of worrying and not many things happening.

Cole was still sweet in this book. At first he is a little hesitant, but they just cannot stay away from each other. Though his momentary issues at the end were a bit much for me, I kind of understand it.

Overall it was just an okay book. The story was a bit tedious at times, but it wasn't all bad.

Also posted to Jen in Bookland
Profile Image for bookswithbruna with.
135 reviews4 followers
February 25, 2017
Natasha Preston has become one of my favorite authors ever!! I actually love Broken Silence more than Silence. It goes more in depth of Cole and Oakley's relationship. Crazy how much you can love someone.
12 reviews
May 3, 2014
Sadly I was not impressed by this sequel. Silence itself was a frustrating read for myself, concentrating on day to day events and rushing the main issue. Unfortunately nothing has changed in this book.Far too much concentration on Oakley and Cole's feelings for one another than on the trial which should have been the priority. The relationship between the two main characters do not reflect the 4 year gap, it reads exactly like the previous book. I did skip over many pages because of this, and I didn't lose track once, not a brilliant sign in my opinion.


I do applaud Preston for tackling this difficult issue, I do hope it gives others the confidence to speak out, if it does then in my eyes itis a hugely successful book!
6 reviews1 follower
April 2, 2014
Love it soooooo much

This book is so good. I could not stop reading it. At the beginning of this book I was so entertain. she went back to England. then in the middle I thought I was going to explode with anxiety. they kept making wonder if Frank and max are going to get sent to prison or not. Then the end no words. just writing this and thinking about the end makes me cry. How Cole gets arrested and every one supports him soooooo much. then for a couple minutes I thought that Oakley was going to move back to Australia. I love how in the end Oakley and her family build the "centre" for all of the kids who were like Oakley. The very last chapter(omg I'm crying) is so good. why can't there be a million more books about Cole and Oakley. the last 2 pages........no words.......that's not how I thought it end. she is pregnant. Cole mixed with Oakley....don't even get me started. I hope soooooo bad that I will marry someone like Cole. I know someone named Cole but he is not the same, well he is only in 5th grade so who knows!!!!!!! I would give this book 5 stars because it was so great (tears). I would recommend this book not for boys under 15 and for girls 13 and older. WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE OVER. That was just 2 books. all the good book series are short and the bad ones are almost always really long!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! if you find me dead it was because of the ending of this series!!!!!!!!
Profile Image for Amanda.
977 reviews9 followers
June 10, 2013
I thought that this was a fast, ok read but it was just nowhere near as good as the first book in the series.

Maybe that is because in Silence there was intrigue as to why she hadn't spoken in over a decade and the book was addictive because you wanted to find out what the secret was.

Although this was a quick interesting read, it was obvious where it was heading. It was clear that she . So it would have been more enjoyable if it wasn't completely predictable.

Having said that if you liked the first novel Silence you will probably like this book too.
Profile Image for Aphraditie.
11 reviews
October 31, 2024
That just isn’t how a lawsuit would work ?? Also it feels like an oversimplification of overcoming trauma. It was giving “don’t be depressed just be happy 😀” vibes but internalized by the protagonist.
Profile Image for Gretchen.
58 reviews7 followers
July 19, 2014
O O O O O OH my. And I thought the first book was good.
... But now it is... whats the word? O.. O-vverrr? Over. There is another book, but it isn't from Oakley or Coles point of view. So that leaves me like this:

and from me to Natasha Preston:

and my overall pain:



but all the tears. every one. every drop full of happiness. not sorrow. full of this:


My only problem is that it still bothers me absolutely nothing happened with Julian though. the author just dropped him after the apology. (sorry if you haven't read the first book yet.. You shouldn't look ahead)I could see stuff happening with that, but no. And I thought it was a little confusing..
Oh well. LOVE THESE BOOKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Profile Image for Analisa Cardin.
172 reviews5 followers
July 17, 2021
i’m gonna be honest. this was one of the few times that book #2 of the series is actually better than book #1. i felt like the writing was more mature and the author finally ~went~ there with the horrific details of what happened to Oakley. that was definitely something missing from the first one, the chilling reality of what the truth was for Oakleys silence. and book #2 gave us that and more. i’d be lying if i said that the love story became more realistic bc honestly, it stayed at fanfiction level. moved so quickly, and of course there is never an argument or a disagreement between them. regardless, i appreciated this one more than the first which is why i gave it 4 stars. there’s a companion novel that goes with this and i can’t say i’m necessarily dying to read it, but i also wouldn’t be surprised if i did.
November 8, 2020
Overall I liked the way Natasha Preston wrote this book the only thing is I wish she wouldn’t have made it so predictable. The trials weren’t as intense as I would have liked them to be so we were able to predict that they were going to find her dad guilty in the end. I also don’t like the time gap and how four years had passed since Oakley had seen Cole and the fact that she ended up being pregnant was odd. It caught me off guard because it had only been a month and a half since Cole and Oakley got back together so it seemed a bit rushed. It was as if she just wanted the book to have a happy ending and I can’t really picture Oakley having a child so personally I like the first book better but this one is good too just not my favorite.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Sharon Mariampillai.
2,229 reviews92 followers
August 7, 2016
This book broke my heart, but also taught me how love can help people find their voice. In the first book, Silence, the story is about a young girl named Oakley who was sexually abused until she was 13 years old. Due to the abuse, she stopped talking in general, so she communicated by shaking her head and nodding.

In this book, it has been 4 years since she left for Australia. She is returning to testify at we father and his friend's trial after she confessed that she was abused. She has to face Cole after leaving him for all that time. He was a bit upset, but could not stop loving her. The story was a page-turner, and had me at the edge of my seat the whole time I read it.

Oakley is a twenty year old in this book. Throughout the book, I thought she was brave and did her best to try and move on with her life without all of the baggage. I think that was why she wanted to testify at her father's trial. I felt bad for her and the horrible events that she suffered through. She was a fighter, smart, and caring.

She has a caring older brother named Jasper who I also love. He is so protective of her. He loves her so much, and it shows that he is not that dumb after all. He just acts that way to give people the impression that he is cool instead of smart. The next book is about his story. I can't wait to find out more about him.

Then there is Cole. Now here is the sweetest twenty-one year old blue-eyed boy I have ever read. He would do anything for Oakley. He is protective, smart and cute. He is definitely boyfriend material. Heck, I'd even say husband material. He is not afraid to protective Oakley, whether people are bullying her or when she is upset. He is always there. When I read their scenes together, it showed just how much love they felt.

The chapters about the trial made the story more real. I was really heart broken . Also, I was pissed that .

I was shocked to find out that . I thought the ending was shocking and I can't wait for book 3. I get to know about Jasper. I get to find out what happens to Cole and Oakley!! I hope Cole and Oakley get the happily ever after that they deserve.
2 reviews4 followers
Read
September 29, 2014
Just like the first book in the sequel, Broken Silence by Natasha Preston is an amazing love story with a big twist. This book is about the trial of Oakley’s dad and his friend for sexually harassing Oakley when she was little. This book is quite different to the first one, as Silence (book #1) was written around Oakley and Coles thoughts, whereas this book is more focused around what is happening and direct speech.

The book starts of with Oakley with her mom and brother in Australia after they have just moved from England, leaving her Cole, Oakley’s boyfriend, behind. Of course this created drama and the book ended just when Oakley tells him she is leaving that day. This book started off four years later, when the trial was a few weeks away. In this book the story is really developed and you get to know a lot more about each of the characters, more than you did in the first book.

I liked this book more than the first one because I felt that this book had more drama and suspense which I liked. I liked the way the book changes from first person perspective of Cole and Oakley with each chapter as it really gives a different perspective of the same story. I felt this book was quite different to the other one, as I thought it was a perfect love story, with nothing bad happening until the end, however this one is very different. The problems arise from the very beginning and seem to carry out, problem after problem, till the very end. One similarity between the books is that they both end, leaving me wanting another book in the sequel. It doesn't seem quite finished to me. At the end of this book, she ends up pregnant and so you can kind of make out what will happen however I never like that feeling not knowing for sure what happens.

Overall this was a very good book, and I recommend reading them both in the sequel. This book really engaged me and kept me turning pages till the very end!
Profile Image for Selina Griffin.
Author 0 books8 followers
March 28, 2014
I just found the whole thing a bit daft im afraid...oakley and cole seemed to still be acting like they were 12, professing they loved each other but then not getting round to actually getting together for hsaf the book. why?! then there was no duscussion of what would happen after the trial, even though cole was buying a house. *spoiler alert* when the evidence came to light after having just been mentioned, I cringed...really?! hiw cheesy can you get! and cole being arrested was so unrealistic that even the author gave up with that element of the story within a chapter - why introduce something like that (even though it was ridiculous!) and not do anything with it? and the constant assertions from cole and jasper that they wiuld kill frank and max we get it! I understand of course that they would feel that way but banging on about it all the time struck of macho-posturing.
330 reviews
January 29, 2014
wow this was pretty bad, I read it as a kindle book and have not had much luck w those yet.

maybe the first book would help set this up better but I absolutely could not identify with her acting like a typical teen when she was supposed to have gone through this trauma. I bought jasper more than her. he was wacked out and highly annoying but his behavior seemed more in character.

over all this book had potential I wanted to be sucked into the suspense but was never satisfied there were no spec vit unit details, and the love story could have sucked me in like twilight but it didn't fit the trauma like I said.

so no, sorry this didn't make the mark
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Ambia Khatun.
4 reviews
April 28, 2014
After the disappointing ending for the first book, I honestly believed this book would buck up and redeem itself from its horrendous prequel. Unfortunately I was wrong.

Despite having improved marginally on grammar and spelling errors, Broken Silence was just as painful to read as Silence. Again the story was too rushed and dragged on scenes that relatively didn't need more description.

The tension around the court case was appealing but all of the build up didn't live up to the promise it held. The only moment in the case I particularly enjoyed was when Oakley's dad gave his statement and there was a chance the verdict wouldn't be in her favour.
6 reviews1 follower
March 2, 2015
This book is the best book I have ever read in my entire life. I am a person who doesn't enjoy sappy love stories where the girl gets the boy etc. But this book blew me away in ways I never expected. The story of why Oakley never speaks (can't say why or it will ruin story) and how much her best friend Cole proves his love to her. I would sit and read this book and hours and hours would pass and I wouldn't even realize how much time I've been reading. It was so easy to get wrapped up in this book, it was completely and utterly amazing.
Profile Image for Alexandra Brown.
179 reviews3 followers
December 18, 2015
Having read Silence book #1, I made sure I had the others on my Kindle to read in between Thurso Book club reads. It follows on from book 1 with the build up to the trial of Max, Oakley's dad and Frank, his depraved cohort who are facing several charges of sexual abuse. The harrowing topic is dealt with gently but firmly, leaving no doubt in the reader's mind that these men are beasts, who must be put away, removed from society, for as long as possible. The story races then to the end everyone probably expects. I intend reading Ms Preston's next books too.
Profile Image for Helen Dempsey.
47 reviews22 followers
May 15, 2015
Individual adults

A big disappointment of mine was not reading the first book of this.
How to describe this book?
The book conveyed a lot of maturity from the lead characters.
I fell in love with the book, every girl should have a guy like Cole.
It was just about pure and utter love, amazingly beautiful.
I was so impressed I am about the same age.. (and buying a house is definitively not on my priority list right no ha)
Definitely for summer reading...
You'll love it
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Pam Nelson.
3,652 reviews113 followers
September 1, 2019
This book was incredibly hard to listen to but it was exactly what was needed after book 1.
It is a few years after book 1 and it really gave us the closure needed from book 1.

Really getting to see Oakley as a whole person and happy with Cole is exactly what I needed after such a heavy storyline.

I loved Oakley’s brother and how protective he was/is. I just wished the narrators hadn’t made him sound so whinny.
Other than that the narration is fantastic.
Profile Image for Mary.
14 reviews1 follower
Read
January 2, 2014
Awesome sequel!

Overall, again I really love this story! Extremely loved the first book, and this 1 absolutely gave Oakley's story a happy ending. I really wish there weren't so many typos, grammatical, spelling, and context, but they were somewhat easy to ignore! I look forward to more amazingness from Natasha Preston!
Profile Image for Samantha Curtis.
239 reviews19 followers
April 25, 2014
Omg what can I say about this second book. Even tho there was so e spelling mistakes and some typos this was still a brilliant sequel to silence. This book had me smiling and I was so happy the way it turned out for Oakley and cole. Really wish there will be a book 3
Profile Image for Alysia.
25 reviews1 follower
June 15, 2014
A little slower and not as intense as the first book but I really enjoyed seeing where Cole and Oakleys journey would lead them. I am happy with how the story ended. I gave it 4 stars just because the book was a little slow, but I enjoyed the story overall.
Profile Image for EB.
261 reviews
December 29, 2022
I will admit, the first book had a cliffhanger that I could not believe. I knew the story couldn't end there, so I continued with the series, and I do not regret it at all. The suspense created with the reminder of the trials mixed with the love of Oakley and Cole's reunion was beautiful.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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