It Happened in Silence by Karla M. Jay

Embedded firmly in the past, but echoing eerily in our present, It Happened in Silence by Karla M. Jay is a novel ripped from the American shadows, a visceral peek at the darkness.

Willow Stewart is a mesmerizing and relentless main character, though her relationship with her brother, Briar, is the unbreakable engine that drives this slow-brewing story. This interwoven tale of family, resilience, betrayal, and the moral evolution of a nation is powerful and stirring, but also subtle and humble in its storytelling. The novel is a striking meditation on America of the past and present, particularly when it comes to exploring ideas of disability, justice, and the small choices we make that change who we become.

It’s hard not to draw comparisons to Faulkner, both in the deep colloquial writing style, and a memorable narrator somehow separated from the rest of the world. She may lack the power of speech, but readers are given intimate access to Willow’s sparkling mind. The themes explored in the story are also universal and timeless: death and injustice, wealth inequality, the struggle to improve and survive, and to surpass the expectations and limitations set by earlier generations.

On a more technical note, the dialogue is deeply believable and the linguistic patterns in the narration are unwaveringly consistent. This is a fully immersive read, and one that is remarkably well-edited, with few notable errors or unnecessary tangents. With breath-catching flashes of poetic grace, unexpected descriptive beauty, and a meaning-laden flow of prose, It Happened in Silence is a captivating and ambitious achievement.