English C2: A review

Write a review for a culture magazine of a book, film or exhibition that made a strong impression on you.

With The Silence After the Storm, the young writer Hannah Burke has produced a debut novel that lingers long after the last page. It tells the story of a family on the Northumberland coast who, after the father’s death, try to keep the farm going. At its heart is seventeen-year-old Ida, through whose eyes the events of a single summer unfold. What impresses most is the prose: Burke writes in a spare, precise style without ever seeming cold. The landscape of wind, mudflats and endless skies becomes almost a character in its own right. The dialogue, too, rings so true that you suspect the author of having secretly taken notes. Less successful is the middle section, where the plot noticeably drags. Some minor characters, such as the uncle from London, also remain more caricature than person. Readers looking for a gripping, fast-paced plot may therefore be disappointed. Nevertheless, this is a remarkable debut, precisely because it refuses to hurry. It deals with grief without becoming sentimental, and with new beginnings without romanticising them. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys quiet, closely observed fiction, ideally over a long, rainy weekend.