In the eighties, a depressed high school graduate blames herself for the traffic accident that killed her mother. To recover her confidence behind the wheel, Lissa takes driving lessons. The instructor, Ev MacAllister, becomes a friend to Lissa. He helps her learn not only to drive but also to work through her grief.

Meanwhile, Lissa runs into an old acquaintance in a bookstore. Silvano is a manipulative editor who seeks the identity of a successful but reclusive author. Silvano steals the author's newest manuscript to looks for clues to S. A. Green's identity. He knows if he can discover who Green is, he can sell an interview or story to a magazine for major money. Read more or get the quick scoop. ( )

This book is many stories woven into one. At the center is Lissa, a teenage girl who is traumatized after witnessing her mother's death in a freeway accident which Lissa feels responsible for. The catastrophe derails her life in every way possible, but now she is ready to take the first step to moving on with her life - learning how to drive again, without panic attacks, which will allow her to be independent, move out of her father's house, maybe go to college. To help her with this goal she is relying upon Ev McAllister, driving school instructor, who specializes in reaching troubled youths. This is just the primary interaction - Words Unspoken has several other stories of various interest levels which come back at the reader at various intervals.

I could just not get into this book for any extended amount of time. It is set in 1985, which just serves to make it seem old fashioned and out-of-date - it's not a yay, kick back to the 80s moment, it just adds to the yawn factor. There are a few two many stories, and the interweaving is not done as skillfully as with other authors. It's not a terrible book, but the characters and writing did not keep my interest well. ( )

I'm sure there's an audience for this, but it doesn't include me. It just is not my type of book.

Just wasn't the right book for me. This was one of two books I received one after the other, and I could not even finish them. The writing style was not engaging for me, and I couldn't get involved in the story.

Although this book is centered around Lissa's character there are many stories intertwined with her's. She is trying to move on with her life after the accident that killed her mother but she isn't sure how to do that. When she starts her driving lessons she meets a kind man who is struggling to deal with issues of his own. More characters are introduced early on and seem unconnected at first. Their stories are gradually developed and each has interesting conflicts. They all are affected by their relationship, or lack of it, with God.

I didn't realize that this was Christian fiction until I started reading it. Although that is not a genre I would normally chose it wouldn't prevent from reading it if I am interested in the story. I did enjoy this book but from the description I didn't expect Lissa to play such a small part. While there were many characters that took time to develop I did like how the author eventually brought the storylines together. At times I was frustrated with their behavior but I did become involved with them. The common element was their inner conflict, the words unspoken. While searching for resolution they turned to their Christian faith. The bible passages weren't my preference but they were relevant to the story and didn't detract from my reading. This was an interesting story about despair, hope and faith.

Thank you to LibraryThing Early Reviewer program.
Author's website www.elizabethmusser.com ( )