Cat Johnson Braves Doll Lil’s Word Association Challenge!

Author: Rene Gutteridge
Book: Listen
Release: January 25, 2010
Series: Novel
Source: Personal Library
Purchase: – Book Depository 

Someone is listening . . .

The quaint, close-knit community of Marlo was the ideal place to live . . . until someone started posting private conversations online for everyone to read, word for word. Now it’s neighbor against neighbor, friend against friend, as careless comments and hurtful accusations turn the town upside down. Violence and paranoia escalate, and the police scramble to find the person responsible before more people get hurt—or even killed.

But what responsibility do the residents of Marlo have for the words they say when they think no one is listening?

In a small town where nothing – aside from a speeding ticket – ever really happens, all of a sudden everyone is a suspect…but not to your average crime. When a mysterious website pops up and posts conversations of the towns people, showing others what is said behind the their backs we get to see what lies beneath the seemingly perfect illusion the town people have striven to uphold.

Now, people are hating their preacher, pointing fingers at their neighbors and looking in all the wrong places. The police try to identify the person behind the website and pull the plug on it before it destroys the town. But what responsibility do the people of the town have for the words they say when they think no one is listening? The answer is plenty. Life and death are in the power of the tongue.

Told from alternating perspectives of various people in the town, readers slowly get to know the people of Marlo and what motivates them all the while picking up clues to solve the mystery. This was done beautifully. Several times throughout the story I was sure I knew who was behind the website, then a chapter later I had moved on to another suspect. The town and the website are almost their own characters- one standing as a facade and the other exposing it’s true colors.

The power of the words we use has never been more apparent than it is in LISTEN. Rene Gutteridge has written a remarkable book that both teens and adults can relate to and should read. It’s powerful!

Also Reviewed By: – My Friend Amy –

Day is a dreamer who has never met a stranger. She is fearless and will talk to anyone and read anything! She taught music and dance and was a singer/actress for years, performing on stages both nationally and overseas. Now married with children, she spends less time singing on stage and more time writing songs at home. But, family life has not completely slowed this chick down. She still loves an adventure and learning new things. She resides in Texas with her family, Great Dane (Sophie), Labradoodles (George & Cosmo) and Chihuahua (Juan Carlos).

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