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When We Were Silent takes events and wounds from the past and reopens them in the light of the present day. This story is a take on dark academia, in a way, and an unflinching tale of assault, abuses of power, and the unfortunate who get caught in the snares of those who mean to harm. The narrative shifts between present and past, with each part taking place in huge sections rather than swapping every chapter or so. This is good in that it allows you to get invested in a particular timeline, but it also makes it difficult if you prefer one timeline over another, as you get stuck in one world for an extended period.

In the past timeline, Lou is enrolled in a private school. Her ulterior motive for this is to find out what happened to cause her friend Tina to end her life. Quickly she gets caught up in the drastic difference between the high-class school and its students and her own life as an outsider from the working class. Sports are a common thread, and quickly Lou learns everything she needs to know about what happened to Tina, but trying to find a way to bring the involved parties to justice takes a bit of a turn as she gets involved with some of her classmates and comes up against the machinery that is the school administration.

In the current timeline, Lou is a mother, trying to deal with her young daughter and the lingering effects of the past she had hoped to leave behind. But the past never stays buried. Quickly, her past is thrust back into the spotlight as new allegations surface around her old stomping grounds. Lou has to decide what to do to help current students, finally realize the full truth of what happened to her long ago, and bring everything to a close.

There is so much here that is interesting, and even the inherent darkness of the story tries to find some small sliver of light. However, the current timeline felt abrupt and jumpy, and a storyline involving Lou’s daughter seemed a bit unnecessary in light of everything else that was going on. Or at least, not fleshed out enough to stand on its own. The original story of Lou’s past is the one that was the most riveting, and following the aftermath of that for a longer time may have helped the present day a little better. It is almost as if there were two separate stories here that each deserved its spotlight, rather than sharing a single book. The second half felt abrupt in resolution as Lou finally got answers to exactly what had happened when she was in school all those years ago. And so many of the side characters fell flat and were there to act as foils or sources of information for Lou, with no real agency of their own.

I will also note to please check content warnings, as this book deals on page with assault, more than once. It is the basis for the entire book, so please go in fully aware of what you will be encountering. There is an interesting story here about abuses of power and the lengths some will go to avoid responsibility for said acts, however, it tends to get a little lost amid all of the time jumps and lack of urgency (and agency) from some of the characters.

I read this book as an ARC from the publisher and NetGalley. All opinions are my own. Publication Date is May 21st.