Kristin's Bookshelf

Rooted in Silence
by A.M. Walker
(Book 1: Root and Vein Trilogy)
⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ 3.75

First things first—the cover is absolutely stunning. It’s what pulled me in right away.

This ended up being a quick read for me—I finished it in what felt like three short sessions, which says a lot about how easy it is to move through.

What surprised me most was how much I connected with Emily. Not necessarily in her actions, but in some of her thoughts and underlying paranoia. That part felt very real and added an interesting layer to her character.

Matt? Hard pass. I’ve dealt with meddlesome friend dynamics before and it’s exhausting … and I wasn’t even trying to get away with anything, let alone murder.

Remmy frustrated me quite a bit. Even after the explanations, I kept coming back to the same question … why not just be honest with your fiancé? About DJ, the money, the cardiologist … all of it. I’d be furious too.

I appreciated the complexity of both Volkova and Emily, but I don’t feel like I fully understand their motivations yet. I’m hoping book two digs deeper into their “why,” because there’s clearly more beneath the surface.

The ending especially left me feeling for Emily. Without giving anything away, it had that very specific kind of frustration—like putting in all the work to bake the perfect pie, winning the contest … and then finding out someone swapped it out because they didn’t think yours was good enough.

Overall, while this one didn’t fully land for me, I’m definitely interested enough to continue the trilogy. I want to see where Emily’s story goes and (hopefully) get more answers in the next books.

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