The Colour of Your Voice by Daniel Newwyn is a story that took me by surprise. The beauty of the writing is what dragged me into it.
Violet knelt down to the ground as the sounds of Turner grew quieter and quieter. She clenched the painting in her hand, her hiccups mixed in tears, bitter. The ground beneath her drenched into a puddle.
The sky changed colour. The colour of the earth was as dark as his voice.
We follow Violet and Turner. She is an abused young painter with a special ability – she can hear colours. And he is a criminal. She is forced to find a way to finance herself and this pulls them together. The physical relationship they have quickly turns into something far more special. The way they interact with each other is beautiful to watch, but all the time I felt to need to see more. I wanted there to be more. The story had so much potential to be bigger. I wished for just a few more pages. The brevity of the story is the reason I didn’t bond with the characters until I reached the second half of it. But, when I bonded with them, it was magical. You can feel how powerful what they have is. The end made me quite sad… I wished there would have been a way for them to avoid it. However, as much as it made me sad, I think it made the story even more beautiful!
Her voice trembled. “Can you promise me something?”
“Tell me.”
“Please. Be alive until then. Be alive to see it.”
“Promise,” he immediately replied. “Bring it here.”
“Please wait for me. I won’t take long, won’t take long.”
I think there is certainly room for improvement. With time, Newwyn’s writing will evolve and I can’t wait to read his future work! I think the way the dual timeline was handled is a bit confusing. The names of the chapters are simply dates when the event took place. I think it would have been less confusing if they were simply numbered and categorized into past or present. This is simply a technicality, however, I think it is worth mentioning.
I recommend this novella to anyone seeking a short, but emotional read!
I received this book in exchange for an honest review.
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