By Melissa Moore-Randall
Revere native Dianne Braley debuted her first novel, The Silence in the Sound, in 2022. Set in both Revere and Martha’s Vineyard, her book detailed the devastating effects of growing up in addiction. It was also inspired by her time as a nurse caring for Pulitzer Prize-winning author and island resident William Styron. The book won many awards including the The NYC Big Book Award 2022, Pencraft Award for Literary Excellence and the Literary Titan Silver Book Award.
On the heels of the success of Silence in the Sound, Braley will be releasing her second novel, THE SUMMER BEFORE, in October. The synopsis of the books is based on the friendship of Madeline and Summer.
“Madeline and Summer are more than best friends. They might as well be sisters; they’ve claimed the title, anyway-and sisters tell each other everything. But Summer has a secret she’s been hiding for years. Someone’s been hurting her, someone close, and when it comes out, it destroys everything around her with the force of dying stars. Six years after the trial, Madeline is a haunted young woman trying to build a new life in Boston, but the guilt of her betrayal brings her to the brink of suicide. To let go of the past, Madeline must confront her father, mother, and all those involved with the trial that split her family apart-or continue her descent, finishing what she started to escape it.”
Dianne grew up in Revere with her brother and parents including an alcoholic father. “We lived a life settled uncomfortably in dysfunction and unpredictability. My mom struggled to make ends meet but made us feel like everything was fabulous. I don’t think my brother Richard, and I ever knew how poor we were or how bad things were for her and us. By some miracle, my father became sober not long after, which was something we never thought possible, although I wanted nothing more. He was a massive drinker and suffered tremendously. It was difficult to watch and more difficult to live with. Growing up with an addicted parent or guardian affects kids in many ways; all kids are different. For me, I lived with an innate feeling that something was very wrong. I seriously felt the world was so backward in all my questions being a child about the world. The answers I received and saw by example always felt wrong—nothing made sense, making me anxious and alone. You don’t know if it’s your fault or you think maybe you can fix it. You also wonder if you are not lovable because if you were, wouldn’t this all stop?”
Part of the proceeds of The Silence in the Sound went to the RFK Community Alliance Organization and their COASA (Children of Alcoholism & Substance Abuse) division. Braley collaborated with the RFK organization and the Martha’s Vineyard Ocean Academy program on the island that runs a well-known sailing camp on the Shenandoah (one of the Black Dog tall ships) to have one of the RFK kids get the experience of a lifetime, sailing for a week with the Martha’s Vineyard Ocean Academy.
To learn more about
Dianne’s latest novel and to find a link to preorder it, you may visit her website at https://diannecbraley.com.
