The Whistling is a ghost story set on a Scottish Island. Elspeth Swansone is recovering from a bereavement when she is sent to look after Mary, a young child who has recently lost her brother. Before she arrives, no one tells Elspeth that Mary is a mute. Despite this she does start to form a strong bond with the child.

But all is not well in the house. Miss Gillies, the mistress, seems to regard Mary, her niece, with distaste.. And the servant, Greer, is positively hostile. As strange occurrences become more frequent, Elspeth begins to suspect that some of the goings on have no rational explanation. And the strange whistling she hears at night is of a supernatural origin.

This is a well written, intricate story, which will keep you guessing until the last page.

This book is terrifying. It grips you from the outset and keeps you on the edge of your seat. Gothic, Mysterious and utterly flawless

Wooooh 👻 it’s spooky season again and this haunting gothic tale is a perfect wintery read to set a chill in your bones.

Set in 1860, Elspeth is left all alone in the world when her sister dies in a tragic accident. Leaving city life behind she travels to the remote Scottish Island of Skelthsea to work as a nanny. Her young charge is Mary, who has suffered tragedy of her own. She is mute since losing her twin brother in mysterious circumstances.

As Elspeth gets used to the decaying granduer of her new home, Iskar, and the secrecy of the Island residents, strange occurrences start to shake her belief in the rational and scientific. A strange whistling seeps through the ancient corridors at night and Mary seems to see things that aren’t there. Are there supernatural causes or does the answer lie with the secrets of the living?

This novel is jam packed with gothic conventions and has an atmospheric prose that reads a little like a 19th century novel. The island and the house, which are at the mercy of harsh wintery storms and mists, are described in evocative detail, enhancing the creeping isolation and claustrophobic atmosphere.

The plot is cleverly thought out. The secrets lie just beyond view for most of the novel, adding to the intrigue, and reveal themselves in a eerie and slow burning manner.

This supernatural mystery would make a great read for fans of the classic haunted house story. Perfect read for a spine-tingling Halloween.

Elspeth is newly arrived on the Scottish island of Skelthsea, ready to be a nanny for the strangely silent bereaved twin Mary. The house is brooding and spooky, and one of the maids seems to hate Elspeth for no good reason. There’s uncanny whistling and ghostly lullabies echoing through the wind-battered house and Elspeth starts to suspect that all is not well.

This novel had all the hallmarks and tropes of a good haunting ghost story, but for me it didn’t quite work. Perhaps I wasn’t in the right mood.

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing a review copy in exchange for honest feedback.

On the remote Scottish island of Skelthsea, Elspeth Swansome takes on a position as a nanny.
Her charge, Mary, hasn't uttered a word since the sudden death of her twin, William - just days after their former nanny disappeared. But no one will speak of what happened to William.
Just as no one can explain the lullabies sung in empty corridors.
Nor the strange dolls that appear in abandoned rooms.
Nor the faint whistling that comes in the night . .
As winter draws in, Elspeth finds herself increasingly trapped.
But is this house haunted by the ghosts of the past?
OR THE SECRETS OF THE LIVING . . . ?

Excellent creepy gothic read which is perfect for this time of year
Wonderful well written plot and story line that had me engaged from the start.
Love the well fleshed out characters and found them believable.
Great suspense and found myself second guessing every thought I had continuously.
Can't wait to read what the author brings out next.
Recommend reading.

I was provided an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher. This is my own honest voluntary review.

⭐️ 3 ⭐️

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC, in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

This well-written, character driven story is creepy and atmospheric. Set on a remote Scottish island, the description of which adds weight to the general feeling of eeriness and foreboding.

The characters are well rounded and believable.
The story is well plotted, with twists and turns I didn’t predict.

The pacing is quite slow, sometimes a little too slow for my liking, but still an enjoyable read - perfect for the spooky season.

This is a great book, very creepy and mysterious. Well written and enjoyable plot.
It really keeps you guessing until the end , which comes as a surprise.
The menace of the house and the surroundings is palpable and you really do feel part of the plot.

This is a perfect book for the run up to Halloween!
Isolation, a silent child, possible witchcraft and a haunted house-perfect!!

A remote Scottish island, an old creepy mansion, family tragedies, mysterious appearances and deaths, and rumours of witchcraft - what's not to love! Atmospheric and evocative and just completely unsettlingly eerie. A real quality read

Fantastic read! I absolutely loved this, it was spooky and scary with so much tension and a great plot. Set on a remote Scottish island, with a big crumbling mansion, winter storms, folklore, witchcraft, damaged relationships, fractured families, bereavements, sibling love and rivalry and plenty of strong female characters. Ticking all my boxes! It was so compelling, I had to read more yet was gutted when it was over, I found all the elements really worked and I really believed in the central characters. Dark and brooding atmospheres, the descriptions of the weather, the relentless rains and icy chills, all added to the story and the depiction of the main house almost made it a character in itself. The relationships in this story really shone through, the memories Elspeth has of her own family and how that plays over the relationships within family she is now with. Just brilliant. I think if you enjoyed books like Rebecca or The Little Stranger then this will suit you, the writing is definitely up there. Highly recommend!

Come here for something fresh and inventive in the Gothic tradition. In a decrepit mansion on a remote Scottish island is Mary, a nine year old living with her aunt and servants, and struck mute with the death of her parents and recently her brother, and the vanishing, America-wards, of her nanny. Elspeth is new to the island, running from a similar family tragedy of her own, and using that connection to try and forge a bond with the younger girl. And Mary might well need all the help and succour she can get, for evil entities seem afoot on the island and in the house – and Elspeth might well not be immune to their terrors either...

Flawed households, flawed houses, an earthiness from a rural location – so much of this is a Gothic kind of drama. But that's all given a quite new flavour (certainly new to me) by its Scottish setting, and some unusual island folklore. The island didn't come across perfectly to me – I wish the narrating Elspeth considered eye colours and nose shapes less and gave us a less woolly lie of the land for us to fix the places and topography – but it certainly adds a different mood to everything here. The book also manages to tumble around in a genre maelstrom – starting out as (thankfully hokum-free) Gothic, becoming a true ghost story, then leaning more towards a mystery novel. No love of any genre is needed to enjoy this, however – it is a distinctive read many will find creepiness and emotion alike with. Certainly a strong four stars.

It's getting to that time of year when the nights are getting darker earlier, there's a chill in the air and Hallowe'en is coming up. It's also the time when I get brave and add a ghostly story or two to my reading list. How ominous does that front cover of The Whistling look?

Right from the outset the author makes the house of Iskar and the island of Skealthsea sound bleak and cold, a very unwelcoming place. There's sorrow and mystery from the start with tragic deaths not to be discussed, locked rooms, a grieving child who is an elective mute and the cold and distant aunt who is her guardian.

This is not a fast paced read but rather the author gradually builds up the eeriness and draws you into the story. A web of intrigue, secrets, lies and danger bind the elements of this story together.

The Whistling is an atmospheric and unsettling book. Read it with the curtains closed and the lights on...

There was a lot of promise with this one, but the pacing was off. The slow start made it feel like a bit of a chore to pick up. Unfortunately, while it does start to build, once it started feeling like homework I found it hard to give in to the story.

Comparisons are also not fair, but I was hoping for something more along the lines of The Silent Companions. Having also recently read another book set on a Scottish island with an atmospheric bent to the writing and story I found this one a little lacking.

My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This book definitely had the spooky, gothic vibes I was anticipating and the general theme fits in well with this time of year. However, I didn’t absolutely love it. It is written very well but I found the pace more on the slow side for my personal preferences and at times felt that I was reading just to get to the end rather than being engaged with the story. The plot, which is executed well, isn’t particularly unique and I’ve read many books that share the same tropes and twists so it didn’t feel especially memorable.

The mood and atmosphere are really strong points in The Whistling but as a story it doesn’t stand out for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was really drawn to this story by the creepy and suspenseful plot, I thought it would be a fantastic read of secrets, ghosts, and more, but I was a bit disappointed. Of course, there are secrets and ghosts, there is death (murder or accident?), there are voices heard in the middle of the night, there is a child who doesn’t speak anymore, and all these elements create what should be a gripping read, but I couldn’t get myself into the story. The protagonist was not entirely to my liking and the pace was too slow. 3 stars!

This gothic read is set on a Scottish island in the 18th Century. Elspeth is to be nanny to the mute 9 year old, Mary who is cared for by her aunt Violet after the death of not only her parents, but more recently her brother William too.

Mary appears to be a lovely girl, well behaved, albeit communicates little. Her aunt is welcoming and despite its tired décor does initially feel welcoming. Staff there are respective, albeit tight lipped about what has passed. One staff member Greer however is not welcoming and acts with a sense of malice.

Elspeth has her own tragedies that equip her for the new role, despite no previous experience as a nanny. She is gracious, kind, intelligent and tolerant. She is curious also. That curious begs her question some suspicious and strange goings on at the house. She builds a good relationship with Mary, yet she remains mute. Some people remain inscrutable, others welcoming and friendly. What becomes more apparent is that not all are trustworthy and there are definitely some ghostly goings on.

The mix of characters keep you guessing as to who knows what and is doing what behind the scenes. It is very dark and atmospheric with a very ghoul like quality. There is light tension but not a deep foreboding or fear. There were a few gentle twists as the story meanders through to it denouement in quite an elegant and composed manner. Great descriptors of the landscape, wind and cold, with an evocative take on the times. A most enjoyable eerie read with decent dollops of magic.

This book immediately drew me in, a historical fiction, set in the Victorian times with ghosts is the one.

The authors writing style really pull you in, so atmospheric and eerie, I could really picture the settings and characters. There is no way I would be as long as Elspeth, I would be long gone 😂.

Such a fantastic debut, I’m looking forward to reading more from the author.

Thank you to the publisher for the advanced readers copy via Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

A ghost story set on a remote Scottish island...what is not to like about this book
The story builds slowly and the tension builds and this would make an amazing movie
I love ghost stories and the is certainly well-written and well-constructed, with an initial slow burn building up to an unforgettable ending.
Yes you can feel the evil spirits in the dark and several times the hairs on my arms stood up

I have Read the digital book and purchased the audio version and the narration is amazing

“Beyond the sounds of the island, another made itself heard: the faintest of whistles, like wind trapped in tiles or chimneys. I stopped. Darkness bled into the corners and edged across the walls. As I listened, the whistling rose and fell, …. there was a quality to what I heard that turned uneasily inside me.”

My thanks to Michael Joseph U.K. for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘The Whistling’ by Rebecca Netley in exchange for an honest review.

The story is told by Elspeth Swansome, a young woman who has travelled from Edinburgh to the remote Scottish island of Skelthsea to become the new nanny at Iskar. Her charge is nine-year-old Mary, a strange child who hasn't uttered a word since the recent death of her twin, William. In addition, Mary’s parents are both dead and her aunt, Miss Violet Gillies, serves as her guardian.

Unsettling incidents increasingly occur at Iskar, slowly building up the tension. Elspeth becomes closer to Mary and seeks answers about William’s death as well as why their former nanny left so suddenly.

This proved a haunting tale of ghosts, strange artefacts, witchcraft, secrets, and murder in the archetypal gothic setting of a creepy old house with a sinister history.

‘The Whistling’ is written in the style of the classic Gothic novel in which the reader is slowly drawn into the story through the thoughts and encounters of its narrator, experiencing their unease and increasing dread.

I was completely drawn into this outstanding work of literary horror. An exciting debut and a perfect reading choice for the Halloween season.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

The Whistling by Rebecca Netley is an atmospheric and spooky historical thriller, perfect for an evening curled up on a cosy couch with a storm howling outside. The fact that it is a debut novel makes it all the more impressive.
Elspeth Swansome moves to a remote Scottish island to take charge of a young girl Mary, who is struggling following the deaths of several family members, most notably her twin brother William. Her grief has rendered her mute, and her guardian, the remote Miss Gillies, feels like Elspeth may be Mary's last chance before being sent to an institution. The fact that Elspeth has experienced more than her own share of grief helps her to bond with Mary , but that bond may not be strong enough to withstand the strange events that plague the house , from fragments of a lullaby heard in the night, to mysterious binding stones and creepy dolls , not to forget the whistling of the title, supposedly from a Widow's whistle, made from the bones of a dead man. A little digging soon reveals that the house is steeped in tragedy , and unless Elspeth can figure out what is going on , she and Mary may be next.
This really is an atmospheric read that stands on the author's skill with words , the prose throughout the book is highly evocative and vividly brings both settings and characters to life . The gradual building of tension throughout the book draws the reader in, trapping them in a story filled with drama and a sense of impending doom.
A perfect Halloween read.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.