I knew before starting this book that I was likely going to enjoy it - a potentially haunted house, an isolated island, odd children, a household haunted by secrets, and a young governess away from all she knows trying to deal with a multitude of Big Feelings, all in the realm of Henry James's The Turn Of The Screw, which I loved. Not only did I get just what I went in for, but the narration of the audiobook was absolutely gorgeous and made it that much more easy to get immersed in the story.

It's Halloween...don't be afraid be terrified. Hypnotic lullabies sung in empty corridors, strange dolls appearing in abandoned rooms and a faint whistling that comes at night.
I don't normally read ghost stories, I'm a bit of a wuss 😆 but I enjoyed The Whistling. It was very atmospheric with interesting characters and in a particularly chilling location.
It is set on Skelthsea a Scottish Island, the only link to the mainland is the monthly boat. When Elspeth steps ashore the whole island know that she is the new Nanny headed for Iskar the large house sitting at the top of the hill.
Mary, her new charge has not spoken since the sudden death of her twin. Elspeth has felt loss recently too, maybe she can help Mary. No one will speak of Williams death, nor of the sudden disappearance of her predecessor. As Elspeth tries to discover the secrets of Iskar, she is met first with silence then the atmosphere chills. Should Elspeth stay to help Mary and find out the truth or take her chance to return to Edinburgh?

It wasn’t overly supernatural and erred more on the side of making me question whether the tragedies that happened were caused by ghosts or by humans. I went back and forth with what I thought had happened and by whom and the end of the story was done so very well (no spoilers) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The year is 1860. Elspeth has suffered considerable personal loss and death, and alights upon the job of nanny to young Mary, who lives with her aunt on the fictional island of Skelthsea. Theirs is a dour house – Iskar – with melancholy oozing from the very fabric of the building, its faded grandeur and endless corridors and rooms adding a gloomy atmosphere to the story.

Mary has lost both her mother and her twin brother, and therefore nanny and charge already have death and grieving in common. However, Mary is unwilling or unable to speak and is clearly a troubled child. Elspeth however rises to the challenge and soon finds a connection and empathy to bind them.

As Elspeth settles in, things begin to disconcert her. Things move and go missing, decorated stones appear – she disposes of them and then they reappear again – and the eerie atmosphere begins to get under her skin. Whistling sounds and ghostly rumblings all continue to unsettle her, as she builds the relationship with Mary. She observes the people around the house and beyond, many of whom seem to know more than they are prepared to divulge. Things are hinted at, secrets alluded to but not revealed; Elspeth is rattled by the ghostly goings-on.

This is an incredibly atmospheric read and the author does a fantastic job of conjuring up the remote island, where the boat from the mainland only calls irregularly. The seas pound, the wind whistles and the skies form a leaden backdrop outside. Inside the house, the musty and oppressive atmosphere feathers around the characters as they move through their days.

An excellent choice for anyone who liked Mexican Gothic and is looking for something suitable for the period around Halloween.

The Whistling was the perfect spooky gothic audiobook that I wanted for October. From the beginning it was deeply atmospheric and the sense of unease and foreboding was all consuming.
There is something not right on Skelthsea island, are the people just recovering from the death of a little boy or is there something far more sinister lurking?
I listened to the audiobook and found the narration and play on tone and accents to add so much to the dark and sinister atmosphere.
Brimming with characters that you want to protect and others you want to run far far away from, The Whistling is an eerie tale which you will want to leave the lights on for.

i absolutely loved this book was a great Halloween read and thought the narrator was amazing at giving voices to the different characters. the book captures two sad souls that are drawn together because of there past. it is creepy and atmospheric and i would highly recommend it

Atmospheric and compelling the perfect autumn read.

The narrator of this audiobook does an amazing job of bringing the story the life, I did not want to stop listening and ended up finishing it in one day,

A dark and gothic story which keeps you intrigued throughout. Creepy and eerie the perfect setting.

An absolute chilling tale. If you are like me and scare fairly easily, I would recommend you don’t read this on your own. You may not sleep after you read it either. It is a very clever book and I did enjoy reading this, it’s just an absolute Halloween special.

I was really looking forward to getting into this spooky listen. It was an extremely slow burner and for me it never really got going. I’m
sorry to say I was really bored and found my mind constantly wondering from the storyline. It just didn’t hold my attention and I really didn’t care for any of the characters. It just felt like there was nothing happening to make me want to continue listening. It felt a chore and I did consider not continuing at different intervals as its taken me a lot longer then unusual to get through it but at 1.5hrs to go I just felt I couldn’t continue any longer and I really wasn’t invested in what the outcome was but I had given enough time to it at that stage. I did like the narrations and the different Scottish accents. Unfortunately not for me at all…

Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Random House Audio UK for the opportunity to listen to and review this ARC that was published on the 14th of Oct.

I didn’t realise this was a historical fiction when I requested it, but I was pleasantly surprised as I listened. A little slow in places but, the book was well written, atmospheric and had interesting characters. I enjoyed the narrator and would read more by this author in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the audioARC of this book.

A chilling tale that's perfect for Halloween season and beyond. I particularly enjoyed the narration of this story that really brought it to life. Perfect for fans of Laura Purcell and an accomplished debut.

The Whistling is an atmospheric ghost story that set in a creepy island location that makes it the perfect spooky read. Whilst the story is a slow burn, there is enough mystery to keep you engaged with the chilling happenings and twists and turns along the way.

The audiobook was really well narrated and I enjoyed both the reader’s accent and voice as well as her animation and pace which added to the sinister feel of the book.

Reading or listening to this on a windy night by a fire would be the perfect way to pass a few hours this Halloween.

“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 Penguin Random House U.K. Audio for a review copy via NetGalley of the unabridged audiobook edition of ‘The Whistling’ by Rebecca Netley in exchange for an honest review. The audiobook is narrated by Lois Chimimba and has a running time of 8 hours, 42 minutes at 1x speed.

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.

With respect to the audiobook, Lois Chimimba is a Scottish actor who has appeared in a number of recent television series. While she’s only narrated a few audiobooks to date, she has a rich voice that was a pleasure to listen to. Her soft Scottish burr was perfect for Elspeth.

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.

Audio review - good choice of narrator. Easy to listen to and she gave depth to the characters.





I wanted to like this more than I did. There was nothing wrong with it and it adhered to the tropes of gothic fiction well. There just wasn't anything that caught me by surprise or really wowed me. I loved the setting - a remote Scottish island. and good use of the land and weather was made to create a spooky atmosphere. That last little bit of connection was missing for me, however.



Elspeth, the MC, was plausible and likeable but again, I just didn't really get inside her skin. Part of it, is me. I have read a lot of gothic fiction and ghost stories. Not very much is going to chill me or surprise me, so I really need an intense connection with the characters, the plot or the setting. And for whatever reason, all three of those things were just okay for me here. I can see this is a good book, well written - miles ahead of offerings such as 'the Silent Companions' - but I just wasn't as immersed as I wanted to be.



However, what the Whistling does, it does well. I did like it even if it didn't rock my world. I'm sure other fans of gothic literature will really enjoy it.

Thank you to @Rebecca_Netley and @MichaelJBooks for this advanced audio copy of The Whistling in return for an honest review.

Description 🔖

Elspeth Swansome has nobody in the world so in an effort to make a life for herself, she accepts a job as a nanny on the remote Scottish island of Skelthsea. Mary; the child that she is hired to care for has suffered her own devastation having lost her twin brother and only a short time before her previous nanny. Since the day her brother William died, Mary has not spoken a word.

Nobody will share the full details of what happened to William with Elspeth. Nor can anyone explain the soft lullaby that Elspeth hears in the empty hallways or the strange dolls that seem to appear around the house or the faint whistling that she can hear during the night. As winter draws in, Elspeth is trapped on the island and within a house that she fears is inhabited by ghosts of the past.

General Thoughts 🤔

I didn’t read the blurb for this book before I started, it was the cover that caught my attention. If I had read the blurb I’m not sure that I would have gone for it as ghosts and ghouls aren’t really my thing. I’m so glad that I didn’t read it because I loved this book. It wasn’t overly supernatural and erred more on the side of making me question whether the tragedies that happened were caused by ghosts or by humans. I went back and forth with what I thought had happened and by whom and the end of the story was done so very well (no spoilers)

Characters 👭👬👫

I grew very close to Elspeth. I felt her fear as she felt it, I felt her sadness as she felt it and I felt her joy as she felt it. Her relationship with Mary was so sweet and I was willing Mary to let down her guard and trust Elspeth. As the trust between them grew, the love shared between them actually made me feel quite emotional. I thought that Elspeth was incredibly brave and kept her resolve in search of the truth when she could have easily bailed.

There are numerous characters I’d love to talk about in some detail, but I don’t want to give any spoilers. The characters were written so cleverly that I questioned and suspected everyone on the island. With such a small number of people inhabiting the Skelthsea, everyone was a suspect to me for both moral and legal crimes.

Writing Style ✍️

Rebecca Netley has done such a fantastic job of making this entire book feel chilling and gripping, encouraging a constant state of paranoia in me as a reader. There was never a moment where I felt sure about the truth and that made me empathise hugely with some of the characters who must have felt the same way. I really liked the descriptions of the island, I thought they were beautifully written and gave me a very clear picture of the look and feel of Skelthsea.

I listened to the audiobook of The Whistling and the narration was brilliant. @LoisChimimba read the story so beautifully and her voice was perfectly suited to Rebecca Netley’s words. I could feel the eeriness from her voice and it only made this book even more unsettling.

Conclusion & Scoring 🎖️

I can’t recommend this book enough. It’s a perfect Halloween read and I’m sure that it will bring out all the same feelings in every reader as it did for me. It sends chills through the bones and grips from the very beginning. Fantastic writing of a brilliant story.

4⭐️
I had the 🎧audiobook version. I loved the accent of the narrator. She adds a lot of atmosphere and emotion.

A ghostly gothic tale. Set in 1860 Elspeth goes to the remote Scottish island of Skelthsea to be a nanny to a nine year old Mary who is cared for by her Aunt who is unused to the needs of children. Mary hasn’t spoken a word since her twin brother died and the previous nanny went missing.

The dialogue feels in keeping with the era, it takes awhile to get ‘in tune’ with it. Once tuned in, it has a lovely feel to it.
It’s full of atmosphere with Elspeth being a very likeable and strong main character. There’s good character depth.
It’s a slow burn. The narrator kept my interest throughout.
A lovely story for scary October.

The Whistleing is an atmospheric gothic novel set on the remote Scottish island of Skelthsea.
In 1860 Elspeth Swansome moves to the island from her home in Edinburgh to take up the position of nanny to Mary who is a selective mute after the death of her brother. There are some residents on the island who still believe in witchcraft and soon Elspeth begins to think something sinister is going on.
This book is a slow burn with the plot slowly revealed through many twists and turns. It does a fantastic job of creating an atmosphere of paranoia and fear through the development of the witchcraft element and the many grievances of the characters. The narrator added another level of tension to the story and I therefore enjoyed it more as an audiobook.

I was so pleased to receive this book to review. Dark, spooky, even gothic tales are right up my street and this was brilliant.

The setting is very much a character in its own right and Rebecca Netley does a fantastic job of engulfing you in the scene of the beautiful but remote Scottish island of Skelthsea. The narrator has a lovely soothing tone and I loved her accent which brought the story alive.

Elspeth arrives to look after Mary, a child who hasn't spoken a word since the death of her twin and the disappearance of the former nanny. Alarm bells ring straight away and we, the reader, along with Elspeth try to unlock the mystery of the island. No one seems willing to tell Elspeth how William, Mary's twin died. It's very cloak and dagger amongst the islanders leaving Elspeth isolated.

I really enjoyed this mystery that had some chilling elements, with the dolls and the whistle. Looking forward to reading what Rebecca does next.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for this advanced copy.

A remote Scottish island, a creepy old house and a nanny looking after a child who is selectively mute! Perfect ingredients for a chilling, gothic read and a perfect listen in the run up to Halloween.

Rebecca Netley creates such an eerie atmosphere in this supernatural tale of witches and ghosts. It is a perfectly paced slow burn which filled me with feelings of dread. The island and it's inhabitants are perfectly described. I loved the character of Elspeth, who has her own tragic past, but is determined to protect her charge, whatever the cost. This is a classic gothic thriller and it's hard to believe it is a debut novel.

Perfect narration by Lois Chimimba.

This was a perfect spooky book for October! It really reminded me of The Turn Of The Screw. I loved the setting and the narrator of the audiobook only added that extra aspect of that with there aspect. All the creepy aspects and twists kept me gripped. Would recommand to fans of classic Gothic stories!