• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
FanFiAddict

FanFiAddict

A gaggle of nerds talking about Fantasy, Science Fiction, and everything in-between. They also occasionally write reviews about said books. 2x Stabby Award-Nominated and home to the Stabby Award-Winning TBRCon.

  • Home
  • About
    • Reviewers
    • Review Policy
    • Contact
  • Blog
    • Guest Posts
    • Lists
    • Neurodivergence in Fiction
    • Why You Should Read…
  • Reviews
    • Children’s / Middle Grade Books
    • Comics/Graphic Novels
    • Fantasy
      • Alt History
      • Coming of Age
      • Debut
      • Epic Fantasy
      • Fairy Tales
      • Grimdark
      • Heroic Fantasy
      • LitRPG
      • Paranormal Fantasy
      • Romantic Fantasy
      • Steampunk
      • Superheroes
      • Sword and Sorcery
      • Urban Fantasy
    • Historical Fiction
    • Horror
      • Debut
      • Demons
      • Ghosts
      • Gothic
      • Lovecraftian
      • Monsters
      • Occult
      • Psychological
      • Vampires
      • Werewolves
      • Witches
      • Zombies
    • Science Fiction
      • Aliens
      • Artificial Intelligence
      • Alt History
      • Cyberpunk
      • Debut
      • Dystopian
      • Hard SciFi
      • Mechs/Robots
      • Military SF
      • Space Opera
      • Steampunk
      • Time Travel
    • Thriller
  • Interviews
    • Book Tube
    • Authorly Writing Advice
  • SFF Addicts Podcast
    • SFF Addicts Clips
    • SFF Addicts (Episode Archive)
  • TBRCon
    • TBRCon2022
    • TBRCon2023

Review: The Whisper Man by Alex North

August 7, 2019 by David W Leave a Comment

41940236
Amazon
Audible
Barnes & Noble
Book Depository
Libro.fm
Goodreads

Rating: ★★★★☆

Synopsis

In this dark, suspenseful thriller, Alex North weaves a multi-generational tale of a father and son caught in the crosshairs of an investigation to catch a serial killer preying on a small town.

After the sudden death of his wife, Tom Kennedy believes a fresh start will help him and his young son Jake heal. A new beginning, a new house, a new town. Featherbank.

But the town has a dark past. Twenty years ago, a serial killer abducted and murdered five residents. Until Frank Carter was finally caught, he was nicknamed “The Whisper Man,” for he would lure his victims out by whispering at their windows at night.

Just as Tom and Jake settle into their new home, a young boy vanishes. His disappearance bears an unnerving resemblance to Frank Carter’s crimes, reigniting old rumors that he preyed with an accomplice. Now, detectives Amanda Beck and Pete Willis must find the boy before it is too late, even if that means Pete has to revisit his great foe in prison: The Whisper Man.

And then Jake begins acting strangely. He hears a whispering at his window…

Review

Thanks to the publisher and author for an advance listening copy of The Whisper Man in exchange for an honest review. Receiving this ALC did not influence my thoughts or opinions on the novel.

If you leave a door half open, soon you’ll hear the whispers spoken.
If you play outside alone, soon you won’t be going home.

If your window’s left unlatched, you’ll hear him tapping at the glass.
If you’re lonely, sad, and blue, the Whisper Man will come for you.

The Whisper Man is a fantastic summer thriller; perfect for fans of C.J. Tudor (The Chalk Man) and Alex Michaelides (The Silent Patient). An unsettling, character-driven story that will have you guessing until the very end. If you aren’t locking your doors and windows every night, you soon will be.

What I enjoyed most about North’s debut was the slow-burn technique that he uses to unfold the plot. Much like other bestselling thrillers over the course of the past few years, climaxes aren’t made halfway through the novel, giving you no reason to reach the end. Meticulous details are unraveled and revealed to the reader at precise moments, ramping up the suspense slowly rather than all at once.

There is a definite Silence of the Lambs vibe going on throughout the book with interrogatory scenes with the convicted Frank Carter, aka “The Whisper Man”, that will have fans of Thomas Harris clamoring to pick this one up.

I also thought that North did a fantastic job exploring the relationships between fathers and sons, especially the one between Tom and Jake. Without going into much detail because it would somewhat ruin the read for you, everything is linked like a detective’s “Crazy Wall” you might see in a police drama. There are a few “OOOOOH” and “AHHHH” moments that had me grinding out chapters to get to the end.

All in all, if you want a quick thriller to cozy up to to cap off your summer, look no further. I can see why so many people are talking about this book, and also why it has already been picked up for film. The hype is real.

Filed Under: Reviews Tagged With: Alex North, Celadon Books, Crime, Macmillan Audio, Mystery, Thriller

About David W

Believer, Hubby, Girl Dad. Owner/CEO of FanFiAddict. Works a not so flashy day job in central Alabama. Furthest thing from a redneck and doesn’t say Roll Tide. Enjoys fantasy, science fiction, horror and thrillers but not much else (especially kissy kissy).

Other Reviews You Might Like

Tread of Angels by Rebecca Roanhorse

Review: Blindspace (Book #2 of The Common) by Jeremy Szal

Review: New Yesterday by Frasier Armitage

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Mogsy @ BiblioSanctum says

    August 7, 2019 at 8:57 pm

    Nice, I think this will be my next read, so I breathed a sigh of relief to see a 4 star review 😀

    Reply
    • David W says

      August 7, 2019 at 9:02 pm

      Hah! The narrator for it was fantastic as well!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Review: The Chestnut Man by Soren Sveistrup | says:
    September 23, 2019 at 3:42 pm

    […] this is an easy purchase. If you enjoyed any of the above referenced thrillers (The Silent Patient, The Whisper Man, or The Hiding Place), do yourself a favor and grab a copy of The Chestnut Man. Just don’t […]

    Reply
  2. Review: The Other People by C.J. Tudor | says:
    November 15, 2019 at 2:23 pm

    […] perfect mix of Adrian McKinty’s The Chain and Alex North’s The Whisper Man, The Other People is sure to be THE, if not one of the, Top Thrillers of 2020 and is destined for a […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Sponsored By

Use Discount Code FANFI For 5% Off!

Follow FanFi!

Sign up for updates and get FREE stories from Michael R. Fletcher and Richard Ford!

What Would You Like To See?(Required)
Please select the type of content you want to receive from FanFi Addict. You can even mix and match if you want!

FFA Recommends

Get This Book
Get This Book
Get This Book
Get This Book

Recent Reviews

Recent Comments

  1. Adrian M. Gibson on Author Roundtable: Indie Marketing (with Kian N. Ardalan, Ryan Cahill, Aparna Verma & Gourav Mohanty)March 23, 2023
  2. zidane on Review: A Fractured Infinity by Nathan TavaresMarch 14, 2023
  3. Gary Weston on Bender’s Top 10 Fights in Fantasy BooksMarch 14, 2023
  4. David S on My Top 15 Favorite Male Anime Protagonists (So Far)March 13, 2023
  5. Komikinime on My Top 15 Favorite Male Anime Protagonists (So Far)March 11, 2023

Archive

Copyright © 2023 · Powered by ModFarm Sites · Log In