bibliomania_express's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Murder, Death, and Ableism
Moderate: Medical trauma, Violence, Abandonment, Gaslighting, Torture, Grief, Body horror, and Kidnapping
Minor: Cancer, Car accident, Toxic relationship, and Dementia
takarakei's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This book will keep you on questioning everything until the end it's super mysterious. You're gonna be like "wtf is going on" for 80% of the book, but in the best way possible.
THE ROMANCE.
What are these YA Fantasy Romance authors doing to me???? I have *feelings* How do they keep everything so PG but I am sweating?! IT'S SO GOOD.
Protect Colton at all costs. That is all.
If you're a fan of: Belladonna by Adalyn Grace (new adult) or Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo (NOT YA) I think you'll really enjoy this.
IDK where to even put the spice cause it's completely 'closed door' if anything even really happens it's vague in the most beautiful way. So 1.5-2/5 🌶️??
THE ROMANCE.
What are these YA Fantasy Romance authors doing to me???? I have *feelings* How do they keep everything so PG but I am sweating?! IT'S SO GOOD.
Protect Colton at all costs. That is all.
If you're a fan of: Belladonna by Adalyn Grace (new adult) or Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo (NOT YA) I think you'll really enjoy this.
IDK where to even put the spice cause it's completely 'closed door' if anything even really happens it's vague in the most beautiful way. So 1.5-2/5 🌶️??
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Injury/Injury detail, and Death
Moderate: Blood, Grief, Ableism, Murder, Violence, and Body horror
Minor: Sexual content, Alcohol, and Cursing
stardustandrockets's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Gore, Child death, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Kidnapping, Ableism, Blood, Body horror, Murder, and Stalking
Minor: Pregnancy and Vomit
skylar_cr_wolf's review against another edition
dark
informative
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
“Death is part of life. Nothing is permanent. Nothing stays. Everything comes to an end, that’s just the way it goes.”
This is something you would believe. Even Delaney believed it for a while. A long while. But does life really stop with death?
While you follow her on her journey to unravel not just the truth by finding an answer to this particular question maybe, you’re also meeting Colton, someone who will keep secrets till his last breath. Or in this case simply even to the end.
And honestly, I like this. They both evolve throughout the story but Colton still remains with secrets of his own. I must say, I think I like this about him. Or about this story in general. You will get answers to questions and yet you won’t be able to solve all of the secrets.
I am surprised how quickly I read this, to be honest. Usually I need more than a week to read ~400 pages but this one really had me in a grip there. I can’t pinpoint why it did not turn out to be 5 stars or more than solid 4. But maybe this is just another question which I cannot answer and won’t possibly. Which is fine. I liked the book a lot nonetheless.
This is something you would believe. Even Delaney believed it for a while. A long while. But does life really stop with death?
While you follow her on her journey to unravel not just the truth by finding an answer to this particular question maybe, you’re also meeting Colton, someone who will keep secrets till his last breath. Or in this case simply even to the end.
And honestly, I like this. They both evolve throughout the story but Colton still remains with secrets of his own.
Spoiler
He is also not your average dark, mysterious guy with a sweet spot for the female main protagonist. No. He is literally a dead person with questionable morals, maybe even only a shadow of himself at the end. Colton isn’t becoming morally grey. His morals have always been a little off because the laws of life do not necessarily apply to him anymore.I am surprised how quickly I read this, to be honest. Usually I need more than a week to read ~400 pages but this one really had me in a grip there. I can’t pinpoint why it did not turn out to be 5 stars or more than solid 4. But maybe this is just another question which I cannot answer and won’t possibly. Which is fine. I liked the book a lot nonetheless.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Murder, and Death
Minor: Dementia, Car accident, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
theartsybookwitch's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism
Minor: Murder
chronicacademia's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This book wasn’t perfect, and it’s not one I feel I can blanket recommend. However, I enjoyed it immensely, and as such it’s getting 5 stars.
First, the writing is absolutely stunning. When I say I will be buying multiple copies of all Kelly Andrew’s books from here on out solely for the prose, I mean it. There was a beautiful ease to the way her words flowed. It was lyrical and fresh and I often forgot I was reading because the words she strung together felt so visceral. The pacing of the plot was slow, but the writing dug claws inside me and kept me intrigued until I finished.
The characters were lovable and real and easy to relate to. I loved Lane. I loved Adya. I loved Mackenzie and Colton and… I felt like Lane and Colton were a sweet, believable ship. I spoiled the ending for myself, so I initially had some fears about their dynamic, but those were ultimately put to rest and I found myself rooting for them at every twist and turn of the story.
The only real gripes I had with the story were: the beginning was slow, there were parts that were confusing, and the ending felt a little rushed.
I don’t really fault the book for any of these; I don’t mind a slower pace, and admittedly I think some of the book was confusing because I’m dyslexic and occasionally miss important things, and the ending was still fleshed out enough that I didn’t feel like I was *missing* anything. I just wished there was a little more information about what happened with the school toward the end.
Overall, this is definitely an incredible read. It’s more New Adult than YA, so I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone on the younger side of YA. But I do think it was an excellent book, and if the premise sounds intriguing, you should definitely pick it up.
First, the writing is absolutely stunning. When I say I will be buying multiple copies of all Kelly Andrew’s books from here on out solely for the prose, I mean it. There was a beautiful ease to the way her words flowed. It was lyrical and fresh and I often forgot I was reading because the words she strung together felt so visceral. The pacing of the plot was slow, but the writing dug claws inside me and kept me intrigued until I finished.
The characters were lovable and real and easy to relate to. I loved Lane. I loved Adya. I loved Mackenzie and Colton and…
Spoiler
I really loved Ghost Nate (also this is the second ghost Nate I’ve read about who I fell madly in love with and like… I’m just saying I definitely have a type)The only real gripes I had with the story were: the beginning was slow, there were parts that were confusing, and the ending felt a little rushed.
I don’t really fault the book for any of these; I don’t mind a slower pace, and admittedly I think some of the book was confusing because I’m dyslexic and occasionally miss important things, and the ending was still fleshed out enough that I didn’t feel like I was *missing* anything. I just wished there was a little more information about what happened with the school toward the end.
Overall, this is definitely an incredible read. It’s more New Adult than YA, so I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone on the younger side of YA. But I do think it was an excellent book, and if the premise sounds intriguing, you should definitely pick it up.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Abandonment, Stalking, Murder, Sexual content, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, and Grief
Moderate: Ableism
booksthatburn's review
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Delaney is a post-lingual Deaf girl who sometimes hears the shadows whispering. She gets into a university whose stated purpose is to teach its students to traverse between realities. Colton is a student who briefly died when he was a child, meeting Delaney briefly at the time. When they meet again on campus, she doesn’t recognize him but is drawn to him anyway, while he instantly knows her and can’t keep his distance. They begin spending time together, then the lines are blurred further when another student dies.
There’s a consistent theme of ableism, mainly but not only from professors who don’t know Delaney is deaf (because they didn’t read the emails alerting them). She’s navigating this new space and deciding how much she’d rather deal with not being able to usefully hear in the moment or with overt ableism once people know she’s deaf. Whether she’s using her implant and what she does or does not hear is important throughout, and is used to great effect once things start getting spooky.
The worldbuilding is sparse, most of the details are atmospheric and unexplained until late in the book. The specific answers and explanations (when they finally arrived) wrapped up pretty much everything I wanted to know. I enjoy vibe-heavy books that leave me interested but confused for long stretches, so this was a deeply satisfying read for me. Colton’s secrets (and those he keeps for others) are hinted at but not revealed early, keeping the reader and Delaney equally in the dark for much of the story.
For a book with parallel worlds there aren’t many descriptions of traversals, though there are more towards the end. I like how much the focus is on Delaney piecing things together and trying to make it through her classes, and on her dynamic with Colton. I often enjoy books with mysterious and brooding guys, and this delivered.
Heavy on vibes, supported by a delicate but satisfying plot, don’t miss THE WHISPERING DARK.
There’s a consistent theme of ableism, mainly but not only from professors who don’t know Delaney is deaf (because they didn’t read the emails alerting them). She’s navigating this new space and deciding how much she’d rather deal with not being able to usefully hear in the moment or with overt ableism once people know she’s deaf. Whether she’s using her implant and what she does or does not hear is important throughout, and is used to great effect once things start getting spooky.
The worldbuilding is sparse, most of the details are atmospheric and unexplained until late in the book. The specific answers and explanations (when they finally arrived) wrapped up pretty much everything I wanted to know. I enjoy vibe-heavy books that leave me interested but confused for long stretches, so this was a deeply satisfying read for me. Colton’s secrets (and those he keeps for others) are hinted at but not revealed early, keeping the reader and Delaney equally in the dark for much of the story.
For a book with parallel worlds there aren’t many descriptions of traversals, though there are more towards the end. I like how much the focus is on Delaney piecing things together and trying to make it through her classes, and on her dynamic with Colton. I often enjoy books with mysterious and brooding guys, and this delivered.
Heavy on vibes, supported by a delicate but satisfying plot, don’t miss THE WHISPERING DARK.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Child death, and Death
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief, Ableism, Bullying, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Vomit, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Cursing, Stalking, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Confinement, Toxic friendship, and Car accident
Minor: Dementia, Drug use, Terminal illness, Sexual content, Animal death, and Pregnancy
ttumbletree's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
i really really enjoyed this book!
i loved the representation in it, as well as the world it was set in and the characters different voices and especially their interactions (the amount of times i chuckled to myself and wrote the word “same” in this book is just…. a lot, okay? 😂)
the one thing i would’ve enjoyed a bit more is if more of the book had focused on lane’s relationship with her friends. i think it would’ve given her more agency and would’ve made their developing friendships feel a bit more natural ☺️ oh and there were just a lot of descriptions of colors where the author used flowers/plants as descriptors and it got a bit confusing at times… (there were a solid 50 pages throughout which i was struggling to understand what the mc’s eye color was… i enjoy flowery descriptions a lot, but i also enjoy understanding certain bits… like the eye color of the mc if it’s being pointed out this much.) but this feels more like a side note to me personally. (also in case your wondering, lane’s eyes are green… at least i think so 😂)
long story short, i really enjoyed the book and will definitely recommend it to friends and maybe even reread it one day.
a solid 4⭐️ read!
i loved the representation in it, as well as the world it was set in and the characters different voices and especially their interactions (the amount of times i chuckled to myself and wrote the word “same” in this book is just…. a lot, okay? 😂)
the one thing i would’ve enjoyed a bit more is if more of the book had focused on lane’s relationship with her friends. i think it would’ve given her more agency and would’ve made their developing friendships feel a bit more natural ☺️ oh and there were just a lot of descriptions of colors where the author used flowers/plants as descriptors and it got a bit confusing at times… (there were a solid 50 pages throughout which i was struggling to understand what the mc’s eye color was… i enjoy flowery descriptions a lot, but i also enjoy understanding certain bits… like the eye color of the mc if it’s being pointed out this much.) but this feels more like a side note to me personally. (also in case your wondering, lane’s eyes are green… at least i think so 😂)
long story short, i really enjoyed the book and will definitely recommend it to friends and maybe even reread it one day.
a solid 4⭐️ read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Grief, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Abandonment, Gore, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, and Dementia
soniajoy98's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Murder, Blood, Ableism, and Child death
Moderate: Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, and Medical content
Minor: Classism and Car accident
kingyuryeong's review against another edition
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
As a lover of ghosts and holding an appreciation for all things paranormal The Whisper Dark came into my life with flying colors to say the least. I just finished it today and I have a problem with finding a place to even begin?
The Whispering Dark has some of the best pacing I've seen in a fantasy novel from a debut author to date. A lot happens within it's pages but I never felt rushed or slowed by any of it's pages. This is a book that is going to stay with me, in my heart for a very long time.
What the Whispering Dark has going for it within it's pages is in one word: FOCUS. The story is tightly focused around it's two main characters Delaney and Colton and it grips you. There's so much contained with in its pages, So many secrets to follow and mysteries to gain new insight into the world. The world building began slowly and piecemeal as it led into a true climax by the end of the novel with so many different revelations. \
The dictation and prose throughout the novel contains my favorite style as well. Descriptive and fleeting, a way to put the characters thoughts and feelings from moment to moment not just through their own thoughts but through the descriptions of the environment and the slow down of their actions. Descriptive language that adds just the right amount of description but doesn't slow down the tension or slow down the plot at key moment.
As protagonists Delaney and Colton are extremely likeable characters, what they have gone through in their pasts and what they go through together over the course of the book is nothing short of heart wrenching and amazing. There isn't a lot of words dedicated to the journey of these characters and the achievements by them throughout the novel, because they don't really need to prove anything to anyone. They already are.
There is so much in this book to learn about grief and loss, death, and ghosts both figuratively and literally and it's all told through an extremely unique perspective of a deaf protagonist Delaney. It's hard to explain how much this novel has taught me about these things and how much this novel has helped me heal some of my own wounds because I can't really find the best words for it. I'm not the best writer.
The Whispering Dark has some of the best pacing I've seen in a fantasy novel from a debut author to date. A lot happens within it's pages but I never felt rushed or slowed by any of it's pages. This is a book that is going to stay with me, in my heart for a very long time.
What the Whispering Dark has going for it within it's pages is in one word: FOCUS. The story is tightly focused around it's two main characters Delaney and Colton and it grips you. There's so much contained with in its pages, So many secrets to follow and mysteries to gain new insight into the world. The world building began slowly and piecemeal as it led into a true climax by the end of the novel with so many different revelations. \
The dictation and prose throughout the novel contains my favorite style as well. Descriptive and fleeting, a way to put the characters thoughts and feelings from moment to moment not just through their own thoughts but through the descriptions of the environment and the slow down of their actions. Descriptive language that adds just the right amount of description but doesn't slow down the tension or slow down the plot at key moment.
As protagonists Delaney and Colton are extremely likeable characters, what they have gone through in their pasts and what they go through together over the course of the book is nothing short of heart wrenching and amazing. There isn't a lot of words dedicated to the journey of these characters and the achievements by them throughout the novel, because they don't really need to prove anything to anyone. They already are.
There is so much in this book to learn about grief and loss, death, and ghosts both figuratively and literally and it's all told through an extremely unique perspective of a deaf protagonist Delaney. It's hard to explain how much this novel has taught me about these things and how much this novel has helped me heal some of my own wounds because I can't really find the best words for it. I'm not the best writer.
Content Warnings
Minor: Murder, Death, Grief, and Ableism