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The Whisper Man

The chilling Sunday Times bestseller - Now a major film starring Robert De Niro and Adam Scott

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The Whisper Man

By: Alex North
Narrated by: Christopher Eccleston
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Penguin presents the audiobook edition of The Whisper Man by Alex North, read by Christopher Eccleston.

If you leave a door half-open, soon you'll hear the whispers spoken...

Still devastated after the loss of his wife, Tom Kennedy and his young son Jake move to the sleepy village of Featherbank, looking for a fresh start.

But Featherbank has a dark past. Fifteen years ago a twisted serial killer abducted and murdered five young boys. Until he was finally caught, the killer was known as 'The Whisper Man'.

Of course, an old crime need not trouble Tom and Jake as they try to settle in to their new home. Except that now another young boy has gone missing. And then Jake begins acting strangely.

He says he hears a whispering at his window...

"The best crime novel of the decade" Steve Cavanagh

"Terrifying and utterly heartbreaking" Mark Billingham

"A dark, creepy, thriller with a huge amount of heart" Stuart MacBride

 Crime Domestic Thrillers Fiction Horror Mystery Police Procedural Psychological Suspense Thriller Thriller & Suspense Scary Exciting Murder
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Critic reviews

A novel about the dark places that are recognisably our own, The Whisper Man plays on our emotions as much as on our fears. A tremendous calling card for the brilliant Alex North.
A gripping exploration of father-son relationships with a propulsive plot, The Whisper Man is a true skin-crawler
A police procedural with supernatural overtones
Creepy. With the movie rights sold to Hollywood, Alfred Hitchcock would have loved every spine-tingling moment
The best crime novel of the decade
Alex North has achieved the seemingly impossible. The Whisper Man is a thriller that is both terrifying and utterly heartbreaking. Mesmerising and masterful.
First it's spooky. Then it's scary. Then it's terrifying. And then... well, dear reader, proceed at your own risk. An ambitious, deeply satisfying thriller - a seamless blend of Harlan Coben, Stephen King, and Thomas Harris. My flesh is still crawling
A police procedural with supernatural overtones, this is a true skin-crawler
The Whisper Man is going to be huge. Dark enough to chill your blood but so beautifully written you will not be able to put it down. Utterly brilliant.
Beautifully written. Beautifully plotted. Shades of Thomas Harris and Stephen King but brilliant in its own right
All stars
Most relevant
This is an excellent debut from Alex North. Dripping with atmosphere and suspense rather than being an action thriller it's one to chill the bones just slightly on the warmest day. A single father trying his damndest to bring up his socially-awkward son living in a small town previously ravaged by a serial killer called the Whisper Man. A sinister predator who whispered to his victims from outside their bedroom windows to entice them before pouncing . . . '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.' Has the Whisper Man returned or is something new and equally dangerous on the loose?

It's really good stuff and the characters feel very well fleshed out with the story being delivered from multiple points of view which each ring true to their nature. Possibly most impressive of all was the voice of young Jake with his (imagined?) friend. Quite often I find when authors try to write children's thoughts they come across as poorly thought out but North's writing of Jake struck good chords with me.

I was looking forward to Chris Ecclestone as a narrator and he didn't disappoint though I would say that for those looking for a genuine performance with lots of varied character voices you won't find it here. He doesn't have that range but what you do get is a very decent reading in a voice that I liked so I was happy with that.

As an overall package, this is genuinely decent though and if you like thrillers that aren't too action-packed but do generate tension and some atmosphere then this could well be a decent choice.

A Long Way North of Good!

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I don't know who the mysterious Alex North is, but bloody hell he can spin a good tale!

The children's rhyme sets the tone of the book. It scared me to death!

'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.'

Indeed the book is incredibly creepy and tense and I was hooked right from the start. The book is so beautifully written, without a wasted word. I loved the characters of Tom, who really wanted to be a good father but often failed, and Jake, the lonely child who had an imaginary friend. I just wanted to hug him. In fact all the characters were well fleshed out and felt real.

I listened to the Audible version and was a little underwhelmed by Christopher Eccleston's narration. I do like his voice, but it was a straightforward read-through of the book with no effort to distinguish between the different voices. Shame because he is a superb actor.

Stunning

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Enjoyed the story, and marvelled as all the intricate sub plots weaved together. A 5-star for the story and the writer, but IMO the narration was dull and dour. A much better narrator than Eccleston would have made this perfect.

Brilliant story, shame about the narration

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I love nothing better than curling up with a good thriller. Throw a hint of supernatural into the mix and I'm in my element. Stephen King is one of my favourite authors, and I saw something similar in The Whisper Man. I loved this book. I listened to it on audible so with Christopher Eccleston as a narrator I was in for a treat. I enjoyed the relationship between the characters and it was well written from multiple points of view. Jake was such an endearing character, and the story galloped along at a fast pace. A tense, chilling thriller that I could not put down.

Tense, chilling thriller

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I was recommended The Whisper Man and it did not disappoint! The narrator suited this creepy crime thriller perfectly and the story gripped me from start to finish.

Excellent and chilling

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