Unfortunately, I could not get into this book. I found the story to be uninteresting and it took me a while to power through and finish this book.

I have now read this book twice because it’s so good! Whisper cottage is fast paced, page turning and intriguing.

It’s a must read.

The blurb and the cover piqued my interest. I do love a mystery and this sounded right up my street. It did not, however, live up to my expectations, and left me with a number of unanswered questions.

Whisper Cottage is Stina's story. We learn about her past; her upbringing, her friend Reggie, how she met her husband Jack, and her present.

Jack and Stina move into a run-down cottage next door to an elderly lady on the edge of the village. Theirs are the only two cottages in the area. Jack is a vet and works all hours at his practice while Stina writes at home, and prepares for the birth of their first child. The couple have a list of repairs to be done to the cottage, and after a leak, immediately arrange for the roof to be rethatched. The thatcher makes a discovery which could be explained as some sort of witchcraft. And from then on I questioned everything.

I was intrigued by the strange neighbour Mrs Barley, who the locals thought was some kind of witch. They attribute several unfortunate events to Mrs Barley's practice of the dark arts and avoid her. Stina's own experience of Mrs Barley is at odds with local belief, and she cannot quite reconcile their tales with the lovely gentle woman who is, or seems to be, a good neighbour.

There were a couple of things that didn't seem entirely plausible to me, but which led me to think there was something more to be revealed.

I thought the story was slow-paced. Much was made about things which ultimately did not amount to anything. I was not gripped by the storyline but felt I needed to read to the end to find out what was really going on. The ending tied up some of the threads, and there was a final and shocking twist that I did not see coming.

Creepy, unsettling and intriguing.

Jack and Stina have moved into a chocolate box cottage in the small village of Avoncote. It needs work but the setting is idyllic and should be perfect to raise their unborn child. Or so it seems. Their neighbour Mrs Barley is friendly to them but the whole village seem to dislike and even fear her. And then there's her odd night time activities, and a strange man lurking in her garden. Stina is sure something is very wrong but is dismissed as been hormonal. But that doesn't explain why people that cross Mrs Barley keep getting hurt...

A great read that kept me guessing throughout.

Esse livro poderia ser um conto...
Nada me fez ficar presa na história. apesar de as revelações no final do livro serem relativamente chocante, nada foi muito surpreendente.
Logo de cara dá pra perceber que alguns segredos estão muito bem guardados, e que em algum momento tudo vai ser revelado.
A cidade inteira menos a Stina e o Jack sabem dos segredos que rondam a casa que eles acabaram de comprar.
E eles demoram demais pra perceber que a cidade não está totalmente errada quando diz, que a senhora simpática que mora na casa ao lado da deles, tem algo a esconder, e todas as coisas estranhas que ela presenciou desde que se mudou eram mais reais do que ela imaginava.

This book grabbed me from the first page. I would have to say it dropped a bit in the middle but the ending was great. I have to be honest it is a slowburner but hang in there because I liked it.

Such a creepy, chilling thriller. "Whisper Cottage" by Anne Wyn Clark delivers all the goods in her latest book.

This was an awesome read. Fast-paced but still well developed. I loved the exploration of different relationships while still maintaining a thriller vibe. I have already recommended to friends!

I was intrigued by the title and was not disappointed.
I found it a real page turner following Stina and Jack with their relationship with the neighbour Mrs Barley.
A very atmospheric read and I thoroughly recommend it.

When newlyweds Stina and Jack escape the city and move to a cottage in the Warwickshire village of Avoncote, they think they've found their dream home. They're expecting their first child and are glad to live next door to an elderly woman, Mrs. Barley, who offers to help them around the house and to babysit. However, the people of Avoncote warn the couple to stay away from Mrs. Barley due to speculation about her past. Stina also hears unusual noises coming from her house at night and sees someone in her neighbours' garden although nobody else has. Stina wonders if there is a supernatural force at play in the house next door as unusual events occur and she becomes increasingly uneasy about her neighbour. Whisper Cottage is a commentary on the power of village gossip in a small community where rumours persist and have very real consequences for the people involved.

Whisper Cottage is a creepy and claustrophobic psychological thriller with an incredibly dark ending that stays with you. It perfectly blends the thriller and horror genres, evoking imagery from 1960s and 1970s horror films including Rosemary's Baby and The Wicker Man. I look forward to Wyn Clark's next book.

How well do you know the woman next door?

When Stina and Jack move to an old rural cottage, they’re hoping for a fresh start. Their new home is run down, but generous Mrs Barley quickly becomes a friend.

Until Stina sees a mysterious figure in the widow’s garden, and her happy new life begins to unravel. And when she hears strange noises in the night, she is forced to question if Mrs Barley is what she seems.

Why do the other villagers whisper about her? Why is she so eager to help the couple? And what is she hiding in her perfect home?

This debut novel is a very engaging and captivating read. The author really creates quite an atmospheric mystery throughout. I was intrigued to find out more about the mysterious character of Mrs Barley and it was a real page turner. I also feared for Stina, Jack and their unborn baby in parts.

⭐⭐

This one was a slog to get through quite honestly. I am not even sure why I kept pushing through. It was so slow and weighed down with unnecessary details. On top of that, Stina wasn't a very likable or engaging lead character. I don't have much else to say about it. I was promised "A haunting, twisty story" and this book delivered nothing near that. 🤷🏻‍♀️

**ARC Via NetGalley**

Stina and Jack are a young couple that decide to move to an old rural cottage. They are so much in love and happy together until strange things start occurring. Stina see a mysterious figure outside her neighbour's house, even though her neighbor lives alone. The said neighbor - Mrs Barley is a strange and peculiar old woman. Everyone in the village has warned Stina to stay away from her. Stina becomes curious as to why. Soon she begins to hear noises coming from the shared attic with Mrs Barley. What is going on? Are Stina and Jack in danger?

If you haven't read this, then I suggest you do IMMEDIATELY! This was an epic read. Very well-thought-out plot and amazing setting. I love the characters, the love between Stina and Jack and the little secret Stina discovered towards the end spiced things up. The suspense was killing me and I honestly wanted to peek at the end to see why all the strange things were happening but of course, I didn't 😂 I was just tempted to.

Mrs Barley was really scary and I believed she had everything to do with Stina's friends' death, her mother in law's sickness, even little Alfie's sickness as well. Everything just pointed to her. In addition to her reclusión from the village and her wierd behavior, she looked guilty. When she decided to help out in revamping their attic, I was still not buying the whole good-neighbor act. It looked a hell lot suspicious to me. And then she became their friend, and a godmother to their little baby! At the end though, everything explained itself. It was right there but hidden from all. I loved the suspense ramping up to the shocking revelation at the end. It also discusses mental illness, and the struggle those living with it face daily.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the arc copy of this book.

Well written creepy book!!! Definitely held my attention to the very end, No spoilers, you just need to read it for you self. Will definitely recommend. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC copy to read!!

I was given a copy of The Whisper Cottage by Anne Wyn Clark by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Stina and Jack buy a cottage, looking for a new start in a village. They make friends with the elderly lady next door. Stina begins to see things which can't be explained. Loved the creepy twists in this book. I good page Turner. Really enjoyed this one.

When Stina and Jack move to a small village they befriend the old lady next door – Mrs Barley. But how well do you really know your neighbours?

It is one of those nightmare scenarios – you can control the house you buy, the location it sits in and redecorate it as much as you like, but what you can’t control is who is living next door to you! Whisper Cottage is a slow-burn thriller with a supernatural angle. I actually finished reading ‘The Woman in the Woods’ by Lisa Hall recently and this book is very similar – if you enjoyed that one I would recommend this. They also seemed to have very similar issues in terms of pacing and victim blaming!

As much as I love a horror/thriller story, Whisper Cottage was a little too slow paced for me. There’s a lot of description of boring, mundane everyday tasks, particularly after Elodie is born which I did not really enjoy and didn’t hurry the story along. I think the book would have really benefited from a sharp edit to cut these down and it would have made for a more compelling read. I also really didn’t enjoy how much of Stina’s behaviour was written off by other characters as being pregnant, hormonal, or hysterical.

As I read the book, I kept thinking it was likely to be a three-star review unless it pulled off a very good ending twist and I think Whisper Cottage does deliver this in part. I did not see the twist coming and there were also quite a few additional reveals as we got closer to the end. As much as I enjoyed the twist there were some things that were left very much not explained, and it also pulled apart some plot-holes from further back in the narrative. I presume that we are supposed to believe that some of the supernatural elements could have been true, but this seems cruel with the truth that was presented. I also didn’t really understand the narrative of ‘we lived to regret the day we asked Mrs Barley to help pay for the roof’ etc which is presented earlier on in the book, when actually the couple had very much a happier ending from meeting her than they would have done if they hadn’t!

Overall, Whisper Cottage is a slow-burn thriller but had pacing and plot-hole issues despite its interesting final twist. Thank you to NetGalley & Avon Books UK for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley and Avon Books for what has possibly been my best read so far this year.

Well written, great storyline, creepy, twisted and totally unexpected - what next?! I'm still thinking about this a week later.

Can I please have the next one?!

Honestly, I am a bit conflicted about this book. I really enjoyed the creepy bits and how all the neighbors thought Mrs. Barley was an awful and possibly witchy woman, while Stina, the new neighbor is confused about all that is going on. It had me guessing and second guessing about the mysterious Mrs. Barley (and all the accidents and bad things happening to the people around Stina) and I thought it was leading to something really great, but the ending was a bit of a let down.

I guess I was hoping for more witchy (since that was the buildup) but it all turned out normal, if a bit icky. I would say the message of this book is that everybody has a secret history of some sort and we should refrain from judging.

Whisper Cottage is a domestic thriller about Stina and Jack, a young couple who are desperate to leave the rat race that is Birmingham. They are both sick and tired of worrying if they leave their front door unlocked even for ten seconds they are running the risk of aggravated burglary. They find their dream home in the Warwickshire village of Avoncote and they just know they are going to be genuinely happy here. Newlywed and expecting their first baby together and with the addition of the two-year-old border collie, Jobie life couldn’t be better. The only thing that niggles at Stina is the village gossip about their elderly neighbour, Mrs. Barley, and why does she keep chanting at night?

Jack has gained employment as a vet surgeon in the local practice. He’ll need to put long hours in and the mortgage is slightly stretched and the house needs some work on it but they’ll cope. It’s such an idyllic place to bring up a family. Stina is pregnant and working from home as a freelance writer, it doesn’t pay much but it helps keep their heads above water. The happy couple is enjoying getting to know their surroundings and the people of Avoncote but they all seem to want to warn them away from their neighbour, Mrs. Barley. Witchcraft is intoned but they’ve only experienced warmth and friendliness from her. She’s a bit eccentric but what elderly person isn’t?

Soon things become very strange. She hears things go bump in the night, she hears conversations from Mrs. Barley’s home but they know she lives alone. People close to Stina and Jack start having accidents and just who is the dark figure that only Stina can see hanging around next door’s summerhouse? Jack doubts his wife and chalks it up to pregnancy hormones and a bit of insomnia and later after the birth of their child, sleep deprivation. Stina likes their neighbour but she can’t deny that things are odd and there’s all the gossip.

The prologue is what had me tearing through the pages. It was intriguing and very dark. It was daring but the payoff was good. As a mother, it just pulls at those heartstrings. I enjoyed the majority of the book but the first half was more thrilling in the final half. Towards the end of the story I felt like the plot dragged a lot, not much was happening and the final reveal felt a bit rushed. I liked the ending it just felt a bit too sudden. Overall a very enjoyable read.

I have loved everything about this one. This is well-written and a book that I have been completely unwilling to put down. I am a huge fan of this author and cannot wait for more.