Set in a suffocating & volatile small town in the tropics of Far North Queensland, THE WHISPERING is an enthralling mystery with layers & twists that I didn’t see coming.

The whispering wild will take your child if you dare to look away ...

The stunning Aussie crime debut from the winner of the 2021 Banjo Prize for Fiction.


Callum Haffenden swore he'd never return to Granite Creek. But, thirty years after a life-shattering accident, he's thrust back into the clutches of Far North Queensland and a local legend he worked hard to forget.

When a man goes missing in the rainforest, the past begins to resurface, breathing new life into memories of previous tragedies - two girls lost, seventeen years apart. In a town where it's easiest to turn a blind eye, the guilt runs deep and everyone in Granite Creek has something to hide.

In his search for answers, Callum fights to keep his feet firmly on the trail as he battles the deafening call of the rainforest burrowing into his ears. After all, everyone knows that the worst things in the rainforest are those unseen.

An unpredictable Australian mystery, that had me second guessing right to the end. It's an absorbing crime mystery, with lots of twists and turns. Thank you netgalley and harper collins Australia for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. #netgalley #thewhispering
My rating 4/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

My second jungle/rainforest book of 2022 and my second book in a row of atmospheric Australian mystery.

Journalist Callum Haffenden returns to his hometown that he left 30 years ago to help locate missing hiker Lachie Wyatt.

There is local talk of the Whispering Boulders, a natural rock formation that scares children into jumping from the cliffs to their deaths.

Just a story to scare children? Or does it have an element of truth? Everyone in the small town is harbouring a secret.

Read if you loved Forces of Nature by Jane Harper or anything by Chris Hammer. Read if you love Far North Queensland, Daintree Rainforest and spooky disappearance stories harking back to Picnic at Hanging Rock. Read if you liked Cedar Valley by Holly Throsby. Common elements include small town mystery, Australian weather events (cyclone), secrets, family drama, mortal peril

I just checked and I’ve read 14 x five star reads this year already. The Whispering has been (so far) my favourite.

Callum is a journalist who returns to the hometown of his youth when a local firefighter, Lachie, goes missing in the nearby rainforest. After Cal joins the SES and his best friend, Eddy (who is the local police officer), in the search, he begins to compare the present day event to an accident he, Eddy and Lachie’s parents were involved in 30 years ago. Of course, as these things go, this leads him to remain in town to investigate further.

I loved Cal. He was a really flawed hero who you instantly wanted to cheer on anyway. I also found liked most of the supporting characters, even when they were acting suspicious. I'm not too precious to admit I imagined The Whispering as a movie the entire time I read, which I took as a sign of strong characterisation and a setting which popped from the page. The Whispering’s Far North Queensland rainforest setting is almost another character with the constant rain, humidity, heat, and threat of a cyclone adding to the book’s stifling tension. I live in the Far North and can vouch that Lando’s depiction of the area and its weather is quite accurate.

There’s many topical themes in the book, all added with a deft touch, including domestic violence, racism, sexual harassment, date rape and PTSD.

It’s difficult to explain but there was just something about The Whispering which dragged me into the story and, even though I read the book very quickly and was eager to finish, I also wanted it to go on for longer and suffered a touch of book hangover afterwards.

It reminded me at times of Jane Harper’s The Dry so if you’re a fan of that, I doubt you’ll be disappointed.

Obviously 5 out of 5 and highly recommend.

In this eerie crime fiction book, Callum comes back into Granite Creek to uncover the disappearance of local Lachie Wyatt. Everything in this town isn’t what it’s like and people are keeping secrets including Callum. Is the whispering calling more people to the boulders like it did thirty odd years ago?

The twists in the book were mind blowing and now I understand why The Whispering won the 2021 Banjo Prize way before it was published. 😱

Lando creates the characters in a flawless way, you love them in a way regardless if you really like them or you don’t like them at all. You crave more of their story and wonder why they are like that. I was almost in tears with some of the characters because you want to mourn for them and give them a warm hug.

I enjoyed the lists of different names of birds throughout the story and the symbolism it played. Not knowing if you heard a person screaming or someone moving behind you or if it’s just a bird being curious. In the rainforest noises seemed to blend together, and it makes me wonder what this whispering these people are hearing that’s calling to them.

I can highly recommend reading this book and I can’t wait to see what Veronica comes out with next.

Firstly thank you @netgalley and @harpercollinsaustralia for the digital review copy of The Whispering by @veronicalandoauthor for reviewing purposes

The Whispering by Veronica Lando is an absolutely amazing debut novel! It is so atmospheric, creepy and mysterious. It definitely has the WOW factor!

Set in Far North Queensland in a small town surrounded by tropical rainforests which are dark, deep and dank with moisture and humidity; heaving with mystery and omens of people hearing the rainforest whispering and falling from the boulders overlooking flowing water, this town has so many people with so many secrets that seem to be oozing out as the wet season hits with a possible cyclone on the way. Windy, wet, humid and hot. What a superb location for a crime mystery.

The main character Callum Haffenden returns to this town after thirty years after hearing of another death at the boulders. His family left the town after he had a life changing accident at the boulders and now he is back after another incident. His return stirs up a hornets nest and complications are rife for many of those in the town.

This is a great read that had me under its spell - the whispering….

Highly recommended read.

This review is based on a complimentary copy from HarperCollins Publishers Australia via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

#TheWhispering #Netgalley