Calling all slasher movie fans - WHISPER is the book for you! When I read the premise of WHISPER - a cross-country serial killer haunts Madison Parker, targeting her and those in her circle - I knew I had to read it and am so grateful I had the chance to get my hands on an ARC.

When Madison’s childhood best friend is brutally murdered she returns home for the funeral and reconnects with old friends and family. And while the killer is still at large, it’s not until Madison returns to San Diego that she starts to believe that her friend’s murder wasn’t random and that the killer has only just begun.

Cue some creepy scenes and some majorly bloody murders that will stay with you. (But in that good way!). A love story to slasher films I found it very easy to picture how some of these scenes could play out on screen.

With echoes of Scream with a hint of Valentine (that David Boreanaz movie I loved… anyone else?) it’s a totally bingeable read. I devoured WHISPER in a few sittings. Great fun with a sufficient creep factor and there’s this one scene that…ugh…shudder…I can still envision. Which is kind of the best part of a classic slasher, isn’t it?

I enjoyed that the story took us from California to Connecticut to Cape Cod and I always love a past and present mystery.

Congrats to Brian Dearborn on the debut and huge thanks for Brian and NetGalley for the ARC.

If you’re a 90s kid that loved Scream & I Know What You Did Last Summer— this book is for YOU! It has all the things you want in a slasher film: a targeted group of friends, a potential final girl, a killer with a distinctive mask & knife, clues leading you to figure out what could be going on & as always, everyone is a suspect!

They just don’t make slashers like they used to & this one definitely scratched my itch for it!! Brian Dearborn understood the assignment & I can’t wait to see what he does next!

Thank you so much NetGalley & Brian Dearborn! Such a fun read!

Whisper by Brian Dearborn introduces us to Madison, a young biotech professional struggling to find her footing after a painful breakup. Her life takes a nightmarish turn when her best friend from her hometown is gruesomely murdered. Other members of her circle are targeted and she finds herself in the middle of these increasingly brutal killings.

I found the beginning of the book to be a good homage to horror/slasher films of yesteryear. However, this was the high point as the rest of the book was rushed and messy with characters that weren't very believable (the dialog was quite poor in places)

While the book has its thrilling and horrifying moments, they tend to get overshadowed by the clunkiness. Brian Dearborn does really well in the suspenseful, creepy, and gory aspects of the narrative, drawing readers in and immersing them in the darker elements of the story but let's himself down by the poor character and weak plot.

Despite its shortcomings, Whisper still managed to keep me somewhat engaged as my favourite type of slasher is one that's also a whodunnit. If you enjoy slasher-inspired stories and can overlook some of the faults in the book, I think you should still pick it up. If you want a well developed plot with strong characters and a strong finish, then look beyond this book.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the opportunity to read and provide an honest review.

Whisper by Brian Dearborn was an entertaining thriller.
I enjoyed this book, and read it in one sitting.
It was quick and easy to read. The characters were nicely fleshed out, and believable.
I wished it had more of that surprise factor. But overall, this was a great story to devour and enjoy.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely
my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Victory Editing for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Thank you to Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for this ARC of Whisper by Brian Dearborn

In Whisper, we are introduced to Madison, who is stuck in a rut and trying to find her footing after a breakup. After her best friend is brutally murdered, she's repeatedly confronted with her past, leaving her longing for the person she used to be. Madison's problems don’t end there, however, as the killer of her friend is moving closer and closer to her.

The opening of the novel is intriguing. It reads like a classic slasher. Through creepy descriptions and gory imagery, the fear of the character bleeds through the words on the page. It's evident that the book is an homage to slashers of the 90s, with the opening leaving me nostalgic for a Scream rewatch. Unfortunately, the book doesn't live up to the narratives that seemingly inspired it.

The pacing of the novel is rushed. We don't get to sit with a point for long enough before the narrative has moved on to something else. The novel doesn't have a lot of substance and is filled with unnecessary details, an underdeveloped plot, and shallow characters. The dialogue was very stiff. At times because too much exposition was written into conversations, instead of somewhere it would have come across more naturally and created a better flow in the text. More use of ‘show, don't tell’ could have greatly improved the narrative.

The thriller and horror aspects of the story did tend to get overshadowed by the MC's midlife crisis, and during those parts I found myself impatient for more suspense. It is unfortunate, because Dearborn seems to be more at home in the suspenseful, creepy, and gory aspects of his narrative, where I found myself most immersed in the story.

Thank you NetGalley for and advance copy and the opportunity to read Brian Dearborn’s first novel. This is a story that keeps you on your toes and guessing from one page to the next. Well written and told!

The plot was fine. I enjoyed the thrill of the killings but my problems are with the characters. The characters felt flat and baseless. Especially Madison. I felt like knew nothing about her or why I should care that someone is after her. The secondary characters were the same way and held no meaning when they were killed. Only one death made me upset.

The dialogue was clunky and cliche. It had the markings of what real people talked like but was just awkward and didn’t hit right. Or they would say something to another that didn’t make sense. But why are you randomly telling this person that detail?

I did like how fast paced it was and if I watched more horror films, I’m sure I would catch the references. But unfortunately, I rather read a thriller than watch one.

This was a really good fast paced, unputdownable, captivating and intriguing slasher read. This books reminded me of those 90s slasher films that I loved soooo much. I really liked the characters- very fun relatable and slightly annoying with their very 90s style decision making when faced with danger. Also I don't know if it was just me but I felt like the author was leaving little clues to help us figure out who the killer was(I guessed right btw, so extra points for me haha). Though this was a short read it was action packed and felt very nostalgic taking me back to my teenage years when I would be on summer vacation and binge watch so many slasher movies.
I highly recommend this one for those who love that genre of books and movies and even if you don't I really do believe you'll love this all the same.
Thank you Netgalley and Victory Editing for my Advanced Readers Copy of this book.

A solid 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 stars. If you like slasher movies or books, you will enjoy this. Reminded me of my Friday the 13th watching days. Quick moving and suspenseful, but also has those “Are you seriously doing that?” moves from the slasher/horror genre. Thank you to NetGalley and Brian Dearborn for the eARC.

You know that character you decided early on is the one who did it? You’re totally right.

And you know the reason behind everything you’ve figured out (again early on)? Yep, you’re totally right.

And you know the feeling you have right now that absolutely nothing in this book is going to surprise you? Right again!

There are zero surprises in this book. It’s a perfectly serviceable slasher novel in which characters who are clearly being picked off one by one can’t see the obvious and still find time to party. There’s one character to root for and he (our gay BFF) is not the main character.

The book is definitely entertaining and an easy read, but you might find yourself asking yourself if you really need to finish it. (Spoiler alert! You don’t. You already know who and what and why.)

• ARC via Publisher

Whisper by Brian Dearborn is pure fun to read! Once I started this book, I could not put it down. It reads like one of the best horror movies that I’ve always loved to watch. There was not one slow part in the book in my opinion. I loved not knowing who the bad guy is and and trying to pin it on different people during the book. I can’t wait for more books by this author! I had been in a reading slump, but this got me right out of it! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher formthe advanced copy of this book. All opinions on my own. this book. All the paintings are my own.

The book started off with a lot of promise and action, but sadly fell short for me. The writing and dialogue were choppy and cliche and the characters were underdeveloped. The parts with action in them were good and it was a quick read.

Heart pounding thriller that left me on the edge of my seat. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one. Definitely one of the best books this year.

Young biotech professional Madison Parker's life takes a dark turn after her hometown best friend is murdered. As the killer targets others in her inner circle, Madison must confront her own secrets and unravel the motives behind the killings before she becomes the next victim. This gripping thriller explores grief, resilience, and the disturbing nature of evil.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Right off the bat, this book made me automatically feel like I was watching a slasher movie. Following Madison, you are taken on a suspenseful ride as she navigates the aftermath of her best friends brutal murder. While reading, there was an appropriate amount of tension throughout, and Dearborn excelled in leaving constant thoughts in your head, as in "Who is the killer?" and "What is their motive?"

Overall, I'd recommend this book to anyone in the mood for a quick binge with a slasher-stye suspense.

Huge thank you to NetGalley and the author for graciously sending me an ARC of this novel for an honest review!

"Whisper" by John Dearborn comes out July 18th!

This was fun and it was a quick read. I love a good slasher movie and this was definitely that. The ending was well done as well!

The writing wasn’t the best, but I still really enjoyed this one. My problem was the dialogue. It felt very repetitive at times.

I read this as an ARC for Netgalley. This book is a classic 90's slasher, giving "Scream" and "I Know What You Did Last Summer" vibes.. The kind where you spend the whole time screaming, "Don't go that way!" "Omg what are you doing!" For being less than 200 pages, it was a well paced storyline without feeling rushed. The characters where likeable, naive, but likeable. It really had my attention and kept me wanting to read more and more to figure it out. It's not a particularly twisty book, however, it falls right in line with the theme and it stays true to that. I thoroughly enjoyed "Whisper."

A great thriller. Kept me interested and invested throughout the entire book. Read in one setting. Highly recommend.

I absolutely could not put this down. I loved the old school slasher film vibes. I picked it up intending to read a few pages before bed and ended up reading the whole thing. Definitely recommend!

Whisper is delicious nostalgia for all horror fans!

The opening of this book was exactly what you would expect to see in the opening of an awesome slasher movie. The vicious murder in the beginning, after being taunted by the killer via telephone, had all the Scream movie vibes (which I LOVED!) After this opening “scene” there is quite a bit of setup for the characters, including the MC’s memories of past events with various people in her life.

And then the attacks and murders come more frequently, getting gorier with each murder. This all leads up to that epic night of horror where many characters are gathered in the same place. The twist ending may or may not be predictable, but the ride to the end was intense anyway.

The plot is well thought out and for a horror story, the characters weren’t as one sided as you might expect from a book like this. The writing had a fast, easy flow and I completely devoured this in less than 3 hours.

This novel is a love story to slashers, and is only enhanced by the author’s personal story of grief after a parent dies. The cross-country aspect of the novel is something I hadn’t seen attempted before in the thriller genre, and the cuts to the victim’s point of view between key chapters enhanced the mystery, begging the reader to compare character alibis to the events that occurred during these killer cutaways. I also loved the jump scares the author would include in these killer interludes. Multiple red herrings are used, and the finale killer reveal felt very akin to Scream. Any slasher fan will love this novel!