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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
leahjanespeare's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
5.0
The shadows often whisper to Delaney. An invitation to a special academic program for those who have the ability to travel to parallel worlds validates her gut feeling that there's more out there, but the whispers aren't necessarily friendly. This debut was a total surprise to me; I was sucked in by the pitch of The Raven Boys meets Ninth House but I stayed for the excellent writing and atmospheric reading experience. Having read it I think I'd adjust the comp to Raven Boys meets Supernatural. A group of college kids grappling with ley line magic, the occasional possession, and Mysterious Benefactors with their own motives. Let's not forget a slowburn, almost antagonistic, maybe even forbidden romance.
This world is also magic-normative. There's a school for crossing dimensions? Okay that's nothing to blink twice about. Occult studies, prophecies, futuristic visions--what are those but extracurriculars. There was no "AHA" moment so while this would technically be considered paranormal, it doesn't really match the werewolf or vampire or witchy vibes of most other paranormal books. And due to this subtlety and academic setting, I think that's why I loved it so much, like the Raven Boys. But don't get me wrong, if you liked the sweep of paranormal books from the 2010s or earlier, you'll like the angsty, haunting, quietly-goosebump-inducing world in here as well.
I liked the way the author fit in accessibility issues for Lane's school experience, but not making that the focus of the story, just a facet of the situation. Her professors are assholes - but I mean we are also worrying about ghosts slipping through from Hell so let's focus on that. Her deafness sometimes made situations more difficult, other times easier.
**In the arc 'deaf' was not capitalized, which would mean Lane doesn't identify with the Deaf community - she talks about how her signing isn't fluent and that she has a cochlear implant. The author identifies as Deaf so I feel confident in this sort of representation for the story.**
I'm really excited to read more from this author. Spooky stuff is not usually one of the genres I gravitate toward but if she writes another similar one, I'm definitely going to check it out.
This world is also magic-normative. There's a school for crossing dimensions? Okay that's nothing to blink twice about. Occult studies, prophecies, futuristic visions--what are those but extracurriculars. There was no "AHA" moment so while this would technically be considered paranormal, it doesn't really match the werewolf or vampire or witchy vibes of most other paranormal books. And due to this subtlety and academic setting, I think that's why I loved it so much, like the Raven Boys. But don't get me wrong, if you liked the sweep of paranormal books from the 2010s or earlier, you'll like the angsty, haunting, quietly-goosebump-inducing world in here as well.
I liked the way the author fit in accessibility issues for Lane's school experience, but not making that the focus of the story, just a facet of the situation. Her professors are assholes - but I mean we are also worrying about ghosts slipping through from Hell so let's focus on that. Her deafness sometimes made situations more difficult, other times easier.
**In the arc 'deaf' was not capitalized, which would mean Lane doesn't identify with the Deaf community - she talks about how her signing isn't fluent and that she has a cochlear implant. The author identifies as Deaf so I feel confident in this sort of representation for the story.**
I'm really excited to read more from this author. Spooky stuff is not usually one of the genres I gravitate toward but if she writes another similar one, I'm definitely going to check it out.
Content Warnings
Minor: Ableism, Death, and Murder
xalrynne's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
The Whispering Dark is a debut standalone dark academia YA fantasy about a deaf college girl and the mysterious boy she’s inexplicably connected to.
I really enjoyed this book. Delaney is a delightful protagonist, and Colton is a dark and brooding good guy. I’m happy the love interest is actually a good person and not some manipulative jerk, which I feel we see far too often in YA books.
I also love that Delaney is deaf and has to navigate the difficulties of college with a disability. It was so refreshing to see this honest portrayal, and the author is also deaf so the representation is authentic. There is also an authentically and positively portrayed Muslim side character.
The characters are adults—Delaney is eighteen and a freshman in college, and Colton is a college senior—but this book is marketed as young adult. For the record, I think this book is being correctly marketed as it is written more like a young adult novel than an adult novel. I’m always wary when young adult novels have adult characters, but the story here is about Delaney coming to terms with how her disability impacts her life and the main focus is on uncovering the mystery of why some students have gone missing. It has a writing style aimed more at a younger audience, so I think the young adult market will enjoy this book, but I am an adult reader who also enjoyed it.
There is some romance in the story, and even though Delaney and Colton spend most of the book together and you know they long to be with each other, the focus here is not on their romance, it’s on the mystery. I got so involved in trying to piece together the clues of the mystery that I had a hard time putting the book down.
There were lots of mysterious components that kept me drawn in and guessing: a wall of names of the dead that seems to predict the future, a quiet boy who Lane is told to stay away from, a mysterious boy who’s told to stay away from Lane, those who were once dead and now aren’t, a boy who shows up in Adya’s peripheral vision who may or may not be dead, visions of the afterlife that may or may not be accurate, a secret and dark history of the school Lane’s attending, a mysterious man known only as the Apostle, and the curious ability to walk through the sky like a doorway.
There are a lot of different elements to this story, and overall I did really enjoy it. The last fifty pages or so kind of lost me as I felt like the story got a little confusing and I didn’t completely love the ending, but I still liked the book as a whole and would recommend it. I’m looking forward to seeing what the author will write next.
I really enjoyed this book. Delaney is a delightful protagonist, and Colton is a dark and brooding good guy. I’m happy the love interest is actually a good person and not some manipulative jerk, which I feel we see far too often in YA books.
I also love that Delaney is deaf and has to navigate the difficulties of college with a disability. It was so refreshing to see this honest portrayal, and the author is also deaf so the representation is authentic. There is also an authentically and positively portrayed Muslim side character.
The characters are adults—Delaney is eighteen and a freshman in college, and Colton is a college senior—but this book is marketed as young adult. For the record, I think this book is being correctly marketed as it is written more like a young adult novel than an adult novel. I’m always wary when young adult novels have adult characters, but the story here is about Delaney coming to terms with how her disability impacts her life and the main focus is on uncovering the mystery of why some students have gone missing. It has a writing style aimed more at a younger audience, so I think the young adult market will enjoy this book, but I am an adult reader who also enjoyed it.
There is some romance in the story, and even though Delaney and Colton spend most of the book together and you know they long to be with each other, the focus here is not on their romance, it’s on the mystery. I got so involved in trying to piece together the clues of the mystery that I had a hard time putting the book down.
There were lots of mysterious components that kept me drawn in and guessing: a wall of names of the dead that seems to predict the future, a quiet boy who Lane is told to stay away from, a mysterious boy who’s told to stay away from Lane, those who were once dead and now aren’t, a boy who shows up in Adya’s peripheral vision who may or may not be dead, visions of the afterlife that may or may not be accurate, a secret and dark history of the school Lane’s attending, a mysterious man known only as the Apostle, and the curious ability to walk through the sky like a doorway.
There are a lot of different elements to this story, and overall I did really enjoy it. The last fifty pages or so kind of lost me as I felt like the story got a little confusing and I didn’t completely love the ending, but I still liked the book as a whole and would recommend it. I’m looking forward to seeing what the author will write next.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death
Minor: Murder
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