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findingmontauk1's review against another edition
5.0
For starters: I cannot believe this is a debut novel from Laurel Hightower! The storyline, her knack for getting under your skin, her ability to write believable characters, etc make it seem like she has been doing this for quite some time.
Rose McFarland can be described as a gutsy woman who takes no crap. She is a sniper for S.W.A.T. and her fiery past is definitely one for the books. But as the story progresses, her past and present reunite in the best and worst ways. All of these things make this book perfect for fans of thrillers and horror - there's a bit of both in this one! There are some genuinely creepy scenes in this that had me wondering just how it would play out on the big screen - yes, I do that sometimes with certain books when I am completely pulled in. I want to experience it with all my senses. And this book demands all of my senses! A solid 5-star read and I cannot wait for Hightower's next endeavor!
Thank you to the author, Laurel Hightower and JournalStone publishing for the review copies to our Night Worms Book Party.
Rose McFarland can be described as a gutsy woman who takes no crap. She is a sniper for S.W.A.T. and her fiery past is definitely one for the books. But as the story progresses, her past and present reunite in the best and worst ways. All of these things make this book perfect for fans of thrillers and horror - there's a bit of both in this one! There are some genuinely creepy scenes in this that had me wondering just how it would play out on the big screen - yes, I do that sometimes with certain books when I am completely pulled in. I want to experience it with all my senses. And this book demands all of my senses! A solid 5-star read and I cannot wait for Hightower's next endeavor!
Thank you to the author, Laurel Hightower and JournalStone publishing for the review copies to our Night Worms Book Party.
maxstark's review against another edition
5.0
I didn’t knew what to expect from this novel. But everyone I know in Twitter was praising it. So I got the opportunity to read it without knowing anything from it and it wasn’t what I expected at all. Laurel Hightower’s debut novel isn’t perfect but it’s damn close of being one. It’s a very entertaining story full of suspense, a supernatural detective thriller if you like. We start the story just at the middle of a raid, and it would seem like a regular police story. But short after before the first chapter ends you will know this is more than just a simply police/detective story. But for me, Hightower’s great accomplishment comes in from a well constructed main character. She delivers a strong female character with feelings, weaknesses, who loves and suffers and who is in the midst of a paranormal event that surpasses her, while having to deal with events from her past in order to face the dangers of the present and save her family. Rose McFarland is a sniper, a lover, a friend, a daughter, a sister, a mother and on top of that she has to deal with some supernatural forces that are threatening her life and her loved ones. In other words, a simple regular woman. And I’m very thankful that Hightower doesn’t rub on your face all of this things. She just simply let Rose be Rose and tells her story. Hightower’s writing is very good, she easily make you see the world she created, and the characters are very believable. You should be getting this book immediately. It won’t disappoint you. And now, I will be waiting anxiously for the second work by Laurel.
This book was given to me by the author but she didn’t ask for nothing in return. I enjoyed it very much and my review is totally unbiased.
This book was given to me by the author but she didn’t ask for nothing in return. I enjoyed it very much and my review is totally unbiased.
exorcismemily's review against another edition
5.0
"The dark is coming, and you need to be ready when it does."
I buddy read Whispers in the Dark with my friend Tracy, and I enjoyed it so much! When I first read the synopsis, I was sort of worried that this was mostly going to be a procedural with horror tones (which isn't my favorite), but Whispers in the Dark was not like that at all. This is a solid horror story, and it was so entertaining.
This is Laurel Hightower's debut novel, but it doesn't feel that way at all. The story is intriguing, and it flows really well. At times it felt like there was a tiny bit too much relationship stuff for my taste, but everything ended up balancing out. The romantic relationships and friendships felt believable. There were some good creepy scenes, and this book held my attention well. I can't wait to see what Laurel Hightower does next!
I buddy read Whispers in the Dark with my friend Tracy, and I enjoyed it so much! When I first read the synopsis, I was sort of worried that this was mostly going to be a procedural with horror tones (which isn't my favorite), but Whispers in the Dark was not like that at all. This is a solid horror story, and it was so entertaining.
This is Laurel Hightower's debut novel, but it doesn't feel that way at all. The story is intriguing, and it flows really well. At times it felt like there was a tiny bit too much relationship stuff for my taste, but everything ended up balancing out. The romantic relationships and friendships felt believable. There were some good creepy scenes, and this book held my attention well. I can't wait to see what Laurel Hightower does next!
teamredmon's review against another edition
5.0
Rose McFarland is a trained killer--a Memphis S.W.A.T. sniper with a secret. Her team knows about the burn scars that lurk under her clothes, a legacy of the house fire that killed her father and brother sixteen years before. Her supervisors know that she spent two years in a rehabilitative facility, healing and learning to cope with the emotional trauma of the fire. But no one knows about the visions that drove her there, angry spirits that consumed her childhood, alienated her from her family and made her doubt her own sanity--the Whispers.
Whispers in the Dark could fit in any number of categories horror, mystery, thriller and it walks that line fairly well. Rose McFarland's story will appeal to fans of any of those genres. I initially bought this book to support my fellow Kentuckian, Laurel Hightower. I can tell you now that it wouldn't matter if she was from Jupiter, Laurel Hightower can write. Full of strong, relatable, and realistic characters, Whispers in the Dark, is especially good when read alone at night so Hightower's creepy descriptions can really crawl around in your brain.
If you don't read horror often, there are a few scenes that may turn your stomach but it's the feeling of lurking evil that truly leaves an impression. Whispers in the Dark is one of my top books of 2019 and I strongly recommend it to anyone that enjoys a well written mysterious, creepy, sometimes quite scary book.
Whispers in the Dark could fit in any number of categories horror, mystery, thriller and it walks that line fairly well. Rose McFarland's story will appeal to fans of any of those genres. I initially bought this book to support my fellow Kentuckian, Laurel Hightower. I can tell you now that it wouldn't matter if she was from Jupiter, Laurel Hightower can write. Full of strong, relatable, and realistic characters, Whispers in the Dark, is especially good when read alone at night so Hightower's creepy descriptions can really crawl around in your brain.
If you don't read horror often, there are a few scenes that may turn your stomach but it's the feeling of lurking evil that truly leaves an impression. Whispers in the Dark is one of my top books of 2019 and I strongly recommend it to anyone that enjoys a well written mysterious, creepy, sometimes quite scary book.
errantdreams's review against another edition
5.0
Laurel Hightower’s Whispers in the Dark is divinely horrifying! Sergeant Rose McFarland is a S.W.A.T. sniper and mother of two young children. She has a lover she’s been friends with for years, and an ex-husband Sam she’s still very friendly with. Sam even knows her secret: when she was a child she used to hear the Whispers, and she saw terrifying things. Her parents largely beat it out of her, until her father and brother died in a fire that started in her locked bedroom. Now she’s looking down her sights at Charlie Akers. Negotiator Zack still hopes to end this standoff peacefully–Charlie kidnapped his own wife and two children–but Rose has a feeling this one won’t end that way. When she’s forced to kill Charlie, her whole world starts to fall apart. She starts seeing things again. Her son Tommy starts having weird “spells.” An FBI agent threatens that if she doesn’t come talk to him by the end of the weekend he’ll ruin her in the investigation into her shooting of Charlie. When she comes back to work on Monday Zack is missing and she’s being accused of having a history with Charlie. Soon the investigation is the least of her worries.
The creepy things that inhabit the dark places definitely got to me. I haven’t felt afraid of the dark in more than 30 years, but it gave me a shudder after I read this book last night! Roughly the first half of the book builds up the characters and the base-level weirdness and fear. After that, things really get hopping!
Rose is an excellent badass character. She’s tough and she knows how to handle herself, but she has her own fears and difficulties. She’s not sure how she feels about her lover, Luke, whom she’s known for more than a decade. She’s also not entirely sure how she feels about Sam, her ex-husband, who still comes over for pancake breakfasts with the kids and flirts shamelessly with her. The story doesn’t take an easy way out of this confusion. Another fascinating character is FBI agent Evan Neal. Is he an enemy? Is he an ally? Is he something else entirely? He doesn’t seem to be strictly on Rose’s side (witness that whole thing about threatening her, which if he’d known her at all he’d know was the exact wrong thing to do). But he knows something about Charlie Akers, and claims they can help each other. He comes across as a bit sly, so you never quite know where you stand with him.
When the story gets into details of Rose’s childhood and family, things get really interesting. Her family has a few secrets they’ve been keeping, and there aren’t a lot of people Rose can ask about them! The threat to her family becomes a much greater threat as tension builds.
This is such a chilling read. Absolutely recommended!
Original review posted on my blog: http://www.errantdreams.com/2020/06/review-whispers-in-the-dark-laurel-hightower/
The creepy things that inhabit the dark places definitely got to me. I haven’t felt afraid of the dark in more than 30 years, but it gave me a shudder after I read this book last night! Roughly the first half of the book builds up the characters and the base-level weirdness and fear. After that, things really get hopping!
Rose is an excellent badass character. She’s tough and she knows how to handle herself, but she has her own fears and difficulties. She’s not sure how she feels about her lover, Luke, whom she’s known for more than a decade. She’s also not entirely sure how she feels about Sam, her ex-husband, who still comes over for pancake breakfasts with the kids and flirts shamelessly with her. The story doesn’t take an easy way out of this confusion. Another fascinating character is FBI agent Evan Neal. Is he an enemy? Is he an ally? Is he something else entirely? He doesn’t seem to be strictly on Rose’s side (witness that whole thing about threatening her, which if he’d known her at all he’d know was the exact wrong thing to do). But he knows something about Charlie Akers, and claims they can help each other. He comes across as a bit sly, so you never quite know where you stand with him.
When the story gets into details of Rose’s childhood and family, things get really interesting. Her family has a few secrets they’ve been keeping, and there aren’t a lot of people Rose can ask about them! The threat to her family becomes a much greater threat as tension builds.
This is such a chilling read. Absolutely recommended!
Original review posted on my blog: http://www.errantdreams.com/2020/06/review-whispers-in-the-dark-laurel-hightower/
lauriereadslohf's review against another edition
4.0
I’m going to be honest here and say that I’m not a major fan of police procedural type books, movies or tv but I’ll always make an exception when several someones tell me I need to pay attention to something and that’s why I decided to read Whispers In The Dark. People on my Twitter feed would not shut up about it and now that I’ve read it I can understand the positive buzz.
Rose is a sniper with a painful past and when the book begins she is in a standoff with an irrational man. The scene is intense and shows Rose is calm, cool and knows what she’s doing but this event is more than it seems. Rose is also more than she seems and soon after finds herself and her family embroiled in a battle for their lives. The stakes are high and the revelations are chilling. You’ll have to read the book to discover them though because I am not a spoiler of books.
The best thing about this story, besides the history and the creep-factor and the ever-lurking dread, were the characters and their very complicated relationships with each other. They’re flawed, realistic, relatable - all of those things, and I really enjoyed reading their stories and reactions to events. Life is often messy, imperfect, frustrating, and disappointing and this book felt real to me because of the character’s interactions with each other and the realism and emotion written into the scenes. I still find it difficult to believe this novel was a debut. That sort of blows my mind.
I’m glad I listened to my horror people and gave this book a chance. I can easily recommend it to anyone looking to escape reality for a while and fall into a tension-filled novel with unforgettable characters.
Rose is a sniper with a painful past and when the book begins she is in a standoff with an irrational man. The scene is intense and shows Rose is calm, cool and knows what she’s doing but this event is more than it seems. Rose is also more than she seems and soon after finds herself and her family embroiled in a battle for their lives. The stakes are high and the revelations are chilling. You’ll have to read the book to discover them though because I am not a spoiler of books.
The best thing about this story, besides the history and the creep-factor and the ever-lurking dread, were the characters and their very complicated relationships with each other. They’re flawed, realistic, relatable - all of those things, and I really enjoyed reading their stories and reactions to events. Life is often messy, imperfect, frustrating, and disappointing and this book felt real to me because of the character’s interactions with each other and the realism and emotion written into the scenes. I still find it difficult to believe this novel was a debut. That sort of blows my mind.
I’m glad I listened to my horror people and gave this book a chance. I can easily recommend it to anyone looking to escape reality for a while and fall into a tension-filled novel with unforgettable characters.
brennanlafaro's review against another edition
5.0
About 3-4 nights a week I have to close up the music shop I work at. I've done this for the last 5 years or so. Closing consists of locking the front door, turning off the master set of lights, and letting myself out the back door, about 40 feet down the hall. After reading the first 50 or so pages of Whispers in the Dark, Laurel Hightower's debut novel, I headed off to work. At the end of the night, I went to lock up as usual. I locked the front door, hit the lights, turned around to leave, and all I could think of, as I faced the long pitch-black hallway, was the whispers. The horrifying "gray people" that materialize out of the shadows. This experience stuck with me for 2 reasons:
1. This book pulled me in immediately and took over my headspace. Even hours after having put it down, the ghosts it had filled my imagination with were still present. So much so, that it transformed what has become an everyday experience.
2. This is only the second time I can call to mind that a book has given me the creeps when it wasn't even in my hands. The first such time I recall belongs to a certain Sai King.
I'm pleased to be able to recommend this as a story that gets under your skin, with its' exceptionally creep-tastic imagery, but there's so much more. Perhaps the reason that the scares work so well is because of how fleshed-out the characters are. All the characters. Our protagonist, Rose, (that's right "our". Laurel Hightower created a great character that we love to root for) is a wonderfully strong female lead whose refusal to take shit makes for some terrific quotes. Sam, the ex-husband, has all the marks of a potential one-dimensional character, but avoids going there via some very-well done POV portions of the story. Even side characters like William, Luke, and Joy are presented in a way that subtly make us care about not just their parts in the main story, but what happens to them after. The only character(s) not given to us in great detail are done so intentionally so that we don't fully know what to make of their motives and actions.
Whispers in the Dark is very self-contained. It wraps everything up, yet if the concept of the whispers were revisited in another story, I'd be there for it. Whatever Laurel Hightower puts to page next, I'll be first in line for it. I can't wait to see what else this author has up her sleeve.
spookishmommy's review
4.0
First of all, I cannot believe this is a debut novel. Laurel has a gift for writing, that's for sure. From the very first page, I was enthralled.
Second, can I be Rose when I grow up? What a badass, empowering lead character! I loved her. Rose is a SWAT sniper - she's smart, tough and can handle anything thrown her way but she does have secrets. She also gets a big surprise thrown her way which challenges everything she believes in.
Whispers in the Dark was creepy AF and I loved how there were so many layers to this horror story. Mixing supernatural with real life horror elements - this book had all my favorite tropes.
I cannot wait to read more from this author!
Second, can I be Rose when I grow up? What a badass, empowering lead character! I loved her. Rose is a SWAT sniper - she's smart, tough and can handle anything thrown her way but she does have secrets. She also gets a big surprise thrown her way which challenges everything she believes in.
Whispers in the Dark was creepy AF and I loved how there were so many layers to this horror story. Mixing supernatural with real life horror elements - this book had all my favorite tropes.
I cannot wait to read more from this author!
entertaininglynerdy's review
4.0
The only negative thing I have to say is that I feel like the book could be shortened up a little. But holy crap this book has some creepy aspects to it. I love that the book has a kick ass woman that's self assured despite her past.
theliteraryhooker's review
4.0
This was my first read of 2020, and I definitely feel like I've started the decade off on the right foot! Whispers in the Dark is an incredible debut novel. The plot is fresh and creepy, the writing is strong, but most importantly, the characters are just stellar.
I loved very nearly everything about this novel, but where it really stood out for me was in the relationships depicts between the characters. So often in horror (and especially, it seems, when female characters are involved), the focus is on toxic or manipulative relationships. A dark theme seems to beget dark relationships. But not so in this book. The relationships are refreshingly healthy. Rose is a complete bad-ass, but she isn't afraid to disclose her vulnerabilities to a trusted few. Her family is unconventionally blended, but they all love and support each other. She sets boundaries, and knows when to enforce them. It may not sound all that riveting, but the focus on establishing Rose's relationships with Sam, Luke, and even Aaron made the stakes feel so much higher throughout the story because I was genuinely invested in these characters. I absolutely adored the way it was handled.
A couple of things while I was reading took me out of the story a little bit, but they were minor compared to the overall quality of this novel. The big one which stuck with me was just the frequency with which the characters call each other by their names in the course of normal conversation. It took away a tiny bit from the flow of an otherwise extremely strong narrative. It also felt (for my tastes) like things wrapped up just a little bit too neatly at the end.
This was such a strong story, I could hardly believe it was the author's debut novel! I absolutely can't wait to see what Hightower does next, and I will definitely be keeping a close eye on her after this read!
I loved very nearly everything about this novel, but where it really stood out for me was in the relationships depicts between the characters. So often in horror (and especially, it seems, when female characters are involved), the focus is on toxic or manipulative relationships. A dark theme seems to beget dark relationships. But not so in this book. The relationships are refreshingly healthy. Rose is a complete bad-ass, but she isn't afraid to disclose her vulnerabilities to a trusted few. Her family is unconventionally blended, but they all love and support each other. She sets boundaries, and knows when to enforce them. It may not sound all that riveting, but the focus on establishing Rose's relationships with Sam, Luke, and even Aaron made the stakes feel so much higher throughout the story because I was genuinely invested in these characters. I absolutely adored the way it was handled.
A couple of things while I was reading took me out of the story a little bit, but they were minor compared to the overall quality of this novel. The big one which stuck with me was just the frequency with which the characters call each other by their names in the course of normal conversation. It took away a tiny bit from the flow of an otherwise extremely strong narrative. It also felt (for my tastes) like things wrapped up just a little bit too neatly at the end.
This was such a strong story, I could hardly believe it was the author's debut novel! I absolutely can't wait to see what Hightower does next, and I will definitely be keeping a close eye on her after this read!