Mickey reviewed Whisperwood by Alex Woodroe
Review of 'Whisperwood' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
2.5/5
Going into the book I had high hopes. Folk horror is such a cool sub genre and the book promised a really cool story. However I was a bit disappointed by the end.
The story centers around Anna, an outsider looking to find herself a new home in a town nobody really knows about, which was a great premise. Things go wrong right off the bat and immediately we are plunged into a town full of mystery and strangeness and I would have loved for this to be expanded upon much further. Instead the story seems to go way too fast and too slow at the same time. Friendships are made within hours and characters are introduced but then never really expanded upon before rushing into the next thing.
I felt like the pacing was very off the whole time, especially the beginning and end. The middle was where …
2.5/5
Going into the book I had high hopes. Folk horror is such a cool sub genre and the book promised a really cool story. However I was a bit disappointed by the end.
The story centers around Anna, an outsider looking to find herself a new home in a town nobody really knows about, which was a great premise. Things go wrong right off the bat and immediately we are plunged into a town full of mystery and strangeness and I would have loved for this to be expanded upon much further. Instead the story seems to go way too fast and too slow at the same time. Friendships are made within hours and characters are introduced but then never really expanded upon before rushing into the next thing.
I felt like the pacing was very off the whole time, especially the beginning and end. The middle was where things shined the most as the world came much more alive. There were some great vivid and creepy scenes I really enjoyed, only to be then diminished by stilted dialogue or a poorly placed joke.
I wish there was more time spent on exploration and learning rather than being whipped about and getting info dumped on us. I also wish we were given more time to understand for ourselves how to feel rather than being told directly by the story.
Overall though I did love the Whispers and the strangeness of the other world. The description of the creatures were great and I loved the eerieness they brought. I think there is some great potential there, it just felt a bit too rough in its current state.
Thank you to NetGalley and Flame Tree Publishing for the review copy.