A Wild and Whispering Curse

by Sarah Dalton

A spooky standalone mystery about a witch coming into her ancestral powers.

When Beth Bayliss is ripped from her cozy foster family and sent to live with her stern great-aunt Erica, she thinks life can’t get any worse. Her new home, Moss Manor, seems to groan from the inside out, and the walls whisper an unnatural curse at night.

Making friends at Mossbrook School isn’t any easier than living in the manor. Especially when the village teems with secrets. And when Beth discovers a shocking local murder, she’s plunged into a mystery that twists deeper than the roots of the menacing trees outside her bedroom window.

Beth must unlock her hidden magic if she wants to lift the curse haunting the village. But can she defeat the whispering dark?

Or will it swallow her whole?

Genres: Fantasy, Witches, Ebooks

326 pages, Paperback

Published October 16, 2023

About the author

Sarah grew up in the middle of nowhere in the countryside of Derbyshire and as a result has an over-active imagination. She has been an avid reader for most of her life, taking inspiration from the stories she read as a child, and the novels she devoured as an adult.

Sarah mainly writes speculative fiction for a Young Adult audience and has had pieces of short fiction published in the Medulla Literary Review, PANK magazine, Apex Magazine and the British Fantasy Society publication Dark Horizons. Her short story ‘Vampires Wear Chanel’ is featured in the Wyvern Publication Fangtales.

She is the author of the popular YA dystopia series 'Blemished' and the gothic novella 'My Daylight Monsters'. She is currently working on a YA Fantasy series titled 'White Hart'.

Follow Sarah on twitter @sarahdalton

Reviews

[Jessica · Rating 1 out of 5]

Just awful. A wattpad story that should have stayed on wattpad.

What's with the frequent commentary about her being "obese" but saying she can put her knees to her chest and rest her head on them? What's with the constant mention of her artistic talent when it has no relevance to the storyline AT ALL.

[Mechaela · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF--boring and lack luster with absolutely no plot. Do not recommend. Made it to pg 100 and it didn't change.

[Tracey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I couldn't finish this after reading 200 plus pages thinking something will happen. This was a little young for me. Some might like this but it's a NO from me 👎

[Julie Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this story, which was part supernatural, part growing up tale with some exploration of important issues such as body image and difference.

The characters suited the plot and I liked the sense of place. I also liked the first-person narrative. It was fast-paced and engaging from the start to finish with some twists along the way.

Very well done.

Highly recommended.

[Sirah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Moss Manor and Aunt Erica aren't quite what foster teen Beth was expecting, and she becomes even more unsure when she starts hearing sinister whispers from behind locked doors. Also, Beth is overweight, and a lot of people do not approve. So begins some Mean Girls drama at Beth's new high school, and there's also some small town drama, and it's possible that Aunt Erica has been hiding information from Beth for an entire two weeks about whether or not she's been involved in an affair, and also Beth meets a girl who could be her new best friend and the girl's brother, who is kind of cute. But also everyone has mental health disorders. Oh, and eventually there's a dead body, which is pretty spooky, but we can't do anything about that, so maybe we should talk about gypsies, and since that isn't very interesting, let's add some romantic tension and a terrible argument. Did I mention Beth was overweight? No one else has forgotten. And then the whispers are back, and there's something about a secret and some spell books and possibly a demon, and wow, look at this crazy weather.

Don't let my synopsis fool you. While there's certainly commentary on foster care/family relationships/substance abuse/high school drama/small town drama/trust/friendship/young romance/mental health/a murder mystery/romantic drama/family secrets/magic/travelers/demons/supernatural weather/other subplots, this book is mostly about Beth being overweight and trying to decide if she should try to change that.

But, Sirah, this book is only 300 pages; how does all that fit in?
Poorly.

There were a lot of good parts in this book, but they felt disjointed because the book was doing so much that it never managed to fully commit to anything or satisfactorily resolve much. Since this book was marketed to me as a murder mystery, I was expecting a body to show up sooner than 40% through the book. And witches? They aren't even mentioned with any amount of seriousness until 80% of the way through. I can chalk that up to a weird twist of the market, but that still doesn't excuse the writing style, which had to be completely unsubtle to fit everything in, which didn't allow me to get to know the characters organically. That's a bummer, as I think I really would have liked Flora and Heath and even Beth and Erica.

[Bryony · Rating 2 out of 5]

The overall plot is quite weak, however this story is more about the characters and a quirky magical village. I enjoyed the atmosphere of the village, the characters were well developed and likable. It's told from the POV of Beth, a teenager who lives in foster care and one day discovers she has an aunt who she then goes to live with. When she gets to Moss Manor strange things start happening and a murder.

I think if it explored the witch lore and the history behind the witchy village it would have improved it for me. It is a bit of a telling and not showing story, but it is well written and logical.

The constant FAT talk though, what?!
My biggest gripe with this book is the author's constant obsession with Beth's weight, while I am all in for describing characters which include her weight, the constant fat remarks and food remarks got on my nerves a bit. Beth did get bullied by another character for her weight, and I get that, that happens in real life and it needs to stop so demonstrating this is okay. But there is constant nondialogue from characters about her weight.

Probably don't read this if you have an eating disorder.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very cute story and I really liked the idea of it. I wish there was a little more to it. I felt that there were things missing or rushed.

I do love that there was representation of plus-size teenagers and teenagers going through different mental health difficulties. I think that is something that should be represented more in YA books.

I loved the magical aspect of the book as well and how the reveal took some time to get there. I do think that the second half of the book is what gave me the push to get to the end.

[Genia Kuypers · Rating 3 out of 5]

I went in expecting this book to go an entirely different direction than it did. It felt very slow but then very rushed at the end. We spend so much time on the creepy house but not a lot on the on we have magic portion. I would have liked more development in that aspect because the I don't understand my powers and then the chaotic way they expressed didn't make a lot of sense. A very ya mystery. But nothing to write home about

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Wild and Whispering Curse by Sarah Dalton – I very rarely buy a book for its cover, but this is one of those times. For most of the first half of the book, I was trying to decide if this was going to be a Scooby Doo meddling teenagers vibe or if there was some actual Hocus Pocus going down in this little village. But this was a fast paced and intricate coming of age story that kept me guessing right to the end! Happy Reading!

[Maritsa Daumer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Creepy witchy mystery

Enjoyed this one, The main character Beth goes to live with an Aunt that she never met, and begins to hear evil whispers at night, then is the first to discover 2 bodies along with her 2 friends and her aunt she tries to discover the source of the whispers and the murders

[cattolyst · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think the problem with this book was the first 40 pages sets up the plot and the last 40 pages tries to make up for the plot. The rest of the story was a blur, full of fillers and whatnot. The murders were just... abandoned plot. Even the affair was abandoned so quickly. This book could have been shorter honestly.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Real magic!

When Beth, a foster child, is sent to live with her stern aunt in an isolated old house, she finds good and evil exist in unexpected places. Can she harness the magic of friendship, love, and goodness to save the town? She isn't sure she is strong enough...

[Angie Macias Dial · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so good.

I really liked reading this book. I was so surprised to find out who the true evil person was and the ending was such a surprising one. I feel like I got to know all the characters in this book and could relate to how they each felt.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting story

An interesting take on a witch coming into her powers. It's a bit longninnthe beginning, but it still wasn't clear why certain people were killed. Everything ties up in the end.

[Marc Rude · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful modern fantasy

I loved the whimsical story and lessons of this book. The author writes about the magic of relationships within a family and a group of friends. I truly smiled when I finished reading the book. It was a wonderful adventure.

[Dawn Fielder · Rating 5 out of 5]

magic. mental health. teen angst.

Clever. Quick witted. Strong voice. Touches on anxiety and issues with disordered eating and grief. Twisty story. Enjoyed even though it wasn’t my usual fare.

[Stacy H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book!! It was a great spooky read. People kept turning up dead, and is our young witch next? I love how she pairs up with two friends who have her back. Other than her friends, you cannot guess who is on the good side and who is on the evil side!! Kept me on my toes until the very end.

[ASHLEY TOTH · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Wild and Whispering Curse was a good book once you looked past the fat shaming/fat phobia it had going on. It was a great coming of age/powers read that delved into being a new teenager in a small village and starting a new life with a relative you know nothing about.

[Myra · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, there is a lot of good in this book. Sadly, the author decided to throw in far too many tangential topics (foster care, mental health issues, bullying, affairs, gypsies, the supernatural, I'm sure I've forgotten about 10 more) that just distracted and diminished the main story.

[Valery · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just okay for me.

For my clean readers: language-some, including f-bombs. Violence-murder, sacrifices, attempted suicide, and bullying. Romance-kissing, adultery, and sexual innuendos. Also includes body shaming, anorexia, phobias, and magical rituals.

[Teri Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good

It's a fantastic story I really enjoyed reading it, it felt a little slow to start with but engrossing when I got into it.

[Tam Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good magickal mystery. The ending was a shocker.

[Mary · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF - got 25% in and nothing has happened and I don't care.

[H.S. Skinner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome read!

Really like the characters! Most of them, lol. Camilla and Rosie are perfect bad characters, Just as the teenage trio and Aunt Erica are perfectly imperfect good guys!

[Samantha Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[ทixi৳ท · Rating 4 out of 5]

My experience with this book got off to an interesting start, because the first half didn't give me the feeling I was expecting based on the synopsis. The first half seemed more like a romantic drama with an occasional hint of magical realism. Of course after that the events start, because someone dies who is a respected member of the community.

Surprisingly this is a well-constructed book structurally. We get to know the main character and those close to her. But serious topics were also included, such as anorexia and other physical and mental problems. Self-acceptance and overcoming our weaknesses. I won't deny that it got annoying after a while when Beth was constantly teased about her weight. I was starting to feel like it was too much, because based on the synopsis, I wasn't expecting that.

After 60% a 360° turn followed. Because even in the town believed to be perfect, brutal murders and even more horrifying events can happen, where Beth and her friends have to stand their ground. The plot soared that I was already devouring the pages. I read the remaining 40% so quickly that by the end I felt that I wanted to continue reading this story.

I think the friendship is the greatest strength of this book, the relationship between Beth and Flora was built very well. I already had the feeling that they had become sisters as the events progressed. The romance was a slow-burn, Beth and Heath gradually became close to each other. I also liked how Beth and her aunt, Erica, slowly got close. In this way they constantly learned things about each other, which built up trust between the two of them.

I didn't regret reading the book. It's true that the book almost became dfn for me, but I'm glad I persevered because I wasn't disappointed at the end.

[Joshua Antcliff · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a Sheffield lad myself, I thoroughly enjoyed the cosy creepy village setting to this story. There was a great variety of characters featuring throughout the story, each of which lead you along the garden path up to the mysterious Moss Manor with all its secrets!

[Virginia · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.