The Scream of the Whistle

by Emily Randall-Jones

 
All aboard for a spine-tingling spooky adventure from
the award-winning author of The Witchstone Ghosts!

'A spooky thrilling adventure laced with the perfect amount
of fear' JASBINDER BILAN


'Randall-Jones is a master at work and this is a story that
deserves to stand the test of time' ALEX ATKINSON



'Haunting and charming and warm' YARROW TOWNSEND



Ruby is miserable. Her parents have split up, and now she’s
stuck in a creepy village. At night, she decides to escape and
follow the ancient train track home.


Her journey has barely begun when she hears the eerie scream of
a whistle – and an old steam train appears out of the darkness
. . .


Is Ruby ready for the ghost ride of her life?



A frightfully fun read for children aged 9 and up

Packed full of spooky ghosts, child-friendly horror,
time-travelling steam trains and ancient English mythology

For fans of Lucy Strange and Frances Hardinge

The Witchstone Ghosts was the 2021 winner
of the Times/Chicken House Children’s Fiction
Competition and The Times Children’s Book
of the Week

 


PRAISE FOR THE WITCHSTONE GHOSTS:



'It’s exciting and original, warm and funny and gothic' KIRAN
MILLWOOD HARGRAVE


'A twisting, churning, tide-turning adventure!' LUCY
STRANGE


'Pace and plot twists a-plenty … an ideal read for
young, independent readers who may be bored of witches of the cackling,
cauldron kind this Halloween and are ready for witches who
can summon up storms instead.' THE TIMES, CHILDREN’S BOOK
OF THE WEEK

255 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 5, 2025

About the author

Emily has worked as a touring actor, a princess at Hampton Court and for the National Trust creating experiences for visitors. She’s the winner of both the Mslexia Children’s and YA Novel as well as being longlisted for the Branford Boase award. 'The Scream of the Whistle' - another ghostly MG - is out June 25. She's a proudly neurodivergent single mum and can usually be found foraging for hag stones.

Reviews

[Hannah Rials Jensen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great intro to horror for kids cause it scared even me! But as always, Randall-Jones’s book is full of heart and humour and great characters. This book is extremely locations based so any teachers looking for a bit of Wiltshire history, here you go!

[Rebecca R · Rating 5 out of 5]

When 12-year-old Ruby's parents split up, she moves into her Grandma's house in a creepy abandoned railway village called Melbridge with her mum and brother. Ruby is sure if she can just get her parents back in the same room together she can get them to reconcile, so she hatches a plan to walk back home along the abandoned railway line and orchestrate a family reunion. When she encounters the mysterious Green Lady steam train, the conductor offers her a lift instead. But there's something strange about the train and soon Ruby realises that she's trapped on a one-way trip towards disaster.

'The Scream of the Whistle' is a thrilling and emotive MG horror story about a girl dealing with the supernatural fallout from a historical train crash while she processes her parents divorce. I love a Greek mythology retelling as much as the next person, but it's great to have a story based on our weird and creepy English folklore instead - set amongst ley lines, stone circles and tors in atmospheric Wiltshire. I'm frequently asked for scary stories in the library and I think this one will go down particularly well - a time slip story with a sinister steam train, ghosts, and an accessible length at 230 pages. (And the cat of course - love Station Ned.) I really enjoyed this one!

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved Emily Randall-Jones’s first book and this, her second novel, captured my heart and soul just as much. I read it in one day, which is unheard of for me, it’s THAT good!

It’s about 12YO Ruby (Ru) whose parents have separated, and she and her mum and brother go to live with her gram in a deserted and spooky hamlet. Ru sets out on an adventure to get her parents back together. She meets mysterious characters along the way and it gets very tense and spooky in places. There’s a magnificent scene in Trowbridge station that really got my heart racing. (Trowbridge station has never had that effect on me before!)

I was hooked throughout this original story, and the ending was so satisfying it even brought a tear to my eye. Emily is a natural story teller and her second novel is sublime. Can’t wait to read more from this up-and-coming author.

[Matthew Fox · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is another awesome book from Emily Randall-Jones, whose The Witchstone Ghosts won The Times/Chickenhouse award. This time around the setting is Wiltshire and the West Country, where the author grew up; here, she has created an exciting blend of local railway history and the myths and legends of the West Country.

12 year old Ru can't accept that her parents are splitting up; she sets off on a night walk from her Grandmother's place to try to talk to her Dad, but on the way she catches a ride with a mysterious steam train, a train that takes us back in time and offers Ru the chance to learn that there are some things you can fix, and some things you just have to accept. Along the way there are new friends to make, if only she can outwit the demonic train conductor! A thrilling read for readers aged 8-12.

[EC · Rating 5 out of 5]

All aboard for a spooky, heart-stopping time travelling adventure on an old steam train, lit with the crimson light of the lunar eclipse and ancient Wiltshire magic
Ruby’s upset about her parents splitting up when she arrives in her gram’s creepy village of Melbridge. She escapes and follows the old train track home where she encounters some characters from an ill-fated trip to Glastonbury1925 like Cribbins and Malik and a girl with rainbow-coloured hair.
This is a thrilling read with lots of humour, twists, spookiness and heart up to the last word and full stop. Emily has a great talent for bringing her characters to life.
This story will stay with me long after the train pulls in at the station. Highly recommended and it is written in beautiful prose which will delight all readers!

[Gemma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book.

Pre-ordered it after enjoying Emily's first book so much The Witchstone Ghosts and was not disappointed.

This book has just the right amount of spookiness, friendship, family (including a really nicely dealt with parental split sidestory), and action. We read it straight away and I almost want to read it again now I'm sad it's over!

Some suggestion in the writing that the main character is somewhat neurodivergent as well which while not at all part of the storyline, is lovely for kids to see a reflection of themselves still being the main character in such a great adventure.

[Yvonne Banham · Rating 5 out of 5]

When an ancient steam train appears on an old rail track, Ruby can't resist climbing aboard and soon realises that the veil between the worlds is thinning and she's on the ghost ride of her life! Great plotting & great characters, but what REALLY makes this stand out is the seemingly effortless writing that propels you through the story. It reminded me of childhood dreams that start OK then rapidly descend into the downright spooky. And I loved Elfie, always trying to tell Ruby what I was screaming at her to realise. Gorgeous stuff and would highly recommend for ages 9+ and their grown ups!

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant spooky stuff!!! I adore Emily's writing. massive recommendation for anyone 9+ A wonderful, gripping ghost story.

[Helly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yet another amazing story from Emily Randall-Jones! Such beautiful storytelling that has stayed with me long after reading it. Such loveable characters and general brilliance!