The Whisperer

by A. Ireland King

This is the complete novel—contains all six parts.

Mystery. Betrayal. Murder.

Following her suicide, Meredith Potts discovers a dark secret.

When Meredith jumps in front of a train, the first surprise is that she still exists.  She meets the mysterious Michael, a glorious being sent to watch over and mentor her.  As Meredith learns to help the living in quiet ways, she must also face her own demons.

Events are now in motion that will uncover a terrible secret and expose a killer.  Where will Meredith’s unplanned journey lead her?  Can the truth really set you free?

Set in Scotland’s capital city, this gripping tale of treachery and redemption is ultimately optimistic. Prepare to be swept away by authentic characters—The Whisperer will keep you guessing and leave you warm and fuzzy.

286 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 19, 2018

Reviews

[Jill Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

(The book is divided into six sections and I'm reviewing them section-by-section for the author, so will post my various pieces on here as I finish them.)

DEATH'S DOOR: THE WHISPERER PART ONE
I really enjoy seeing what other people think about what happens after we die, and The Whisperer offers an interesting take on the concept. I really enjoyed this story's beginning - while not exactly new in its underlying concept, the slant that Ms. King takes is clever and feels fresh in its execution. I also really like that the story is populated by original and non-traditional characters. In this world, everyone isn't brilliant and gorgeous and perfect with a tragic flaw that really turns out to be their greatest strength. These feel like real people (even the one that isn't a person anymore), and that makes them eminently relatable and very engaging as characters. The writing is strong and clear and I like that the story is divided up by clearly labeled narrators/points of view - too often lately authors seem to enjoy hiding the eight ball from their readers, forcing us to work to follow the plot and figure out who is telling us what. While that sometimes works, it also sometimes just obfuscates the underlying story - and often unnecessarily, as though the key to a great story was cleverness rather than an actually great story... Not so here - King does a creditable job keeping everyone and everything straight for her readers, so that the story can tell itself. I look forward to the next installment!

THE SUICIDE NOTES: THE WHISPERER PART TWO
The saga of poor Meredith and her afterlife (afterdeath?) continues in a rather steadily depressing fashion - this poor woman seems just as beleaguered in death as she was in life. It makes the story occasionally wearying - I just want something good to happen to her! - but not in a bad way, in a way that is indicative of the quality of the writing because it means that the emotion King is generating is so authentic feeling that it is literally carrying me along with it. The other characters seem to be making more pointed appearances, and I suspect they will eventually tie together more obviously (beyond their status as people Meredith "whispers" to) and their import will become more transparent as their stories play out. The book continues to be an interesting look at life and death, and how the decisions we make - that seem isolated in the moment - carryover and touch more lives than we suspect...

THE SHADOW FALLS: THE WHISPERER PART THREE
AHA - it's starting to come together a bit more... I don't know if I've been slow to grasp the inter-connections or if they've been deliberately teased out, but I'm finally starting to see more overlap and some hint as to the interrelationships between the various characters and Meredith (beyond the obvious Whisperer role). I'm reading this while reading a few others (I read/review a lot), so it's possible that I've been slower to grasp some of this, but I'm starting to feel like there's a more coherent picture (as I suspected) emerging. I'm half-way into the story now, and things are starting to converge a little more obviously. It's never felt incoherent - don't misunderstand. Each of the segments I've read so far has steadily been building toward something (that much has always been clear) - but what that something is has not always been so. I can feel that pressure building more strongly and obviously in this third section, and it's helped me move through some of the wearying effects of the sadness that so often overwhelms so many of the characters. King is a very evocative writer. Her writing style is engaging and easy, even when what she's describing is not. It makes the sadness and depression and regret and fear of her characters jump off the page and land in your lap. The result is an oddly wearying, although still quite enjoyable (weird, I know) read...

BOX OF SECRETS: THE WHISPERER PART FOUR
I'm continuing to enjoy the story - this segment, falling in the middle as it did, was a lot of glue-work. Necessary for the story, but not the most interesting bits as far as a free-standing component of the whole tale, to my taste. I'm optimistic that the back and forth will soon start to overlap a lot more, but found myself flipping back-and-forth in the pages a bit to keep everything (and everyone) straight, as far as plot development here... Still enjoyable, and I can tell it serves a purpose, so don't be deterred by the three stars as opposed to the four earlier on.

SEEDS OF CHANGE: THE WHISPERER PART FIVE
Ooh, we're getting there - the Big Reveal... The previous section felt a little slow to me, and I was wavering a tiny bit in attention. With this section, I was pulled back into Merry's world fully, and thoroughly enjoyed seeing the characters approach their various resolutions. I have a feeling I'm going to really like the ending...

THE WHISPERER: PART SIX
How lovely the way it all tied together! I was surprised and moved and the ending was quite lovely... There was just enough personal growth for the story to feel like it came full circle, yet nothing felt too tidy or stretched out. King pulled all the loose, wobbly bits together into a genuine, sweet, and touching wrap-up that felt like it struck just the right balance between sentimental and believable. This was an original take on what comes after death, and it offered a lot of food for thought interspersed with a well-casted and well-plotted entertaining narrative. A win on both fronts, I think.

***

My initial review copy was provided by the author; the individual sections and entire novel are available via Kindle Unlimited and I have downloaded and reviewed from those free copies as well.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I’m a whisperer,’ he says. “I speak to the living: in their thoughts, in their hearts, and in their dreams. “It’s like a whisper to them, so quiet it’s easily missed.”

This story is told in six parts. You could read each part separately, or all together as I did. Either way you will get the most from this new novel by reading all the parts. I loved it. I loved the way it was told. I thought I was reading one story, but then another emerged. Brilliant and cleverly woven. I wrote my review in an unusual way, in parts, the way the book was written. What follows were my thoughts and ideas as I read the book.

Part 1- Deaths Door
A murdered girl, a suicide. What do they have in common? A guardian angel perhaps? A ghost walking the earth with her escort, “The Whisperer,” Michael. What has Meredith's suicide done to her mother? What about Stan, the train conductor, she involved in her suicide? Maybe she too can be a whisperer in her next life.

Part 2: The Suicide Notes
We find how Stan is doing. Is his life moving forward? Is Meredith finding her place and strengthening her power to affect the living world? Fixing some wrongs? She’s watching over several people now. Whispering what she can to help them along in their life, help them to be happier.

Part 3: The Shadow Falls
Meredith is still honing her skills at being a "Whisperer." Trying to help family and friends. In this part we get a little deeper into everyone’s back story. We learn why Meredith’s mother was so hard on her. What happened to Titch? (read the short story entitled “Titch” by the same author) Is Meredith sorry she killed herself? People and connections are starting to be made. Now it has me wondering how everyone is connected to Meredith. Are they mostly strangers, or is there a closer tie? Onto the next section.

Part 4: Box of Secrets
Meredith continues her education in "Whispering." She makes a few mistakes, and meets a new friend. Her mother’s grief is coming along. I am beginning to suspect that people are more tied together then I first thought. Not everyone is as innocent as they appear.

Part 5: Seeds of Change

Meredith watches as secrets yet to be shared are discovered. People change, or try to. A funeral, and a long ago secret. The ties that bind these people together are being slowly unraveled to Meredith and us, the reader. She’s beginning to get a feel for what she is capable of in death, and what she can do for the living. Everything is changing for all those that Meredith watches over.

Part 6: The Whisperer
Wow! As everything comes together, I found this final part the most exciting. I didn’t realize in the beginning where the story was going. Surprise! I would have never guessed the final part. I had some suspicions in the last part that some weren’t as they appeared to be. Meredith’s life wasn’t what it should have been. Maybe in death she can find the things she’d been looking for.

I found the entire story line unique and fascinating. What if? What if this is what happens to us when we leave our life? What if this is the next place? The back story of the peoples lives that Meredith watched over, played an important part overall, but I’m still intrigued with the thought of “The Whisperer.”

Thank you A. Ireland King

I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Grady · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘Edinburgh is my city. I wander these streets, watching, but nobody sees me. I’m already a ghost.’

A. Ireland King makes an impressive debut with THE WHISPERER – a novel in six parts that holds the promise of a very skilled new author on the rise. She offers no biographical information so her novel must speak for her.

One sign of a writer who should be watched is the ability to seduce the reader with a Prologue and Amy does that very well: ‘Prologue - I look down at my lifeless body, which lies bleeding into the forest floor. My assailant appears unruffled, aloof, but a sudden moan from the body prompts a second, more frenzied attack. Over and over, the knife is plunged viciously into my torso. Finally, the assault ends. Hearts pound in the quiet of the evening; breaths gradually slow a little. A blackbird chirrups in a nearby birch tree, oblivious to my calamity. I get a soft kick to make sure I’m completely dead, and my eyes are pressed shut with a strange air of tenderness. My funeral consists of a few whispered words and a solitary tear. I look on helplessly as my corpse is dissected, the pieces wrapped in thick black bags. In the gloom, the bags are taken to the deserted building site. Their final resting place beneath one of the trenches is already dug: a narrow, shallow grave, waiting. My despair grows as the remains are covered: with hardened earth; six inches of cement; and later, brick walls. The building appears steadily - an ironically impressive covering for an unmarked grave - solid and imposing. Final. I’m often drawn to that place in the long years that follow. I pine miserably for those stolen years. I try to move on by delving into my work. I dig deep to forgive. But questions persist, dragging me back time and time again.’

The provided synopsis suggests only the hints of where this splendid little tale takes us – ‘Following her suicide, Meredith Potts discovers a dark secret. When Meredith jumps in front of a train, the first surprise is that she still exists. She meets the mysterious Michael, a glorious being sent to watch over and mentor her. As Meredith learns to help the living in quiet ways, she must also face her own demons. Events are now in motion that will uncover a terrible secret and expose a killer. Where will Meredith’s unplanned journey lead her? Can the truth really set you free? Set in Scotland’s capital city, this gripping tale of treachery and redemption is ultimately optimistic.’

Feathering the region of ‘other lives’, guardian angels, and simply the mystery of life, this novel not only reveals a fine story but also a sense of hope about where our lives may follow. Very fine beginning!

[Inishowen Cailín · Rating 5 out of 5]

A stunning debut novel.
Once I read the opening poem I knew I had my hands on something very special.

This is a beautiful, heartwarming story where tragedy turns to hope, love, redemption and second chances.

Meredith is the main character and the story revolves around her ability to whisper or encourage living people to make good choices. She is a kind soul and I really loved watching her evolve and harness her otherworldly powers to effect positive change in the lives of those she loves.
There were quite a few characters to keep track of but I liked each one and enjoyed flitting from one to the next as Meredith dipped in and out of their daily lives. Each person needed Meredith's help in some way whether it was a nudge in their love life, making new friends, reconnecting with family or keeping on the straight and narrow. She certainly had her work cut out for her.
The mystery and the twists and turns took me by surprise and I found that I really couldn't put this book down.
The epilogue was short and sweet and it ended the story on a very positive, high note.
This rarely happens to me, because of a lengthy TBR pile, but as soon as I finished this book it left me with the feeling of wanting to start at the beginning and enjoy the story all over again.

[Leah Ford · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this free for an honest review.

WoW........... I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I had another book to read before this but I thought I would read a couple of pages to get a feel for this. Bad idea.....or good as it turned out!! I really, really could not put this book down.

Where to start without giving too much away........
I actually worked out part of the story very early on....but....there are so many twists and turns you land up second guessing yourself all the way through. Best advice, kick back and enjoy the story as it unravels.

I loved the characters, both good and bad. The mix of different personalities is wonderful and you are made to feel so many different emotions. Whisperers, good versus evil, free choice, case solving and personal growth. All in one book!!

This book is one of my favourite so far this year. I would definitely recommend this book.

[Amy Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story

It captivates the reader from the beginning, seeing both the living and dead's perspective of a suicide. That's all I'm giving, but the story kept me hooked. The story is well written, and very easy to follow. I'd like to say it's an easy read, but the emotions and build up are just not so easy. However, I enjoyed this read, very much.

[Becky Stephens · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Whisperer follows Meredith Potts after her suicide. When Meredith jumps in front of a train, events are set in motion. Realizing that she still exists is baffling enough, but then she meets the mysterious Michael, who mentors her as she learns to guide the living—her charges—by whispering encouragement and reassurances.

Initially, I was overwhelmed by the number of characters. Because the point of view alternated between characters, it sometimes took a moment to remember their stories and what had happened up to that point. As I became more vested in the characters and their lives, and as I tried to guess how they connected to each other and to Meredith, it became easier, more fluid. The paths of those characters we meet along the way become clearer as the end approaches, revealing the twist as well as the jealousy and vengeance that can cause a person’s soul to fester.

I found Meredith’s strained relationship with her mother difficult. I wanted to shake her mother sometimes to make her realize that she could have had a better relationship with her daughter. It was even more frustrating as I came to the realization that nothing would have ever changed between them had Meredith not jumped in front of that train. It was like watching her destiny unfold; these events had to happen in order to get to the purpose of her story.

The last part of the novel reveals the simultaneous beauty and ugliness of humanity, and it was lovely and heartbreaking all at once.
While there were some pet peeves that showed up like “till” instead of “until” and “alright” instead of “all right,” I imagine things like that wouldn’t bother anyone else who isn’t a grammar geek like myself.

I found the fascinating story line rather unique. After a slow start, I was glad I kept with the story to understand how it all fits together. It’s filled with heartache and beauty and big-hearted gestures as well as vengeful acts—these attributes and emotions that make us human. The Whisperer tells the story of what could have been, but also what could be. It’s a striking debut novel from A. Ireland King, and I plan to keep her on my radar.

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

[Cathryn Wellner · Rating 5 out of 5]

When a book begins with a poem that brings the reader face to face with Death (and she's a woman) and then slides right into a suicide, you know you're in the hands of a good writer. When that writer turns out to be the author of a debut novel, surprise and admiration kick in.

When King offered a review copy, I checked out her Web site, read the free short story (see below), and decided it was worth a gamble. Then characters started to demand I keep track of them. I felt a little overwhelmed and, at times, lost. As the book progressed and the characters became familiar, I forgot my initial hesitation and jumped fully into the book. The premise - that Whisperers stay after their deaths, learning to take on the exquisitely difficult job of coaching the living through major hurdles - was compelling enough. But King pushes this to a deeper level, in ways I'd have to dish out spoilers to reveal.

So my suggestion is simple: Read this book.

If you're still on the fence, go to the author's Web site (easy - her name, as above, all lower case, plus ".com") and download her short story, "Titch". The backstory to one of the characters in the novel will persuade you to grab The Whisperer and settle in for a satisfying read.

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

From my Amazon review.....

Fair notice, I was given an ARC copy for an honest review. Well, this is an honest one. I really was drawn into this book. I confess it took a section to warm me up. I wasn't quite sure what to expect and didn't know if this was "my kind of story". Well, I'm so glad I didn't put it down and stuck with it. It warmed up quickly as I started to realize that the six parts that make this novel are cleverly connected and their stories interlaced. One can't really see how when it starts, but it grows throughout the book.

This book can be tough to read too. Not the reading itself. It is well written, clever, and insightful; but, it packs a heavy emotional punch for anyone who has lost a loved one. Mine was not through suicide, but I would flashback to good memories and sad ones too. I found myself understanding and sympathizing with Meredith's "cold" mother. She isn't really cold...she is searching, yearning for that connection with the dead. I get that and it hurt. Still, I persisted (like other great women I know) and was rewarded with an excellent, thought-provoking book. I even got over the use of present tense for the Meredith scenes. This might be the only book I've read where that convention makes some sense.

[Charles Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Meredith Potts wants to end her life, so she jumps in front of Stan’s train. But, rather than ending things, she finds that for her, life has just begun. Her spirit leaves her broken body and meets the enigmatic Michael who tells her she has become a whisperer in training, a spirit whose role is to gently and subconsciously nudge the living to keep them on the proper path. Meredith finally has the opportunity to take some of the kinks out of the path of life for some who have survived; but is she up to it.
The Whisperer by A. Ireland King is a hard book to categorize. It has elements of the supernatural but is primarily a story about a distressed woman coming to terms with the path her life took, and unravelling knots of her past. A bit slow in places, it is nevertheless entertaining.
I received a free copy of this book. I give it four stars.

[Nancy Silk · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Mission and Actions of Angels"

This new author is very talented. Here, her first book, contains six parts, all full of mystery, betrayal, and even murder. Unbelievably, Meredith Potts jumps in front of a train, committing suicide. But she's not dead, not totally. As now she is an angel, she meets a mysterious angel, Michael,who has been sent to guide her and watch over her. He is her mentor as she learns to help the living gently ... but at the same time, she must face her own demons. This story is set in Scotland and is a gripping tale. You'll love the characters ... and you'll love the Whisperer who will keep you guessing. There is a surprising and shocking ending you'll not anticipate. I highly recommend this very creative story.

[Mimi Davis Hopkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Are You Here With Me?

I loved this story!!!💓 The theme of the story is expressed exceptionally. The storyline has a smooth steady flow. The characters are relatable, I loved them. Who doesn't want to know what happens after this life, or wants to believe that our love ones are still near ? This author took extra efforts to pen this story with care, and has done a great job.

[Maxine Heeder · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely wonderful read. I don't ordinarily read books containing a supernatural plot but this book is so much more.

It also contains an intriguing mystery and the characters are believable and seem real to life. I hope A. Ireland King has many more books in her future. But hurry up because I'm 74 and I'd really like to see if your second novel is as good as The Whisper.

[Roxanne M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read!!

Excellent read and excellent new author! This book really touched my very soul! I cried at the end! What a beautiful tale of Whispering, the very idea has my mind going a million miles an hour! Great characters, wonderful plot! The ending is unforgettable!! Thank you for such a beautiful work!

[Jennifer Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartwarming and loving

This is one the best books I’ve ever read. And I’ve read plenty over my lifetime. A little sad but heartwarming. I can’t believe it’s Amy’s first book.
Can’t wait for the next book. XXX

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Read

Really enjoyed this . Interesting believable characters and a unique perspective on life after death told in a great story .