That last line!!

Well I thoroughly enjoyed this one, it kept me engaged throughout, I did guess one of the key plots but as I say I still enjoyed it.

This was my first time reading anything by Ashley but I do have The Push on my shelves waiting to be read so I’ll be moving that up my tbr. I really enjoyed her writing style, how she intertwined all of the characters lives and the pacing was good.

I’ll definitely be reading her next book!

Ashely Audrain writes in a way that is both haunting and beautiful. She takes the taboo topics and explores the darkest depths of them. I'm excited to see what she writes next.

I enjoyed this book so much - it kept me guessing right until the end. The character development was very clever and I felt invested in each relationship. Whitney is hard to like, or to feel sympathy for, but that is clearly her role in the story.

This is a book which questions parenthood and what it means to have children in my opinion. Each story line follows a family who have very different situations: Rebecca’s desperate need for a baby to be fulfilled; Whitney’s reluctant parenting style which contrasts with Blair’s somewhat obsessive style of parenting; Mara is a mother who has lost it all. The story felt real and intricately planned, later upon later revealing deep hidden secrets.

The ending is abrupt and some what unexpected, though the long reading journey through this novel should have prepared me for the outcome.

Clever plot with totally believeable characterisation!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and whilst my first by this author I’m hoping not my last. Very much in the Moriarty ilk and holds itself up well in comparison.
Quite a dark tale but one that you can imagine being very possible.

A suburban neighbourhood. Four households; neighbours, friends, strangers, mothers all with their own secrets and struggles. One night, a tragic event changes this street and these lives forever. Soon, the whispers will start and nothing will be the same.

There really is something about Audrain's writing; it's raw, gut-punching and just completely captivating. The Push is a favourite of mine, it was an instant 5 star read, so when I was approved for her follow up, The Whispers, I was delighted. Once again, Audrain mainly focuses on motherhood but also looks at family, marriage, friendship and community. Throughout the novel, we are immersed in a dark, psychological narrative that's both captivating and chilling, I really couldn't put it down. I enjoyed the ensemble of characters this time around, as in her previous novel there was our main character and a few supports. It gave different layers to the story which added to the book overall!

I really enjoyed being back reading Audrain's writing, big thank you to NetGalley and Michael Joseph Penguin for this copy!

*Make sure to check trigger warnings as some difficult themes are dealt with

This story surrounds a neighborhood, easy to read but explores the dark side of humanity which leaves you feeling quite ill at ease. I didn’t warm to the characters and so wasn’t sure at the end what I thought! Many thanks to Netgalley and Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for the ARC

An ok read. Some narrative a little confusing to interpret as it eluded to meaning but wasn't clear. Interesting themes around infidelity and motherhood.

This kept me engaged from start to finish and I was on the edge of my seat wondering what would happen next. I loved the character development and I became invested to how it would all end. Brilliant.

Well I’m a little bit speechless. What an absolutely brilliant book from the beginning, right up to the end!

After reading, and whole heartedly adoring, The Push, Ashley Audrain will be an auto-read author for me. While I enjoyed The Whispers, I preferred The Push, which more than 3 years since reading stands out vividly in my mind. The Whispers is a little more forgetful; or, if being completely accurate, mistakable, as it does blend into other reads I’ve found to be similar (I’m thinking Little Fires Everywhere and The Herd - not at all a bad thing given I enjoyed both). The Whispers centres around one family but as this type of novel does, features the neighbours in this close knit community leading up to and following the tragedy. It’s veeeeeery readable and easy to follow whilst, as I’m gathering is Audrain’s style, fantastic at exploring the decisions, desperations and dreams of woman and centres considerably on motherhood. A great 4 stars from me with a promise that I’ll carry on looking for Audrain’s next novel!

I love being given the opportunity to update our school library which is a unique space for both senior students and staff to access high quality literature. This is definitely a must-buy. It kept me absolutely gripped from cover to cover and is exactly the kind of read that just flies off the shelves. It has exactly the right combination of credible characters and a compelling plot thatI just could not put down. This is a great read that I couldn't stop thinking about and it made for a hugely satisfying read. I'm definitely going to order a copy and think it will immediately become a popular addition to our fiction shelves. 10/10 would absolutely recommend.

Oh what a tangled web we weave, when at first we try to deceive. There are so many people in this book who could be to blame for the main accident, it’s a challenge to keep up with all of their lies. As the story unfolds it’s clear this group of people have very low morals and are incredibly selfish. Even the younger ones. It’s quite a tale… and it’s hard to tell the really story.
I did enjoy reading this book, it just makes me sad to think the world can be like this.

When I read this authors debut The Push, I was overwhelmed with the fact that she was “new” to the “book world of authors”. I say this because she’s not new to writing but this format is totally different I would think to her life experiences.

I always get apprehensive when I’ve read such a fabulous debut, Will the next one be on par or surpass it?

I wouldn’t say it surpassed it, but, it’s definitely (for me) on the same level as this one took me a minute to get into it and ‘get’ what I was reading (I went in blind).

I ended up totally immersed within its pages lapping it all up like a dog lapping at water when it’s totally thirsty! Every opportunity I got I picked this up.

It’s been hospital appointments, doctors appointments and I can’t sit in waiting rooms and read, people chat to me, how dare they!

The ending was abrupt. I sat stunned, then sat some more. I got it though (in the end) where else could this have went.

Tangled webs.
That’s all I’m saying, tangled Webb’s.

Guilt.
Hidden desires and secrets.

Full stars from me.

Can’t wait to see what else she comes up with, definitely on my auto read.

Ashley Audrain is one of those authors whose books you pick up and you just know you are going to be blown away.
The Whispers is no different. Thought provoking, provocative, it makes you think, it makes you gasp out loud and it makes you keep reading as it it's impossible to put down.

I really enjoyed The Whispers! While I feel like the marketing needs some work as I’ve seen so many people refer to this as a thriller book when it’s really more of a domestic suspense, I got exactly what I was expecting out of it. I had a lot of fun reading about this suburban neighbourhood full of rich people who all had secrets and difficult relationships. The Whispers feels quite different to The Push, but the similar themes of challenging motherhood, self blame, and distrust are all there. I enjoyed this one a little less than The Push but it is still a suspense book that I would recommend and I look forward to seeing what this author brings out next.

The main protagonists in this book are Whitney, Blair and Rebecca, and this story is told from their perspectives. We also occasionally hear from a fourth woman, a lady who lost her child. She is old and her husband is emotionally abusive. Let’s begin with Whitney, she is a successful businesswoman who brings in the money while her husband follows his dreams in the art world. She has children but does not want to spend any time with them. Children make her annoyed and she loves passing them over to a nanny. Blair is devoted to her child, she lives and breathes for her child, her marriage is kind of falling apart but she is trying to hide it as much as she can. Rebecca is a doctor married to a teacher. They have been trying to have a child for a very long time, but she always miscarriages. All these couples are problematic and all have their secrets that no one knows about. They are all neighbours and live in a wealthy street, so I really enjoyed having a glimpse into rich people’s problems. The character that I was able to connect with the most would be Whitney, I think. I felt her struggle when it comes to parenthood but I do not approve of her coping techniques. My least favourite would have been Blair. I found her strange…

The narrative has well-created suspense, I wanted to know what happened to Whitney’s son till the last page… While I was waiting for the answers, the characters kept talking about themselves and their lives. The main topic of this book was motherhood and different types of mothers. I am not a mother so this topic was not something that interests me. I enjoyed reading about it but I did not really find it very relatable. The topics discussed in this book were different styles of parenting, motherhood, miscarriages, infertility, death of children, man-woman relationships and their issues, infidelity, mental health, abusive relationships and many many more.

The book was set in America, and I enjoyed the suburban setting. The writing style was very detail-oriented and creative, Ashley Audrain is a brilliant storyteller, but I don’t know why analysing motherhood is so important to her (It was a main topic in The Push as well). The chapters have medium length and the book is easy to read. I would like to throw in a disclaimer, that this book is not easy emotionally, especially for women who are dealing with difficulty to conceive, miscarriages or the death of a child. The ending of this book left me disappointed, I expected more… 😦

I loved "The Push", so I was super excited to read this one, and it did not disappoint. Beautifully written with engaging characters - Ashley Audrain is definitely one of my new favourite authors.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publishers for granting me a free ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was keen to read this having read Audrain's The Push and been gripped by its complex family story.
Touching on the same sort of theme, the book is described as, "a pageturner about four suburban families whose lives are changed when the unthinkable happens--and what is lost when good people make unconscionable choices"
I think it's that which makes Audrain's books a must read - it's all about, "What would I do if ..." and the protagonists who are in impossible situations. Recommended.

I adored The Push and so i just had to read this.

A party, some shouting. A neighbourhood full of whispers. This is the story of a neighbourhood whish is rocked by the tragic ‘accident’ which befalls a young boy. Is is an accident? The narraitve moves between characters to piece together the events leading up to the accident, switching between past and present where the Loverleys sit by the hospital bed of their son who is in a coma.
This took a little longer for me to get into than the Push. I think I needed to get the various couples settled into my mind before I could really relax into the story. There are several couples involved who I could not immediately distinguish from each other, particularly as their partners did not always seem to be by their side in more ways than one.
Once again Audrain’s writing hypnotised me. She has a very distinct style. Short sentences, repeated and developed. Loaded with meaning.I have seen other authors try this without the same success. I switched to listen to this on audiobook becuase i find that is a fabulous way of really appreciating the way she uses langauge. And oh how she debunks the romantic ideals of motherhood and gets right to the roots of the physicality and delves into the minds and hearts of her mothers who reveal the deepest, darkest moments of their mothering.
In this book there is also the exploration of friendship and neighbourlyness. Of boundaries, of seeing and not seeing, of complicity…I loved Rebecca and read in a state of tension as I willed her to hang on to her baby. I was disturbed by Whitney - as I was supposed to be. But once again Audrain plays with our suppositions and prejudices, our judgements as she challenges us.
And oh the ending.

"The Whispers" by Ashley Audrain is a haunting exploration of motherhood, family, and the shadows of the past. Audrain's storytelling is tense and emotionally charged, making it an engaging and thought-provoking read. As the protagonist grapples with her own maternal instincts and her family's history, the novel takes a dark and suspenseful turn. It's a powerful examination of the weight of motherhood and the secrets that can haunt generations, leaving readers with lingering questions.