I have no strong opinions about this obe either way. Nothing to give it a negative rating but also nothing to raise it higher. I didn't care for the way this was told and although the blurb sounded great, the book didn't really match up. This was just not for me.

DNF - Unfortunately this was a DNF for me. I gave it to 40% in but took a break as I just couldn't get into it. I found it didn't flow well and jumped around a lot to the point of confusion. I didn't care for the storyline (even though the blurb sounded great) or the characters. I just found I couldn't get myself to go back to it when there are so many other listens/reads to get stuck into….

This story is a creepy delight. Starts slowly and bit by bit, events from the past that have shaped Winter Robins are revealed. It starts in northern Britain where Winter has what seems a perfect childhood. But her mother dies and she’s sent to family in Western Australia. In adulthood, she becomes a teacher and has an affinity with youngsters who are deprived. Without spoilers, she ends up in compulsory therapy and through these sessions, the story of her past is revealed. All was not as it seemed.

This is really well written; Wolhulter has an engaging style and I found it easy to drift into the take and become absorbed. It’s darker than it first appeared, which I enjoyed along with the exploration of past events. Brilliant narration too.

I really enjoyed this audiobook by new-to-me author Louise Wolhuter.
It’s mostly set in Australia in 2018, but does start off in England in the 1990s. The story is told by Winter Robins, through her therapy sessions and past memories. It’s not revealed for quite a while why she’s in therapy, which was good as it really drew me in, wanting to know her story and why she was having counselling.
I can’t say much more without spoilers, so it’s definitely one to go into blind.
I will say it was a lot darker than I was expecting, with some great twists scattered all the way through.This was the second audiobook that I’ve listened to narrated by Maddy Withington and she’s definitely becoming a new favourite.
Recommended on audio especially if you enjoy thrillers set in Australia.

Adored how this was set up north, I mean that never happens, books are set in London and that’s it, so it was a great surprise. Likes the pace and writing style. I’d kept this for a while as from the blurb wasn’t sure it was my vibe but it 100% was. Listened to this over a week and really liked it. Hoping for more from the author

Deliciously unsettling. Winter Robins is a teacher who cares a little too much for her neglected students - the ones with unkempt hair, no lunches, parents, who forget to pick them up at home time. Whilst on suspension, she is given a mandatory 10 sessions with a counsellor, which brings us back and forth in time to her own childhood. She always felt like it was idyllic and filled with love, but each journey back in time leaves a little more unease and questions. The audiobook tantalisingly draws us on a journey of discovery alongside the protagonist as she dips back into her own story. #shadowsofwinterrobins #Louisewolhuter #netgalley #wfhowes #audiobook

This thriller kept me hooked the whole way through, piecing together so many clues the author dropped along the way! It felt a little slow at the beginning but then it got tense and the pace picked up and I loved it!

This was a full on experience of a book. The writing is deliciously descriptive and wonderfully wordy. I loved the style of this one so much. The joy with the crackle of something sinister is right there from the start, the story ebbs and flows like the waves at the beach.

A tricky review to write, I’ve gone back to the blurb several times as I’m so keen not to spoiler the story, Winter Robins had a good start to life. Lucky to have a twin brother and best friend rolled into one. Loving parents and a granny. Winter and fours mum dies, and when her dad hits the bottle and her granny can’t cope, her uncle dog comes from Australia to fetch them home to her mother’s side of the family. It’s different there, it’s warm at Christmas and Four really wants to go home, but Win is happy, they’ve got a good life there and family and she’s clean and fed and her grandmother makes sure she doesn’t have lice or bits between her toes.

Along with adult winter, a teacher, noticing now, the kids with spitballs in their curls and grey socks and fingernails. When a news article hits (just as Win is suspended, with a mandatory 10 sessions with a therapist, for caring too much about a left behind child) we journey back through Wins life, an idyllic life, it was, wasn’t it? With Four, and gran and Harry and Alison. Uncle dog, Hettie and Gabe. She was happy, she remembers it, but what lives in the shadows comes into the light one way or another, and the story rolls with shock after stunning shock of truth in the most mesmerising way.

“You cannot do all the good that the world needs, but the world needs all the good you can do” - Alison.

I think this might very well be my book of the year! A stunner from a new to me author.

The narration by Maddy Withington was perfectly paired with the writing.

All the stars 🌟
#Jorecommends

With thanks to Wavesound from W F Howes via NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this ELC in return for an honest review.

4+ ⭐

Ooooh, this was good.
An undercurrent of something not quite right the whole time.
It had me picking up every clue, every remark, trying to put the pieces together.
I would never have put them all together. There were many surprises in this book, and I enjoyed every one of them.
Winter was a great narrator for the story, the time flicking back and forth from childhood to adulthood.
I enjoyed this one a lot.


The authors previous book made it into my books of the year in 23, and think this is going to make this year's list.