Blog Tour | The Whistlers in the Dark

Hello, welcome to my stop on the blog tour for The Whistlers in the Dark, hosted by The Write Reads.

Scotland, 158 AD, is a divided country. On one side of the Antonine Wall, thirteen-year-old Felix is trying to become a good Roman soldier like his father. On the other, twelve-year old Jinny is vowing revenge on the ‘metal men’ who have invaded her Damnonii tribe’s homeland. At the Damnonii’s sacred circle of standing stones, her planned attack on Felix goes badly wrong, awakening a legend that threatens to bring fire and destruction down on them all. Can Jinny and Felix overcome their differences and soothe the stones back to sleep before it’s too late?

Huge thank you to The Write Reads and Scotland Street Press for having me on the blog tour and sending me a copy of The Whistlers in the Dark to read and review.

This is a historical novel set in Scotland, always a favourite setting of mine! We meet Felix, a young boy who is trying his best to become a good Roman soldier. We also meet Jinny, a Scottish girl whose tribe are trying to keep the Roman soldiers from taking their land away from them. What follows is an adventure full of scrapes and plenty of mystical foggy nights!

Felix and Jinny are very fun characters. They begin by hating each other’s guts, but by the end of the novel they are putting aside their differences to fight for a common cause. I always love this in a children’s book, its always such a lovely heartwarming message for children to read.

The setting of this novel is fun. I’ve not come across many books that are set in early Scotland, and I really enjoyed this! I love a unique setting for a middle grade, and having the addition of the Roman legion was a clever addition.

I really loved reading about the characters in this novel. Jinny I immediately warmed to, but Felix was also so endearing. The supporting characters are well crafted and all add something special to the novel.

I really liked the mystery of the stones in the novel too. The whole mystery of were they awakened or not was brilliant and so well woven throughout the other narrative strands. The descriptions of the foggy nights and the unsettling nature of these giant stones was so brilliant. I was spooked by these scenes!

This is a strong character-driven novel, with loads of important themes, and some excellent historical storytelling!

Thank you again to The Write Reads and Scotland Street Press for having me on the blog tour for Whistlers in the Dark.

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