Michael J. Malone- The Murmurs
5⭐
Genre: Crime, Paranormal, Thriller, Gothic, Fiction, Mystery
Pages: 277
Format: Paperback Proof
Publisher: Orenda Books
Date Published: 14th September 2023
Huge thank you to Orenda Books for sending me an ARC copy of this book to read and review.
Book Blurb:
On the first morning of her new job at Heartfield House, a care home for the elderly, Annie Jackson wakens from a terrifying dream. And when she arrives at the home, she knows that the first old man she meets is going to die.
How she knows this is a terrifying mystery, but it is the start of horrifying premonitions ... a rekindling of the curse that has trickled through generations of women in her family – a wicked gift known only as 'the murmurs'...
With its reappearance comes an old, forgotten fear that is about to grip Annie Jackson.
And this time, it will never let go...
A compulsive gothic thriller and a spellbinding supernatural mystery about secrets and small communities, about faith, courage and self-preservation, The Murmurs is a startling and compulsive read from one of Scotland's finest authors.
Annie starts a job at a care
home, yet her first day doesn’t go well. One of the elderly patients that she
is supposed to care for suddenly dies. Annie however sees a premonition about
his death and knows how the patient is going to die precisely, via the murmurs,
a curse that is passed through the generation of the females in the family. She
doesn’t know about The Murmurs, and she doesn’t know why she is the only one
hearing them. These chilling murmurs make Annie and her twin brother look for
answers, which leads them to numerous secrets about their family, the
mysterious Scottish Highlands, unsolved murder cases, and witchcraft.
I loved how this book follows
then and now timelines and chapters that are told from various characters'
POVs. Also, I loved that in each chapter there is a crumb of information and a
reader has to collect them all to puzzle a story. I think this just added more
to the suspense and thrill of this book. The setting of this book in the remote
Scottish Highlands was just brilliant, as it captures that truly gothic and
mysterious atmosphere of lochs, mountains and small villages hidden in them. I
also adored how the author managed to link the mystery and gothic atmosphere of
the Scottish Highlands so naturally with curses, and witchcraft, as well as the
present-day environment/society.
I just knew from a few chapters
that this book is going to be amazing. The atmosphere, scene setting, suspense
and writing were all so good. It was also an emotional story because both Annie
and her brother are searching for the truth about The Murmurs, but alongside
that learn quite a lot about their own family. I must mention how all the
characters in this book are very well-developed and each of them makes the
story whole and are important in one way or another to the story.
Overall: This was my first book from Michael J. Malone but definitely won’t be the last. Beautifully written, with short yet captivating chapters full of suspense and tension. Mysterious and gothic atmosphere, family secrets, and paranormal murmurs all mixed in a perfect book. One of my favourite gothic thrillers that I have ever read.
About the Author:
Michael Malone is a prize-winning poet and author who was born and brought up in the heart of Burns’ country. He has published over 200 poems in literary magazines throughout the UK, including New Writing Scotland, Poetry Scotland and Markings. Blood Tears, his bestselling debut novel won the Pitlochry Prize from the Scottish Association of Writers. His psychological thriller, A Suitable Lie, was a number-one bestseller, and the critically acclaimed House of Spines, After He Died, In the Absence of Miracles and A Song of Isolation soon followed suit. A former Regional Sales Manager (Faber & Faber) he has also worked as an IFA and a bookseller. Michael lives in Ayr.
https://orendabooks.co.uk/product/the-murmurs
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