Whispering Pines

A young boy and girl who must protect their small town from otherworldly forces threatening to destroy it.

Rae’s father vanished without a trace—and Rae knows what happened to him. But no one believes her when she says that her father didn’t run off, that he was actually taken. Now, a year of therapy later, Rae’s mother decides they need a fresh start, and so they move to a new town in the hope that life can return to normal.

The problem is, there is nothing normal about the town of Whispering Pines.

No one knows this better than Caden. He’s lived in Whispering Pines his entire life, and he’s seen more than his fair share of weird—starting with his own family, as the town is the perfect home base for his mother’s ghost hunting business.

When several kids go missing and then show up like zombies with their eyes removed, many locals brush it off. Just another day in Whispering Pines. But Caden has a dark secret, one that may explain why someone is stealing eyes. And Rae, who knows how it feels to not be believed, may be just the person Caden needs to help him put things right.

Content Tags:

Perfect for readers who want:

• Horror that’ll give you goosebumps but not keep you up at night
• Lots of secrets and conspiracy plots
• Small-town setting and feel
• Alternate dimensions
• A nice blend of paranormal elements
• Snarky, slightly awkward teens working together and finding their place
• A plot that constantly ends up bigger than it seems
• A “something in the woods” type of creepy feel

Many thanks to Margaret K. McElderry Books and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review. Quotes are taken from an unfinished version and may differ from the final product.

The moment I saw that cover and finished reading the blurb, I just knew I had to read this one! It was one of my most anticipated books of 2020. What’s not to love about a little small-town horror, conspiracy theories, and eye-snatching ne’er-do-wells?

Whispering Pines is a middle grade fantasy set in a small town where things aren’t quite as they seem and steeped in the fear of the unknown ingrained in all of us. Expect definite chills, conspiracies, and the paranormal, but also teens working together and growing into themselves.

It’s so easy to be disappointed by anticipated books, so I’m glad that wasn’t the case here. Even though it’s not listed on Goodreads as a series, I was super happy to find out that it is, in fact, a series … and book two has a title already! I can’t get my hands on it soon enough. *grabby hands*

Lang and Bartkowski absolutely nail the small town feeling with Whispering Pines, where “weird” is a facet of daily life.

Of course, coming from a small town myself, I can confirm that “weird” is really a matter of perspective. So what if kids have the habit of going missing in Whispering Pines … or worse? Or if there’s most definitely something in the woods but no one knows what it is so they just kind of … avoid it? And who cares if the stone walls, built as boundaries between farms centuries ago, sometimes just … decide to change spots? Pffft. Small town life, am I right?!

As a setting, it doesn’t get much creepier than Whispering Pines in and of itself, because everyone knows something’s kind of off, but they just accept it. Thankfully, Rae, as a newcomer, isn’t as prepared to just brush off these strange occurrences.

I loved that Rae was one of the perspective characters, because I felt like the book really needed that “okay, but whyyyy are we not concerned about this?!” perspective, which Rae does with gusto. Also, being the new girl in a small town is hard, especially considering most of these kids have known each other for most of their lives. The setting definitely felt like it added a lot to the book.

As far as the scare level goes, make no mistake, this book is creepy … but probably not likely to give you nightmares.

I would recommend it for upper mid-grade readers, who are ready for something a little spookier but not yet ready for young adult levels. On a scary scale of one eyeball to five eyeballs, I’d probably give it about three eyeballs. Why eyeballs? Well, boy am I glad you asked.

The scariest aspect of this book is really the “monster in the dark” feel, the fear of the unknown that almost all of us have, and in that, the book really excels.

Who knew a simple phrase like “what lovely eyes you have” could be so creepy? I mean, sure, Little Red Riding Hood might try to make the phrase creepy, but she ain’t got nothing on this book. This isn’t some plain old wolf in the woods. Oh, no. This is worse.

Kids are going missing and showing up without any eyes. No one has any idea what’s going on or how to stop it. I absolutely love monster in the woods type stories, and this delivers on the atmosphere and spookiness of that, for sure.

Rae makes for a fun protagonist, as not only the new girl in town but one with something to hide and a chip on her shoulder.

Let’s just say that Rae didn’t leave her old town on a particularly good note. In fact, the experience has left her jaded and unable to trust anyone or let anyone in for fear of getting hurt again. Makes being the new girl in town all the more difficult.

I enjoyed the struggles Rae has to go through making friends, because it felt relatable and real. She doesn’t just easily fall into a friend group. She has to work for it, and in the meantime, decide exactly who she wants to be, if she wants to change herself to “fit in” or risk being ostracized again.

Complicating all this, of course, is the fact that Rae’s father is … gone. Left, according to the official reports. Taken, Rae knows, is the truth. But by whom and for what, other than knowing too much? This adds a whole other element of mystery to the plot and depth to Rae’s character. Hard to trust anyone after what’s happened to her, of course. But are the weird happenings in Whispering Pines somehow related to her father’s disappearance? Well … who knows? You’ll have to read and see. I can say that’s not quite answered in this book, but there’s definitely some strong foreshadowing and hints for book two!

The other point of view character is Caden, who has basically been ostracized by the community, despite struggling to do the right thing.

See, Caden’s brother disappeared, and rumor is that Caden killed him. Why? No one knows. Just because Caden was the last person to see his brother and couldn’t explain to the cops what happened to him. Pffft. That doesn’t exactly scream murder, does it? Okay, sure, it’s maybe a liiiiittle suspicious, but what boy that age isn’t?!

In reality, Caden’s carrying a lot of guilt about … whatever happened to his brother. You’ll have to read and find out, but oh my gosh, the drama is delicious, I assure you. So while he’s punishing himself mentally and emotionally, not having friends seems par for the course to Caden.

The real struggle for Caden is that not only does he not fit in, but in some ways, he feels like he doesn’t deserve to fit in after everything. But he’s still just a big ol’ cinnamon roll who wants to help people if he can and do the right thing, even if he does sometimes come across as a weird creeper.

I felt so much for poor Caden, because he is such a floofy marshmallow and is trying so dang heard while carrying a burden that’s far heavier than he should have to bear. Seeing and dealing with the paranormal is kind of his family’s thing, so he, more than anyone, knows what’s threatening the town of Whispering Pines, though he’s not sure he can stop it. Certainly not on his own. Which is where the other characters come in, obviously, and watching Caden find his own little niche of people, despite all the odds, is just *chef’s kiss*

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