Linwood Barclay takes a chilling detour into supernatural horror with a novel that starts with grief and ends in something much darker, stranger, and impossible to look away from. Evil has a one track mind—and once this book gets going, it does not stop.

This story is classic Barclay in its pacing and suspense, but the horror here feels elemental. What begins as a grounded tale of loss and fresh starts takes a beautifully unhinged turn the moment young Charlie finds the train set—one that, like all great horror objects, should not be touched.

Barclay weaponizes the innocence of childhood in genuinely unsettling ways, from Charlie’s eerie attachment to the mysterious train to Annie’s compulsive drawings of a character she doesn’t remember creating. The tension creeps in steadily, like smoke under a door, and soon becomes a full-blown blaze of paranoia, dread, and supernatural menace.

And while the premise may sound familiar—new town, haunted object, single parent trying to hold it together—Barclay’s execution is razor-sharp. The setting hums with the kind of quiet, creeping unease that fans of Pet Sematary or The House of Small Shadows will appreciate. The horror is as psychological as it is supernatural, with trauma and memory folding in on themselves until you're not sure what's real.

This isn’t just a haunted house story—it’s a haunted life story. And by the end, you’ll think twice about any toy left behind in a locked shed.

t’s more supernatural horror than mystery, with a lot of suspense thrown in, reminds me of Stephen King more than Linwood Barclay. It keeps your attention and wondering what’s going to happen next, throughout most of the novel. The ending seemed to have a lot of unanswered questions or made you wonder if there will be a Whistle #2? For the most part, this novel was interesting.

I'm not sure how I feel about my first book by Linwood Barclay's

I requested a copy because I liked the description and thought this was a cool horror novel, but this was more of a creepy read. It wasn't scary, but disturbing and required suspension of logic and belief in a lot of places. I heard this is like "Needful Things" by Stephen King, but I'm not a fan of his.

It got off to an interesting start, and I was invested in Annie's story when suddenly I found that it had dual timelines. Initially, I wasn't interested in Harry or the people of Lucknow, but I later warmed to them more as he was a better character, and we didn't have to deal with Charlie in that timeline (sorry!)

I was also very confused by Lucknow because that's a capital city in India, and I had to Google it before I figured out this one was made up!

Overall, this was an alright read for me, but I've heard good things about the author's thrillers, and I will check them out.

Thanks to Netgalley & William Morrow for the e-copy!

While horror isn’t a genre I’d generally choose, I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to read a book recommended by Stephen King and I’m so glad I didn’t skip this one! I’ll admit the overall antagonist was a bit underdeveloped and maybe even cheesy, but the plot was solidly creepy and kept me engaged until the very end.

Talk about Stephen King vibes. I loved the dual timelines because I had no idea how or why they would connect to each other, but when they did all the pieces fit together. The main villain was just the right amount of creepy, and the whole toy train thing did a good job of getting under my skin. I felt like Charlie, one of the main character's sons, was well written- he made stupid decisions but those stupid decisions would make perfect sense to a kid.

I did prefer the police officer's POV overall, but really enjoyed the book as a whole.

I’m a huge fan of Barclay’s, and this one delivers as well, except that it is unlike any of his previous works. Whistle is a supernatural thriller, bordering on horror resembling classic Stephen King.
The story is atmospherically suspenseful, creepy and gruesome. It’s not for the faint of heart and there was a gripping feeling of unease the whole time I was engrossed in this story. A dual timeline, set in rural Vermont years apart, both with jaw dropping cringe worthy events eventually leading to the toy train store which has mysteriously appeared. This one had me on the edge of my seat, never expecting what was right around the corner.
The story revolves around Annie and Harry, a children’s author and small-town Vermont cop. But both experience the strange phenomena surrounding the toy trains in their respective time periods. Annie and her son, Charlie have retreated to Vermont for some peace and recuperation after a particularly heartbreaking year. Charlie is delighted when he discovers an old train set in their rental home and is immediately enthralled by it. Immediately, strange things begin to happen. Years earlier, nearby, Harry’s town is experiencing a rash of mysterious events putting the community on edge. As the pieces seemingly fall into place, Harry continues his investigation as even he can’t believe what he’s thinking, let alone being able to convince anyone else.

**Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for the eARC of this haunting title!**

I ended up purchasing a copy of this title via audible and will be doing a thorough review on IG and GR as soon as I am able! Life has been life-ing and the pub date snuck on me and flew past. I have been seeing this one everywhere and can't wait to get to it!!

This is my first Linwood Barclay novel. I found it a little slow initially but then it built up to a very scary story. If you enjoy creepy horror involving small children and desperate parents. Strange adults, a small town and a scary toy, this is for you! Thanks to Killer Crime Club, Harper Collins Canada and NetGalley for this ARC.

After an author's beloved children's series is connected to a horrific event, and after losing her husband in a freak accident, the author hits a wall. But her agent wants her to keep writing, and arranges for her and her young son to vacation at a house in a small town. She dreams of her dead husband telling her not to go. The town has a sinister feel to it, with people having very mysterious occurrences each time a train set is played with and the whistle blows.
Eerie, mysterious, creepy, and slight supernatural elements make this novel especially sinister. I will never look at a train set in the same way again! Chilling!

This book was wild. I’m not much into the fantasy realm but this kept me guessing. I love the mystery of it and how it all wrapped up.

Ah, the old “I’ll just take my son and move out of the city for a bit now that my husband has died” gambit. Does that work for anyone in any book ever?

Annie and Charlie take a break, renting a house in upstate New York. Now add in toy train sets that act as supernatural little chaos agents and kill people.

It’s a good, popcorn-horror book. Very reminiscent of Stephen King, decent villain, quick read - by which I mean, it’s written at a 4th-grade level. And that’s fine. It’s a good supernatural beach read.

In Whistle, Linwood Barclay delivers a chilling blend of supernatural mystery and psychological horror that will leave readers thoroughly unsettled—in a good way. The story follows Annie Blunt, a children’s book author and illustrator whose life has unraveled in the wake of her husband’s sudden death and a professional scandal that has torched her career. Hoping for a reset, she relocates with her son Charlie to a quiet town in upstate New York. But peace is not what awaits them.

What begins as an attempt to heal quickly morphs into something far more sinister. When Charlie discovers a dusty, old train set locked away in a shed on their new property, it seems like a harmless diversion—until eerie events begin to spiral out of control. Annie starts hearing phantom train whistles in the dead of night, strange incidents shake the neighborhood, and she becomes consumed by illustrations of a shadowy figure she can’t seem to banish from her mind. Don't even get me started on the creepily crafted Mr. Choo Choo, he was equal parts absurd and terrifying at the same time.

Told in dual timelines that cleverly converge, Barclay's narrative keeps you guessing until the very end. The mounting tension, surreal dread, and emotional depth are reminiscent of Stephen King’s finest, but Barclay's voice remains distinctly his own. The ending, in particular, is a masterstroke—unexpected, tightly woven, and satisfying. Ultimately, Whistle is a haunting ride through grief, guilt, and the uncanny, and it’ll echo in your mind.

After a series of personal tragedies, beloved children’s author Annie Blunt decides to take herself and her 11 year-old son, Charlie, for a brief hiatus outside of the city. She needs to get away and her editor has found the perfect house in upstate New York for Annie and Charlie to heal. What was meant to be an escape, however, turns into a nightmare after her son finds an abandoned train set in the shed. Suddenly plagued by strange dreams, impossible sounds in the night, hallucinations, and her son behaving oddly, Annie knows that something isn’t right with the train set. Worse, Annie has started drawing things that are a far cry from what should be in a children’s book. What Annie doesn’t know yet is that what she is experiencing is deeply connected to a tragedy that took place over 20 years ago in Lucknow, Vermont. The nightmare just kept chugging along with nobody to stop it…until now.

Whistle by Linwood Barclay is going to ensure that I give toy train sets a wide berth for the remainder of my life. A cross between Stephen King’s The Monkey and Final Destination, this book was full of horror, mystery, and just enough gore to make the deaths truly vicious. The imagery was so well done that I found myself cringing and saying “oof” out loud a few times. Our two main characters, Annie in the modern timeline and Harry in the 2001 timeline, were both likeable and well-written. In fact, the whole cast of characters were really well done. Everyone in the 2001 timeline felt exactly like what I imagine people in a small town in Vermont would be like. Even side characters like Daniel and Finnegan in the modern timeline had real meat to them. Of course, there was Charlie. Children in horror are really hard to root for since they are often the reason characters end up in danger in the first place. I kept having to take a deep breath and remind myself that he was just a naive child. It was tough though. Edwin, our villain, was absolutely chilling. I thought the whole concept of him and his kind as almost Loki-esque agents of chaos attempting to prevent a Malthusian Crisis was just really cool. The idea that they can use any kind of method or specialty to unleash these accidents and Edwin chose toy trains made it even more disturbing. Barclay’s concept for this book was creative, dark, and engaging. I believe this is his first foray into horror territory of this nature and I do hope it won’t be his last. 4/5 stars

Favorite quote:

"Where does some unspeakably evil thing like you retire to?"
Nabler shrugged. "Florida."

I think this is for die hard lovers of Stephen King and other niche horror authors. For me, this was simply too slow and big on fluff. Though the multiple timelines were interesting and hooked me, it could’ve gone to the point faster. Now, was it creepy? Yes. Were the characters fleshed out and well written? Yes. Did I appreciate all the details of our present days (like mentions of Netflix and social media and VERY specific things of our current society)? No. Because I feel it took away from its timeless potential.

Wow this was very good, a very unusual storyline and very creepy., but Linwood always comes up with new and great ideas.

If you like Stephen King books, then this is one for you. A slightly different genre for Linwood, but it works well and I'm not sure I'll be buying any toy train sets for a while.

Thanks to William Morrow and Netgalley for he opportunity to read and review this book. I really enjoyed it

Whistle is an early Stephen King era style story about regular people who encounter a haunted object and the mysterious in their every day lives.

The prologue, a quick-and-nasty christmas tale, was my favorite part. It gave me the same kind of dark holiday vibes as Gremlins. The rest of the story, about a woman and her young son moving to a small town after a tragedy, was entertaining and a page turner. I wouldn't personally call it scary at all, but it had the storytelling appeal and propulsiveness that I look for in a slighly dark / creepy vacation read. I enjoyed this book and do recommend it.

I'm an outlier here, but I thought this book was cheesy as heck, with corny dialogue to boot. I love Linwood Barclay, but I was expecting something different. This felt like something I would have read in middle school, thinking how dark it was. The YA feel wasn't fun to read now. I still wanted to know what happened, and was never really bored, so to me it's an okay story that could've been much better. I'm glad others are loving it.

2.5 stars rounded up.

Barclay has gone over to the dark side and I love it! This book gave me all the thrills and chills of an early Stephen King novel! Whistle is about trains, specifically toy trains and a train shop that just happens to appear in some cities. The dual timelines go between 2001 and the present and tell the tale of an evil man that goes by "Mr. Choo" and opens up train stores that seem to appear overnight. It reminded me of real life stores that you never see and then one day they are just there but hopefully not evil!

The first part of the story is about Annie Blunt, a children's book author with a young son named Charlie. Annie has had a terrible year: she writes books about a penguin that can do anything and in one book he makes cardboard wings and flies prompting a young boy to try it and falls off his 10th floor balcony. Then her beloved husband is killed in a hit and run accident. Annie can't write anymore and at one point her agent suggests she get of NY city and rent a house in a small town. Once she gets there Charlie seems to have strange dreams and sleepwalking experiences and they all start when he finds a toy train set in the garden shed.

In the previous timeline, a small town police captain in the town of Lucknow where a toy train store just appeared overnight. Since then there have been missing persons, acts of self-harm, accidents and other bad things happening and Harry is trying to make sense of what force has possessed his town. I loved the characters of both Harry and Annie and was rooting for them to find a way to defeat the evil train salesman and his possessed trains. This was an old-school type of horror book and it really gave me the creeps. Highly recommend! Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this ARC for review.

There is some horror in this story, which is unusual for the author, but he does an excellent job. Annie and her son Charlie are trying to put their lives back together after some major tragedies. They rent a summer home to try to relax and forget, but things start getting creepy. Model trains play a part in this mysterious plot. I did get a little confused on some timeframe jumps, but I was able to figure it out and follow along. The author wrote that the master, Stephen King, was a "first reader," and offered lots of encouragement to continue. I would say Stephen King is a superb "first reader." Highly recommend! Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for providing an ARC.

Move over King and Koontz and make way for Barclay! I’ve read other Barclay books but not in the same vein as this one which straddles the line between thriller and horror. Fast paced and action packed with plenty of creep factor, this one will have you on the edge of your seat. I enjoyed it and will look forward to more like this from Linwood Barclay. My thanks to William Morrow for providing a review copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.