The Whistlers in the Dark by Victoria Williamson – Blog Tour

Another blog tour post from me – hooray!

I was excited for this book anyway, given the historical subject matter and the fact that I’m an archaeology nerd, but after reading Norah’s Ark, I actually couldn’t wait to get stuck in here!

The Whistlers In The Dark by Victoria Williamson follows two protagonists during the Roman occupation of the Antonine Wall. Jinny – a native Briton – and Felix – an aspiring Roman soldier – narrate the aftermath of an accident involving Jinny’s brother and Felix’s friend, Bram. Jinny blames Bram’s accident on Felix and is hungry for vengeance, so tricks Felix into the tribe’s sacred stone circle, inadvertently awakening the ancient stones as she does so.

The rest of the book unfolds as a result of this encounter, though it is one of a relatively few instances in which both narrators are in the same place at the same time, particularly at the beginning of the novel. I actually really liked this – it served to make the reader feel like an active part of the story. We had all the information about the situation, and at the risk of spoilering parts of the tale, we could figure out why the tribespeople were going missing before the characters in the story did.

That sense of willing both Felix and Jinny to follow a certain path to the book’s ending really helped to keep the characters relatable – we want them to reach the same conclusions we have. Equally, the reader is able see similarities between the two narrators which they don’t – certainly initially – see themselves. They are both grieving – Felix for his parents, and Jinny for the dog she raised, and the life she had envisioned for her brother. They are both outcasts – Felix as a Roman Soldier’s child with a Damnonii woman, and Jinny as a girl denied the right to leave her childhood behind in the tribe’s coming-of-age ceremony. They both straddle two worlds – Felix, suspended between the Romans and the Damnonii, and Jinny, trapped between childhood and adulthood.

I imaging that reading this as someone entering their teen years, Jinny’s position as neither child nor adult makes her a remarkably relatable character.

That sense of being between states really helps with the atmosphere of the setting. It highlights the vulnerability of the fort on the Antonine Wall – that desolate spot at the edge of an empire where civilisation falls away. And the whole story takes place around Samhain (the modern equivalent being Hallowe’en) so the veil between worlds is thin.

I think the liminality of this book is what I loved most about it – nothing was quite as it seemed and everything was more than it first appeared.

Are you a fan of historical fiction? Are there any middle grade historical fantasy books you would recommend? I’d love to hear what you think!

Blurb

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?

About the Author

Victoria Williamson is an award-winning author who grew up in Scotland surrounded by hills, books, and an historical farm estate which inspired many of her early adventure stories and spooky tales. After studying Physics at the University of Glasgow, she set out on her own real-life adventures, which included teaching maths and science in Cameroon, training teachers in Malawi, teaching English in China and working with children with additional support needs in the UK. Victoria currently works part time writing KS2 books for the education company Twinkl and spends the rest of her time writing novels, and visiting schools, libraries and literary festivals to give author talks and run creative writing workshops.

Victoria’s previous novels include The Fox Girl and the White Gazelle, The Boy with the Butterfly Mind, Hag Storm, and War of the Wind. She has won the Bolton Children’s Fiction Award 2020/2021, The YA-aldi Glasgow Secondary School Libraries Book Award 2023, and has been shortlisted for the Week Junior Book Awards 2023, The Leeds Book Awards 2023, the Red Book Award 2023, the James Reckitt Hull Book Awards 2021, The Trinity School Book Awards 2021, and longlisted for the ABA South Coast Book Awards 2023, the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2020, and the Branford Boase Award 2019.

Her latest novel, The Pawnshop of Stolen Dreams, is a middle grade fantasy inspired by classic folklore. Twenty percent of the author royalties for this book are donated to CharChar Literacy, an organisation working to improve children’s literacy levels in Malawi.You can find out more about Victoria’s books, school visits and free resources for schools on her website: www.strangelymagical.com