A Whisper in the Walls by Scott Reintgen
Read by: Jesse Vilinsky, Vikas Adam, Caitlin Davies
Publication Date: April 23, 2024
Summary from Goodreads:
Ren Monroe is a wolf among lions. After infiltrating one of the greatest Houses in Kathor through her successful bond with Theo Brood, she finds Theo’s father is two steps ahead. He exiles Theo and isolates Ren, strategically working to break her unwelcome grasp on his son—and foiling Ren’s first step to enacting the revenge she’s been planning her whole life.
Ren might have more resources than she’d ever imagined growing up, but she’ll still get nowhere without allies. Enter House Tin’Vori. Years ago, House Brood led an unprecedented raid to destroy a fellow House of Kathor. But a few siblings survived, and they haven’t forgotten the horrors waged against their family. Quietly, they’ve plotted their own revenge, waiting for the right moment to strike. And Ren Monroe might be their best chance.
Like fire, the Tin’Vori siblings are as dangerous as they are useful, both gifted in rare magics. Ren must decide how to unleash them against House Brood without hurting Theo in the process. Her feelings for Theo are growing past the boundaries of their bond, and Ren finds herself balanced on a knife’s edge, a breath away from immense power or utter ruin.
This is the second book in a series, and while I won’t spoil this one, there are hints at what happened in the first. If you want to read my review of the first book, A Door in the Dark, just click on the title.
Confession:
This book certainly didn’t suffer from second book syndrome. As revenge books go, this one was done well and certainly kept my attention till the end. This one was just as dark and fast paced as the first book, and stuffed full of an interesting magical system that will keep you wanting more from this world.
All three narrators did a fabulous job bringing these characters to life. Jesse Velinsky did a nice job voicing Ren and all of her emotions and character quirks. Vikas Adam did a wonderful job with Dahvid, especially during the fight scenes. I really felt the exhaustion in his voice. Caitlin Davies also did a great job with Nevelyn. She did well making me feel Nevelyn’s trust issues and her doubts about herself and her plans.
This story is split between three points of view. Ren has continued to amaze me in her devious ways that she uses people to get her revenge. She is strong magically, but people continue to discredit her abilities simply because of her poor family status. They ignore her at their peril. Even though there are things I don’t like about Ren, I can admire her determination and desire to avenge her father’s death. It was also a pleasure to see her feelings for Theo grow in this book, and watch her struggle with them. Her final plan could not happen without his cooperation, and I was glad to see her want him to give it freely and not through her manipulations.
Dahvid and Newelyn Tin’Vori are the newcomers to this story. They also want to see the Broods destroyed, just like their family was destroyed many years ago. I liked both of them and really enjoyed learning about their magic. Dahvid is an image bearer, which means he stores his magic in tattoos on his body. I’m not sure if Newelyn’s magic has a name, but she can embed magic into objects. She can also make people forget her. I think both of them had misgivings about whether or not they should trust Ren, but they did eventually come around to her.
The revenge plot of this story was marvelously well done. We are kept in the dark as readers until all of the parts come together towards the end. I loved how everyone’s emotions and motives were nicely tangled up until you couldn’t tell who you should trust. The pacing was also nicely done with slow parts mixed with action sequences that will keep you turning those pages to see what happens next. I also liked and appreciated how the author dealt with the aftermath of the revenge plot, how some of the characters felt was realistic and well done.
Overall, this was a great sequel to the first book. I think and hope that there will be a third book in the series. There were some unanswered questions at the end of the story, and I am anxious to have them answered. There is no announcement as to when that next book is coming but hopefully there will be soon.
If you are looking for a revenge book with characters you will love to hate, this is one that I recommend you take a chance on. It is YA, but it doesn’t always read that way. The story is complex, the characters are well rounded and very complicated in their need for revenge, and the pacing will keep you turning those pages to find out more.
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