With the publication of Whistle, Canadian author Linwood Barclay has ventured into the horror genre. However, his supernatural thriller also has a police procedural storyline that crime fiction lovers might. If you follow Barclay on X or BlueSky, you may have seen photos of the impressive model train room that he created in his house. It’s no surprise that a self-described model train nerd would enjoy writing about unusual trains that have been infused with killer special powers.
Model railways are toys that remind us of simpler times and create a feeling of nostalgia. The image of a tiny locomotive chugging around a Christmas tree usually warms our hearts. Barclay tears this image to shreds in his prologue, which signals the dark events ahead. The trains in Whistle are evil and have supernatural powers.
New Yorker Annie Blunt is a mother and a successful children’s author and illustrator. Outsiders may envy her, but Annie is feeling very vulnerable. She is overwhelmed with grief following the sudden loss of her husband, John. To complicate matters, her reputation as a children’s author has also taken a major hit. A child accidentally died while reenacting scenes from one of her beloved books. Annie feels responsible. Between the grief and the guilt, she has developed creative block. Annie wants a break from Manhattan.
Finn, her publisher and friend locates an amazing summer rental property in upstate New York – a stunning Victorian house in a quiet area. There is an artist’s studio for Annie and a Spider-man themed bedroom for her young son, Charlie. By shifting his characters to a different semi-remote location, Barclay is laying the foundation for his horror novel.
Not long after moving into the house, unusual things start to happen. Annie begins to sketch again, but instead of cute animals children will love she creates images of a nightmarish character. Charlie is drawn to a locked shed on the property, and when he finally gets inside discovers the old train set.
Now the perspective shifts to Harry Cook, chief of police in Lucknow, a small town in Vermont. His storyline is set more than 20 years in the past. Harry is running on empty. Two men in the town have gone missing. So have a few pets and a goat. Things get even weirder when the mutilated corpse of one of the missing men is located.
Harry is an observant man. He notices that these strange events seem to coincide with the arrival of Edwin Nabler to Lucknow. Edwin is the owner of Choo-Choo’s Trains, a new shop in town. He comes across as harmless when he wanders around town in his railwayman hat and vest, but Harry senses that there is a dark side to the man. In spite of the supernatural things occurring, Harry continues to conduct his investigation into Edwin as he would any other investigation.
The book alternates between the timelines with ever increasing tension. Barclay brings them together to a dramatic conclusion involving Annie and Edwin. There is an expectation that crime fiction plots and murders need to be believable. As those expectations do not exist in horror or supernatural books, Barclay has let his imagination run wild – which some crime fiction lovers may not take to.
At Capital Crime this year, the author spoke about the challenges of infusing the trains with evil. He wanted to ensure they were dark and threatening rather than coming across as silly. He’s achieved this in Whistle, and his skills as a writer combined with all of his experience as a model railroad enthusiast have allowed him to come up a unique plot and creepy storylines.
Whistle is a huge leap away from crime thrillers, but Barclay has already demonstrated his ability to create tension and fear in his mysteries. How many readers felt anxiety taking an elevator after reading Elevator Pitch? Did the thought of being in a driverless car increase your heart rate after reading Look Both Ways? Barclay will continue to write entertaining fiction no matter what the genre.
See our interview with Linwood Barclay here.
HQ
Print/Kindle
£11.99
CFL Rating: 4 Stars
