Here at Crimespree, we’ve long been fans of Linwood Barclay’s books, and we are especially excited for WHISTLE, which is out now.
In WHISTLE, following a terrible tragedy, Annie Blunt moves with her young son to a small town, looking for an opportunity to start anew. What she finds, though, is an entity that is the stuff of nightmares, delivered by a toy train. WHISTLE is a bit of a departure for Linwood Barclay, infusing his signature crime fiction with supernatural elements of horror. It has been compared to some of Stephen King’s classics, which is fair, but it’s also worth noting that WHISTLE steams into territory all its own, bringing readers on an engrossing ride.
We’re grateful to Linwood for taking the time to answer some questions for us!
We readers know and love your books for putting ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. WHISTLE takes this further, with a sharply drawn antagonist who is both fascinating and terrifying. When you started writing about the protagonist Annie and her son Charlie, did you know where the story would go?
I made one false start on this book, which doesn’t happen often, and was about 80 pages in when I realized a) I wanted my protagonist to be a woman, not man and b) that this book would essentially be two stories told in different time periods. So I started over. But when i did that, I knew pretty much where I was headed and where I wanted to end up.
Readers who follow you on social media know that you have an affinity for toy trains. Where did this come from?
My father made a modest model railroad for me when i was five or 6. A loop of track, couple of switches. That layout doubled in size over time, but that was when i got the bug. I suspect it was my dad who wanted to play with them as much as I did. I was his cover story. He was a commercial artist, very talented, and he made all kinds of models for me, not train-related. Years later, after my wife and I became homeowners and I had a basement area where I could build a layout, I got back into it. In every house since, I have built a new one to suit the size of the room, My current one is, I think, the eighth. My skills get a little better with each one, and more recent projects have been made much better by involving my son, who makes models and miniatures professionally.
Like many of your books, WHISTLE is set in a seemingly idyllic American town, where Annie moves after leaving New York. What is it about this setting that made it ideal for WHISTLE?
I needed to get Annie out of New York to a place that was remote, and seemingly peaceful, so that she could recover from two traumatic incidents. It’s not the first time I’ve written a book where my main character chooses to leave a place that seemed fraught with peril, only to end up in another place that turns out to be far worse.
Both your long-time readers and those new to your work will be delighted that you’re leaning into the supernatural and horror elements of WHISTLE’s story in dual timelines. Was this a conscious decision when you started writing, or did it evolve as you wrote the book?
This goes back to your earlier question. Initially, the entire story was going to take place in the present, but there was still going to be a lot of backstory that needed to be woven in. That would mean lots of what we call in the biz as “info dumps,” long stretches where characters talked about what happened more than two decades ago. I realized it would be better to show what happened, rather than tell, so nearly half the book, in alternating stretches, takes place in 2001.
I was happy to lose sleep while reading WHISTLE—and I value my sleep! What was the last book you read that kept you up late?
That’s a funny question, because I get it often, and people will tell me they couldn’t read one of my novels late at night, or they did and they had nightmares. I can read or watch almost anything, even late at night, and not have nightmares. I will, however, if binge-watching some series right up until I go to bed, have the storylines taking over my thoughts through the night.
Linwood Barclay, a New York Times bestselling author with twenty novels to his credit, spent three decades in newspapers before turning full time to writing thrillers. His books have been translated into more than two dozen languages, sold millions of copies, and he counts Stephen King among his fans. Many of his books have been optioned for film and TV, a series has been made in France, and he wrote the screenplay for the film based on his novel Never Saw it Coming. Born in the US, his parents moved to Canada just as he was turning four, and he’s lived there ever since. He lives near Toronto with his wife, Neetha. They have two grown children.
