'Ellis is losing track of time... Following her mother's marriage to a famous rock star, Ellis moves to a crumbling old mansion in the wilds of Scotland. Far away from her friends and familiarity, she finds waves of anxiety rolling in and threatening to capsize her. But when she finds herself whisked back to the world of 1912 where she meets lonely servant girl Flora, Ellis finally feels like she's home. But living in the past might not be as perfect as it seems... and is there more to hope for in the present than she first thought? A stunning new novel from much-loved author Karen McCombie, The Whispers of Wilderwood Hall will take you from the heart of the highlands to the top deck of the Titanic.'
When 13-year-old Ellis' mother remarries a famous musician her whole life is turned upside down. The whirlwind relationship and sudden marriage throw her completely, and she finds herself suffering from panic attacks and strange dizzy spells. Things get even worse for Ellis when her mother packs up their old life in London, and transports Ellis up into an old mansion in the Scottish highlands.
The dilapidated Wilderwood Hall is supposed to be a new start for Ellis and her mother, who's planned to renovate the old mansion and turn the stable block into a state of the art recording studio. But Ellis can't find happiness in the walls of Wilderwood as she worries about her future in this new family. Then Ellis begins to hear strange whispering in the walls, and soon finds herself slipping back in time to 1912, where she befriends a young maid named Flora.
It took me a while to get into The Whispers of Wilderwood Hall. The book begins with Ellis at her mothers wedding, an event that she clearly doesn't approve of or like. From here Ellis stays in a perpetual state of disapproval and moodiness. I understand that things have changed fast for Ellis, that she has had her entire life thrown upside down, but she doesn't seem to be able to find happiness in anything.
Ellis is intensely jealous of her mothers new relationship, and holds a grudge against her for almost the entire book. Her mother is juggling dozens of builders and contractors to restore Wilderwood Hall, all on her own because her new husband is touring, and Ellis gets angry every time she has to make a phone call. She wants her mothers undivided attention and can't stand it when she doesn't have it. She doesn't want her mother to speak to anyone but her, and any time that she speaks to her husband, RJ, she assumes they're plotting against her.
This sense of jealousy and self centred views gets worse when RJ's daughter Eloise turns up out of the blue. Eloise is clearly a very hurt young woman, a girl that's been betrayed and manipulated by her mother and put into a situation she hates, but Ellis hates her presence and gets moody when she and her mother need time alone to sort things out. Ultimately, Ellis comes across as a very unlikable character, one who has to be the centre of everyone's attention and life, and throws a mood if she's not.
During all of this Ellis begins to find herself slipping backwards in time to Wilderwood Hall when it was first built. She discovers that no one can see or hear her, except for a young maid named Flora. At first Flora thinks that Ellis is some kind of spirit or ghost, but the two of them soon form a friendship, with Ellis finding the trips back in time to be a nice distraction from her regular life.
As things begin to work out in the modern world, with Ellis coming to realise that her new family actually care about her and aren't trying to ruin her life, she makes some startling discoveries in the past. Flora isn't the kind and put upon girl that she makes out to be, but is the evil person that the rest of the household believe. She hurts others, steals, and even murders animals.
This revelation helps Ellis to find her place in the real world, as she realises that sometimes horrible people hide behind a nice face, and those that really care about you might not obviously show it. Ultimately, these journeys back in time help to show Ellis how good her new life is, and how much she's cared for.
There's more to the story, including the ultimate fate of Flora than I'm going to go into here, and the connection between Flora and Ellis, small little details that hint at perhaps more than just coincidences, but perhaps a hand of fate.
The Whispers of Wilderwood Hall is an interesting time travel book, one that focuses on how it affects someone personally, rather than some big question of how you can affect the past and change the present. It focuses on people, and has a very real, relate-able story at it's core. Aimed at teens, I'm sure that those within the core demographic will thoroughly enjoy it.
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