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fearnerd's review against another edition
4.0
Malignant Summer is described as "coming-of-age epic," and it definitely lives up to that promise with a huge page count and multiple character POVs and a setting (1998) that I could get behind with all the various pop culture references. This felt like I was living through my own childhood at times with our core trio of Doug, Grady, and Jesse.
Obviously, this book will get the requisite comparison to King's It, but Malignant Summer feels closer to Dan Simmons' Summer of Night, in my opinion. While I enjoyed and many times loved both books, they were a tad bloated in length as if trying to earn that "epic" designation instead of trimming parts for a more effective novel. Our baddie here is a seemingly unstoppable entity that haunts the dreams of Hooperstown's children and infects some with cancer that most of the community assume to be caused by the town's chemical plant. So, you get a little real-world horror mixing with the supernatural.
I can't say that I fully understood everything surrounding the book's villain, as there didn't seem to be any sort of rulebook of what she could do or couldn't do or why she needed minions in some situations. There were many creepy moments and also some sad ones as well. The book strikes a good balance with its humor, scares, gore, and serious moments. It's definitely a great staple of summer horror and especially coming-of-age horror.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ out of 5. Fear Nerd says, "Check it out!"
Obviously, this book will get the requisite comparison to King's It, but Malignant Summer feels closer to Dan Simmons' Summer of Night, in my opinion. While I enjoyed and many times loved both books, they were a tad bloated in length as if trying to earn that "epic" designation instead of trimming parts for a more effective novel. Our baddie here is a seemingly unstoppable entity that haunts the dreams of Hooperstown's children and infects some with cancer that most of the community assume to be caused by the town's chemical plant. So, you get a little real-world horror mixing with the supernatural.
I can't say that I fully understood everything surrounding the book's villain, as there didn't seem to be any sort of rulebook of what she could do or couldn't do or why she needed minions in some situations. There were many creepy moments and also some sad ones as well. The book strikes a good balance with its humor, scares, gore, and serious moments. It's definitely a great staple of summer horror and especially coming-of-age horror.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ out of 5. Fear Nerd says, "Check it out!"
adamsfall's review against another edition
2.0
Ugh. This one was frustrating. I wanted to like it so much, but it stood in its own way.
This story leaned heavily into the “80s kids on bikes” genre, only it moved up a decade. The story felt too derivative of its influences of IT and Stranger Things, but never became anything unique or as fun or scary.
There were so many POV switches. None of them seemed that different from each other and it was often hard to keep track of who you were experiencing the story through.
My two biggest issues with Malignant Summer are its length, which overstayed its welcome by nearly 200 pages and the antagonist. I was never scared during this book. The Mother of Dead Dreams seemed like a half baked idea that took shape as Meyer wrote, only really being fully fleshed out in the back third. Most of the book she spent her time threatening the main characters through the same tired lines, always in all caps, or through mind controlled minions.
Malignant Summer is a book that knows exactly the book it wants to be, but sadly, that book has already been written and it’s called IT.
This review wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the use of comedy and cursing throughout the book. It seemed like Meyer loved the foul-mouthed jokes of Richie Tozier and decided that nearly every main character needed to crack a couple dick jokes or hit a minimum ‘Fuck’ quota per chapter. I laughed out loud a couple times throughout, but mostly found myself “why am I still reading this?”
This story leaned heavily into the “80s kids on bikes” genre, only it moved up a decade. The story felt too derivative of its influences of IT and Stranger Things, but never became anything unique or as fun or scary.
There were so many POV switches. None of them seemed that different from each other and it was often hard to keep track of who you were experiencing the story through.
My two biggest issues with Malignant Summer are its length, which overstayed its welcome by nearly 200 pages and the antagonist. I was never scared during this book. The Mother of Dead Dreams seemed like a half baked idea that took shape as Meyer wrote, only really being fully fleshed out in the back third. Most of the book she spent her time threatening the main characters through the same tired lines, always in all caps, or through mind controlled minions.
Malignant Summer is a book that knows exactly the book it wants to be, but sadly, that book has already been written and it’s called IT.
This review wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the use of comedy and cursing throughout the book. It seemed like Meyer loved the foul-mouthed jokes of Richie Tozier and decided that nearly every main character needed to crack a couple dick jokes or hit a minimum ‘Fuck’ quota per chapter. I laughed out loud a couple times throughout, but mostly found myself “why am I still reading this?”
the_coycaterpillar_reads's review against another edition
5.0
Well fucking hello! Malignant Summer is not your typical coming of age story, it is a coming of age tale on crack, and you’re going to want to shoot this up, pronto. I’m a sucker for this type of story mainly due to the many threads of relationships that teens develop on their journey to adulthood. There are secrets at every corner and they soon develop into a great big, Skyrim-like spider web. This book will swallow you up, nothing else will grasp your attention whilst reading it, the only sound in the background will be the ticking clock counting down to the next unbelievable twist. The book ticks every box and did I mention the cover? It is fire.
This is the IT for a new generation, but imagine it being more refined and flawless than the Stephen King classic. Tim Meyer has earned his stripes, he’s taking his place at the table, and boy does he plan to feast on the adoration.
Malignant Summer focuses on Doug Simms and his two best friends. They are taking part in the traditional scavenger hunt. Nothing goes to plan, and lives will be forever altered. It’s 1998 in Hooperstown, NJ. I loved all the throwback mentions to a time that I loved, it was simple and creative and brought the fuzzy feeling of nostalgia back to the forefront. Meyer excels in creating a supernatural threat whilst keeping the very real feelings of fear and friendship at the pinnacle of the story. He is walking a tightrope of sorcery and does it with ease.
That prologue. The perfect Kickstarter to a tome that has now got pride of place on my bookshelf. This is the kind of story that the term “goosebumps” was invented for. This is the kind of story that fandoms start over. This is the kind of story that becomes a favourite, the world over. I’ve read this book twice now, letting its magic settle over my soul, and twice is most definitely a charm.
Malignant Summer is only as strong as its characters. They come to life through intelligent and purposeful dialogue. We get to know their fears and hopes for the future, their nuances, and sometimes, traumatic backgrounds. Life is not full of butterflies and rainbows and Meyer perfects this.
Not only has Meyer injected a supernatural cause to events but he’s even thrown in my other favourite horror sub-genre, disaster, caused by a human hand. The nuclear plant. There is so much to unpack and explore from this 600-page monster but it is so worth the cerebral investment. You need to trust Meyer, trust his vision, he doesn’t steer you wrong. He wraps his story up in a toxic mist of emotions but you will get through to the other side with maybe only a few extra scars.
Malignant Summer is an original and high-concept horror that will bewilder and lead to a mind-bending trip. From the opening chapter, Meyer sets an ominous tone that is cold and heavy with tension and anticipation. Move over King, there is a new boy in town!
This is the IT for a new generation, but imagine it being more refined and flawless than the Stephen King classic. Tim Meyer has earned his stripes, he’s taking his place at the table, and boy does he plan to feast on the adoration.
Malignant Summer focuses on Doug Simms and his two best friends. They are taking part in the traditional scavenger hunt. Nothing goes to plan, and lives will be forever altered. It’s 1998 in Hooperstown, NJ. I loved all the throwback mentions to a time that I loved, it was simple and creative and brought the fuzzy feeling of nostalgia back to the forefront. Meyer excels in creating a supernatural threat whilst keeping the very real feelings of fear and friendship at the pinnacle of the story. He is walking a tightrope of sorcery and does it with ease.
That prologue. The perfect Kickstarter to a tome that has now got pride of place on my bookshelf. This is the kind of story that the term “goosebumps” was invented for. This is the kind of story that fandoms start over. This is the kind of story that becomes a favourite, the world over. I’ve read this book twice now, letting its magic settle over my soul, and twice is most definitely a charm.
Malignant Summer is only as strong as its characters. They come to life through intelligent and purposeful dialogue. We get to know their fears and hopes for the future, their nuances, and sometimes, traumatic backgrounds. Life is not full of butterflies and rainbows and Meyer perfects this.
Not only has Meyer injected a supernatural cause to events but he’s even thrown in my other favourite horror sub-genre, disaster, caused by a human hand. The nuclear plant. There is so much to unpack and explore from this 600-page monster but it is so worth the cerebral investment. You need to trust Meyer, trust his vision, he doesn’t steer you wrong. He wraps his story up in a toxic mist of emotions but you will get through to the other side with maybe only a few extra scars.
Malignant Summer is an original and high-concept horror that will bewilder and lead to a mind-bending trip. From the opening chapter, Meyer sets an ominous tone that is cold and heavy with tension and anticipation. Move over King, there is a new boy in town!
twerkingtobeethoven's review against another edition
2.0
Sorry about that. I know there's probably some value in this book, maybe I'm going to pick it up again in the future...as, for some reason, at the moment I find myself yawning. Cheerio.
johnlynchbooks's review against another edition
4.0
Tim Meyer and Silver Shamrock are back at it again, this time to bring you a sprawling epic. This books is gargantuan, by far the longest book I’ve read this year.
Malignant summer is a damn good read. There’s a large cast of characters in this coming of age title, and all of the main players are fleshed out nicely. As always with a Tim Meyer story, there is more than meets the eye to the tale, and Tim takes the span of the book to unearth all of the towns secrets. There is a lot of death and decay here, and Tim brings the scares in spades.
Personally, I find longer books such as this one to be tough sells to myself, they tend to lose me. There were parts on this that I felt maybe weren’t necessary, but that could be entirely because of my affinity for shorter reads. The fact that I finished a book this length, and thoroughly enjoyed it speaks to the strength of Tim as a writer.
If you’re a fan of coming of age, epic horror books, or of Tim Meyer you owe it to yourself to pick this one up. Just make sure you reinforce your coffee table before placing this badboy on it.
Malignant summer is a damn good read. There’s a large cast of characters in this coming of age title, and all of the main players are fleshed out nicely. As always with a Tim Meyer story, there is more than meets the eye to the tale, and Tim takes the span of the book to unearth all of the towns secrets. There is a lot of death and decay here, and Tim brings the scares in spades.
Personally, I find longer books such as this one to be tough sells to myself, they tend to lose me. There were parts on this that I felt maybe weren’t necessary, but that could be entirely because of my affinity for shorter reads. The fact that I finished a book this length, and thoroughly enjoyed it speaks to the strength of Tim as a writer.
If you’re a fan of coming of age, epic horror books, or of Tim Meyer you owe it to yourself to pick this one up. Just make sure you reinforce your coffee table before placing this badboy on it.
scottneumann's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
indiepauli47's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
I don't even know where to start with this one.
Perhaps, the fact that it took me a month and a half to read it.
Or that, while I struggled so much to make progress with this book, I absolutely loved every single page of it.
Or also, that after 45 days spending time with those characters, I actually just cried for the last 15 pages, cause it's over.
Or because it was such a great, epic coming-of-age story.
Jewel, Doug, Grady, Jesse, Jimmy, Karen, Maddie.. they just feel like old friends.
This book was such a challenge, sometimes an entire week would go by without me opening it, but still, it hasn't left my mind ever since starting it, end of august. I would read 20 pages and stop, not able to read more, letting the story simmer in my head, processing it, before being able to continue.
Hooperstown and each character have been following me for the past month and a half, and coming to terms with this story is like grieving an old friend's passing. I feel sad.
This book impacted me more than I expected, and I will think about it for a long time.
Perhaps, the fact that it took me a month and a half to read it.
Or that, while I struggled so much to make progress with this book, I absolutely loved every single page of it.
Or also, that after 45 days spending time with those characters, I actually just cried for the last 15 pages, cause it's over.
Or because it was such a great, epic coming-of-age story.
Jewel, Doug, Grady, Jesse, Jimmy, Karen, Maddie.. they just feel like old friends.
This book was such a challenge, sometimes an entire week would go by without me opening it, but still, it hasn't left my mind ever since starting it, end of august. I would read 20 pages and stop, not able to read more, letting the story simmer in my head, processing it, before being able to continue.
Hooperstown and each character have been following me for the past month and a half, and coming to terms with this story is like grieving an old friend's passing. I feel sad.
This book impacted me more than I expected, and I will think about it for a long time.
lucasilievskie's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
3.5