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thrillereader's review
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group and Del Rey for this ARC! I was very excited to read these novellas because I’m a huge fan of Josh Malerman’s writing. His prose is haunting in every one of these stories. My favorite of all them all was Argyle, but I really enjoyed all of these novellas!
hippiechick56's review
2.5 stars.
Interesting but not particularly thrilling or scary.
Interesting but not particularly thrilling or scary.
bemandy's review
5.0
This is my first Josh Malerman read! I don't know how that's possible but here we are. If you're like me and you've not read Malerman, this is a great place to start. Fans of Malerman will delight in a collection of 5 very different tales of horror. Each is unique in how it is told, and the type of terror it brings.
Half the House is Haunted is written in an unsettling back and forth narration, told from the perspective of a brother and sister.
Argyle (maybe my favorite). A dying man reveals the secrets he's been carrying his whole life.
Jupiter Drop is Sci Fi horror that seems idyllic until the end.
Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer. We all know people like the Barmans'.
Egorov is written if translated from Russian. It's about grief and revenge and family. This one was weird for me but I can't stop thinking about it.
This collection was an easy 5 stars from me for its diversity and original storylines.
The cover is brilliant. The woodcarving print image on the cover page is perfection. Make sure to read the Author Notes to catch up with Mr. Malerman and learn more about how Spin a Black Yarn came to be. Enjoy!
Half the House is Haunted is written in an unsettling back and forth narration, told from the perspective of a brother and sister.
Argyle (maybe my favorite). A dying man reveals the secrets he's been carrying his whole life.
Jupiter Drop is Sci Fi horror that seems idyllic until the end.
Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer. We all know people like the Barmans'.
Egorov is written if translated from Russian. It's about grief and revenge and family. This one was weird for me but I can't stop thinking about it.
This collection was an easy 5 stars from me for its diversity and original storylines.
The cover is brilliant. The woodcarving print image on the cover page is perfection. Make sure to read the Author Notes to catch up with Mr. Malerman and learn more about how Spin a Black Yarn came to be. Enjoy!
adamsfall's review
4.0
As with any novella or short story collection — I loved some, liked some, didn’t like at least one. Malerman is one of the most consistent writers the genre has to offer and this is no exception.
marsknowsbooks's review against another edition
2.0
Argyle is the only story i actually liked, other than that i feel like everything else fell flat & i was often bored
these reviews sum up my thoughts perfectly: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5352783268
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5422172818
these reviews sum up my thoughts perfectly: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5352783268
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5422172818
kwdubz's review
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A brother struggles his whole life to understand what his sister means when she says "Half the house is haunted:. A man lies on this deathbed, surrounded by family, and confesses to homicides he never committed. A husband and wife purchase the latest in cutting edge home cleaning products and learn how dirty their past really is. A tourist takes the infamous Jupiter Drop and loses himself in isolation. And the remaining pair of a triplet set seek vengeance for their brother's murder in creative ways.
I have often found that short story and novella collections fall flat for me due to the similarity between the narrator voices. That was not the case here. Malerman created a distinct set of characters with unique voices and thoughts that aided in setting the tone and atmosphere for the entire novella series, a feat that is hard to accomplish and truly sets this collection apart. Each novella, while distinct, had enough similarities in writing style that the whole series was cohesive and felt like it belonged together.
Because of the benefits that a longer novella style story has, compared to a short story format, each had a well plotted series of events that wrapped up nicely at the end without overt abruptness and led the reader to a moral, theme, or lesson learned (though again, not overt and in your face).
The best word I can use to describe the book is Unsettling. That's the only thing that gets even close to representing this collection. Malerman explores the inner workings of the human mind in creative and often uncomfortable ways. I really enjoyed this collection and I'm eager to read more from this author.
I have often found that short story and novella collections fall flat for me due to the similarity between the narrator voices. That was not the case here. Malerman created a distinct set of characters with unique voices and thoughts that aided in setting the tone and atmosphere for the entire novella series, a feat that is hard to accomplish and truly sets this collection apart. Each novella, while distinct, had enough similarities in writing style that the whole series was cohesive and felt like it belonged together.
Because of the benefits that a longer novella style story has, compared to a short story format, each had a well plotted series of events that wrapped up nicely at the end without overt abruptness and led the reader to a moral, theme, or lesson learned (though again, not overt and in your face).
The best word I can use to describe the book is Unsettling. That's the only thing that gets even close to representing this collection. Malerman explores the inner workings of the human mind in creative and often uncomfortable ways. I really enjoyed this collection and I'm eager to read more from this author.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Grief, Murder, Gore, and Body horror
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Animal death
snazzymoose's review
3.0
First story was awesome! Second story blew. The next couple were okay. Last was meh.
justsusan85's review
2.0
I was gifted an arc of this book. I understand that’s it’s an unedited version but there were some structural misses that I couldn’t get past. The writing was mediocre and nothing special. The idea behind the stories would have been great if the writer had given it more thought and maybe written more to flesh it out some. I’m a fan of thrillers and horror books but this book of novellas didn’t really catch my attention enough to actually want to buy the book.
aaronlindsey's review
5.0
Five novellas from one of today's best horror writers. Josh Malerman is a true renascence man. I doubt there's anything he can't do. But he is a writer at heart. This collection features 5 stories of the unpredictable. There's horror in each, but one is a futuristic, Bradbury-ish tale of cosmic travel and another is a Dickens style revenge story.
In each story there are nuggets of wisdom that made me think.
I fully recommend Spin a Black Yarn.
In each story there are nuggets of wisdom that made me think.
I fully recommend Spin a Black Yarn.
receptively_reviewed's review
This particular ARC sat on my self long than I wanted to knowing once I started I would have to finish.
I am a HUGE fan of Josh Malerman. He makes imagery alive and refreshing, even it is dark. There's something about his author's writing style that's irresistible regardless of if I like the book (as a whole) or not. With this collection of short stories, I REALLY liked the first half, and although I wasn't too wild about the second half..
A mix of horror, mystery, thriller, and science fiction. I am not the biggest fan of science fiction, so in those novellas, it felt short, for me, but it was none the less interesting. It should not really deter you from reading the book.
My advice is to give this a read if you enjoy mind twists and dark human nature Your mind will unravel, like yarn, leave you in a knot a few times, leaving, you think, untying, your thoughts out of the peculiar quandary.
My advice is to give this a read if you enjoy mind twists and dark human nature coming alive. It will get the knots and stitching patterns in your mind, moving with each peculiar quandary.
I would rate this book a 3.5, overall. Systems like GoodReads and others make it hard as hard stars do not exist, so I had to get crafty of my website and Book instagram for my followers. (check it out!)
Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for this ARC.
I am a HUGE fan of Josh Malerman. He makes imagery alive and refreshing, even it is dark. There's something about his author's writing style that's irresistible regardless of if I like the book (as a whole) or not. With this collection of short stories, I REALLY liked the first half, and although I wasn't too wild about the second half..
A mix of horror, mystery, thriller, and science fiction. I am not the biggest fan of science fiction, so in those novellas, it felt short, for me, but it was none the less interesting. It should not really deter you from reading the book.
My advice is to give this a read if you enjoy mind twists and dark human nature Your mind will unravel, like yarn, leave you in a knot a few times, leaving, you think, untying, your thoughts out of the peculiar quandary.
My advice is to give this a read if you enjoy mind twists and dark human nature coming alive. It will get the knots and stitching patterns in your mind, moving with each peculiar quandary.
I would rate this book a 3.5, overall. Systems like GoodReads and others make it hard as hard stars do not exist, so I had to get crafty of my website and Book instagram for my followers. (check it out!)
Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for this ARC.