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lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This was my first novel from Josh Malerman, and I was very excited to kick of spooky season early with a collection of spooky short stories. This novel is made up of six novellas, all set in the same, strange smalltown. I definitely enjoyed some of these stories more than others, but overall, I really enjoyed this collection.
My favorite stories were the last three, "Presto", "A Mix-Up at the Zoo", and "The Hedges". "Presto" was a fun short story about a man who wants to be a magician more than anything, so he makes a deal with the devil so to speak and is introduced to black magic. "A Mix-Up at the Zoo" follows a man who is merely trying to be happy, and so he takes strange jobs at the zoo. "The Hedges" is about an elusive man who has lost his wife and built a huge maze made of hedges on his property.
I really enjoyed that all these stories were set in the same place, and that the entire population seemed to be a collection of creepy people who go about strange means to live their life. There is some gore and some graphic content, but overall, I did not find this book to be too "disturbing".
My favorite stories were the last three, "Presto", "A Mix-Up at the Zoo", and "The Hedges". "Presto" was a fun short story about a man who wants to be a magician more than anything, so he makes a deal with the devil so to speak and is introduced to black magic. "A Mix-Up at the Zoo" follows a man who is merely trying to be happy, and so he takes strange jobs at the zoo. "The Hedges" is about an elusive man who has lost his wife and built a huge maze made of hedges on his property.
I really enjoyed that all these stories were set in the same place, and that the entire population seemed to be a collection of creepy people who go about strange means to live their life. There is some gore and some graphic content, but overall, I did not find this book to be too "disturbing".
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Murder, Torture, Animal death, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Police brutality
blakethebookeater's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
“Maude used to say it was in the water. And it always made Mrs. Doris laugh because she knew her sister wasn’t talking about the tap. She was referring of course, to the endless rainfall outside, and the fact that nobody out to be tasked with maintaining their sanity forever in a city that never stopped crying.”
This book was fantastic and I need more books like this PLEASE. It reminded me a lot of one of my favorite horror movies Trick r’ Treat and also of King’s classic creepy towns like Derry and Castle Rock.
My favorite part about these six (seven, if you count the prologue/epilogue) stories is that they all take place one the same night: a torrential downpour. This sets the mood so perfectly, and give you the feeling that there are so many dark, creepy things lurking in the rainstorm.
The town is by far the most important character of this novel, and each story reveals a different layer to its history, giving you further insight into why I think this is one of horror’s most iconic towns.
Brief thoughts on each of the six novellas.
Prologue/Epilogue: a great framing story about a delivery driver carrying mysterious cargo to the town of Goblin, with *very* specific instructions. Really loved the vibe of this.
A Man on Slices: what a great intro. Probably the best character-driven story in the entire book. This is about a confession and a retrospective on a life-long friendship. Dark and twisted and fantastic way to set the tone!
Kamp: a paranoid main who devotes his life to the anticipation of seeing a ghost. I loved the writing in this one, and it had some great build up. I just wish the ending had packed more of a punch.
Happy Birthday, Hunter!: the vibes were *immaculate* with this one. A Hunter decides that for his birthday he wants to go into the forbidden North Woods to hunt the one animal he isn’t allowed to: a Great Owl. So creepily written and eerie. The payoff to this one was fun and this story was definitely one of my favorites.
Presto: I loved the ending to this one so much. By far the most cinematic out of the entire book. A kid learns that his favorite magician is coming to town, and he has to get into his midnight show. This one was a wild ride and I was *SO* here for it.
A Mix Up at the Zoo: Unfortunately the one dud in the collection for me. I liked the writing and where I thought the story was going, but ultimately it ended up being a little boring, predictable, and not memorable.
The Hedges: this wonderful novella also acted like a climax to the entire novel, using the town’s history that we’ve learned in the other novellas to enhance the plot of this one. A little girl solves the Hedge Maze that wasn’t supposed to be solved. Chaos ensues. And I loved it. Probably my favorite.
Overall, I would 100000% recommend this novel if you like horror, like short stories, and like creepy towns. And I am now going to tweet @ Josh Malerman like crazy because I NEED more stories set in Goblin.
This book was fantastic and I need more books like this PLEASE. It reminded me a lot of one of my favorite horror movies Trick r’ Treat and also of King’s classic creepy towns like Derry and Castle Rock.
My favorite part about these six (seven, if you count the prologue/epilogue) stories is that they all take place one the same night: a torrential downpour. This sets the mood so perfectly, and give you the feeling that there are so many dark, creepy things lurking in the rainstorm.
The town is by far the most important character of this novel, and each story reveals a different layer to its history, giving you further insight into why I think this is one of horror’s most iconic towns.
Brief thoughts on each of the six novellas.
Prologue/Epilogue: a great framing story about a delivery driver carrying mysterious cargo to the town of Goblin, with *very* specific instructions. Really loved the vibe of this.
A Man on Slices: what a great intro. Probably the best character-driven story in the entire book. This is about a confession and a retrospective on a life-long friendship. Dark and twisted and fantastic way to set the tone!
Kamp: a paranoid main who devotes his life to the anticipation of seeing a ghost. I loved the writing in this one, and it had some great build up. I just wish the ending had packed more of a punch.
Happy Birthday, Hunter!: the vibes were *immaculate* with this one. A Hunter decides that for his birthday he wants to go into the forbidden North Woods to hunt the one animal he isn’t allowed to: a Great Owl. So creepily written and eerie. The payoff to this one was fun and this story was definitely one of my favorites.
Presto: I loved the ending to this one so much. By far the most cinematic out of the entire book. A kid learns that his favorite magician is coming to town, and he has to get into his midnight show. This one was a wild ride and I was *SO* here for it.
A Mix Up at the Zoo: Unfortunately the one dud in the collection for me. I liked the writing and where I thought the story was going, but ultimately it ended up being a little boring, predictable, and not memorable.
The Hedges: this wonderful novella also acted like a climax to the entire novel, using the town’s history that we’ve learned in the other novellas to enhance the plot of this one. A little girl solves the Hedge Maze that wasn’t supposed to be solved. Chaos ensues. And I loved it. Probably my favorite.
Overall, I would 100000% recommend this novel if you like horror, like short stories, and like creepy towns. And I am now going to tweet @ Josh Malerman like crazy because I NEED more stories set in Goblin.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Colonisation, Death, Toxic friendship, and Violence
Moderate: Child death, Cursing, Gore, Grief, and Terminal illness
Minor: Police brutality and Sexism
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