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3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
DNF
I got about 3/4 of the way before finally giving up.
This book was way too close to IT by Stephen King for me, and when I find that a book is too close to another book in the same genre, I am wildly turned off. But what I found to be most problematic was the random and unnecessary animal cruelty and the poor way that Dennis - who clearly has developmental or psychological disabilities- was treated. The way he was described made him out to be "gross," and by now, this form of representation should be widely unacceptable. While I do enjoy Malfi's unique voice, this book just had too many problems for me. It clearly could have used a sensitivity reader regarding disability.
I got about 3/4 of the way before finally giving up.
This book was way too close to IT by Stephen King for me, and when I find that a book is too close to another book in the same genre, I am wildly turned off. But what I found to be most problematic was the random and unnecessary animal cruelty and the poor way that Dennis - who clearly has developmental or psychological disabilities- was treated. The way he was described made him out to be "gross," and by now, this form of representation should be widely unacceptable. While I do enjoy Malfi's unique voice, this book just had too many problems for me. It clearly could have used a sensitivity reader regarding disability.
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
The Goodreads description for Black Mouth notes that Ronald Malfi's latest release is "Perfect for fans of Stephen King’s IT...." This short segment of the book's synopsis doesn't seem to have carried over to Amazon or NetGalley, even though it's perfectly apt. In fact, I suspect some readers may find Black Mouth to be IT-lite. It's abundantly clear that King's classic was a touchstone to Malfi in this book's writing, and one might even argue that Black Mouth would not exist if King hadn't paved the way first (this is probably true for a lot of modern horror writers who grew up on King's work, me included).
Black Mouth exists in conversation with IT and its author, occasionally even mimicking IT to showcase that, at times, impersonation really is the best form of flattery, and to reveal just how influential King's work has been on Malfi. At times, it reads like Malfi saying to King, "this is what you showed me, and this is my riff on it." Some may decry this book as being little more than a copy of a classic horror tome, but it strikes me as more like a cover version. The tune is recognizable and has some familiar beats, but Malfi does enough to put his own spin on things and center those changes in an effort to create something that's both immediately identifiable and cogent enough to stand apart, and a ripping bit of rock and roll in its own right.
Jamie Warren has returned home to attend his mother's funeral and care for his mentally handicapped brother. He's also an alcoholic, fresh out of rehab and quickly rediscovering the siren song of the liquor bottles left behind in his childhood home. Meanwhile, a childhood friend he's lost touch with attends a carnival in Kentucky and spots a familiar one-eyed man from their past - the Magician, who lived in the woods around the sunken coal mine locally known as Black Mouth. Circumstances reunite Jamie with his old friends in an effort to stop the Magician once and for all.
Malfi interweaves their present-day stories with plenty of flashbacks to the past as the kids become acquainted with the Magician and fall under his spell. Above all is the overriding concern about Black Mouth, which, in present-day, is swallowing the old and crumbling Warren homestead. The collapsed mine looms large over the existence of our primary characters, taking on preternatural overtones, colluding with some of the children's birth defects and fate itself, as well as offering up thematic relevance. Even after leaving home, Jamie finds himself falling into the black mouth of the bottle and of depression. Each character must, at some point, contend with their own personal black mouths, as well - the black mouths of childhoods lost, of death and murder, and dark pasts hidden in the shadows of memory.
While Black Mouth shares plenty of common ground with King's IT (there's talk of a wheel of destiny, which can't help but remind one of ka, and ka is a wheel to be sure. Hell, there's even a riff on the turtle, which grows into its own unique moments here.), it is suitably its own work, and Malfi is his own man.
Black Mouth exists in conversation with IT and its author, occasionally even mimicking IT to showcase that, at times, impersonation really is the best form of flattery, and to reveal just how influential King's work has been on Malfi. At times, it reads like Malfi saying to King, "this is what you showed me, and this is my riff on it." Some may decry this book as being little more than a copy of a classic horror tome, but it strikes me as more like a cover version. The tune is recognizable and has some familiar beats, but Malfi does enough to put his own spin on things and center those changes in an effort to create something that's both immediately identifiable and cogent enough to stand apart, and a ripping bit of rock and roll in its own right.
Jamie Warren has returned home to attend his mother's funeral and care for his mentally handicapped brother. He's also an alcoholic, fresh out of rehab and quickly rediscovering the siren song of the liquor bottles left behind in his childhood home. Meanwhile, a childhood friend he's lost touch with attends a carnival in Kentucky and spots a familiar one-eyed man from their past - the Magician, who lived in the woods around the sunken coal mine locally known as Black Mouth. Circumstances reunite Jamie with his old friends in an effort to stop the Magician once and for all.
Malfi interweaves their present-day stories with plenty of flashbacks to the past as the kids become acquainted with the Magician and fall under his spell. Above all is the overriding concern about Black Mouth, which, in present-day, is swallowing the old and crumbling Warren homestead. The collapsed mine looms large over the existence of our primary characters, taking on preternatural overtones, colluding with some of the children's birth defects and fate itself, as well as offering up thematic relevance. Even after leaving home, Jamie finds himself falling into the black mouth of the bottle and of depression. Each character must, at some point, contend with their own personal black mouths, as well - the black mouths of childhoods lost, of death and murder, and dark pasts hidden in the shadows of memory.
While Black Mouth shares plenty of common ground with King's IT (there's talk of a wheel of destiny, which can't help but remind one of ka, and ka is a wheel to be sure. Hell, there's even a riff on the turtle, which grows into its own unique moments here.), it is suitably its own work, and Malfi is his own man.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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:
Yes
I'm from WV...book isn't....uhm...yeah, book isn't.
May finish at some point down the line.
May finish at some point down the line.
My second, and last, Malfi.
Utterly derivative, almost a direct copy of King (who I also dislike, so there's no fangirling here about copying.) Malfi's constant need to describe Dennis in terms of his physical appearance was a disheartening look at what the author believes of the disabled community - Dennis never exists as a character on his own, he is the fat fingered, small eyed, round bellied, meaty armed, whatever other stereotypical descriptor you can pick for a disabled person. It is a shame this was allowed to be published. Next up is Clay with vitiligo who is often described as monstrous because of his condition. Again, here is a character who cannot exist without being described constantly in terms of his physical appearance. He is more than his physical condition.
Being derivative of other works, the story here just doesn't work - things happen simply because similar things happened in other stories and worked, but here they make no sense and aren't fitting of the world.
PSA, if you aren't a fan of random, gruesome animal violence you should skip this one.
Utterly derivative, almost a direct copy of King (who I also dislike, so there's no fangirling here about copying.) Malfi's constant need to describe Dennis in terms of his physical appearance was a disheartening look at what the author believes of the disabled community - Dennis never exists as a character on his own, he is the fat fingered, small eyed, round bellied, meaty armed, whatever other stereotypical descriptor you can pick for a disabled person. It is a shame this was allowed to be published. Next up is Clay with vitiligo who is often described as monstrous because of his condition. Again, here is a character who cannot exist without being described constantly in terms of his physical appearance. He is more than his physical condition.
Being derivative of other works, the story here just doesn't work - things happen simply because similar things happened in other stories and worked, but here they make no sense and aren't fitting of the world.
PSA, if you aren't a fan of random, gruesome animal violence you should skip this one.
Black Mouth follows Jamie Warren, a man haunted by his dark and traumatic childhood, running from his past and away from home where his disabled brother lives. Two decades later, Jamie gets a call that is going to force him to go back to Black Mouth where he meets back up with the group of childhood friends that all experienced this same strange summer, and it seems like fate has brought them back together to ultimately figure out The Magic Man and the horror they experienced that fateful summer that has followed them all of their lives.
I was enthralled with the start of this book. I thought the Magic Man was so creepy and was excited to see what horrifying direction it would go. I loved Dennis and thought his character was really crucial to this story with his innocent demeanor, but still clearly the person who secretly knew the most. Unfortunately, that is really all I enjoyed. This book dragged and dragged and went around in circles. I was bored to tears for most of it, just waiting for anything scary to happen. I expected true terror in this book but pretty much yawned the entire way through. It picked back up a bit toward the end, but still not enough to fully grasp me as a reader. I just don’t really get why this book needed to be nearly 500 pages with the minimal character development and the lack of an engaging plot.
This was my first book by Malfi, and I’m definitely not planning on writing him off, but I was not impressed with this one.
I was enthralled with the start of this book. I thought the Magic Man was so creepy and was excited to see what horrifying direction it would go. I loved Dennis and thought his character was really crucial to this story with his innocent demeanor, but still clearly the person who secretly knew the most. Unfortunately, that is really all I enjoyed. This book dragged and dragged and went around in circles. I was bored to tears for most of it, just waiting for anything scary to happen. I expected true terror in this book but pretty much yawned the entire way through. It picked back up a bit toward the end, but still not enough to fully grasp me as a reader. I just don’t really get why this book needed to be nearly 500 pages with the minimal character development and the lack of an engaging plot.
This was my first book by Malfi, and I’m definitely not planning on writing him off, but I was not impressed with this one.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes