Goblin: A Novel in Six Novellas
- Downloads：8046
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-08-12 06:51:23
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Josh Malerman
- ISBN：0593237803
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
From the New York Times bestselling author of Bird Box and Malorie， a novella collection in which every story reveals a sinister secret about a mysterious small town
Goblin seems like any other ordinary small town。 But with the master storyteller Josh Malerman as your tour guide， you'll discover the secrets that hide behind its closed doors。 These six novellas tell the story of a place where the rain is always falling， nighttime is always near， and your darkest fears and desires await。 Welcome to Goblin。 。 。 。
A Man in Slices: A man proves his "legendary love" to his girlfriend with a sacrifice even more daring than Vincent van Gogh's--and sends her more than his heart。
Kamp: Walter Kamp is afraid of everything， but most afraid of being scared to death。 As he sets traps around his home to catch the ghosts that haunt him， he learns that nothing is more terrifying than fear itself。
Happy Birthday， Hunter！: A famed big-game hunter is determined to capture--and kill--the ultimate prey: the mythic Great Owl who lives in Goblin's dark forests。 But this mysterious creature is not the only secret the woods are keeping。
Presto: All Peter wants is to be like his hero， Roman Emperor， the greatest magician in the world。 When the famous magician comes to Goblin， Peter discovers that not all magic is just an illusion。
A Mix-Up at the Zoo: The new zookeeper feels a mysterious kinship with the animals in his care 。 。 。 and finds that his work is freeing dark forces inside him。
The Hedges: When his wife dies， a man builds a hedge maze so elaborate no one ever solves it--until a little girl resolves to be the first to find the mysteries that wait at its heart。
Goblin seems like any other ordinary small town。 But with the master storyteller Josh Malerman as your tour guide， you'll discover the secrets that hide behind its closed doors。 These six novellas tell the story of a place where the rain is always falling， nighttime is always near， and your darkest fears and desires await。 Welcome to Goblin。 。 。 。
A Man in Slices: A man proves his "legendary love" to his girlfriend with a sacrifice even more daring than Vincent van Gogh's--and sends her more than his heart。
Kamp: Walter Kamp is afraid of everything， but most afraid of being scared to death。 As he sets traps around his home to catch the ghosts that haunt him， he learns that nothing is more terrifying than fear itself。
Happy Birthday， Hunter！: A famed big-game hunter is determined to capture--and kill--the ultimate prey: the mythic Great Owl who lives in Goblin's dark forests。 But this mysterious creature is not the only secret the woods are keeping。
Presto: All Peter wants is to be like his hero， Roman Emperor， the greatest magician in the world。 When the famous magician comes to Goblin， Peter discovers that not all magic is just an illusion。
A Mix-Up at the Zoo: The new zookeeper feels a mysterious kinship with the animals in his care 。 。 。 and finds that his work is freeing dark forces inside him。
The Hedges: When his wife dies， a man builds a hedge maze so elaborate no one ever solves it--until a little girl resolves to be the first to find the mysteries that wait at its heart。
Reviews
Nicole
，
DNF
Beth
，
I couldn't finish this book。 I like weird and scary and creepy， but this book did not keep my interest。 I couldn't finish this book。 I like weird and scary and creepy， but this book did not keep my interest。 。。。more
Miriam Soberano
，
Not the greatest and scariest but also not the worst。 There were a couple of novellas i enjoyed more than others but overall a fair mystery。 At times i did have to re read some parts but was able to comprehend on the second try。 Loved the cover！
Howard Cruz
，
This wasn't the best Josh malerman I've read。 I I thought this came across more like young adult fiction even though it's listed as adult。 The stories weren't particularly interesting and I found myself wanting to be done with the book。 I forced myself to read through all of it。The title of the book is goblin and he never fails to remind you of that fact even 3/4 of the way through the book when I counted the word goblin at least 10 times on a single page。 In that sense it was extremely repetiti This wasn't the best Josh malerman I've read。 I I thought this came across more like young adult fiction even though it's listed as adult。 The stories weren't particularly interesting and I found myself wanting to be done with the book。 I forced myself to read through all of it。The title of the book is goblin and he never fails to remind you of that fact even 3/4 of the way through the book when I counted the word goblin at least 10 times on a single page。 In that sense it was extremely repetitive because we know that's exactly what the book is about。 With all due respect， I don't recommend this book。 。。。more
Corri Parsley
，
I feel cheated。。。。
KC
，
Inside the creepy town of Goblin， all sorts of characters reside。 Six captivating and frightening tales， each unique and yet tethered together by a town that most would avoid。 Josh Malerman is a masterful storyteller。 For fans of Richard Bachman and Stephen King。
Tracy
，
Well this was almost a did-not-finish， I thought maybe the ending would make it all worth it。 It didn't。 The concept was interesting， and it sure could have been better， but for whatever reason， it just fell far from the mark。 None of the individual stories were all that good， and the epilogue that was supposed to tie it all together， just left more questions。 All the stories were just too vague， with no real point to them， they all left too many questions， things left untold。 Well this was almost a did-not-finish， I thought maybe the ending would make it all worth it。 It didn't。 The concept was interesting， and it sure could have been better， but for whatever reason， it just fell far from the mark。 None of the individual stories were all that good， and the epilogue that was supposed to tie it all together， just left more questions。 All the stories were just too vague， with no real point to them， they all left too many questions， things left untold。 。。。more
Steve
，
DNF @ 32%Incredibly Boring。
David Agranoff
，
I could be remembering this wrong but when I interviewed Josh last year for the Postcards podcast he said this book was some of his earliest attempts at writing and that makes a certain sense。 We can debate if this is a novel or a collection of stories but I think the answer is yes。 You and I （reader） are going to revisit this point after we talk more about this book。 It was first published as a limited-edition expensive hardcover。 I have no idea how different the edits are between the editions。 I could be remembering this wrong but when I interviewed Josh last year for the Postcards podcast he said this book was some of his earliest attempts at writing and that makes a certain sense。 We can debate if this is a novel or a collection of stories but I think the answer is yes。 You and I （reader） are going to revisit this point after we talk more about this book。 It was first published as a limited-edition expensive hardcover。 I have no idea how different the edits are between the editions。 It is exciting that Malerman has become bankable enough for Del Rey to shell out the funds to re-issue these small press books。 I am sure this， in the long run， benefits This is Horror and Earthling so I am excited about that。 If this was early Malerman I am impressed with how confident and assured the writing is。 I can see why JM and his team would wait to publish this one。 It is not as commercial as the Bird Box books， the hooks are not as surface as Inspection and require a certain amount of patience from the reader。 I scanned quickly a few GoodReads reviews and it is clearly some readers wanted less of a slow burn。 Here is the concept six tales set in the midwestern take on the haunted village， a motif we have come to associate with King’s Castle Rock or Lovecraft’s Dunwich。 Goblin Michigan reminds me more of Charles L。 Grant’s Oxrun Station novels and stories that ran from the 70s and 80s。 These were atmospheric and moody horror novels that played with character and vibe。 I have no idea if the Grant novels were an influence but they are a spiritual cousin to Goblin at the least。 My memory could be wrong but I believe Grant did a collection of Oxrun Station stories called the Orchard。 The setting of Goblin a town cursed with abnormally high rainfall and haunted by secrets seems to be created as Malerman’s go-to creepy small town。 I mean horror writers need one of these right？ King uses Castle Rock and Derry like a pair of crutches but that is not the case with Goblin。 A town that has not really appeared else in the Malerverse， yet。 None the less the six stories here are subtle gothic fare， if you are coming for the post-apocalyptic action of Bird Box make sure you don’t sleep on the equally good maybe better sequel Malorie。 In that book， Malerman showed his chops for using plot， setting， and character to create terror。 Goblin however is VIBE with all-caps， bold， and underlined to make a point。 It is funny because the wrap-around story presents some of the best setup and pay-off in the book。 Enough happens that you forget about the deliver-man with the weird instructions， by the time the epilogue came around I have a pleasant “Oh yeah，” and enjoyed that moment。 Of the six Novellas， I liked the back half a little better。 The last two “A Mix up at the Zoo，” and “The Hedges” were my favorites。 Kamp is the strongest of the first half， the story of a man who is scared of ghosts to the point that his biggest fear is being scared to death。 This story plays horror tropes like a rhythm guitar player plays a solid power cord。 It is a comforting feeling for this reader。 I can relax a little knowing the storytelling is in good hands。 The only novella that lost me was “Happy Birthday Hunter，” which just made the animal rights guy in me a little uncomfortable， and that might not affect you。 I couldn’t relate to the character but for the same reasons， moments of the Zoo novella hit my sweet spot。 This story of employees at the Goblin Zoo had several powerful moments of character。 It is the story of a tour guide and a zookeeper who confront the nature of their jobs， the zoo， and the idea of cages。 This is done through a carefully crafted three-way parallel between the man picking up the trash， one who gives a tour， and a female gorilla who is the star of the zoo。 “One night at closing time in his second week at his second week on the job， a possible explanation popped up， unasked for。They know I’m not where I am supposed to be。 Up here- he tapped his head – I’m caged too。” Every reader brings their personal feelings to the mind-meld of a novel。 This reader was hit hard by the power of empathy shown in this story for the gorilla Eula。 Her cage has a sign ENTER IF YOU DARE！ IT’S GOBLIN’S GREAT GORILLA。 Dirk the zookeeper turned tour guide is so affected by her captivity and the shame of it he can’t speak or do his job。 This was the most powerful and emotionally rich moment of the book for me。 Dirk’s awareness that Eula was not just an animal but a woman was powerful。“Her literal captivity was hard enough for him。 But consider the woman inside the Gorilla， with no notion to break free， was enough to keep Dirk silent for the duration of the tour’s stay at her post。”Powerful stuff。 All things being equal and divorced from my personal ethics the most effective horror story in the collection is the closer The Hedges。 This one is perfect as is but I felt like it could have sustained a short novel in the 150 to 170 pages range。 The story of Wayne a widow who plants the hedge maze （seen on the cover of this edition） to honor his dead wife。 I understand why this is the cover story， Margot the young child on the cover goes to the police and tells them unlike basically everyone else she has solved the maze。 She is telling them because she found something you will want to see。”I love this setup。 The narrative flips from Wayne’s backstory to Margot telling her story， Malerman breaking the rules a bit by letting Margot unfold this story in her own words。 The back and forth is very well done with the alternating chapters ending on notes that will keep you turning pages。 Consider the transition between chapters six and seven of this tale。 Six ends with Molly Wayne’s wife dying…“Molly would die， six years later in her sleep， and Wayne devastated and very close to being destroyed， intended to keep his vows。 He’d start by planting her a bush。”Seven starts with Margot wanting to call her mom， her mom is on her way， but the cops are desperate to get the end of her story and the short chapter ends with her teasing that she cracked the code of the Hedges。 We cut back to Wayne building the hedges。 This structure helps build the story to the point I don’t want to spoil。 Excellent storytelling。 The ending wrap around ties it all together。 I believe this book is both a novel and a short story collection。 Yes in a way it is both。 The rules that define what a book are made-up bullshit anyway。 A novel follows a character through a story and in this case， the character at the heart of this narrative is the town of Goblin。 I whole heartily recommend this novel for Malerman and horror completionists。 This is not the book to begin a journey with this author。 Not for any weakness on this book just based on the strength of his other releases。 Birdbox and Inspection are great openers。 I have yet to read a Malerman that didn’t show storytelling and prose chops。 Goblin is subtle quiet horror but if that is your bag then take a trip to Goblin Michigan。 My first interview with Josh， a Goblin-focused interview is coming soon。。。https://podcasts。apple。com/gb/podcast。。。 。。。more
Theresa
，
Each novella was uniquely captivating。 I was pleasantly surprised。
Byron Clements
，
Rating: 3。75Goblin is like the town of Derry for a new generation。 6 scary and fun stories in the town of Goblin。 Some stories better than others， but I enjoyed reading about this creepy town and the characters in it。 And the cover is perfection。
Doreen Cavazza
，
I liked it， yet I kind of didn't。 Malerman's writing is good。 His writing reminds me of an earlier Stephen King。 He puts words together well and they're readable。 The stories， however， didn't always hit the mark for me。 I really liked Bird Box and， because of that， I guess I was expecting more than what I actually got。The prologue was intriguing and it got me hooked。 A Man in Slices I thought was a good read。 I liked the way it flowed and it didn't get too wordy。 Kamp was a mildly entertaining r I liked it， yet I kind of didn't。 Malerman's writing is good。 His writing reminds me of an earlier Stephen King。 He puts words together well and they're readable。 The stories， however， didn't always hit the mark for me。 I really liked Bird Box and， because of that， I guess I was expecting more than what I actually got。The prologue was intriguing and it got me hooked。 A Man in Slices I thought was a good read。 I liked the way it flowed and it didn't get too wordy。 Kamp was a mildly entertaining read， though I thought it dragged on a little too long。 Happy Birthday， Hunter！ was a disappointment。 It's not that his writing is bad， it's the story itself and how it unfolds。Presto - Though it was a little on the long side， it kept me reading。 A Mix-Up at The Zoo - This one almost had me close the book and put it away。 It was much too dragged out， and the dream sequences didn't do it for me。 I thought this was a good idea that could have been executed better。 The Hedges was a good story。 It kept me reading and had that pull to make me want to know what was going to happen。 I'm not sure I loved the way it ended， though; but it wasn't terrible。 Epilogue: Make Yourself at Home - a wrap-up that was disappointing in its execution。 I thought he could have done this a bit better。I do like the way the stories intertwine and relate somehow to each other。 It wasn't the greatest book I've ever read， but it's， by far， not the worst。 It's good for a light， campfire-like ghost story。 This is a decent read。 。。。more
Emma Silvis
，
I’d say Goblin is the left-out middle child sandwiched between its precocious younger sibling Goosebumps， and its star-of-the-family big brother in the form of a Stephen King。
Matt
，
Goblin by Josh Malerman is an awesome book telling the story of a strange and haunted town through six interrelated novellas。 Think Welcome to Nightvale meets The Twilight Zone all told by Josh Malerman。 I loved the prologue and felt genuinely scared。 I also loved most of the stories in the book。 Makerman has succeeded in telling a very atmospheric story。 One novella felt too long and another didn’t seem to connect with the rest of the book that much。 The ending seemed a bit confusing and left m Goblin by Josh Malerman is an awesome book telling the story of a strange and haunted town through six interrelated novellas。 Think Welcome to Nightvale meets The Twilight Zone all told by Josh Malerman。 I loved the prologue and felt genuinely scared。 I also loved most of the stories in the book。 Makerman has succeeded in telling a very atmospheric story。 One novella felt too long and another didn’t seem to connect with the rest of the book that much。 The ending seemed a bit confusing and left me with unanswered questions。 Despite these criticisms I loved the book！ Very different than Bird Box， but really great。 4。5 stars！ 。。。more
Poetniknowit
，
I really enjoyed Goblin。 Malerman had created his own darker， damper， drearier version of Castle Rock with Goblin。 It's a town with a creepy hedge maze。 A police force that are avoided at all costs because they seem absolutely inhuman in the most literal of ways。 The rain and haunted atmosphere send to have permeated within the marrow of the unluckiest of inhabitants， and these novellas follow more than 7 of them， done interconnecting in a very Stephen King manner， making me wonder if it all hap I really enjoyed Goblin。 Malerman had created his own darker， damper， drearier version of Castle Rock with Goblin。 It's a town with a creepy hedge maze。 A police force that are avoided at all costs because they seem absolutely inhuman in the most literal of ways。 The rain and haunted atmosphere send to have permeated within the marrow of the unluckiest of inhabitants， and these novellas follow more than 7 of them， done interconnecting in a very Stephen King manner， making me wonder if it all happened on the same night due to the events of the prologue and epilogue。I'm really psyched this limited print novel was re-released because it certainly lived up to it's hype。 。。。more
Jessie Eblen
，
I feel like I wasted my time on this one。
Stevie Radzinski
，
Thank you to Random House Publishing - Ballantine Books for the ARC of this ebook in exchange for an honest review。 First， let me start of out by saying I was very excited for this book。 The idea of all six novellas revolving around the mysterious town of Goblin was so intriguing to me。 I am sad to say， I was very bored and disappointed。 I had a very hard time getting into any of the novellas within the book。 Each one left me SO BORED and the endings were a letdown。 The six novellas were: A Man Thank you to Random House Publishing - Ballantine Books for the ARC of this ebook in exchange for an honest review。 First， let me start of out by saying I was very excited for this book。 The idea of all six novellas revolving around the mysterious town of Goblin was so intriguing to me。 I am sad to say， I was very bored and disappointed。 I had a very hard time getting into any of the novellas within the book。 Each one left me SO BORED and the endings were a letdown。 The six novellas were: A Man in Slices， Kamp， Happy Birthday， Hunter！， Presto， A Mix-Up Zoo， and The Hedges。 Unfortunately， I do not have a lot to say about the book， other than I almost didn’t want to finish it。 Maybe Josh Malerman just isn’t for me？ 。。。more
Heather
，
Josh Malerman’s Goblin: A Novel in Six Novellas is an interconnected set of six stories–as well as a connected prologue and epilogue–all of which take place in and around the town of Goblin。 I really enjoyed the variety of tales！“Prologue: Welcome”: Tom is a delivery driver， and he’s been given an unusual late-night delivery to Goblin。 It’s a big ol’ box， and it comes with remarkably specific directions: don’t open the package。 Don’t stop driving。 Ignore anything unusual you might hear。 And if i Josh Malerman’s Goblin: A Novel in Six Novellas is an interconnected set of six stories–as well as a connected prologue and epilogue–all of which take place in and around the town of Goblin。 I really enjoyed the variety of tales！“Prologue: Welcome”: Tom is a delivery driver， and he’s been given an unusual late-night delivery to Goblin。 It’s a big ol’ box， and it comes with remarkably specific directions: don’t open the package。 Don’t stop driving。 Ignore anything unusual you might hear。 And if it can’t be delivered within the specified half-hour window， destroy it。 Naturally， it becomes difficult for Tom to adhere to these requirements。“A Man In Slices”: Richard has been Charles’s only friend since they met in school。 Now that they’re adults， once again Charles needs Richard’s help。 Only the kind of help he needs may be more than Richard wants to part with！ We see Richard and Charles’s interactions in slices as Richard contemplates the relationship they’ve had， and it’s fascinating。 The two characters are unusual， with a particularly bizarre friendship。 This is a great story！“Kamp”: Walter Kamp is the Goblin historian， and he seems to be having a difficult time lately。 He’s so convinced that something’s going to haunt him that he’s wrecked his entire apartment making sure he can see to the walls in every direction。 He’s set up traps。 Even his bed is made of plexiglass so he can be sure nothing’s hiding beneath it！ Lucky for him， his landlady seems to have a sense for how to distract him from his paranoia。 This story as well has remarkably interesting characters。 Walter is not your average paranoid loon， and his landlady is remarkably astute about human nature。 This story also gives us a rundown of some of the legendry surrounding the town’s origins。“Happy Birthday， Hunter！”: Neal Nash， called Hunter by his friends （because he’s an extremely avid hunter of game） is throwing the ultimate birthday bash， and it seems as though most of the town is in attendance。 But all Hunter cares about is bagging the one forbidden game creature in Goblin: the Great Owls。 I certainly didn’t see where this one was going， and it’s excellent！ Hunter and his friends and wife are again a really interesting set of people。 Malerman has a knack for relatable， unusual characters。“Presto”: Young Pete is a huge fan of magic shows， and more than anything he wants to see the magician who’s something of a pariah among other magicians: Roman Emperor。 When he finds out Roman is going to do a show in his town， Pete goes to great lengths to get there。 But Pete’s going to find out that Roman’s magic isn’t quite what he’s expecting。 Both Roman and his odd assistant Maggie are， once again， great characters。 I can’t really talk much about them without giving too much away， but they interact in such unusual ways。“A Mix-Up At the Zoo”: This is a particularly bizarre tale of a somewhat odd man， Dirk， who works two jobs: one giving tours at the zoo， and on the weekends he works at the slaughterhouse。 The animals seem particularly calm when he’s around， and in particular he wishes that the gorilla， Eula， could be free。 This story drags on a little， particularly with some bizarre dream sequences， and gripped me the least of the stories in here。 But it’s still a good story， and the end is positively chilling。“The Hedges”: Wayne Sherman is responsible for creating a stunning hedge maze that’s supposed to be next to impossible to solve–and hides a prize for anyone who might solve it。 One day a little girl solves his puzzle， and before she leaves， she tells him she’s going to go to the police and tell them exactly what she found。 Wayne starts packing up to leave， but memories of his dead wife Molly haunt him and slow him down。 And when Margot， the little girl， goes to the police， she finds that the very bizarre police of Goblin are maybe not people she should have voluntarily chosen to deal with。 Once again， it’s the characters that make this story so good。“Epilogue: Make Yourself At Home”: Tom is trying to deliver his box， but the recipient won’t answer the door。 He doesn’t want to have to deal with the box himself， so he finds the front door unlocked and goes on in。 Before the end of the night， he’ll be very glad he doesn’t actually live in Goblin。 The only thing that I couldn’t quite get is how it is that the contents of the box came to Goblin from somewhere else。 They seem like they should have been there to begin with。The characters are definitely the best part of this book–not a one of them is entirely what I expected。 The town’s history is fascinating and relates to a handful of the stories。 There’s a ton of atmosphere， and plenty of mysterious goings-on。 I absolutely recommend this collection to horror fans！Content note: animal harm/death; animals eating animals。 Mild horror-story blood and gore。 Some mild sexual content。 A little bit of body horror。Original review posted on my blog: https://www。errantdreams。com/2021/07/。。。 。。。more
Lilyleia78
，
That was strange。
Josh Krysak
，
Goblin was fun。 All of the stories held me and engaged me and Goblin itself provided a sinister vibe that brought enough connection for the collection of novellas to work。 The stories I approached with the most concern ended up being those that I enjoyed the most。
Gabby
，
So boring 😭https://youtu。be/EnQ8XQSzSxQ So boring 😭https://youtu。be/EnQ8XQSzSxQ 。。。more
Mandy
，
this book is dope
Natasha
，
My favorite of his that I've read so far。 I'm losing my whole mind about the Goblin police！！！！ My favorite of his that I've read so far。 I'm losing my whole mind about the Goblin police！！！！ 。。。more
Timmy
，
Goblin。 It's Nilbog spelled backwards。 Goblin。 It's Nilbog spelled backwards。 。。。more
Andi
，
This book was the first book I had ever read by this author。 I normally like stories with overlapping plot elements。 I thought that's how it would be with this story。 However I couldn't find the stories that interesting？ Some of them had elements that I thought would suck me in， but in the end， I came out confused or bored。 While I think the author can write， I just don't think the medium/template of how he wrote this book is for me。 I have some other books （like Bird Box and its sequel） that I This book was the first book I had ever read by this author。 I normally like stories with overlapping plot elements。 I thought that's how it would be with this story。 However I couldn't find the stories that interesting？ Some of them had elements that I thought would suck me in， but in the end， I came out confused or bored。 While I think the author can write， I just don't think the medium/template of how he wrote this book is for me。 I have some other books （like Bird Box and its sequel） that I want to try of his before crossing him off my list for good。 。。。more
Ryan Sasek
，
My first time reading Josh Malerman and I absolutely loved this book！ All the stories were well crafted with great characters。 I want to take a trip to the rainy town of Goblin after reading this。 And what a beautiful book cover！
Linda
，
The concept was great， but the stories leave you wanting more。 There are 6 novelas in this book and the best ones leaving you wishing they would have given you a clear ending or explanation of what happens。 “Presto” “ A Mix up in the Zoo”， and “The Hedges” were very interesting and I felt engulfed in the story。 The stories were very entertains but the endings just leave you hanging。 This may be a personal opinion but I felt like I was left wanting more with no clear explanation of what happened。 The concept was great， but the stories leave you wanting more。 There are 6 novelas in this book and the best ones leaving you wishing they would have given you a clear ending or explanation of what happens。 “Presto” “ A Mix up in the Zoo”， and “The Hedges” were very interesting and I felt engulfed in the story。 The stories were very entertains but the endings just leave you hanging。 This may be a personal opinion but I felt like I was left wanting more with no clear explanation of what happened。 I guess the author wanted to leave it open to your opinion， but I feel like it just made the stories very confusing。 I would have given these at least 4 stars if the endings would have been better explained。“A Man In Slices”， I can say was very creepy and you could easily tell where the story was going。 。。。more
Geri Sterling
，
Malerman continues to produce interesting， memorable， creepy stories and he does not disappoint with Goblin， a collection of six short stories taking place in the town of Goblin。
Daniel Corey
，
I have no problem whatsoever admitting that I loved this novellas collection。 It ticked a lot of boxes for me: small town horror， excellent variety （including a clever framing story that acted as a prologue and epilogue）， interconnectivity that felt organic， interesting characters with dark secrets， loads of creepy atmosphere， and an offbeat setting full of mystery and strange quirks （such as the town’s cemeteries being full of people buried standing up）。 It felt a lot like a Tales From The Cryp I have no problem whatsoever admitting that I loved this novellas collection。 It ticked a lot of boxes for me: small town horror， excellent variety （including a clever framing story that acted as a prologue and epilogue）， interconnectivity that felt organic， interesting characters with dark secrets， loads of creepy atmosphere， and an offbeat setting full of mystery and strange quirks （such as the town’s cemeteries being full of people buried standing up）。 It felt a lot like a Tales From The Crypt marathon in book form， and I firmly believe fans of that show will find a lot to love here。 That said， this isn’t a TFTC ripoff。 It very much has its own idiosyncrasies and fun， unique qualities。 A few minor issues kept it from getting the full 5 stars （which I won’t get into because of spoilers）， but this was a close call on that front。 So I’m going with a 4。5/5， rounded down。 Not too shabby for a book I picked up based on the awesome covert art！ I’d definitely recommend this one。My ranking:1） Presto2） The Hedges3） Happy Birthday， Hunter！4） A Man In Slices5） Kamp6） A Mix-Up At The Zoo 。。。more
Zak
，