Holy. Hell. I was raised Catholic and everything that entails, and Philip Fracassi's Boys in the Valley is wonderful, specific Catholic horror. Set at a Catholic boy's orphanage in the early 1900s, evil overtakes half the boys and trouble ensues. This book is unrelenting, horrific scene after horrific scene once you're ~80 pages in. I devoured it. I hope horror fans rally around this one, because it has the makings of the next horror blockbuster. Fracassi is for real!

I have been waiting to read this book since Sadie Hartmann’s pivotal tweet a couple of years ago that sent this book from a limited printing that was no longer available to a firestorm of people excited to get their hands on a copy but couldn’t!
Now coming out July 11th published by TorNightfire, Philip Fracassi’s Boys in the Valley will take the horror scene by storm!

A secluded orphanage run by 3 priests is home to 30 boys of various ages. Peter, one of the two oldest boys at age 16, has been there most of his life. A young priest in training, Peter is much loved by the younger boys as a friend and mentor.

One night a wounded and delusional man is brought to the orphanage for medical help but dies that night unleashing something terrifying into the halls of the orphanage that divides and changes the boys. Peter fears he knows what they are facing and begins to ready himself and his allies for a battle not just for their lives but for their souls.

I loved this book! I loved the camaraderie between the boys and especially Peter’s relationship with his mentor, Father Andrew. I’ve seen the book compared to The Lord of the Flies and I’d agree- though orphanage style. If you’re looking for a good coming of age novel that has creepy children, good versus evil, and a bit of the heartwarming relationships between friends, then this is you’re book!

Thank you Netgalley and TorNightfire for the ARC of this book!

Like everything else he touches, this book was gold. The story was so engrossing, I finished it in one sitting, having to see where the boys ended up, how they would deal with evil in this place. After a group of strangers late night visit to the orphanage, things begin to change rapidly. Boys act strangely, violence and rebellion becomes almost common. Things quickly go from normal to murder and mayhem. The priests, ranging from loving and caring, to demanding and cold, handle these acts very differently, confusing the boys unaffected, and making the situation doubly worse. The real question is, in the end, can these boys and their caregivers save themselves from the evil that's been unleashed? Absolutely a 10/10, worth every minute!

Wow. This book was great. I've read Philip Fracassi before, one time, and enjoy the book (Gothic). But this book I loved. Might be the best book I've read so far this year. The characters were great, and well developed. The story and pacing were also great, and every time I put it down, I didn't want to. Will have to read some of his older books, and definitely looking forward to future ones.

* Thank you for this ARC, Tor Publishing and NetGalley! *

This book... Ah, wow. First, I had been wanting to read it for over a year, ever since my Book Review Guru (mother.horror, hello!) mentioned it in February 2022, with such praise... It even got the attention of Stephen King (who, by the way, LOVED it too).

So when I was approved to read this ARC, I was estatic.
It DID NOT disappoint!

I was already a fan of Philip Fracassi, and this book just cemented my love for him. It was scary, a little gory, inventive, beautifully crafted and written. The prose is awesome. The characters are awesome. The story... 5 stars. I want to give it 6 stars, ok?

BOYS IN THE VALLEY! Stephen King tells no lies. Non-stop terror. A book you want to step into so you can save your favorites from the horror awaiting them. Philip Fracassi introduces a world of good vs evil where all outcomes are in doubt, even your own!

The multi-pov works well here, including the different tenses (first/third). Good pace, never boring. Peter and Andrew's relationship is refreshing. A priest depicted as wanting to care for children. Thr dread through the entire book is incredible. Huge, huge Fracassi fan.

Tales of demonic possession are right up my alley, as are pre-cell-phone stories about isolated communities struggling against an evil force, so Philip Fracassi's BOYS IN THE VALLEY really hit my sweet spot. Your mileage may vary, but if you're in the mood for an atmospheric piece of literary Horror, you've picked up the right book.

A group of late-night visitors unwittingly deposit an ancient Horror at the doorstep of a remote Catholic orphanage in Pennsylvania, which soon tears apart the lives of the Priests and orphans who live and work there.

The supernatural aspect almost takes a back seat to the characters and the harsh lives they are forced to lead in the impoverished orphanage. Fracassi does an amazing job of letting the reader get to know the large cast of characters, and the boys meet live and breathe in a way that really makes you worried for them when the supernatural aspect of the story really kicks in. In the right hands, this would make an amazing movie or mini-series.

Fracassi seems like an overnight sensation, but he's been at this for a while, which is good news for people like me, who have just discovered him. He's got a lot more books out there, and his "overnight" success is well-deserved if they're even half as good as this one. Highly recommended.

Hands down, Boys In The Valley is probably one of my favorite books I have read so far this year. This is everything I look for in a horror novel.

It takes a lot to scare me, I've seen a lot and read a lot in my lifetime and there are too many repetitive scares out there trying to package themselves in a shiny new package, this is not one of those re-packaged scares.

Now, I am not a religious person at all but I was raised Catholic(ish) and there is still something about demons and possession that really puts me right on edge. This book did not disappoint in really taking me right to that point of heavy anxiety and not letting up one bit.

Right from jump we get in your face creepy kids, horrid adults, and the feeling of being isolated and trapped with no where to escape to. Towards the end even I had to stop reading in the wee hours of the night and pick it back up in the daylight. A+ horror!!

This book was everything and more. Frankly I had to take breaks - intense, slightly graphic and very well written.
I loved the hierarchy of all - the orphans, priests, how they interacted. Reminiscent of Exorcism plus Lord of the Flies.
Priests at a remote all boys orphanage are awoken in the night - the local sheriff desperate for help, his brother on the brink of death. Upon his death, an evil spirit is sent upon the orphanage - creating an us vs them.
The suspense, descriptions - very well done. I will definitely be looking for more by this author.

All the stars for Boys in the Valley!! I devoured 80 % of the book in 2 days and that is amazing for me. This book was everything I look for. Possession, friendship, difficult decisions! This book packs so much.

The Exorcist meets the Lord of the Flies with a touch of Midnight Mass in this story about an orphanage that is overtaken by evil, and the fight to save the souls of the boys within. St. Vincent’s Orphanage for Boys is an orphanage run by priests to oversee thirty boys who work, learn, and worship. Peter Barlow is an orphan who’s partners died by murder. Peter is one of the older boys who is working towards becoming a priest. One stormy night the sheriff and deputies arrive at the orphanage with a badly wounded man who has occult symbols carved into him. The man was the only survivor of a horrifying and terrible crime scene and the police have him... except he dies and his death has now unleashed an ancient evil that begins infecting the children of the orphanage. Now the boys have begun acting strange, forming groups... and dead children begin appearing... and now Peter must find a way to save those he holds dear as everything around him goes up in flames and evil is let loose. This was such an interesting read, I love the atmosphere that it built and the horror was so good. This was a fantastic horror book and you can feel the tension build every chapter and I was at the edge of my seat waiting to see how everything would end. Truly, it was a fantastic horror read!

*Thanks Netgalley and Tor Publishing Group, Tor Nightfire for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

I just finished this book moments ago. After I read the last line, I blinked and sighed, then came to write a review. No waiting on this one.
This is old school horror at its finest, demon vs religion, ready to disturb and creep you out. One of the things I respect about authors is when they can write really disturbing scenes without going into graphic detail, yet still be as unsettling as the in your face violence. Fracassi excelled at doing this. Multiple scenes aren't overly detailed in the book, yet are very vivid in my mind due to the skilled way in which Fracassi let it play out.
The ending thankfully did not feel rushed like can sometimes happen when the climax finally hits. It was fleshed out, tense, and the ending... Oh, that last bit was good. I don't know why I didn't expect it, but there I was caught off guard, and not mad about it.
I can not wait until this is released so I can start getting it in the store I work at.

(I received this book from the editor and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)

When I saw the description for the newest book by Philip Fracassi, Boys in the Valley, I thought they were exaggerating: Midnight Mass meets the Lord of the Flies meets The Exorcist? Could such a perfect mix (for my reading urges) be possible? I was sceptical.
And oh, was I wrong, because Boys in the Valley is horror and madness in a perfect, twisted unison.
Each chapter changes perspective, which allows the reader to see the same scene from different point of views (and different interpretations of what is happening).
At first, we meet Peter, the main character, through some horrors in his past that brought him to the orphanage in where all the action, sorry, nightmare, takes place. He is one of the oldest boys in there, and he feels as if he was sometimes in charge of the smaller ones, but once all hell breaks loose, we understand that he is just a child himself, trying to understand how everything turned to absolute chaos in a matter of days. And what is his role in all of this; if he manages to survive the night, of course.
As a trigger warning, I must add that there are some very violent scenes involving both adults and children, and the descriptions are very graphic but not to the point of being morbid.
The sense of isolation and complete despair is present from the beginning until the end, and the storm lurks both outside and inside the orphanage.

Although I am dying to talk about this book with someone, I do not want to give many details away, either, so I will end this review with a huge thank to Netgalley and the editors for the ARC, the biggest ovation possible to Philip Fracassi and his craft, and an advice to all readers interested: start reading this book on a day where you don’t have any commitments or plans, because once you enter the orphanage you will not be able to stop reading until the last page leaves you out of breath.
You’ve been warned.

Boys in the Valley takes place at St. Vincent's Orphanage for Boys in the very early 1900s in a remote area of Pennsylvania. Our main character is Peter, who is one of the oldest boys at the orphanage, having been there most of his life, and is readying to either leave the orphanage or become a priest, like his father figure, Father Andrew.

One night there is a tragic death at the orphanage, and evil is released, turning some of the boys against the others. Peter must grapple with his faith against evil to save himself and the boys before they're all overcome.

This was really excellent - genuinely scary, fast paced, and hard to put down! One of the descriptions says "The Exorcist meets Lord of the Flies, by way of Midnight Mass" and that really could not be more accurate. If you enjoy any of the above, you'll love this. I'll be thinking about this one for a long time!

A clumsily written, yet propulsive horror novel in the vein of old-school pulp. Philip Fracassi's "Boys In The Valley" doesn't offer much to readers interested in time, place, or character - while the book is ostensibly set in a rural nineteenth-century orphanage, the dialogue is indistinguishable from what you might expect to hear in a modern high school, and vernacular like "okay" and "child abuse" provide tonally jarring moments - but Fracassi has a clear gift for horror, and it's in the scenes of carnage that the book really shines. I wasn't especially attached to any of the main characters, of which the book has a surfeit, but when the blood started to fly, I couldn't bring myself to put the book down. Will appeal to fans of Richard Matheson and Nick Cutter.

The beginning got me a little excited for the story. It fit the time period but, as the story started the environment did not seem to fit the time period much anymore. The violence that comes about as the stranger is brought in around minors was dealt with with only a couple men? Why did they not get it out of there right after or get the kids somewhere safer? It was a story told many times. Some of it was interesting and I stayed with it making it a good story but other parts I was just felt has been over done and I did not find enough to make me care about the characters. I read the information of the story but did not feel the characters and situation. I thought it was still good but for me not great.

(i received an e-arc from tor and netgalley in exchange for an honest review.)

religious suppression, corrupt clergy, and nail-biting suspense—oh my. i found myself flying through the pages because BY GOD i needed to know just what the hell was haunting the orphanage. (pun intended.) with the multiple points of view, i got to see how the thin, shaky line between sanity and madness easily eroded amongst the group of boys. this book (rightfully) dares to look religious authority in the eye and peel its decaying layers back, piece by piece.

i am keeping my eyes peeled for a physical edition, because i would love to annotate this chilling story in full.

Philip Fracassi made my top 10 list last year with A Child Alone With Strangers and would have made it twice, had I not put a self imposed rule in place to only include an author once (Gothic came out this year but I read it last year). And now this year Fracassi looks to cement himself onto that list yet again.

Boys in the Valley is a terrifying coming of age story — a trope that has been done to death, but is given fresh life in the form of a period piece about lose, family, sacrifice, and duty. Through multiple shifting viewpoints we’re shown the corruption and beauty religion can have on one’s life and the lives of others, with the bleak and freezing backdrop of impending winter at a remote orphanage.

This story is really something special and truly horrifying.

Fracassi is making his TOR Nightfire debut with possibly the best novel the imprint has put out to date. This is the summer blockbuster every horror reader needs in their life.

Run, don’t walk, to pick this one up when it drops on 7/11/23

5/5 🌟

Boys In the Valley reminded me of the atmosphere from John Carpenter's "The Thing" and the horrors of NOS4A2; both of which I love and boy did I love this book! Fracassi did an excellent job of building characters who carry a true heft and the pace of this story flies at break-neck speed! Boys In the Valley is a horror story that pulls no punches and I really appreciate that. I must mention as well that in addition to the unsettling nature of this book, Fracassi really lays the groundwork with his characters and I cared about the implications as a reader.

As this was my first foray into Fracassi as an author, I can confidently say I'll be seeking more of his work in the near future!

Thank you NetGalley for providing an advanced copy for review!

If you tell me that there is a book about a catholic orphanage where demonic presence possesses children, I am THERE!

This book was terrifying. This isn’t the whole jump scare and visceral horror that I usually really love in horror books, but instead a quieter, more atmospheric horror that was just incredible.

Set in 1898 against a snowy backdrop, and inside the walls of an all boys catholic orphanage, we follow a group of boys who live, work and worship together. Peter, a boy who lived most of his life here is just deciding whether or not to dedicate his life to the priesthood.

But an evil is unleashed upon them all, a demonic presence and it is changing the boys who live there. A rift between good and evil is evident and Peter and his friends have to stop it before it takes all of them.

Now that I have read one book by this author, I must go and read everything he has written.