thank you to Netgalley and Sterling & Stone for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

full review to come.

3.5 stars
The plot line of this story intrigued me:  young orphan Raymond is a talented artist with a special ability to see other people's pain through color.  But his own chronic pain and bullying leave him feeling isolated, until his new caseworker shows him how his unique gift can help him.  But what's in it for her?    Overall, I really liked this book, and I couldn't help but fall in love with Raymond.  But apparently I missed the memo that this was the first in a series, so the ending left me feeling a bit let down.

Thank you sterling and stone publishing and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.


“Knowledge wasn’t power.

It was pain.”

The color of pain is uniquely written and peculiar sort of book. It tells us story of a 8 years old Raymond who’s orphan. Now everyone must have read a book about orphan or watched movies too. Even then the color of pain hits differently.

“An orphan’s whole life was being told what to do.”
Being an orphan is already a hard life but Raymond is different, a freak as most people consider him to be. Some treat him badly. He is even bullied by some, especially a boy named Kevin who is a charmer and showoff when adults are around.

“Things would always be easy for the Kevins of the world, whether they deserved it or not. It's the way it is.”

When trouble starts, even when it is not Raymond's fault he is sure to be punished

“For as long as he lived, he’d never understand the sisters. They’d jump to pull out the ruler for a dumb word like “dick,” but when it came to actual violence, they couldn’t be bothered. It made no sense.”

Raymond is not just different, he has a power, an unique one. He can see colors not like normal people do. But he is not able to decipher the secret behind. When his counselor leaves suddenly, not at fault of Raymond but still because of him, he gets new counsellor Ada. Ada makes him understand what he is exactly but she is asking him a price he might not be ready to pay for.

The color pain is written brilliantly and captures your attention from the start. Overall a good read.

I enjoyed the writing!!! This was unique and dark with some twists! I see myself recommending this one... obviously to a targeted audience.

The Color of Pain immerses readers in a dark and twisted narrative that unfolds with relentless intensity. With a plethora of unexpected turns, this thrilling tale keeps its audience on the edge of their seats, navigating through a maze of suspense and intrigue. The story's depth and intricacy are masterfully woven, ensuring that readers are not only engaged but completely sucked into the harrowing world depicted within its pages. The novel's dark themes are balanced by the sheer thrill of its unpredictability, creating a gripping reading experience that leaves a lasting impact. The Color of Pain is a captivating journey through shadows and secrets, proving to be an exhilarating read for those who relish stories with a penchant for the unexpected.

Definitely quite strange and unique. I highly appreciate that in today's world of homogeneous fiction. I highly recommend this book.

This gripping book delves into the dark recesses of the human psyche, taking readers on a haunting journey through the life of Raymond, a young orphan who endures a lifetime of torment at the hands of bullies. Raymond's peculiar abilities set him apart from the other children, making him an outcast. To make matters worse, he struggles with chronic stomach pains and bladder control issues, making his life even more challenging.

Enter Ada, a new caseworker who sees beyond Raymond's oddities and offers him both help and insight into his unique gifts. Raymond can peer into people's emotions, uncovering their hidden secrets. Ada's understanding of his abilities is a lifeline for Raymond, and he's eager to learn more from her. However, what he discovers about himself is utterly horrifying—he must feed off other people's pain to survive. When Ada arranges for Raymond to join a foster family, he believes his luck has finally turned. But this family hides a sinister darkness of their own, and Raymond's placement with them is no accident.

The plot, mostly set within the confines of an orphanage with its strange occurrences and urban legends, is truly excellent and intricately plotted. I found myself enamored with Raymond, a young child faced with harrowing decisions that he has to make for himself. It's a brilliant twist on the usual horror protagonist, and I was excited to discover that this is just the beginning of a series. I can't wait to see where the story takes us next. I'm absolutely here for it!

The writing is clever and meticulously crafted, creating a slow-building, spine-tingling atmosphere that gives you goosebumps and keeps you on edge throughout.

This book grabs you right from the start, and is relentless as it tears away at your heart, chapter by chapter. There aren’t any trigger warnings given, and its all their in the description so not really needed, but the emotional abuse and neglect of children are the locus around which the story revolves, and it can be a brutal portrayal. But also quite effective. Parts of this story feel expected, and yet parts of it are delightfully fresh.

The world-building is a little heavy-handed, with some of the worst stereotypes about orphanages and bullies all wrapped up into one story, but it never felt beyond the realm of realistic. The characters felt real and genuine, or as much as one would expect in a horror-novel set in an orphanage. Our main character is supposed to be around eight years old, and I will say his emotional intelligence and does seem to move around depending on the needs of the chapter, but at the same time, given the trauma he has endured and the circumstances he is in that is not entirely unexpected. And the main antagonizing force does seem a little over the top, a little cliched. But, while we do get some objective experiences of her, most of our interaction is from the perspective of a child, so she seeming larger than life is, again, expected. The world and characters all toyed with being exaggerations, yet managed to reign it in enough to be compelling characters that felt real enough that I was quickly invested in their emotional journeys. I really enjoyed the writing. The chapters were short, and crafted and paced in such a way as to keep you going. The front third of the story seemed a little bit slowly paced, but it did a lot of heavy lifting in getting us emotionally involved with our main character, and his desperation to fit in and be loved, that it didn’t feel wasted. Once things start moving it is easy to telescope how things will turn out, again it is alluded to in the story’s description but it also just makes sense for the story and genre, but being able to predict the ending didn’t make the journey less fulfilling. If anything it made it more tragic. The novel ends very much in just the beginning of a bigger story, really leaving more questions than answers, yet it still felt fulfilling.

What insidious forces grow in the darkness of neglect, in the absence of the sun of care and affection? What happens when those with social power exploit the gifts of the marginalized, retraumatizing them in the process, and yet they can do so in such a way that has a veneer of benevolence, instead of abuse and exploitation? And what happens when our own nourishment is intimately linked to others’ suffering? Is there a price too high, a price where happiness or contentment can only come in exchange for morality? Is that even happiness? And what happens when those questions are forced on an adolescent who has no angel on their shoulder, only demon after demon? This novel certainly doesn’t answer any of those questions, but it certainly forces you to think about them, which is what great genre writing does.

(Rounded up from 3.5)

I want to thank the author, the publisher Sterling & Stone, and NetGalley, who provided a complimentary eARC for review. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This was such a beautifully written book and I really enjoyed it. Thanks to Netgalley for the chance to read it!

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley.

I'm a huge fan of horror books. So this was right up my alley.. The title itself caught my eye.
This book has such an unique storyline and concept to it.
Our main character is an orphaned boy with an unique "gift." He loves to be artistic... particularly drawing and painting. He is horrified by his "gift"... and saddened by what he needs to do to literally stay alive. The author does an amazing job at making you FEEL his emotions and pain, which is amazing.

The book is ... just so damn good. Seriously, if you are a horror fan, get this book

I really enjoyed this novel. The story is primarily told from the perspective of a young orphaned boy, and the author did a great job with this character. Some of the scenes were heartbreaking.

The ending doesn't wrap everything up fully, but it looks like this novel will have a sequel and I will definitely be reading it. I wish there was more information online about the author because I'd love to know when to expect the follow up.

4.5/5

Raymond is an artistic young boy, constantly being bullied by the other children in the orphanage. His stomach roils most of the time leaving him weak and unable to eat. Until he discovers a different, more sinister source of food for himself, the pain of others.

This is a really enjoyable read that keeps you guessing until the very end. I felt very drawn to the story and had trouble putting it down. It seems to be the first in a series and I cannot wait for the next one!

Beautifully written with vivid colors and emotions, The Color of Pain is a can't miss for fans of supernatural horror.

As if being abandoned as a toddler by his mother wasn’t enough, Raymond also has chronic stomach pain and is ruthlessly bullied by the other kids at The Haven for Little Wanderers Orphanage. Constantly let down by every person around him, he is more than thrilled when his new case worker, Ada, shows him love and affection. It also helps that she understands and helps to teach Raymond more about his special “abilities”. The more he learns the more terrifying things become, and the more terrifying he becomes.

The Color of Pain is an intriguing story. I really love the use of color and their meanings in horror and this does a great job painting those pictures and evoking that emotion associated with them. Essentially Raymond is an Empath, but with a dangerous twist. This gets quite dark and emotional and that’s not including the bullying and essentially the neglect Raymond is subjected to. Although his age is stated, his behavior actually made his age feel more ambiguous. I kept finding myself wondering how old he was repeatedly. Sometimes he felt like a teenager and sometimes like a young child. I didn’t really care for that. He is pretty well developed for this being the first book in The Colors of Novice Raymond series. He is definitely a sympathetic character. I couldn’t help but feel his sadness and guilt.

Ada really pissed me off. Talk about gaslighting. So, great writing there. There is a chapter from her POV when she goes home and has a nightmare and it really felt unnecessary. We get enough later about who she is and what she can do without that small part.

I do like that this takes a different side from typical Empath stories. Since having empathy is generally seen as a good thing, to take something so positive and turn it into something more tragic is abhorrent but it works. Everything has a dark side. I’m ready to see where Ray’s story goes.

Overall, it's a decent book. It’s giving me Stephen King’s Doctor Sleep vibes with the whole feeding off people’s energies, pain in particular and I love that book, so take that as you will.

Thank you to NetGalley, E.G. Rose, and Sterling and Stone for the ARC for review. This is my honest opinion and a voluntary submission.

Raymond, a sweet boy abandoned as a child, has lived a lonely existence in an orphanage being regularly bullied and feeling misunderstood by everyone he comes into contact with.  He sees colours, aura's other people cannot see, and is able to extract secrets other people think are deeply buried within themselves.  His abilities scare people, he even scares himself sometimes.  

Then he meets Ada his new behaviour specialist, and everything changes.  Ada shows him what he really is and what he is capable of.  She shows him what he needs to feed on to satisfy his growing hunger, and just what he needs to do to extract it.  Raymond finally thinks he's found a loving caregiver in Ada, but when Ada suddenly announces that he is to be adopted, Raymond realises Ada is not who he thought she was.  Ada has sinister intentions and her manipulation of him leads to a terrible tragedy which changes his world forever.  The question is, now that he knows who he is and what he is, what will he do next?

This is quite a unique story which had me hooked from the start.  I loved the fact that the author incorporated aura's into this story, that it wasn't one-dimensional, and that the author didn't give up the answers to all the questions easily, allowing you to circumvent with your own imagination.  

I definitely recommend reading this book, especially if you have an interest in psychological horror.

I can only rate the book based on the portion that I read. I got to 12% over a two-three week time period. I was really excited about the concept of this book, but the beginning is incredibly slow and ultimately did not pull me in enough to keep me. I was also confused by the narrator’s tone. I know the main character is a young boy, but he seemed both too juvenile and too mature, depending on the paragraph.

Wow this book is very dark but very good. Many twists and turns I enjoyed the colors and pain he sees and pain that he feeds on. This is a great read.

This was such a unique and interesting story. Pretty depressing at times, but I love how colours are used throughout the plot.

I will say that I was confused on and off, and had hoped for more answers by the end. Unfortunately, just like Ray, we only get one question answered.

The editing was a bit off- there were some areas that could be polished, typos, accidental repetition, character name mixups. The pace of the story ebbed and flowed, I wish it had been a bit faster at some parts.

The whole concept of Ray- his gifts and “hungers” was so interesting, and the author was adept at creating the narration from his child like perspective. You really feel for Ray; empathize and sympathize for his circumstances and struggles.

I hope there’s another book in the works so we can find out more about the characters and their “gifts”.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Sterling & Stone for a copy!

The first half was intriguing but I find myself asking more and more questions as the book went on. I feel like the characters experiences weren’t clearly explained and left me wondering what the book was actually about. I have more questions than answers after reading.

3.5 stars.

Raymond’s tummy hurts, he’s never hungry but he’s starving. Perhaps he’s not eating the right thing? Raymond wants to be normal, his fellow orphans think he’s weird and he feels weird himself… there is only one person who truly gets him.

The story was unique and well told. There were multiple typos that I hope get fixed before it’s officially published but otherwise no issues! This is an easy binge read and would be great in one sitting, I did it over multiple sittings but think I would’ve been more immersed if I really hunkered down.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

This book was so odd but it was readable. I wanted more of it and the writing was FLAWLESS. I usually can not get into this genre of horror but I loved every second of it.