Pearl

[Blurb goes here]

How I enjoy Josh Malerman's books, he's a no-nonsense writer, he comes out and writes with a sharp knife. My first Malerman book was 'Goblin', to this day no other anthology has had the same effect on me. 'Goblin' is a master piece.

Now on to 'Pearl' the powerful telepathic pig that always gets what he wants.

Perl is no common pig, he has been gifted with telepathic powers. He can control people at will, since he first learned by doing so to the farmer that tends to him.

Pearl is not an ordinary horror story, as you might have guessed. The story is creepy to say the least, it keeps you on your toes and stays with you, long after you've put the book down. For Malerman fans, this book is a most, as it is for horror fans as well.

The ending? Surprisingly beautiful.

Thank you for the advanced copy!

Walter Kopple's farm houses a very uncanny pig named Pearl. When Walter's grandson senselessly murders one of the pigs, claiming Pearl made him want to do it, the town can't seem to stop talking about it. The incident triggers a series of events that lead to the discovery of a true monster.

Pearl is a horror novel that was previously released under the title "On This, the Day of the Pig". I've read and enjoyed several of Malerman's novels and I was looking for something spooky to add to my fall reads list. Farm animals can be bit daunting for some but when they plot out a murderous revenge it becomes pretty frightening...this is no Charlotte's Web. This novel takes place in the town of Chowder, MI outside of Goblin which is another novella style book by the same author. This novel begins with Walter's daughter and two grandsons, Jeff and Aaron, visiting the farm. Jeff seems to be intensely frightened of a particular pig named Pearl but we don't quite understand why. When Jeff viciously kills one of the pigs claiming Pearl made him do it we quickly realize something sinister is at work. Word travels fast in a small town and some of the kids get an idea to go check out the "talking pig" triggering several violent and graphic events that are nothing short of nightmare fuel. We quickly learn Jeff isn't the only one who has experienced something strange with Pearl and feel threatened by the pig...and there is a good reason for it. There was an underlying moral to this story involving the human slaughter, torture, and general disregard for the wellbeing of animals. That being said It's a pretty crazy novel and I enjoyed that cunning twist at the end so I bumped up my star rating for the creativity that went into writing it. One complaint was the repetitiveness of certain verbiage such as "sing for me..." and "pukin good" which grated on my nerves after a bit. Overall if you are looking for a unique horror novel with lots of gore and violence I think this one will definitely scratch that particular itch for you.

Pearl is not your average pig; he is intelligent and has mental powers (ESP?). Pearl uses these powers to overrun the farm and seek revenge. This story runs like an evil Charlotte’s Web on crack. As gruesome and original as we could expect from this Malerman but it was just a bit too weird for my tastes. I have to admit the idea is definitely one of a kind. Be warned this was previously published as On This, The Day of the Pig.

Josh Malerman is an author who's new releases are automatically on my radar, so I picked up Pearl with very few expectations. This is one of my favorite ways to read a novel, but I was especially surprised when I opened this book to reveal its subject was a telepathic pig. What is even more surprising was how quickly I became engrossed in the story. Sadly, I did not remain this way throughout. The writing felt too drawn out to me. In fact, I think I would have loved this as a short story instead of a full length novel. The idea was better than the execution. I thought all the characters long backstories were unnecessary. I wanted a quick paced novel about a murderous pig, but the life story of everybody involved.

With that being said, I did enjoy some parts to this; I thought the horror and gore aspects of it were done really well (as I would expect from Malerman's work). There were times where I was genuinely scared while reading. I do not think that this story will work for everyone, but I love the uniqueness.

I am a huge fan of Josh Malerman's work. Inspection is one of my all-time favorite novels, and I've had Pearl on my TBR since I first heard about On This, the Day of the Pig making the rounds on Twitter (a reminder, by the way, that the horror community on Twitter is an invaluable wealth of knowledge and recommendations). I was thrilled to be approved for Pearl and quickly dove in.

When Walter's grandson slaughters a pig in a random act of violence, no one is expecting him to blame the pig. Pearl made him do it, he says, and as rumors begin circulating through the town, the mystery surrounding what happened on Koppel farm begins to draw attention. Pearl couldn't possibly be to blame...could he?

Yes, he damn well could, and Malerman starts this book off with a BANG.

This story gripped me from page one. The writing is sharp and conversational while still being literary, a trait I associate with most of Malerman's works. In a fever dream of madness, we get all sorts of crazy: telepathic animals, graphic, bloody violence, a pig with a grudge. The entire time I was reading, I had no idea where this was going to go, and I loved that aspect. Blatant dread-worthy horror at its finest.

What really works here are the voices. Malerman nails the human narrators, but Pearl's voice is incredibly off-putting. Several times I had to put it down because I found the commands to be unnerving, the kind of creepy that gets under your skin and gives you chills. On top of this, you get an examination of depravity, imagery that's straight out of a nightmare--some of which reminded me of that pie scene in Stephen King's The Body--and some masterful storytelling.

A quick, bloody-awesome read that's equal parts Animal Farm and Tender Is the Flesh, Pearl is going to be a top October read.

Huge thanks to Ballantine/Del Rey for providing an eARC in exchange for honest review consideration.

Okay, pigs can be a bit creepy. They eat anything, even people. I was on a farm once many years ago for some work I was doing and had to cross a small fenced in area to get to where I needed to be. A pig, A big one came around the corner and had this look on its face that told me that if I took one more step, I'd be his own private smorgasbord. This book, and the character Pearl, brought that memory back to me.
Okay two. Josh Malerman is decidedly weird. I've read several of his books and he definitely flies in a different stratosphere from most of us. Pearl is horror, no two ways around it. It has a Steven King flavor to it (think "Cujo") that kept me reading. I'll never turn my back on a pig again.
The only thing that kept me from giving this book five stars is that I thought the ending could have been better. It felt like the author wasn't sure how to conclude the story. It's not a bad ending, mind you, just not as good as I thought I'd could have been.

This is being re-released in October under the title Pearl. I have only read Bird Box, but have Malorie and Goblin. I wanted to read something new and to me this is.

First off, this was the kind of horror/thriller I like where you kind of have to suspend your disbelief that this could be possible, but like in Bird Box isn't the impossible and weird no longer fantastical, but now real? So this for me was fun.

I didn't want to stop reading because I had to know what this pig Pearl was doing and if he could be stopped. Love how the characters thought they were crazy or were driven crazy by how Pearl could screw with their minds. It kind of reminds me of Animal Farm only on crack and blood. Pearl is kind of out for revenge, but is trying to learn how far he can take it, yet he's almost like a cult leader on who he can control, who will aid him, and who will die for him. The truth is pigs are smart, but can they be this smart.

Maybe you should sing for Pearl and read this book, you know you WANT to.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for giving me an ebook in turn for an honest review.

I have posted this to my Goodreads account under the book's older title.

Special thanks to NetGalley, Random House Publishing and Ball an time del Ray for the ARC of this book in exchange for my own opinion.

Imagine my surprise when I realized that this was an old book by Josh Malerman entitled "On This, The Day of the Pig.. I wasn't too crazy about this book again! I hardly can tell if this is the same author who wrote Bird Box. I won't shame him for that reason. But Pearl, the pig, is the horror in this story with a bad eye that's actually his good eye and the power of telekinesis. Please. I'm A little perturbed but I will give it a 3 star review, only because its Josh Maker man, although I do think it should say its a book he already released with a different name.

And oh I know Mr. Maker man has his way with words he likes to put throughout his book that you won't find in a regular dictionary or maybe a futuristic dictionary to come. One term was " nucking futz" that I admit I used in the 80's but "Jebus" is not one I've heard and I can't remember the other word he uses frequently. Non memorable.

Josh Malerman has such a fantastic imagination; initially this felt like it was heading in a very Shining-y direction but when it diverts from that path, boy does it divert - and it's then things start getting truly scary.
This wasn't a perfect read for me - some of the story threads don't quite tie off as neatly as they felt like they needed, and I was ready to finish just a little sooner than the book was. It was pretty excellent though, and when you combine pretty excellent with existential terrors, just a smattering of gore, and some characters I not only liked but would want to spend time with again - how could I not recommend it?
Full review to come on my YouTube channel.

This book had me saying “wtf am I reading” so many times. I couldn’t believe I was reading a book about a telepathic pig who was able to mind control humans and animals, as well as project hallucinations into their minds. But more than that, I couldn’t believe I enjoyed it! Josh Malerman is in the master class of horror authors for me. I will say it wasn’t my favorite from him, but very well crafted just like his other books!

I was a little deceived in receiving this arc, because I thought it was a new release for Malerman. It turns out that this is a previously published book with a different title. Nonetheless, thank you to NetGalley for the free e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

Pearl is a re-release of an earlier book by Josh Malerman previously titled "On this, the Day of the Pig." After the success of Bird Box, we've now seen the re-releases of both this and Goblin presumably to capitalize on Malerman's increased name recognition. The problem with Pearl is that is comes nowhere near the haunting realism of Bird Box and instead reads like a deluded cross between Babe, Animal Farm, and Stephen King's "Cujo."

The title character is a pig with telekinetic powers bent on freedom and vengeance for humanity's many wrongs to his species. This one sentence will probably be enough to convince you to either read this or stay away depending on your horror preferences. With a premise like this, you know going in that it's going to be over the top, completely unbelievable, and chock full of gore. Pearl gleefully hits each of these early and often and admittedly it is a fun ride. There's some truly sickening scenes and some very upsetting "human-on-pig" descriptions of abuse on factory farms to be aware of for those with triggers. Thankfully Malerman doesn't take the narrative too seriously and seems to delight in the surreal world he creates for his characters.

So why the two star review? Simply put, Pearl is all over the place. The narrative jumps around character to character and none of the personas are fleshed out enough to either decipher between them or to have any deeper connection to them. Pearl's character motives and back story are cloudy at best and there's no real end game or stakes at hand as a result. It all winds up as a muddy, bloody mess towards the end leaving readers with plenty of questions and a general feeling of confusion. But hey, if you like your horror dirty and blood soaked I'd say pick this up and maybe next time go with the Fakin' Bacon.

**I was given a copy of this book by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey**

Thanks to #netgalley for letting me read this! So it was previously called This the Day of the Pig, its been rebranded as Pearl. Let me say Pearl is something else entirely, when I told a few people what I was reading what its about I got some very interesting looks. First let me say mystery, suspense, and well gore is all included in Pearl. It certainly makes me think twice about pigs but will not stop me from eating them lol. I loved the way the book ended and how Jeff handled it. I'm not sure what caused Jeff and Pearl to have that telepathic link going both ways it never went in depth really with how Pearl even got his well powers I guess. The end kind of leaves you not 100% sure exactly what just happened. You think you know and then the last chapter its one of those wait did it really happen?
Its a really good book and I must say I'm from Michigan near Grand Rapids and so reading a book set so close to home just makes it that much better!

This guy is a legend, he takes the stories that we've grown up with like charlotte's web or babe, and puts a twisted version of it, and wow! This is a one-of-a-kind novel, I think it's going to be either an absolute love it or hate it. I loved it!
So Pearl is a pig, but not just a regular pig this is a pig who has the power to do controlling things with his mind. Pearl has a way to make people sing for him so, that he can get the other pigs to kill them. While Pearl does not seem to have regard for the other pigs, it seems that he is just out for one thing. I will say that this pig was basically out for revenge, while he was spared when he was younger the farmer taught him and it seems like that inspired his thought process.
When I first started reading this book I was so excited to read something of Josh Malerman (he is absolutely one of my auto-buy authors) and this book did not disappoint! While I was sucked in I couldn't stop reading as the horror unfolded, while there are some pretty grotesque parts they aren't soo bad that you will have to stop reading! You know you want to pick it up and read this one! You know you want to sing for Pearl!

Although at first a telepathic pig was weird to think about but Malerman definitely made it a work. Won’t be stopping by the pigs when we go to the petting zoo.

Although this novel was not for me I can see this appealing to readers who enjoy animal horror stories. Very creepy, erry vibes. The author did have a good writing style that I appreciated, but the overall story just wasn't for me.

This was not at all what I was expecting! It feels like a classic paint-by-numbers horror story and yet it's somehow simultaneously one of the most unique horror stories I've read in a long time. Josh Malerman always brings something interesting to the table, and Pearl is one spooky pig! Disgusting, disturbing fun.

This is yet another excellent novel from Josh Malerman and, much like the rest of his work, it’s not beholden to the typical pattern of churning out work that’s similar to everything else the author has written. Malerman’s willingness to write everything from deep, philosophical horror to a twisted, yet still charming teenage love story is what makes him one of today’s best current writers.

In this book, we’re introduced to Pearl, a male pig with a maimed eye. Pearl is unlike the rest of his breed; so much so, that they’ve elevated him to a position of superiority.

Like many leaders, Pearl can be cruel and vindictive, but he also views the other pigs on the farm as being better than humans. Pearl uses his telepathic powers - which reach far beyond mere telepathy - to evolve and control others.

Ostensibly a creature feature horror novel, Malerman’s tale is so much more than that. It deftly explores themes such as animal cruelty and the awfulness of humans believing that they matter more than any other creature on earth.

Animal lovers, vegetarians, and vegans will find much to like in this book, but they’ll also have to face some of their worst fears. But don’t worry if you’re a meat eater or don’t want a book with a heavy sociopolitical theme because Malerman has a nice balance that will allow you to enjoy a gritty horror book.

The writing style displayed in this novel is rawer than Malerman’s other recent books, both in content and in voice. But that’s part of its charm, and it works really well with the main POV characters.

Tonally and stylistically, Pearl is most similar to Goblin, Malerman’s fantastic short story collection.

This was such a spooky, creepy read from the talented author of Birdbox. It's very disturbing and gets appalling at times. An incredibly original read about a pig who terrorizes a family and gets them to do bad things.

For the longest time I wasn't sure how to review this but the more I thought about it, the more I realized I just didn't like the book. I didn't like the story or the characters.

Unlike any of his other works. Haunting and unsettling. Pearl will stick with you for a long time after you read and make you winder, what if...