Art Barbara is writing his memoir starting with his creation of the Pallbearers Club in high school. Mercy is a college student who joins up and befriends him. She writes notes in his memoir to question his "memory" of events and evens questions that this is a memoir. She thinks the book is more of a novel. Art is a mopish teen (and adult) with health issues and few friends, eventually becoming a musician. There are hints that Mercy is a vampire. Not much happens in the book. I would have loved this to have been a horror novel but sadly it was not. Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Tremblay continues to craft taut, suspenseful riffs on classic genre tropes. The Pallbearers Club is another A+ horror story.

Read this if you like: Creepy stories, slow burn, shorter reads, manuscripts

Art Barbara was a seventeen-year-old high school loner in the late 1980s who listened to hair metal, had to wear a monstrous back-brace at night for his scoliosis, and started an extracurricular club for volunteer pallbearers at poorly attended funerals. His new friend thought the Pallbearers Club was cool. She also brought along her Polaroid camera to take pictures of the corpses.

She had obsessive knowledge of a notorious bit of New England folklore that involved digging up the dead. There were other strange things and terrifying things that happened when she was around, usually at night.

Decades later, Art tries to make sense of it all by writing The Pallbearers Club: A Memoir. But somehow this friend got her hands on the manuscript and, well, she has some issues with it. Now she's making cuts and notes.

This book is really different. I loved that it was sort of being narrated as you were reading it. She's crossing things out and making comments. I will say that the format of the book I was given was difficult to read sometimes. Sometimes the notes that were supposed to be in the margin were actually over the body of words. Hopefully they have come up with a solution for it to be read on a tablet. I loved the feel of this one. The characters were perfectly developed. I flew through this one. Definitely recommend it!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and William Morrow for the gifted copy!

The Pallbearers Club
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Psychological Thriller/Horror
Format: Kindle eBook
Date Published: 7/5/22
Author: Paul Tremblay
Publisher: William Morrow & Company
Pages: 288
Goodreads Rating:

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and William Morrow & Company and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Art Barbara was so not cool. He was a seventeen-year-old high school loner in the late 1980s who listened to hair metal, had to wear a monstrous back-brace at night for his scoliosis, and started an extracurricular club for volunteer pallbearers at poorly attended funerals. But his new friend thought the Pallbearers Club was cool. And she brought along her Polaroid camera to take pictures of the corpses. Her obsessive knowledge of a notorious bit of New England folklore that involved digging up the dead. And there were other strange things—terrifying things—that happened when she was around, usually at night. But she was his friend, so it was okay, right?

My Thoughts: First, I want to say, I have read hundreds of books and there has never been a book that I have read like this. The story starts in the 80’s, which is the best time period for something like this, as the 80’s was the decade of horror movies and serial killers. The story is Art’s memoir and his friend makes annotations in the margins. The author does an amazing job with setting the various scenes, so descriptive and real, that you feel you are right there with the characters. The characters are well-developed, have depth, and a mysterious component to them. I love Tremblay’s style of writing, there is nothing else like it. Even though this is my first Tremblay read, it will not be my last. It has complexity, suspense, encompasses fear, and just works so well for this novel. I highly recommend checking out this book tomorrow when it releases.

Possible spoilers


Paul Tremblay is not a jump out from behind the curtain horror writer. He doesn't fill his stories with blood or gore or monsters under your bed waiting to grab you. He instead tells you an ordinary tale until this thing occurs, then another thing happens, and then it takes a turn. Tremblay writes cosmic horror, which is considered to be weird fiction that tackles the unknowable. The Pallbearers Club approaches the unknowable of vampirism, grief, and depression.
Art is a teen with scoliosis, acne, and a heart condition. He feels awkward and out of place as most teenagers do so in order to get into college he creates an extracurricular club called The Pallbearers Club. It's through this club that he meets Mercy. Mercy and Art slowly become friends until they have a falling out. The story continues with their on again/off again friendship as Art documents his memoir.
Is Art's vampirism real? Perhaps his vampirism is a metaphor for loneliness and depression. He feels as though Mercy sucks his life energy but maybe it's because she gives him life when she is around and he feels depleted and alone when she is not. Perhaps it is a metaphor for his alcohol and drug addiction. Perhaps it is a metaphor for the guilt he feels when he has to move back in with his mother. Or perhaps he is really a vampire.
Paul Tremblay wrote another thought provoking horror novel that leaves you pondering. It may seem slow paced to some but I think it was right. I enjoyed the character development and the ambiguity of the storyline.
Thanks to Netgalley, William Morrow, and the Scene of the Crime Early Reads for the advanced copy of the book. The opinions are my own.

I received an ARC of, The Pallbearers Club, by Paul Trembley. This book seems to be a good story, a guy decides to join the pallbearers club, to help at funerals with low attendance, His friend Mercy, is not merciful at all. The book was hard to read at times, with words typed on other words, It was hard to get into the story because of that.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. This book did not hold my interest. I was getting bored and could not read the remainder of the book.

Coming of age in the 1980s, Art Barbara might have been in classes with the smart kids, but that’s all he has going for him. Tall, skinny, and afflicted with acne, his scoliosis requires him to sleep in a cumbersome brace, one he can’t even put on without his parents’ help. Although a senior, he’s not been involved in any extracurricular activities, so he starts a club in which members attend funerals as volunteer pallbearers.

Mercy, a community college student, with a boundless knowledge of punk music and a steady supply of snark, becomes a member, mainly so she can take Polaroids of corpses in repose. Hanging out together each week after the funerals they attend, the two become friends. Mercy even helps Art research and write a paper on vampires in New England folklore, a topic in which she is surprising well-versed. The book racehorses towards one of the strangest nights of Art’s life—one that irrevocably changes their relationship.

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘊𝘭𝘶𝘣 is presented as a manuscript of a memoir Art wrote decades later, a manuscript that tries to explain their relationship, and their two reunions. After the manuscript falls into Mercy’s hands, she offers notes and edits that call into question Art’s memory and reliability. (Her comments are in a handwriting font in the margins: hats off to the designers! For this reason, it’s probably not ideal to read on a Kindle.)

The book was completely fascinating! For most of the book, I had absolutely no idea what to expect or where the narrative was going which made it a very fun read. I enjoy books that make me think, and this one has such an interesting structure, themes (memory and nostalgia, fiction vs. reality, self-preservation strategies, body image/health), and themes (colors, music, photography), it offered lots of possible interpretations. Tremblay also used some nonconventional writing techniques such as frequently turning nouns into verbs (e.g., “electron” and “mood-ring”). I mostly liked this, but sometimes it could be a bit much. I also thought the decisions made regarding Mercy’s side commentary were curious. In general, for me, the technique was effective, but at times, I didn’t feel her commentary added to the narrative; other times, I thought she made observations that would be more meaningful if the reader noticed them herself.

With its unusual structure and original concept, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘊𝘭𝘶𝘣 is in a class of its own.

The premise of this book seemed cool, but I had a hard time getting into the story. According to other reviews, it eventually gets better but I was unable to make it that far.

THE PALLBEARERS CLUB is classic Tremblay -- a smart, ambiguous update to an age-old trope, with formal innovation and humor to spare. Perfect for fans of Stephen King who are looking for new and interesting innovations in the horror genre -- even more perfect for fans of John Darnielle's DEVIL HOUSE. A worthy read for any horror fan!

3.75 stars for me.
A unique story of friendship and weird stuff! No other way to put it. It kept my interest and was a quick read!

Paul Tremblay's novels are hit or miss for me. This one was sadly a miss for me. After reading the synopsis the concept seems cool, but when I was actually reading the book it just fell flat. It wasn't until you were 1/3 of the way through the book that the plot actually picked up. The pacing was just way too slow for me. Thank you Netgalley and William & Morrow for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for my review.

The Pallbearer’s Club was masterfully written to sound like the rambling memoir of an inexperienced, mentally-ill author. The story follows “Art” through many years, with commentary from his sometimes friend, sometimes enemy “Mercy,” weaving through timelines, leaving the reader wondering how much of either side is true.

struggling coz it was so slow but catches up and slow. Might try again when it gets published maybe there would be some editing done

I was very excited when I got an advance copy of this book to review. I have read and enjoyed everything Tremblay has written. Until now. I think this is a book one will either love or be disappointed in. Unfortunately, I'm in the latter camp.

Written as a memoir by a fictional Art Barbara and read in manuscript form by his friend Mercy Brown with margin notes by Mercy, this follows Art from awkward teen in the late 1980s, through college to present day.

Art first meets Mercy when he forms the Pallbearers Club in high school. The goal of the club, that consists of only he and Mercy, is to attend funerals for friendless strangers in hopes this will help with his extracurricular activities on his college applications. From the beginning, Mercy is an oddball character of an indeterminate age obsessed with taking pictures with her Polaroid camera. That and punk music which she gets Art so involved with that he eventually joins bands in college. Mercy is an enigma in Art's life. Convinced she is a vampire, his memoir often focuses on Mercy and leaves it up to the reader to decide for themselves if she is a modern day vampire or just an odd person.

I liked the storytelling format of the book--from Art's rather pretentious writing style to Mercy's often snarky comments in the margins. Their friendship is genuine with two misfits bonding over punk music. What I found distracting was the extent that punk music was a dominate theme throughout the book. Admittedly I was never a punk or grunge fan so that is a problem for me; a lot of this book went over my head. I think a number of people will "get" this book and love is. Some, like me, won't.

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for an advance copy of this book. the publication date is July 5, 2022.

I was so excited to get this book. Unfortunately, it isn't available on Kindle( size issues), so I downloaded it to my Bluefire app. It has the circle of death between every page making it unreadable. I have never given any of Paul Tremblay's books less than 4 stars, and I won't now. I will update my review after I get a copy on publication day. I am just posting this here so other people know about the potential issue. If you have a workaround or an app that works better( I tried all of the suggestions from NetGalley support), enjoy your early copy!

The Pallbearers Club was one of my most sought after books for the year and let me tell you, it was not easy to get my hands on a copy.

When I saw the Facebook post stating for a limited time, William Morrow, was going to allow readers to read and review before the big release, I RAN to fill out the form.

YES! I was just one step closer. Unfortunately, I could not convert this Mobi to my Kindle. So after enlisting a professional "computer guy", I finally had the book of my dreams in my hand and I was ready to go.

It was worth it.

It was worth every obstacle that was placed in front of me and more. I am at a loss for words when it comes to The Pallbearers Club. Who are you Paul Tremblay, and where have you been my whole life?

Talk about originality?!?! You will never read anything that comes close to all that The Pallbearers Club holds. This book has bestseller written all over it and is sure to break the internet this summer. The hype that surrounded this book the past couple of months does not even come close to what this book deserves.

If you are looking for a book that is expertly narrated and character driven, The Pallbearers club is for you. This book checks off every single box and then some. I can not rave enough or recommend this book anymore. I will forever suggest this book to all my book loving pals!

Congratulations Paul Tremblay, you deserve every bit of success headed your way and I can not wait to see what you come up with next.

Big thank you to William Morrow, Paul Tremblay and Netgalley, for allowing me to read and review this book in exchange for an honest review.

The fun of a Paul Tremblay book is figuring out, bit by bit, exactly what kind of story you're reading. It's always SOMETHING - a ghost story, a demonic exorcism tale, an apocalypse narrative - and yet, it's also always... different. Unexpected. Because one of the many things Tremblay excels at is taking a well-worn trope or genre and then turning it, spinning it into something new.

The same is true of The Pallbearer's Club, which, it turns out, is a vampire story. But as we follow our protagonist, the pseudonymous Art Barbara, as he grows up in Massachusetts, finds a place in the punk scene of Providence, and drifts in and out of the orbit of his friend Mercy, becoming convinced that she's a variety of vampire in the process - we also come to realize that it's also a story about conformity, and nonconformity, and what we'll do - the lengths we'll go - to fit in somewhere, anywhere. To find our people.

And, crucially, it's a story where there are competing narratives: Art's, Mercy's, and - perhaps most importantly - what may have ACTUALLY happened, outside of Art's or Mercy's patently unreliable presentations of events. (I do love a good unreliable narrator, and here, we've got several.)

Fans of A Head Full of Ghosts will undoubtedly find much to love in this one. The form is unconventional, presented a memoir - Art's - that may or may not actually be a novel, and complicated by marginalia from Mercy. Tonally - and particularly when it comes to Mercy's commentary - there's a lot here that feels like it lives in the same kind of place as the blog entries in A Head Full of Ghosts. 

A Paul Tremblay book is like a Magic Eye image: There's always something else to see if you look at it the right way. And for that reason - among many, many others - The Pallbearer's Club is a joy to read.

Just prepared to be something of an emotional train wreck by the end of it.

This was not what I expected it to be. Normally, that’s fine. But this read as a literal manuscript. It needs some more edits and more plot points.

That being said, Paul Tremblay is still one of my favorite authors and I will continue to read whatever he puts out. This one just wasn’t for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for the digital advanced reader's copy.

So, I'm never not going to read the latest Paul Tremblay. You never know exactly what you're going to get, and you don't know if you're going to love it or hate it, but you know it's going to be different.

I loved A Head Full of Ghosts, a dark family drama with possible demon possession. I was deeply upset by The Cabin at the End of the World, a survival novel with possible apocalypse. I enjoyed the propulsiveness of Survivor Song, a one-night, action-packed zombie (but also not-zombie) pandemic story. And, finally, Devil's Rock, a ghost mystery, which was probably my least favorite Tremblay novel so far.

However, despite knowing that a Tremblay book is like a box of chocolates, I definitely didn't expect a slow-moving tale of toxic friendship, medical trauma, addiction, arrested development, and vampiric folklore.

Art and Mercy's lives become entangled while Art is in high school. His deep loneliness finds a refuge in Mercy's chill coolness. Together, they share a love of punk music and find a safe space from the messiness and cruelty of the world.

Things devolve, though, as their relationship becomes parasitic - each seeming to feed off the other.

Is this simply a deeply complicated friendship that spans the tragedies and struggles of thirty years, or is it supernatural? Are they literally sucking the life force out of each other?

It depends. Is Art's book a novel or a memoir?

Tremblay leaves it up to you to decide.

This is a character-driven story. The action is sporadic and rare and, often, weird as hell. This isn't the stereotypical horror novel. At times, I genuinely wondered what the point was.

However, it was dark enough and odd enough, and Art and Mercy were compelling enough to keep me reading.

While it won't ever be one of my favorites, The Pallbearer's Club will likely stick with me for some time.

*language, adult situations