Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books as well as Ronald Malfi for this ARC. Much appreciated.
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This is the fourth book written by Ronald Malfi that I’ve read and they’ve all been fun. I think one reason for this is that I see a lot of similarities between Malfi’s work and Stephen King’s. The book that I read before this was Black Mouth, which had strong “It” vibes. This one had strong “Firestarter” vibes, although, between you and me and the lamppost, I liked “The Night Parade” just a bit better.
Father (David) and daughter (Ellie) on the run from the government…sound familiar? How about this? Government wants to study the daughter because she has something they may need. Although in this case, the problem is an illness called Wanderer’s Folly. Ellie, the daughter, just may hold the secret to the cure instead of being pyrokinetic. Either way, lots of fun. The sense of dread here is higher than in Firestarter, although I admit I like Charlie (Firestarter) a bit more than Ellie. No matter! I liked how the cast of characters was small. It gave me a chance to get to know and care about who I was reading about. Malfi spent his time with genius pacing. He maintains the dread and eerie feeling by masterfully ebbing and flowing his events and characters. The writing is atmospheric!
All in all, this was a treat. A five star read for sure.

To delve into the plot would give too much away. This is my 2nd book by this author, and I’m a fan! Completely different feel from his short stories…which I also enjoyed. This genre-bending story proves this author to be a masterful storyteller.

This apocalyptic novel is receomended to fans of Jie HIll's The Fireman. I liked the relationship between the father and daugheter. Their journey was intresting. If you loved apocalyptic stories this one is for you

This may be the best post-apocalyptic I have read!

We follow David and his daughter, Ellie, running away from home. With a plague threatening to wipe out humanity David fights to keep himself and his daughter alive.

This book started out strong and had me hooked from the beginning. This was my first Malfi and the writing was incredible! I was so invested in David and Ellie’s story. On top of the beautiful writing Malfi gives us twists and turns I had not expected!

I will be reading more Ronald Malfi. I am excited to see what else he has in store.

What: The Road meets The Crazies
About: a father and daughter journey through a world ravaged by a rage plague called Wanderers Folly.
Features: readers never get a break. Things always promise to get worse.
Assets: a reality-grounded novel with a slight tinge of the supernatural
Obstacles: it's Ronald Malfi…there are no obstacles
Who it’s for: readers who enjoyed The Road, Wanderers, The Long Walk

I finished this book in three sittings only because life got in the way. I still had work to finish because I couldn't stop reading at lunch.
Malfi takes us through an apocalypse that hits close to home while the pandemic here continues. Written in 2016, it's still just as relevant now.

What I loved: Everything. The characters are well done. The dual timeline is perfect. And it hit me right in the feels quite a few times. I love the father/daughter combo and it hit all the right notes for an apocalyptic tale. I could tell from the beginning that this was a "me" book as Malfi quickly enveloped me in a story I both couldn't wait to finish but didn't want to end.

I want more.

If Stephen King's The Stand and Firestarter had a baby, you'd have Ronald Malfi's The Night Parade.

Though Malfi uses most of the same tropes as those two King books, this novel focuses on the father-daughter relationship, much more character driven than plot, and doesn't have religious themes. It's a good story, well written, and a neat read for Constant Readers!

Thanks NetGalley and Kensington Books for an ecopy to review.

They call it Wanderer’s Folly—a disease of delusions, of daydreams and nightmares. A plague threatening to wipe out humanity.
After two years of creeping decay, David Arlen woke up one morning thinking that the worst was over. By midnight, he’s bleeding and terrified, his wife is dead, and he’s on the run in a stolen car with his eight-year-old daughter, who may be the key to a cure.
Ellie is a special girl. Deep. Insightful. And she knows David is lying to her. Lying about her mother. Lying about what they’re running from. And lying about what he sees when he takes his eyes off the road . . .

This was a slow burner but it was definitely worth sticking with it. I don’t know what it is about Malfi’s writing but he just has the knack of really drawing you into a character’s story; you really care and become invested in his characters, and David and Ellie were integral to the success of The Night Parade.

With apocalyptic vibes, The Night Parade read like a reimagined McCarthy’s ‘The Road.’ Filled with tension, suspense, mystery and an encroaching menace this book was an epic exploration of a father’s love for his daughter and the lengths people go to to survive.

Malfi is slowly taking his place as one of my favourite authors, he definitely has a particular style… if you enjoy intricate characterisation with depth and a slow burning plot you need to check Malfi out.

Ronald Malfi has emerged for me as a great horror successor for somebody like Stephen King. In fact, when I recommend Malfi books to others, I call him "Stephen King lite" for those who want the character development and ominous settings, but without having to read a 700-1000 page book! I find myself getting very emotionally attached to the characters in Malfi books. In Night Parade, you feel the urgency, fear, and paranoia when David and Ellie are traveling across the United States. David reacts like any parent would when scared that his child will be taken from him and caused pain. When they are forced to go back to a family's home in town they stopped in, the reader receives a small glimmer hope- there are people living a somewhat normal life during this terrible pandemic! But all is not what it seemed, and it's at this point David realizes he can trust no one. This particular moment in the book was really reminiscent of The Walking Dead (particularly The Governor and Penny). I stayed on the edge of my seat the entire book, and I was very happy with the ending. I really look forward to exploring more of Ronald Malfi's books in the future!

Thanks so much to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for providing a copy of this book for review!

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David is on the run with his daughter Ellie as the world falls apart around them. A disease known as Wanderer's Folly is rapidly spreading, wiping out towns and cities alike. David must fight to protect his daughter from those who are already sick, those who have lost hope, and the shady government officials who are following their trail.

~ ~ ~

Let me start by saying this book will absolutely have you feeling things. Dread as David and Ellie are pursued across the U.S., fear for their survival as they encounter one obstacle after another, and all of the feelings of a parent fighting to protect their child. This book is a heck of an emotional roller coaster in so many ways. This is my second Malfi read, and just like with the last one, I'm so impressed by how much heart he puts into his stories. He is so good at characterization and writing relationships and interactions that feel real. I absolutely adore this about his writing.

While this story may sound like just another apocalyptic story, the most compelling thing about it is the characters and their journey. The plague is almost more of a backdrop, and I really liked that about it. I love a story where I can really connect with the characters.

I would definitely recommend this book to horror fans, especially those that enjoy apocalyptic themes. Don't blame me if you totally end up crying at the end. Not that I would know anything about that. *<i>cough</i>*

Thanks so much to netgalley and Kensington publishing for sharing this book with me. Ronald Malfi is quickly becoming the “It” man in horror for this reader, the Night Parade being my fourth book of his to read, like all the others did not disappoint.
In a cross between Bird Box and Firestarter we follow a 8 year old girl named Ellie immune to a disease plaguing the nation with new found abilities that she can’t understand and hardly control. In the grips of fear a disease nicknamed Wanders Folly; Route of transmission is unknown causing the ppl of earth to go insane to the point of hallucinations and death. After losing his wife to testing David flees with his daughter refusing to let her become an experiment and with the cdc chasing it becomes quite a ride.
This was an intense, sad, and beautiful book. The writing keeps you engaged and the end breaks your heart. Highly recommend. 4-1/2/5 ⭐️

Humanity is being wiped out by a disease called Wanderer's Folly. First it affected the birds and that left the earth overrun with insects. It then moved to humans. Those afflicted lose their memory and mental capacities turning them into savages until they die. A former college professor, David Arlen, takes his believed to be immune daughter Ellie on the run to escape the government who he believes has taken his immune wife.

This is a heartwarming although harrowing journey of a father who only wants to protect his daughter. It's a fabulous read. If you've enjoyed Stephen King's The Stand or Robert McCammon's Swan Song, you will most likely enjoy this novel. It is well written, the descriptions add so much to the story. Perfect read for anyone who loves a book that sucks you in and doesn't let go until the last page.

For any fan of the apocalyptic/horror genre, this book will not disappoint. As a pandemic rages, David Arlen runs with his 8-year-old daughter Ellie through a ravaged land. Government forces pursue Ellie for her immunity and possible ability to cure the delusional, widespread disease called Wanderer's Folly. Determined to shield her from harm, David tries to contact his step-brother for help. Discovering a new author is always a boon for me, and Ronald Malfi is now on my list. Recommended.

Fan of Ronald Malfi but this particular one just wasn't for me. I felt it a bit slow and had a hard time connecting with characters. Looks like this might be a republishing of his earlier work, so maybe that's why? Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read and review this book.

This was not what I was expecting. A family on the run, not from a pandemic, but from the people who are supposed to be protecting us from it. Part of me cringed that part of it. Looking past that, this was about more than that-A special child and a father who will do anything to save her. It has been compared to Stephen King. I’d add Justin Cronin to that. If either of those are up your alley, you need to read this.

Not bad overall. Malfi has good writing chops
There were a few places where things repeated but with it being so long, that will happen.
Lots of the Malfi dread we expect.

"They call it Wanderer’s Folly—a disease of delusions, of daydreams and nightmares. A plague threatening to wipe out the human race."

The Night Parade was originally released several years ago and is being re-released in 2022. It follows a father and daughter as the navigate through a world where a disease, Wanderer's Folly, is dominating everyone's way of life. The spookiest part of this book is that it was written well before the pandemic but the similarities between Wanderer's Folly and our current pandemic world are quite haunting.
The story is focused on the father daughter relationship between David and Ellie, and how far a parent will go to save their child. After watching his wife die in a government facility that believed she held the answer to curing those with Wanderer's Folly, David is told by those same individuals that young Ellie may hold the same answers. He is left with the choice to hand Ellie over or run.
In true Ronald Malfi fashion, the characters are so well fleshed out that you still think about them when the book is finished. The storyline is quite tense at times and is well paced. The book cover includes the quote, "a novel of escapable horror" and I think that it is the story combined with the current pandemic that lives up to this claim. It was an excellent move to re-release this book in 2022, it certainly grabs the readers attention and leaves an unsettling feeling.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for this ARC.
Release Date scheduled for August 30, 2022.

If forced to give a one word description of Ronald Malfi’s The Night Parade I would have to say: intense, disturbing, and relentless. Yeah, I couldn’t narrow it to a single word, sorry. At the book’s opening we meet David and his daughter Ellie. (A very special girl.) It’s the middle of the night, they are on the run in a stolen car, and we learn that David’s wife is dead. This setup hooked me instantly. Why are they on the run? From who? Why? How did his wife die? Then the flashback scene to the midnight run-in with the guy in an ice cream truck…wow, so disturbingly creepy. What was wrong with him? What is this strange new disease? (Yes, I’m being quite vague because the truth is you really want to go into this one knowing as little as possible. Trust me.) The way Malfi slowly reveals what is happening is masterful, and I think given what we’ve all been through with Covid over the last few years, The Night Parade hits even harder, feels even more disturbing, than when the book was originally published. Truly epic. Thanks so much to Kensington Books and NatGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read and review an eARC of The Night Parade.

Ronald Malfi's The Night Parade is not a new book, though it is getting a re-release on August 30, 2022. The fact that the book was first published a few years before the first signs of the Covid-19 outbreak makes it that much creepier, as the story focuses on a man and his eight-year-old daughter on a cross-country trip during a world-wide pandemic of a disease known as Wanderer's Folly.

The disease itself is bad enough - its victims end up caught in their own hallucinations until they die or kill themselves, but the real horror of the story is that little Ellie is one of the blessed immune, AND she has the supernatural ability to take pain and suffering away from people just by touching them. After Ellie's mother dies in a government research facility, her dad, David, knows they'll be coming for her next, and so they take off in a stolen car with a stolen gun.

This story is one of a man at the end of his rope, desperate to save his daughter in a world where no one is safe. I caught definite threads of Stephen King throughout the story, as bits similar to The Stand and Firestarter cropped up. David is an imperfect father, blinded by his own love for his daughter to the point of neglecting everything else. Little Ellie is easily the stronger and smarter of the two, and as the story progresses, David's mind comes more and more dangerously unraveled as Ellie learns to stand up and assert her own thoughts and feelings.

Though definitely not my favorite of Malfi's works, this was still a good book, and the whole idea of an uncontrollable pandemic has a far more frightening feel to it today than it would have just a few years ago.

A terrible illness is sweeping across the world. With many hundreds of thousands dying, and many millions more predicted to do so, as there is no known cure. The American authorities are desperate to find a way forward, so they start testing citizens who may be immune.

After his wife dies in one of these testing facilities, David Arlen decides that he must keep his daughter, Ellie, safe at all costs, so they go on the run to find somewhere to enable them to get on with their lives.

I loved this story right from the start, the characters were well formed and the plot totally absorbing. Again, Malfi’s writing is somewhat reminiscent of some of the great horror writers, but his own spin on a story makes it fresh and very readable.

For years I have eagerly awaited every new Stephen King book, but now I add Malfi’s new offerings to that eager anticipation.

A great read, thank you NetGalley.