A depressing beginning to a book of horror for fans of Stephen King. Not my kind of story, but it was well written.

I enjoyed Malfi's most recent title. The author does a nice job capturing the bonds of childhood friendship and the horrors of adolescent cruelties. The work was also a thoughtful meditation on trauma and addiction - how we cope and how we get lost along the way. I was particularly drawn to Malfi's carnival scenes. I could hear the calliope music and smell the fried food in every scene. The duality of monsters, both real and imagined, also made for a great storytelling and made me question which of the two horrors was most disturbing. A fun read for those warm summer nights.

Black Mouth by Ronald Malfi is a haunting novel that centers on and revolves around Jamie Warren, a man with a dark past, tormented by the guilt of leaving his disabled brother behind. Circumstances lead Jamie to reunite with the friends and family from his forgotten youth.

And then creepy stuff begins happening, related to a man known as "The Magician," who taught them the meaning of magic which still resonates with Jamie in the present day; a harbinger of something dark and foreboding. With expert writing, Malfi provides a level of suspense few can match. The novel is layered, steadily unfolding through darker and darker scenes of haunting violence as seemingly normal or tormented individuals commit horrific acts; children murder those close to them and a deformed man violently attacks those connected he feels wronged by.

The characterization is excellent. Jamie is a character haunted by his past, tormented by grief and guilt. The writing gives layers of empathy to Jamie, providing sympathy for his pain and connecting him to those he loves most to the point it is wholly believable that these are people who would walk through hell for one another.

All of them struggle with the titular Black Mouth, the place where they have grown up and which draws them back. But Black Mouth is more than a place or town, it is a gateway in the bowels of the earth. There is something terrifying there in the character of the Magician, a profoundly chilling villain who serves as the representative and acolyte of something from the blackest recesses of a nightmare. With cosmic horror elements enhancing the terror of what we see onscreen, Malfi excels in providing terror in his writing.

The end is suitably dramatic, with the novel touching on sensitive subject matters it treats with the weight they deserve; self-harm, abuse, alcoholism, guilt and more are present here, helping to pull away from the luster of nostalgia. Black Mouth is a novel of overcoming the past and providing hope for the future.

"Go. Ninja. Go."  <3
Black mouth by Ronald Malfi Arc Review

Expected: July 19 2022

The perfect summer vibes and just what I needed to kickstart the season! I couldn't read this book fast enough/ make time/find any excuse to just sit down and get back to reading. As Black Mouth is my second Ronald Malfi book, I'm finding out quickly how Malfi's work hooks me from the jump. There is no "getting to the good part". I don't want to spoil a single thing, except Serial Killers, Carnivals, & Magic, Oh my! What more could you ask for ?! But seriously, this one has everything, and more. Easily one of my new favorites!

Thank you  Netgalley & Titan Books for the Arc!

<i>"What I'm saying, children, is to not tell aynone that I'm staying down here."
"We don't have any other friends," Mia said.
"We won't tell anybody," Clay added.
"Wonderful!" the Magician said, and he clapped his dirty white gloves together, startling us all. "Then I've got much to show you…"</i>

Just as in last year's "Come with me", Mr. Malfi has created a parallax world where actuality and fiction, truth and dreams, reality and paranormal seem to intertwine into one realm. Compared with Come with me, the notion of the paranormal is more pronounced, but ultimately the true horror lies within real men murdering and pushing others to murder and mayhem. In that sense, the gruesomeness is even worse than in a pure horror story, as the monsters are very real: predators grooming and attacking, parents who turn homes into hell, and bystanders looking away.

The story is being told in a dual timeline: one in 1998 where our four protagonists are 11 year old kids - outcasts really - and one in the present day where together they try to confront their old demons head on in order to keep or gain their sanity.

Mr. Malfi does a terrific job in describing parental abuse and neglect, juvenile violence and how one can turn those horrific events in either strenght or a one way ticket to the abyss in later life.
The coming of age in this book is not an easy one and some passages involving Jamie's dad and his role in domestic abuse are difficult to read, as are the passages decribing the effects of alcohol abuse.

The subject matter is extremely dark, that is without a question. But the writing is beautiful and crisp, the storytelling is solid and the whole plot just drew me in and kept me glued to my kindle way past bedtime.
There are no big twists, the story just unfolds itself in a perfect way and the ending is faultless and polished.
Again, and without a single doubt, a 5 star read.

A truly sincere thanks to NetGalley, Titan books and Ronald Malfi for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A group of friends return to their hometown to confront a nightmare they met as children.

One of my favorite horror tropes is a group of bullied kids experiencing a supernatural event; like IT, bonus points if there’s a carnival involved like this one! The characters really made this story. It was the perfect level of creepiness, although I could have done without the animal cruelty. The ending for pretty darn wild!

“The things that happened down in the heat of Black Mouth that summer had been inexplicable, magical, and ultimately deadly things - things I still can’t fully comprehend or even care to dwell on.”

Black Mouth comes out 7/19.

Ronald Malfi just keeps getting better and better. Black Mouth is an unnerving relentless piece of supernatural and psychological horror that grows it's roots deep into your soul and squeezes it with each turn of the page.

The magic man is terrifying enough but the human apprentice of this being is downright frightening. With shades of Stephen King's IT, four childhood friends must confront what happened to them as children in the present day. The evil that touched their souls has never left and they must find a way to stop this magic man once and for all.

Fantastic characters, a creepy horrifying world, and smooth flawless prose makes this a definitive must read.

I loved this book.
The writing is superb, It has a similar feel to Stephen King's It, the main reason for this is that the story is set in the past during the main characters childhoods and in the present as adults, and both King and Malfi do some of the best character focused stories there is. in saying that, this is defiantly its own thing.
The characters are realistic and exceptionally well developed, and the story has a chilling atmosphere with haunting and emotional moments.
*Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.*

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC to review

3 stars!

I was so excited to be approved for this and was so ready to read it. With how it opened I LOVED IT.

Especially with the scenes of Jamie going through rehab/detox in chapter one. The atmosphere was really unsettling and the Weeping Walker man that made a brief appearance really stuck with me and would have loved a story with something like that to even be written, is the character seeing this person for real or just a figment of going through detox.

The first few chapters where we learn more about Jamie, Clay, and Mia as kids and see them meet the Magician were fantastic, however it lost me towards the end. It seemed to just go off in a completely different way than what it was bulding up for me.

The story felt dragged out at parts too and took a more way out there turn than I felt would have worked better.

But I really did enjoy this, felt Stephen King which I think some people would also feel.

One of the strongest things you can find in Ronald Malfi's books is the writing. His stories are immersive from page one and you can not help but feel being pulled into this place and live it all through the character's own skin.

I do agree this story was similar to IT and Stephen King fans will really enjoy this book.

We follow different characters in two timelines: Clay, Mia, and Jamie in the past during their childhoods and in the present as adults.

Our group of friends grew up in Suttons Quay, West Virginia. A once vibrant town now desolate in the wake of a mine collapse. When they were children there was something in the woods, something they should not have come in contact with. Yet they did and so their lives were changed forever.

As adults they fear that the same evil they encountered when they were kids might be back. So they all come back to find and destroy this evil once and for all.

What a beautifully woven story and what a complete dark, disturbing nightmare you will experience through the pages of the book. As the novel moves forward it really does go to really dark places which will give you the chills.

Perfect for: Fans of IT and stories about supernatural evil forces that target small towns.

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

***

So, I had to start this one over like three times. I just couldn't get into it and found myself lost by chapter three. There are mini chapters within the chapters themselves and three different perspectives until the characters meet up which made this hard to follow. I had to read to the end of a main chapter or I'd be lost picking it up again.

I've heard many people say it grabbed them right away. That just didn't happen for me, but I did keep trying because I really wanted to read the book. The blurb was just so good. I needed to have a good chunk of time for reading in order to dig in and follow. I'm so glad I didn't give up!

The story centers on four characters, childhood friends who are grown now and all conveniently return to their home town at the same time, and the magical but evil villain whose true nature is a mystery, man or monster? It's a really interesting and creepy story. I've seen comparisons to IT and I can certainly see that in the story. You get the story of children who are misled by a magician who lives in the woods. He wants them to murder a child. They all go their separate ways, but when things start happening again in the mouth, they return to face the evil again.

The characters themselves are interesting, if but relatable and they feel like real and flawed humans. This is really a fantastic read. If you find yourself struggling with those first chapters, don't give up.

Horror Bookworm Reviews
https://horrorbookwormreviews.com/

It was the summer of Jaimie, Dennis, Mia and Clay’s 11th year when a monster came to pay a visit to Black Mouth. Now in his 30’s, it’s been over four years since Jamie has been home. With the message of his mother’s strange death and gifted brother’s current state he returns home to assist those in need. However upon arrival emotional wounds and adolescent friendships begin to surface once again as a terrifying evil emerges from the old remote farmhouse located near an abandoned mineshaft known as Black Mouth.

Ronald Malfi has created an epic novel about the disease of addiction, childhood nightmares becoming reality and a truly haunting strangeness that rates a 10 on the creepiness scale. The author generates a character-driven story dealing with inner transformations while injecting some of the most vile representations of evil you will find this side of Bret Easton Ellis’ American Psycho. The encroaching darkness Malfi provides from page to page is ghastly genius at its best.

Horror hides in unearthly appearances of magic playing cards, cups & balls, hidden coins and a never ending ticker tape of colored scarves. These predatory masters of manipulations that Malfi provides are bitter pills to swallow considering the delicate subject matter of this novel. Black Mouth honestly blew me away and will no doubt be an instant classic within the horror community. Expect uncanny wonders and indescribable heinous intentions, all leading to a passageway of raw emotions.

Do you want to see a magic trick? Ronald Malfi has a few terrifying tricks up his sleeve, if you dare choose to open this imaginative nightmare of a book. Something’s coming…and it’s bound to cross your path. A five star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Horror Bookworm Recommendation.

Judging book by its cover (or in my case, blurb and the first 20% of the story) i was really having second thoughts about the quality of the content . Clearly, i was wrong. While the supernatural, horror element is strong and the mystery is good the heart of the story is a tale of two brothers and i absolutely loved it.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Black Mouth.

I really enjoyed the author's previous book so I was thrilled when my request was approved.

Nearly twenty years ago, Jamie Warren and his two best friends endured a magical and dark summer that changed their lives. And Jamie has been running from his past since.

Struggling with alcoholism, guilt and shame, Jamie returns to his hometown, reluctantly, to reunite with his disabled brother, and eventually, his childhood friends, to battle an evil force that has stalked them through their lives.

The question is: will they survive the battle or will Jamie and his friends succumb to the forces of evil?

This was an engrossing read with shades of Stephen King's It; Black Mouth is a stand-in for Derry, Maine; the Magician the clown in another shape and form, and a group of loyal outcast friends, aka The Losers.

Black Mouth, like Derry, is a focal point of the book, not just the setting, but the center around where the characters circle around; the morbid and sad history of the mines, the uneasy and forbidding nature of the location, the creepy stories handed down through the generations, the reason behind why Jaime, Dennis and Clay are ostracized and belittled by their peers.

Jaime is a character you can relate to; he's traumatized after surviving an abusive childhood, seeking solace in drink and bad choices, regret over having left his brother behind, and not having done much with his life.

A part of you wants to shake some sense into him, as he falls off the wagon over and over and over, yet another part of you goes, "I get it. I really do."

I liked Mia and Clay; they were different and unique; outcasts yet not. They had evolved from their childhood selves and become successful and talented people good at their jobs, a distinction the Magician makes to Jaime when he's goading him into doing something terrible.

The story is not scary (it takes a lot to scare me) but I really enjoyed how the author uses the carnival as a creepy backdrop and when Jaime and Dennis find themselves in the bowels of the mines.

I appreciated the story behind the Magician, how he came to be, and his reason for being, though I'm curious why he was chosen to make a deal for his life.

Black Mouth is not just a tale of friendship; it's about overcoming your personal demons, like alcoholism and drug addiction; facing your fears, your guilt, and giving yourself a second chance. Or a third. However many you need because there's no shame in that.

Friendship is a kind of magic, too. This was my favorite line in the book because it's so true.

This story is so very creepy and kept my interest all the way through. I loved the characters and the description of the Mouth. I could actually visualize this scary place.

Black Mouth, by Ronald Malfi

Short Take: A yummy blend of the comforting familiar, and the surprising new.

(*I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*)

Good morning duckies! There’s a lovely breeze currently breaking the heat here, and do I need to tell you how wonderful the world smells right now? For once, Jonesy the Dog is chilling out as opposed to in chaos mode, there are some new shows on Netflix I’m excited about, and my foot seems to finally be recovered from surgery a couple of weeks ago (following an injury in JANUARY).

In other words, everything’s coming up Nerdy. And although recent news developments have me wanting to scream, I’m going to take these good things, and just breathe for the moment. And talk about a book, of course.

In 1998 Suttons Quay, eleven year old Jamie Warren, his special-needs brother Dennis, and their friends Clay and Mia are all varying degrees of troubled, unwanted, abused, and outcast in their small West Virginia no-longer-mining town, when they meet a mysterious stranger in the woods. The Magician, as they call him, seems to be able to do real magic, like wizard-level stuff, and is willing to teach the children. There’s just one catch: they will have to kill another child.

In the present day, Jamie is battling the twin demons of addiction and his past, when Mia contacts him out of the blue. She believes she has spotted The Magician after all these years, and she wants to Get The Band Back Together to take him out once and for all.

Now most discerning Nerdlings will instantly spot the similarities to Stephen King’s classic IT, but for me, the opening chapters were much closer to Peter Straub’s Shadowland, and will it surprise any of you that in my younger days, I read my paperback of the latter until it fell apart?

Which is my long-winded way of saying that I felt a strange bond with Mr. Malfi’s book right from the get-go, but then he actually went one better: He nailed the setting. See, I’m a WV native, and I’ve already wasted far too many words on authors who want to write the state without ever setting foot in it, but this author just Got It. Yes, there are isolated pockets of this state where the residents prefer their guns to their neighbors, but for the most part, these areas are more sad than scary. Opioids are the new incest-cannibals, I guess, but too many writers have never caught up.

I had one nitpick, however, in that while Jamie is a wonderful character, good bad and ugly all rolled into one, some of the others felt a little one-note: The good guys are all good, the bad guys are unrelentingly evil. Despite that, the dialogue is sharp, and the pace is fantastic, as every time the story starts to slow down, Mr. Malfi casually tosses out another shocking revelation.

Honestly, the whole book was like a well-choreographed magic show, like the big ones in Vegas, not the parking-lot carnival ones.

The Nerd’s Rating: FOUR HAPPY NEURONS (and some cotton candy. And funnel cake. And maybe a corn dog or two. And deep-fried Oreos. And stop judging me.)

The first book i have read by this author and it will not be the last. It all starts when Jamie, his brother and best friends Mia and Clay meet a stranger in the woods. You know something bad happened and the author drip feeds you little morsels as the story unfolds. A serial killer, murdered children and something else. I devoured this book in one sitting and tapping my kindle like a demented wood pecker. This book was definitely not what I was expecting it was so much more. The tension is palpable, atmospheric and creepy as hell. The writing is so descriptive and believable, I actually lost myself in this book. Now searching for more of this very talented authors work. How the hell have I missed this author??? A very very happy reader.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in return for giving an honest review.

I normally try not to compare to Stephen King when I review a horror novel as that just feels lazy, but in this case, there is so much Kingism going on it’s almost impossible not too.

Small American town, a group of friends who bonded over childhood trauma are drawn back to their childhood homes many years later to fight the evil all over again. The flashback structure, juxtaposing present with past. Also- 800 plus pages on the file I read. It’s classic king storytelling territory.

It differs on the scale though. Whereas King would have a huge cast of characters, each playing their role in the story, Malfi concentrates on just the 5 central characters for the whole book, and any other townsfolk are more or less walk on parts. In a King novel, we'd feel like we'd lived in the town for years and knew everyone that lived there. In this book, we know our central cast and no one else.

It’s written for the most part in a first person narrative, which limits the scope, but branches out into third person for alternate chapters. All the flashbacks are told by Jamie, our first person narrator.

Jamie Warren is a loser. As the story opens he’s in enforced rehab for his alcoholism, suffering some truly horrific hallucinations. Just after his release, he learns of his mother's death and has to hightail it back to Black Mouth to look after affairs, including his cognitively impaired brother Dennis.

Also on her way back to Black Mouth is his ex-best-friend and crush, Mia. She's had a strange encounter with a woman who knew far more than she should. She's also just seen the Magician, the mysterious stranger who came into their lives when they were children and changed them forever. Completing the quartet is Clay, a social worker spurred on by the photo of the Magician to look into similar crimes to the one they were involved with.

Following them is Stull, another of the magician's ex-apprentices. in his first chapter he commits an act of animal cruelty that marks him out as one of the most reprehensible villains I've read in many a year. He's a remarkably scary character.

I loved the way Malfi slowly draws the various plot threads together, keeping the characters in the dark while we the readers can see the oncoming shitstorm. He really does know how to build the tension brilliantly.

I also loved the way the characters react realistically to the situations they find themselves in. There's no sudden leaping to the far fetched supernatural conclusions, more scrabbling around trying piece together a natural explanation that isn't going to happen.

This was my first Ronald Malfi novel and certainly won't be my last. He takes on Stephen King in his own territory and easily holds his own. He manages to stamp his own style and themes into the familiar formula. When physical copies of this are available, I will be adding this to my shelves.

Being a horror fan, Ronald Malfi has become a master in this genre and each book I read by him is better than the last.

Malfi touches on the nostalgic childhood relations, telling the story in both past and present as friends return to their hometown to face an evil that has been unleashed once more. With each new chapter the story becomes more intense and the gore escalates making it impossible to stop reading.

Loved this one and I highly recommend it to all horror fans.

I love me some Ronald Malfi and Black Mouth checked all the boxes of which I am used to from Malfi. He has the ability to develop flawed characters you can’t help but love and always finds ways to add in paranormal twists to something that could seemingly be real.

Jamie, a recovering alcoholic, is forced to return to the town he ran away from years ago, after his mother dies and leaves his disabled brother Dennis all alone. Jamie is haunted by his past and being back in Black Mouth, an old mining town in West Virginia, is really driving Jamie back to drinking.

When his childhood friends contact him about a man who ruined their childhood (and sent them all running from this town) he’s forced to face his past and the demons he’s been holding inside.

I really loved this book and the ending… 😭 I don’t want to give anything away, so I’ll leave it at that but I’m so excited for whatever Malfi gives us next. Black Mouth will be published 7/19/22. Thanks to Titan Books and NetGalley for my review copy.