The writing was mediocre and nothing special. The idea behind the stories was amazing but the author didn’t give each story enough to make it special. The stories needed to be fleshed out some and given more of a story. I was looking forward to this book because I’m a huge fan of thrillers and horror but this fell far short.

It goes without saying that I am a massive Josh Malerman fan and if you say that you aren't, then you clearly haven't read enough of his work. Josh Malerman is a master of horror and suspense, and all together is just an amazing storyteller. (Don't believe me - peep Daphne being a current finalist for a Bram Stoker award). What follows is my take on these novellas as soon as I finished them.

Half the House is Haunted - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- This story was fantastic. It follows two siblings with counteracting stories in a few snapshots of their life as it relates around their childhood home. This story has the classic Malerman creep factor that I've grown to love and cherish.

Argyle - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Whoa. This story was everything that I've come to love from Josh Malerman. It's dark and it's great storytelling. This story follows a dying man's confessions and when I say I was on the edge of my seat the entire time just WAITING. I wasn't sure how this story was going to end, but I know readers everywhere are going to love this one!

Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
- Privilege comes with its prices and that's illustrated so well in this novella. I'm not sure if I was just imagining the Henrik Ibsen vibes but I was loving it all the same. This was such a great story and although I had a feeling this story might take a turn for the turbulent I still found myself with my mouth wide open upon reading the last sentence. So great and so deliciously page turning!

The Jupiter Drop - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Wow! This was not at all what I expected from Josh Malerman, but it was amazing nonetheless. Describing descents into madness can be difficult to get right, but this story nails it in a short amount of time. This story felt claustrophobic, disturbing, confusing, and paranoia inducing. I don't want to give too much away, but the ending left my mouth open and I was shocked.

Egorov - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- What a unique mixture of plot techniques. I found this novella such a different moment than anything else in this collection and that's a good thing. It's like an Alfred Hitchcock story mixed in with Sweeney Todd vibes. It's just so amazing. Check this out and you won't be disappointed.


All in all this collection is everything that I could have wanted. Not only that but Malerman has now shown new scares and thrills for me to love. Malerman continues to exceed all my expectations and I know readers are going to love this!

Check it out!!

Gifted writer of “Bird Box”, Josh Malerman’s uniquely satisfying collection of short fictional stories showcases Malerman’s talent for diverse styles in writing. Malerman has said he usually turns his smaller ideas into songs (being the lead singer/songwriter for the band The High Strung). So this book feels like a “once in a lifetime event” that NO Malerman fan should pass up.

Malerman’s and Stephen King’s short stories are good because of the central concentration on one concept, which I like to read in-between longer novels. I have read King’s collections, and find Malerman just as talented. It’s exciting, as Malerman is one of my favorite authors. I loved Bird Box and Inspection, and have others to read still.

"Half of the House" is about siblings living in a house that could be half-haunted, or is it? “Argyle” is terrifying, where we dive into the mind of the things a “serial killer” should NOT talk about out loud. "Doug and Judy Buy a House Washer” is a juicy train wreck about the neighbors living around you. My favorite stories were “the Juniper Drop” and “Egorov” because they are intensely horrific stories about sanity and much more. Readers will LOVE the wreck of emotions and mind-bending that will stay with them long after the last chapter. This is why I love Malerman. I can’t stop thinking of the stories as I finish his books.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey via NetGalley for this arc. All opinions are voluntary and 100% my own.

A collection of five horror novellas . This is a good but to me uneven collection . Some such as the House washer I couldn’t wait to turn the page . Others were a little drawn out and I struggled to finish . Nevertheless he is a terrific writer and keeps you reading .this just was not my favorite of his

The first Josh Malerman book I read was Bird Box. Let’s just say that I loved it and I get super excited if I can get my hands on an early digital review copy of any of his books. So I did the happy book dance when thanks to Del Rey Books, I was able to read Spin A Black Yarn publishing in the US in August. Luckily, I had read all of my March books because I couldn’t wait to start these five novellas.
In the publisher’s book description, there is a great one or two sentence summary of each story. I don’t want to say much more than the publisher did, but I’ll just add my brief thoughts on each story.

“ Half the House Is Haunted” - besides being creeped out, this story is another reason. I’m glad I’m an only child. Creepy… Creepy… Creepy.

“Argyle” - the story made me make my partner swear that if he has anything to tell me, involving any deep, dark secrets, he’ll do it before making any sort of ‘What’ deathbed confessions.

“The Jupiter Drop” – I always loved the idea of traveling to Jupiter ever since I saw the rings as a child, (I loved my telescope). After reading this story, I finally crossed that off my ‘I wish I could go to Jupiter’ bucket list. What a lonely and unnerving journey it was. I will pass.

“Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer™ - a truly loathsome couple who really got everything that they deserved.

“Egorov” - two brothers make the man who killed their brother pay dearly for his crime. I loved how they got their revenge.

Everyone of these novellas was a four or five star read. I love the fact that Samhatten, Goblin and Daphne were seen again too. The author wrote a winning collection in my opinion. I also love the cover!

I am a fan of Josh Malerman and was extremely excited to have gotten this ARC of his short stories. The first two, Half of this House is Haunted" and "Argyle" were my favorites. The last one, "Egorov" was slower and dragged on in places but this book a worth a read!

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Grouo for sending this ebook for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Spin A Black yarn is a collection of novellas by Josh Malerman. Malerman has such a skill with words, inciting intense reactions from his use of imagery.
We encounter siblings in a half-haunted house, a father's death bed secret, a couple getting exactly what they paid for, a mistake on Jupiter and, a haunting of triplets turned twins.
I grew up loving the Goosebumps books, this book felt like Gooosebumps for adults! Perfect read for spooky season.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group and Del Rey for this ARC! I was very excited to read these novellas because I’m a huge fan of Josh Malerman’s writing. His prose is haunting in every one of these stories. My favorite of all them all was Argyle, but I really enjoyed all of these novellas!

Collection of novellas here.

My favorite was "Argyle," which explores a murderous philosophy. Least favorite was "Egorov"

I've read just about everything Josh has written, and I put this firmly in his top tier. I even liked it more than his previous collection, Goblin.

I found one story in this book enjoyable, and the rest bored me. I'm sure many readers will like the writing style and stories, but I had no interest in most of the characters or what happened to them, there were many times I hadn't a clue what was supposed to be going on, and there were many repetitive phrases in most of the stories that became annoying.
This was not at all a book for me.

Good but uneven collection of novellas from Malerman. The first one, Half the House is Haunted, is the best, the next three are good but drag out a bit too much and the last, Egorov, is just a slog that goes on and on repetitively without a satisfying ending in sight. Wish it finished as well as it started. Overall a pretty good collection but not quite as good as I had hoped. Thanks to Netgalley for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The more I think about these five short stories, the more I like Spin a Black Yarn. This author has a way of making you think about a person and see deeper, sometimes exposing dark and despicable parts or flawed personalities. The way he weaves the story, you are drawn in before you even realize it. I look forward to reading more of this author's work.

I loved this collection of short stories!! I thought they were all so unique and weird. Some I enjoyed more than others, as is the way with a collection like this.

Half the House is Haunted, 5 stars
A very quick but really scary depiction of brother and sister who lived in a house she always claimed was half haunted. The imagery in this was perfect.

Argyle, 4 stars
A man, on his deathbed, is finally able to tell the story about how he has always been a victimless killer. This was incredibly fun to read.

Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer TM, 4 stars
This one was a great dynamic between a snobbish and jaded husband and wife, somewhat looking back on the path that brought them to where they are.

The Jupiter Drop, 5 stars
For no particular reason aside from the feeling of the story, this one was my favorite.

Egorov, 3 stars
The longest story in the book and the one I sadly enjoyed the least. Still great though.

Overall, this was a really great dive into the strange brain of Josh Malerman. I hope he makes more of these!!

I received this book from Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This statement is always true. I’m not given compensation to discuss a book and I’m not told how to rate a book. I am given a book in exchange for my opinions on it, and I am truthful in all my reviews whether I loved them or not.

This book is filled with 5 unique stories, 5 unique writing styles, 5 smartly written stories. I am going to rate each story individually.

The first story in the book, "Half of the House", is about siblings, six year old Robbie and his eight year old sister Stephanie, who loves to do nothing more than try to scare and torment her brother, as all older siblings do. They live in a Victorian style house from the description I get, which consists of 3 floors and a basement, and more rooms than can be counted. Stephanie insists that half the house is haunted, but what part, is it?, every other step, is it this drape but not that drape? is it the basement and second floor only, is it half of this room or that room? Stephanie really takes you through a lot of the rooms in the house, questioning Robbie all the way through. The story dialogue is very interesting, the conversations are one sided, but as a question or statement is asked, the dialogue continues as if the person answers, but without the other person speaking. They reunite in their 40s and then in their 80s. These conversations continue throughout their reunions. The conversations are very much interesting and intriguing, and it makes you wonder, is half the house haunted? You'll have to read it to find out.

"Argyle" is even more extreme than the first story. Shawn is dying. He is on his deathbed surrounded by his family and friends to say one last goodbye. Shawn has a confession, a strange confession at that. A confession about sin, killing, and death. A confession no one wants to hear, but so intrigued by his words, his children sit and listen about his life stories and his fantasies that he may have made reality. This story goes deep into the mind of a 'serial killer', how he thought, how he acted, how he "succeeded" in life with his fantasies haunting him every step of the way. Will Shawn confess to an actual killing or killings? Will this man, who has been a loving husband and father confess to the most deadly acts that can be mustered up? Is this Shawn's way of repenting his actions?

The third story, "Doug and Judy Buy a House Washer," was very interesting. A rich, greedy, selfish couple who want to impress as many people as they can wth their money, riches, and "toys." They purchase a "House Washer" A machine that cleans EVERYTHING in their house without ruining it and placing it back in it's proper spot. Everything from papers to pictures to knick knacks, to old worn out sneakers that haven't been seen in decades. As these items are cleaned, the secrets of the Doug and Judy are revealed to each other, deep secrets they had no intention on sharing about how far their individual greed goes. This was very creative and as each secret is revealed, it keeps you wanting for more. Will Doug and Judy be able to work out and solve their differences or will being locked together in a tube for 90 minutes as the House Washer works destroy the shallow lives that they built?

The fourth story, "Jupiter Drop," is more of a sci-fi story that looks deep into a man's soul. A freak accident, and his life is turned to shambles. He losses his wife and kids to divorce and is reveling in his pain about why his wife left him. He then takes a plunge to take a trip from Jupiter back to Earth in a free fall drop in a glass apartment. This apartment has holograms and voice recognition. He then relives the accident that caused his family to fall apart. In the end, does he fall apart? or does he survive the "Jupiter Drop"? A man's sanity is tested in this thriller and suspense of a story.

And the fifth story, "Egorov," is a revenge story of triplet brothers Barat, Mikhail and Pavel. Mikhail is murdered. Their mother and father want justice. The two remaining of the triplets delve into a world of intensity and thrill as they find the truth behind Mikhail's murder. The descriptions of Little Russia feels as if you are there, living in this book. Every detail, every plot twist, carefully written out. The suspense keeps you going right through it. Revealing any more might give away too much of the story, but it is intensifying and worth the read to find out what happened to Mikhail, or not

I loved the uniqueness of the characters, stories, and dialogues of each individual novella. Mr. Malerman shows that he has many writing styles and executes them perfectly. For people who love short stories of different kinds, suspense, thriller, horror, sci-fi, it is all wrapped up in this anthology. Overall, I give the book 5 stars and look forward to more of Mr. Malerman's books, if I am so lucky to ARC them, as well.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing-Ballantine for the honor of this ARC for my honest opinion and review of this book.

Look what we got after our Malerman-style Easter Egg hunt: five well-written, unique, original, mind-bending novellas! The best part of this experience is that the entire stories are big winners. They are intelligent, captivating, and riveting enough to draw you in.

The first story, "Half of the House" (4 stars), takes a little time at the beginning because the narrators are six-year-old brother Robbie and his bullying tormentor, eight-year-old sister Stephanie, living in a gothic triplex house that may be haunted by something sinister. At least, sister Stephanie insists that half of the house is haunted. Their mumbling/gibberish style inner thoughts take a little time to decipher, but it is still intriguing. Then, we move forward to see the reunion of the siblings at the age of 40-42 to revisit their memories at the house, and the last chapter takes us to their time in their 80s. The big secret about the house still remains: could half of the place be haunted?

It was a creepy but also thought-provoking approach to how a person's fears shape their path. Is making them a daily part of your life the best way to confront your fears?

The second story, "Argyle" earned my five stars, is about Shawn Hasbro at his deathbed, about to take his last breath. He has never been so happy in his entire life because he made it. He did not kill a living, breathing human being, even though he is full of killing instincts. Shawn starts his confession to his son, his daughter, and his best friend at his deathbed. If his best friend Argyle had not stopped him and his sister Ethel had not watched him throughout his entire life, what would truly have happened? The suspense is killing! Even though the ending was predictable, I liked this story about killing instincts a lot.

The third story, "Doug and Judy Buy a House Washer," is also good, about a pretentious, extra assholish couple who dedicate their entire lives to monetizing everything by destroying anyone who gets between their rising and climbing the corporate ladder. They buy a house washer to show off to their neighbors, but what if that washer is not only cleaning their house but also their dirtiest secrets? I'm giving my five stars to this smart redemption story of the most despicable human beings.

The fourth story, "Jupiter Drop," is a wealthy man's redemption journey to Jupiter for atoning for his guilt feelings after an accident resulted in the death of his neighbor. It's surrealist, unusual, and absolutely a smart and somewhat heart-wrenching journey. I'm giving it four stars.

And the fifth story, "Egorov," is absolutely the BEST and my favorite story of the book! It's a riveting, heart-pounding revenge story of twin brothers Barat and Pavel, who try to find the killer of their triplet brother Mikhail. The description and tense atmosphere of Little Russia neighborhood couldn't be portrayed better. You feel like you're transported to that place, and the suspense gets you more thrilled and agitated at each chapter. This is the longest novella of the book, but interestingly, I read it faster than the others. I'm giving it highly deserved five stars.

Overall, it was a pleasure to return to the Goblin, Daphne, Samhatten universe. I loved each of the creative novellas. I highly recommend this anthology to thriller/mystery/fantasy lovers!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing/Ballantine/Del Rey for sharing this amazing novel's digital reviewer copy in exchange for my honest opinions.

Firstly, I love the book cover. After reading the book, it fits nicely with the vibe & overall theme.

This was a creative, dark, horror-filled set of horror novellas that I would recommend to all horror fans.

For me it was an enjoyable crash course in Malerman's repertoire since it is a collection of novellas. I look forward to more work from this author.

Tysm for granting my netgalley 'wish' & allowing me to be an ARC reader for this. I will definitely promote it on my tiktok.
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Thank you to the publisher for allowing me to read this eARC.

I love this authors writing style! Every story had its own unique atmosphere and vibe and felt fleshed out. I don't necessarily love novellas or short stories but this collection had me in a chokehold.

There's something about this author's writing style that's irresistible regardless if I like the book or not. With this collection of short stories, I really liked the first half and although I wasn't too crazy about the last half, it still held me in it's grip. This is a mix of horror, mystery, thriller and science fiction all in one. Fans of any of those genres will enjoy this one. Three and a Half Stars.

Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for this ARC.

BLUF - This is a unique collection of stories from Malerman, each one bringing a different type of weird to the table. There are references of Samhatten and Daphne and Goblin, but this collection definitely stands on its own. We get an interesting haunted house story, a serial killer that doesn't kill, a crazy house washer and the evil people that buy it, a sci-fi story about letting go of mistakes and the tale of two brothers haunting the killer of their triplet sibling. It's a crazy mash-up of delicious novellas and it was fun to read.

I struggled at the beginning of Half the House is Haunted, the jabbering back and forth of the two kids was jarring, but as I got into part 2 I realized this was by design. Malerman made you feel like you were in the heads of the kids. The story matured as it went and I ended up really liking this story and the message about overcoming fear.

Argyle was such an interesting plot set up and even though I didn't love the extremely long paragraphs, I still couldn't put this one down.

In Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer(TM), I couldn't stand the two main characters (by design). But this is a totally off the wall idea and I ripped through it so fast to find out what would become of Doug and Judy.

The Jupiter Drop was another "out there" concept and even though it is weird idea, Malerman inserts some themes of letting go of the past that I enjoyed.

Egorov follows two brothers as they avenge their brother's death (they are triplets). It was gritty and spooky and I loved the quick hitting chapters. I think this was the longest story in the book and I probably read it the quickest.

Overall, I really enjoyed the collection. Malerman's brand of weird is on display and I couldn't get enough. Recommended!

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for providing an eArc. All opinions are my own.

These four novellas are Josh Malerman at the top of his game. His novels Bird Box, Unbury Carol, and Daphne are among my favorites. But what he does here is simply astounding.

His words cut through your mind like a knife through butter and once you begin reading any of these stories you'll be hard pressed to stop until the last word has been read.

Ghosts and a haunting, a serial killer who's never killed anyone, a machine with incredible cleaning capabilities, a once in a lifetime trip to another planet, and a grieving set of twins who seek vengeance against the man who killed their (triplet) brother are here. But these stories are about much more than their premise.

There's also a thread that runs throughout them all. If you're familiar with Josh's previous work you'll definitely enjoy the little easter eggs in here.

This is a superb collection of smart, dark, and well written horror. I highly recommend it.