Another excellent read by Ronald Malfi!

He has become one of my favorite authors in the horror genre, second only to Stephen King. If you love dark, old- school horror, and you aren't reading books by Malfi you are missing out.

After 20 years away from their home town, five childhood friends are confronting their terrifying past together. Each are haunted in their own way and are forced to relive a horrible secret. If you love the horror trope of childhood friends facing their past, this book is perfect. It has some hauntingly creepy aspects and is a slow burn from the start. We slowly learn about each of the friends and their dark secret is revealed to help gain more context while moving the story along. This was a fun mix of mystery and supernatural, with some twists in the end. Overall, it was a fun read!

I am a huge fan of Malfi, so I requested this immediately. This one wasn't one of his more original works but I did like it. I liked the characters and the plot, feel like the pacing could have been a bit better though. Overall, still a throughly enjoyable read.

Five friends, two crimes, decades apart. A gripping supernatural thriller about the secrets that hide in a small town and the lengths that people will go to keep the truth buried – and the fury which will bare the truth and avenge the past.

Andrew Larimer left his past in Kingsport, where he and his friends committed and covered up a terrible act decades ago. A hotshot New York lawyer, expecting a baby with his successful and talented wife, his life is miles away from the small town where he grew up. This temporary peace is shattered when childhood friend Dale Walls calls – his wife Cynthia is missing, and he is the prime suspect.

Upon returning to Kingsport, Andrew finds himself haunted by the past. This group of friends is bound together by their dark secret, but with Cynthia's disappearance, things are quickly spiralling out of control. Desperate to keep the past hidden, they soon lash out and turn on one another out of guilt, fear, paranoia, and anger, culminating in an explosive and tragic ending.

While the plot itself isn't particularly innovative (there's been a real glut of "childhood friends confront thing they did in the past" novels in recent years), this one stands out in a number of ways. The characters feel raw and real, each irrevocably shaped by their youthful folly. Meach is unable to pull himself out of addiction; Eric follows in his father's footsteps as an abusive and corrupt cop. They're unable to move on, yet incapable of confronting the past head-on.

The supernatural element is incredibly well done, with a growing sense of unease and and the plausibility that no, it's all in the minds of very traumatized people. The motel scene is incredibly captivating – the perfect blend of supernatural and human horrors. Seeing all the threads come together in the final chapters was incredibly satisfying. (I'm still reeling from the reveal about Andrew and Rebecca's baby, and I'll be thinking about this for a while.) Overall, another winner from Ronald Malfi – put this compelling supernatural thriller on your list.

This author always gives us solid horror stories. Not my favorite book from them, but still very engaging. Recommended.

Ready to be completely unsettled and sleep with all the lights on? Dive into Small Town Horror with master of the genre, Ronald Malfi. The book may be set in a steamy, Mid-Atlantic summer, but it's sure to send a chill up your spine and put a chatter in your teeth.

Andrew Larimer has not been back to his hometown of Kingsport, Maryland, since he was a teen, and for good reason. Now Andrew is an attorney in Manhattan, awaiting the birth of his first child with his wife, Rebecca. All is well (enough), until Andrew gets a call from a childhood friend in trouble, and has to return to Kingsport. There he reunites with his group of friends, who are bound together and defined by a single tragic night, long ago. Almost immediately upon Andrew's homecoming, strange things begin to occur. Frightening things, yes, but still easily dismissed by a rational mind. It isn't long before the past and present collide in irrevocable ways, and the group of five friends will never be the same.

I read this one voraciously and was undeniably creeped out. There are a few scenes that hit me with a visceral punch and I was spooked for certain. Malfi is at the top of his game with Small Town Horror. Thank you to Netgalley and Titan Books for the review copy.

So you've read the synopsis, and I know what you're thinking: a pivotal moment in the life of five teenagers disintegrates their friendship group, and they go their separate ways... Until the effects of that day begin to rear their heads again as the twentieth anniversary approaches, and our main character gets the phone call to return to his old home town—to end it once and for all. Sounds familiar, right? If you're a horror fan, then chances are you feel like you've read this story before. Malfi, however, is an author who likes to mix things up when it comes to using familiar tropes, and Small Town Horror is no exception.

The promotional material for the book posits that 'Maybe this is a ghost story', and that feeling looms heavily over it, along with vibes of Peter Straub's own Ghost Story. But what exactly is haunting the fractured friendship group—is it supernatural or the ripple effect of their actions through families, through friends, and through the titular small town over the last two decades? There's a constant theme of deterioration throughout this novel. Whether it's the relationship between our five protagonists, their physical and mental states, or the childhood home Andrew has returned to, Malfi uses this feeling of things falling apart to its full effect. I found it made the danger feel palpable and ensured the stakes were always ever-present and real.

This is not a book for those expecting instant scares and action from the first chapter. The story burns slowly at first, with time taken to methodically introduce each character and their place within the group. Alternating timelines, flashing back to two decades before, are deftly handled, with the revelations of the past informing the present and vice versa. Once we're well acquainted with Andrew and his friends, Malfi really begins turning the screws. Reveals start coming, in dribs and drabs at first, before the floodgates open and the twists begin reframing what we thought we knew before, which at times can be outright shocking. I began to invest deeply in most of the major characters, which only made it hurt more when Small Town Horror stopped pulling its punches and let the horror truly start.

Ronald Malfi is fast becoming one of my favourite modern horror authors, frequently weaving wonderfully written prose with both real scares and heart. I found this book to be another success for him and an easy recommendation to any fan of his previous work, as well as anyone looking for a well-written tale of being haunted.

Thank you so much to netgalley and titan books for the ARC of this book. This is my first “horror” read and I loved it! This author did a great job of getting me hooked from the start- I’ll definitely be reading more of his books.

For the first quarter of the book, you know the group of friends had something tragic happen in high school. You follow the MMC, Andrew get a call from an old high school buddy that he needs to come back to his hometown to help him with something. We learn that his buddy’s wife has gone missing and that they’re looking at him as a suspect. We get flashbacks throughout the book to when they were all in high school and finally learn the tragic event that broke them all apart. Throughout the book I was on the edge of my seat dying to know if they were really haunted from the tragedy they were a part of, or just paranoid. Overall, I recommend if you enjoy thrillers!

SMALL TOWN HORROR, by Ronald Malfi, is a fantastic example of horror that doesn't let go! From the very start, my interest was captured by the atmospheric writing. As the main characters began to emerge, and stories--both present and past--shown, I honestly couldn't put it down.

We begin with Andrew Larimer, a lawyer in the city who gets a frantic call one night from an old childhood friend, Dale. In the wake of this, Andrew finds himself back in his small hometown of Kingsport, Maryland--a place he swore he'd never return to after his Father's funeral six years prior.


Inevitably, the rest of his one-time friends get together--the five of them bound by a tragedy in their past, and brought back together by a current problem.

Did I mention there's a woman they believe to be a witch, and a supernatural apparition they feel has cursed them?

While the action--both past and present--is amazing, it's the characters themselves that I felt gave this story life. We are shown through the actions of each how they were twenty years ago, and how that one day shaped them into the people they are today.

Overall, I feel this novel had everything I needed to make it one that I'll remember for years to come.

Highly recommended.

Books about small town secrets are a dime a dozen but Malfi adds his unique blend of horror and heart in this story about small town secrets and how you can never escape the past. Andrew is a successful New York lawyer living with his wife Rebecca and expecting his first child. He has been having strange dreams and anxious fears about the baby when he receives a call he has been dreading for many years. Andrew and his old friends have a secret, one that they always thought would be back to haunt them and now he realizes he may have to face everything he loves going up in smoke. The old friend who calls is Dale, a property developer. The other friends who still live in this town are Eric who is a police officer, Tig a single mother and bar owner and Meach, a drug addict. Andrew doesn't tell his wife where he is going and when he arrives at his old childhood home, he finds a terrible smell, sees shadows and hears a strange mechanical noise.

Told in two time periods, one story is about the present time and the disappearance of Dale's wife, and the other is about the teenage years of the group when they made a very bad choice after an accident. The author does a great job with describing the strange goings on in the town including birds turning up dead everywhere, the old lady who may be a witch and her strange human-like sculptures and the lighthouse which watches over the town like an eye. There is a big twist toward the end which was well done and explained some of the events in the book. Is there some kind of curse following the group or is a human responsible for what is going on? Good story with just the right amount of terror. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this ARC in exchange for a review.

I will read anything by Ronald Malfi. I’m a huge fan. So when I was given the opportunity of reading his forthcoming novel, Small Town Horror, I leapt at the chance. Once again, Mr. Malfi does not disappoint.

Using the trope of teenaged friends who reunite in their hometown years later (It, anyone?), the author constructs an absolute marvel of a book. Andrew Larimer, a successful Manhattan attorney, is urgent.y summoned back to his hometown by one of his childhood friends, whose wife has disappeared. Once back there, he reunites with his circle of friends. As it turns out, the subsequent events of the book occur near the twentieth anniversary of a tragic event that was covered up by all of them.

Once again, Ronald Malfi demonstrates his superior talent in slowly ratcheting up the dread and the tension, keeping this reader glued to the pages. The plotting is outstanding, and the characters are fully developed. And the writing….oh, the writing is in places just drop dead incredible. Another home run by the author.

Highly recommended.

My thanks to the publisher and to Netgalley for providing an ARC of the book.

*Huge thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for a digital ARC of this one!*

Unfortunately, this one just isn't working for me. I've given it until the 50% mark to see if I could garner some sort of connection, but it just isn't.

Ultimately, the 'secret' the group was keeping a secret just wasn't that shocking and was more of a huge accident that would've played out like that if they'd reported it when it happened, but it's been conflated over the years. I can see where this one's going, but I think Malfi's 'Come With Me' was so strong and so gripping, that this time, this cat and mouse, small town with a returning resident who now lives in the big-city, just can't grab me like the storytelling in 'Come With Me' or even 'Black Mouth' did.

Judging by the number of glowing reviews I'm seeing about this one already, I think this is more a case of wrong book for me at the wrong time and I might have to return to this one after letting it sit for a while. Saying that, I'll be diving into his novel 'The Ascent' soon, because I've been wanting to read that for years!

This worked so well as a story in the horror genre. I was enjoying the friends element to this book and that they had to deal with the curse and if it was actually happening. I enjoyed the way the characters were written and that they were realistic and enjoyable in the story. Ronald Malfi has a great writing style and I enjoyed the use of the cover to add to the mystery of the story. It left me wanting to read more in this type of book and I enjoyed the way Ronald Malfi writes.

Small Town Horror is another unputdownable novel by Ronald Malfi. Gave me chills and nightmares, a must read for scary novel fans!

I feel like Malfi keeps getting better and better. This coming of age novel reminded me of Stephen King at his best - good, old-fashioned creepy storytelling. Five childhood friends, now adults, are called back to their hometown to a past they thought was left behind. I can’t wait to recommend on publication day. Thanks so much for the opportunity to read in advance!

Malfi does not miss. I’ve been a Malfi fan for quite a bit and was super excited to see this new release. It’s definitely a slower burn, so readers expecting action packed words will likely be disappointed. The majority of the characters are fairly unlikable which may make it hard for some readers to connect and fear for them. But this book was fantastic.

It was both parts paranormal as well as your typical terrible human beings. I went into this book completely blind and loved it. The last few pages where Malfi connects those final dots were phenomenal. The motel scene was written so vividly and such a creepy part of the book.

Highly recommend to those who dig great world building and fantastically written books.

Once again, Ronald Malfi demonstrates his talent for writing small town horror. So much so, he literally made it the title of this novel.

This just felt familiar and nostalgic. The story is perhaps not the most original but the author handles these familiar plots so seamlessly that I did not mind.

I enjoyed the characters and plotting. This just felt easy and comforting to read. I did not find it the most innovative or scary book, but it didn't need to be those things to enjoy it.

I would recommend this one to fans of this author's work. This is also a good place to start because it is very representative of his work.

Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

The atmosphere in this book was perfectly matched to the title and there were several parts that creeped me out - to the point that I got goosebumps.

This book is a good portrayal of guilt and how it can eat at you and permeate almost every part of your life after.

There was a good twist to this book that I was not expecting.

Highly recommend this for fans of Malfi, it hits all his usual marks.

Wow. Another creepy horror tale of a seemingly normal family….so well done, slow burn style! Love this author, and his ability to make realistic characters & situations of horror that can casually befall someone so normal! Very ominous & filled with strange while anxiously reading the last third of the book! Loved it!

The story involves five friends who share a secretive past that they try to forget, but the past is not that far away and will creep back up and find you…

I found the atmosphere of this book to be so haunting. The way Ronald Malfi describes the scenes you feel like you are really there. I could smell the smells he described and the slimy texture of things. Some parts of the book had my heart racing because I was nervous to see what was going to happen next.

All the characters of this book were all flawed and you didn’t really root for anyone, but you didn’t want to see anything bad happen to anyone. Each character was distinguishable and you felt something for them whether that was good or bad feelings, that’s up to you.

If you are looking for a creepy horror this is the book for you. I personally really liked this book and would recommend it if you are in the mood for a small town, fast paced horror that involves secrets, lies, and guilt then this is the book for you.

Thank you to Titan Books and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.