These four novellas were perfect for spooky season! I loved that each story was centered around a book and that they were all in some way intertwined. I enjoyed all of the stores but This Book Belongs to Olo was my personal favorite!

This was the first Ronald Malfi book that I've read and I'm looking forward to reading more. I actually found that I already had one (Little Girls) sitting on my bookshelf so I hope to squeeze that in this month!

Thank you @Netgalley, @titanbooks and the author for the e-arc of this book!

Ghostwritten is a collection of 4-novellas by one of the most compelling voices in Horror Fiction today, Ronald Malfi.

I didn't know anything about this collection going in, seeing Malfi's name on the cover was enough for me, but was so pleased to discover the connecting theme amongst the stories contained therein: BOOKS! We all love books, don't we?

How about haunted books, evil books or murderous books? Color me intrigued! I would definitely check them out.

This collection starts out with a bang with The Skin of Her Teeth. I adored that story. It was giving me Secret Window, Secret Garden vibes and I was living for it. The tone and suspense of it all helped me to fly through it so quickly. It was crazy fun!

The second and third stories, The Dark Brothers’ Last Ride and This Book Belongs to Olo, were both enjoyable as well. They were so dark, fast-moving and creative. How does he come up with this stuff? With these middle two though, for me, I wasn't captivated to the same extent as I was with the first story. I began to think that maybe the first story would end up being my resounding favorite. Then I started the fourth and final story, aptly titled, The Story.

The Story involves a very dark web, twisted version of a Choose Your Own Adventure story. I was obsessed with those types of books when I was a kid. I always wondered just what would happen if the choices I was making in the book actually had an effect on my real life. I guess Malfi once upon a time wondered the same thing...

I loved this one so much. It was horrendous in all the right ways. The way it ended, sheer perfection. Overall, this was a completely enjoyable, sure to be memorable collection.

For me, since the first and fourth stories were 5-stars, and the second and third were around 3.5-stars, I decided to slice it right down the middle with a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ final rating. Also, I definitely recommend the audiobook!

Thank you so much to the publisher, Titan Books and Tantor Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. If you are looking for a creepy collection to pick up this Spooky Season, you should absolutely get your hands on Ghostwritten. There's something for everyone here!!

Fifth spooky read of the season!👻🍂

I'm usually not into novellas, but the premise intrigued me. In the end, Ghostwritten exceeded my expectations (especially the first half)! I loved the links between the different stories and the fact that they are all about books.

The Skin of Her Teeth
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
I was enthralled from the start! I loved the characters, the plot and the detailed ending (sometimes, novellas tend to end abruptly).

The Dark Brothers’ Last Ride
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Not perfect, but this creepy story totally deserves 5 stars because I had so much fun reading it!

This Book Belongs to Olo
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
The idea of this story was amazing! How come I didn't enjoy it more? I thought it dragged too much (and it was the longest novella). I still liked it!

The Story
Rating: ⭐️⭐️
Really disappointed with the last novella... It feels like it was coming from another book.

Global rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Many thanks to Netgalley and Titan books for the ARC

Ronald Malfi has done it again! I only discovered his writing two years ago and I have been obsessed ever since.

This collection of four novellas is pure horror genius in print. I loved the connection of books throughout each story and how Malfi took a book as a focal point in each story, but still made each individual story so unique.

I loved all four novellas, but my favorite is probably "This Book Belongs to Olo." I will definitely be recommending this book and purchasing a physical copy for myself for my shelves so that I can revisit this terrifying collection.

Ghostwritten is comprised of four novellas, all relating in some way to the written word and stories themselves. I was very intrigued by the synopsis of this collection, but I was also a bit hesitant. I recently tried Malfi for the first time with his novel Black Mouth, which didn’t really work for me. But I hate to write an author off without giving them at least two tries, so I decided Ghostwritten would be our second chance, to see if we could mesh as artist and consumer. I’m happy to report that we can! While the collection as a whole was a 4 star read, two of these novellas are among my favorite horror stories I’ve ever read, and I can’t wait to read them again next October.

Below are my brief thoughts on each story.

The Skin of Her Teeth: 5 stars
Brilliant from start to finish. This is the story of a story that refuses to be altered, and I loved every minute of it. I think it might be one of my favorite horror shorts I’ve ever read. It’s definitely my favorite book-related horror I’ve encountered. I would buy a physical copy of this book for this story alone.

The Dark Brothers’ Last Ride: 4 stars
A story of a delivery trip gone wrong. And very, very weird. I actively disliked Tommy, but I think I was supposed to. It took me a little while to warm up to this story after having so deeply loved “The Skin of Her Teeth,” but it won me over. The un-rightness of the route followed on the trip was palpably creepy, and was my favorite part of the story. The book was also suitably disturbing, but I was in it for the abandoned towns and off-brand gas station snacks.

This Book Belongs to Olo: 5 stars
Olo is a very creepy child. Like, unbelievably creepy. And yet, the balance Malfi was able to strike with him was astounding. I was deeply disturbed by him, and yet I also felt an incredible amount of sympathy for him. His little homemade pop-up book was terrifying, and I loved everything about it. I also really loved Peyton; she was a powerful character, in spite of how little time on the page she actually had. This story is the reason I gave in and did indeed buy myself a physical copy of this book.

The Story: 3 stars.
I felt like this was the least original story in the collection. It was fine. The tension ratcheted up well, and Malfi evoked a great sense of impending madness and claustrophobia as the story progressed, but it seemed like a tale I’ve encountered multiple times before; it was just wearing a different dress, if you know what I mean.

I love all of the little details these stories share that tie them together. Those might be a shared background character, or a poem that crops up across stories, or a weird colloquialism used in multiple tales. Sometimes it’s a simple as a baseball. These touches and tie-ins made me unreasonably happy.

Overall, while half of the collection was definitely stronger, I found all of the stories at least somewhat enjoyable. I’m very glad that I gave Malfi another shot, and that this was the book I chose to try. I loved two of these stories so much that I immediately had to have a copy for my shelves, which says it all. I’ll definitely be reading more of Malfi in the future.

Positively eerie and atmospheric, Ghostwritten hits the spot. The book reminded me of Stephen King's short story collections but just a bit more digestible and I mean that in the best way possible!

Thank you to @netgalley and @titanbooks for a copy of this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis: Ghostwritten is an anthology of four horror novellas all tied together by one thing: they are all centered around books.

Review: Ghostwritten is a horror anthology that I think will be a little extra enjoyable for voracious readers, and I know you are all voracious readers out there. It is such a fun concept to read horror in which the books are the big bad, and it’s one that could easily get really corny. Malfi, however, knocks it out if the park. His writing is superb, as it always is, and the stories are genuinely spooky. Each one being a novella instead of just a collection of short stories was also a really good move because each story is perfectly fleshed out. I highly recommend this anthology, along with all of Ronald Malfi’s work.

It's publication day!!!! (Well, actually that was the day before yesterday but I didn't get chance to post so happy third day of publication!!!) and this fabulous anthology is now sitting on my shelf in all of its paperback glory!!!!

And it really is glorious !!

I've never read Malfi before - I can't fathom why, I guess his is just not a name I've come across previously - but he's becoming a fast favourite since I first read this collection back in August.

Yes, I should have reviewed this sooner, but I really wanted to wait because I wanted to make sure I wasn't fangirling and was being completely genuine with my ratings and review, because let's face it - a collection of novellas about the power of literature - what's not to fangirl over?? And they're horror to boot! Fantastic!

Malfi weaves the power of literature through these novellas, exploring the idea that "stories" have the ability to be alive - that they're not confined to the pages they're penned on but can transcend time and even dimension. He also explores the power of the imagination and the danger of literature when it's used to control, or becomes something that in itself seems harmless but can prove to be dangerous in the wrong hands (with the wrong interpretation) Another idea I found extremely intriguing were the characters who knew of the various powers of books - and go so far as to collect them to keep them away from being used in irresponsible and dangerous ways. I loved all of these explorations and they have all really stayed with me. I am a lover of literature, the power of the imagination, and the longevity of the written word, and that Malfi explores these so well in fairly short stories really, really impressed me and I found myself loving every single page.

The horror in these stories is not jump scare, gore or slasher - it's visceral, palpable, emotive and haunting. It's insidious and classic - the sort that would make great episodes of Tales of the Unexpected or The Twilight Zone if the novellas were mini movies. It's that classic feel that added to my excitement - you can see plenty of influences of the genre in these pieces and it's refreshing to know that this type of horror is still as effective as ever.

Overall, this is a book that I absolutely loved (in case you couldn't tell) I have read it more than a few times as an ARC and now I have a physical copy, and I'll be buying more to gift to friends I think will appreciate it. I would recommend this in a heartbeat - especially if you like reading Stephen King, but it would suit any fan of classic horror.

I've rated this 5 stars. I can't help it. Ratings for the individual novellas follow below, and I did have a favourite. Which one will yours be?

PS: Totally fangirling!!!

The Skin of Her Teeth: 5
The Dark Brother's Last Ride: 5
This Book Belongs to Olo: 4.95
The Story: 4.75

Thank you so much to the author, Titan Books and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Ghostwritten by Ronald Malfi.
In The Skin of Her Teeth, a cursed novel drives people to their deaths. 
 A delivery job turns deadly in The Dark Brothers’ Last Ride. 
 In This Book Belongs to Olo, a lonely child has dangerous control over an usual pop-up book.
I really enjoyed this book. Creepy. I loved the cover. 4*.

Big thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I can't tell you how many other Malfi books I've tried to get into that just doesn't click with me. Unfortunately, this is another one. The premise is great and I don't mind his writing style, it just didn't suck me in. I genuinely believe this is a me thing and not an author thing, I'm just not the target reader here.

Books can be deadly….

Malfi is back with four novellas to sink your teeth into! Creepy and at times truly terrifying, Malfi’s stories are the perfect selection for spooky season!

The four novellas share the theme of haunted books, haunted writers and the power of the written word. They can be read alone but can also be read as one complete novel. Malfi has included plenty of references to his other works in these short stories which is a real treat for his fans!

The Skin of her Teeth - a cursed book that drives people to their deaths. Loved this story. Real Goosebumps for adults vibe!

The Dark Brother’s Last Ride- two brothers on the wrong side of the tracks whose delivery goes very wrong. My least favourite of the four. I didn’t feel any connection to the brothers and their predicament but it did remind me of Stranger Things with the alternate reality setting.

This Book Belongs to Olo- a lonely little boy who dreams of having friends makes a haunted pop up house which comes to life. Olo’s story is thoroughly creepy (the mannequins freaked me out completely!) and although I felt sorry for him, his logic of how to make friends is as scary as hell!

The Story- a choose your own adventure game with deadly consequences. Such an original story that sucks you into the world of the protagonists and makes you question what’s real.

Malfi’s novellas get creepier and creepier as you move through the book. A real page-turner full of suspense and the supernatural with the perfect amount of horror! A thoroughly riveting read. 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thanks to NetGalley and Titan Books for the arc. Ghostwritten is out now!

I'll start by saying this. Ronald Malfi's imagination is incredible. This collection of four novellas with a similar theme of books and stories is absolute proof.

We start with 'Skin of Her Teeth' which is about a book that is an entity in itself that causes problems for Gloria. For me this one was my least favourite, but that's not to say that it was bad - I just preferred the others more.

The second story The Dark Brothers Last Ride is about two brothers that have to deliver a package to a person called Choptank. They must do so, following a specific route with a specific set of rules. This novella had some creepy moments infused with a dreamlike quality and I enjoyed it.

The third story This Book Belongs To Olo, centres around a creepy kid that just wants to make friends. He attempts this by inviting some of the local children to his birthday party, where there will be fun, games and prizes. Only it doesn't stay fun. This story was definitely a favourite because I thought it was genius - and you'll need to read it to know what I mean.

Lastly The Story. This is told from journalist Grady's POV when a colleagues mysterious suicide leads to a more mysterious and deadly story. This one I found to be really gritty and I enjoyed how the narrator of the story became unreliable as his grip on reality slipped.

Overall, this was brilliant. Thank you to Titan Books and Netgalley for this book in exchange for review.

Four books in one! All about books with a common theme of books being deadly. Each story becoming more dark and creepier through the four stories. This was my first book by Malfi and I’m sure will not be my last. His writing is exquisite and definitely gave serious creepy vibes without gore or trying to do stupid scares. This type of writing makes you think and gets into your head and under your skin.


Thank you to Netgalley and Titan Books for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

<i>myself asks
am i here?
i've lost myself
i fear</i>

After the splendid novel "Come with me", Ronald Malfi is a A list author for me, and I will read everything this author has ever written and will write in the future. Thus, it was with much pleasure and anticipation that I started reading the new four novellas that from "Ghostwritten".

The first one, "The skin of her teeth" was my least favorite and was redeemed by the unexpected twist halfway through. "The Dark Brothers’ Last Ride" was mesmerizing and that end was seriously disturbing ! In the third novella "This Book Belongs to Olo" we meet the weirdest and creepiest child. It made me wonder what goes on in the mind of the author to come up with such an utterly strange and unsettling character ! Do I really want to know? "The Story" was my absolute favorite. Such a strange tale that I was almost too scared to read on.

It is far more in the horror realm than "Come with me" ever was, but is still very cleverly done and I also enjoyed the fact that all stories are interlinked by just the smallest fishhooks. Even though these are novellas, the author manages to flesh out real characters and complex storylines that are vivid and very graphic. Especially 'The Tale' would make a creepy movie. Brilliant !


A sincere and heartfelt thanks to NetGalley, Titan Books and the author for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Ghostwritten, by Ronald Malfi is made up of 4 brand new novellas. So I would say this is a good platter of Malfi for you to jump into. Especially if you’ve heard of him or have seen his name around and didn’t know where to start. These four novellas are all different, but carry a common theme.

The novellas are about stories and books and manuscripts. And they all have the horror undertones. They have the supernatural aspects Malfi is known for.

Now just in case you’re thinking since these all are about books or stories, they will become repetitive. That is not the issue. I didn’t think so. Each story is different, just connected with a theme of written words.

All four novellas are very strong and solid. There is one that didn’t click with me as much as the others, but I think it’s just a preference thing. We will get to that in a minute.

Kicking things off, we have “The Skin Of Her Teeth.” A book that makes people go crazy. It drives them mad. It involves the world of movies, with an agent, and a screenplay needing to be completed, a huge deal that may collapse if this screenplay isn’t done. It could possible have a little Meta. But none the less it has a lot of tension and what I call some good old horror. Pretty straightforward. A strong presentation. And a fulfilling delivery. A good way to kick off this collection. A mood setter.

Next up “The Dark Brother’s Last Ride.” This one is dark and gritty. Do you remember the movie SEVEN? They had to transport the box but couldn’t open the box? What’s in the Box? Same concept but with a briefcase. And it gets a little fun because you know someone is not going to follow directions properly.

The third story, “This Book Belongs to Olo,” is the one I may have struggled to really get into. It’s still a good strong story with an engrossing plotline. It just teeters a little on Fantasy. And I’m not the biggest Fantasy fan. I didn’t mind it being more YA compared to the others in the collection, because there are plenty of good YA horror stories. It’s more dark fantasy I think you can say. The heart of this story is one you may need to dig a little deeper about a child who is lonely and parents who are always too busy. That can be a deeply emotional story within itself. Actually I can see this one being a movie with cool special effects and I probably would be into it a little more.

And finally we have “The Story,” which is about, a story. You guessed it. And I think you are in for a treat with this one. It may play with your mind a little. I think I’ve read the concept attempted by others, but Malfi pulls it off. You see a characters descent into madness. Its great. And it’s a concept piece, so be ready for that. You may remember some of those “Choose Your Own Adventure” or “Choose Your Own Ending” type stories. Keep that in mind. And I think it’s one that may have the reader questioning their own existence. I don’t want to get too deep, so we will keep it at that.

So there you have four new novella’s all wrapped up in one collection by Ronald Malfi. All of them enjoyable. Just the third one I had a little trouble really getting into but I think you will be just fine.

Overall they all have very solid and well put together storylines and great character development. Grady is a great character in “The Story.”

Full of creepiness and suspense and high tension. And no need for cheap jump scares. This is a good collection from Malfi. Like I mentioned earlier it may be a good starting point just to get an idea for his style and his voice. I don’t think there is anything too extreme or graphic. There are a few tongue-in-cheek moments. And you may even find yourself getting lost at times being so wrapped up with the story. Those are the kind that you know work really well.

What a fun but unsettling read! I think Ronald Malfi is one of the most exciting, enjoyable authors in the horror genre at the moment. He has a real knack for building suspense, casually throwing spine-chilling moments out there and creating well rounded characters that the reader can empathize with. Ghostwritten allows his talents to shine in four loosely interconnected stories themed on books and the power of the written word.
All four novellas were really enjoyable and each one completely sucked me in to its own little universe. I couldn't decide on a sole favourite,but it's definitely a toss up between the final two stories, This Book Belongs to Olo and The Story. Both had very unique plots that were quite a bit darker than the other two stories. The Story ends quite abruptly and left me wishing it had been a full length novel!
I'd highly recommend this collection. Malfi fans and horror fans alike will find much enjoyment among the pages of Ghostwritten. Thanks to Netgalley for my copy.

**Review posted to Goodreads account

In my opinion, the only thing better than regular books are books *about* books, and each of the stories in this collection focus on books in some way: haunted books, haunted stories, haunted writers. It's a bibliophile's dream. Or... nightmare.

Ghostwritten is a book containing four novellas:

In "The Skin of Her Teeth", a story resists - in gross and maddening ways - all attempts at alteration.

In "The Dark Brothers' Last Ride", a couple of criminal couriers find themselves traveling through a fever-dream landscape to deliver - with detailed instructions on what NOT to do - a rare and mysterious book to an equally mysterious buyer.

In "This Book Belongs to Olo", a brilliant but lonely little boy constructs a special pop-up book, and uses it to make friends - whether the other children want to play along or not.

In "The Story", Malfi completes his maniacal brain-melt by presenting a tale of a man investigating a friend's suicide, caught up in a real-life choose-your-own-adventure story with disastrous consequences.

Each story works well enough as a stand-alone, but the real genius lies in how Malfi has worked bits of each story into all the others so that the reader's head spins with the nearly meta-fiction feel of the collection as a whole.

Malfi's writing sucks you into each story within the first page or two, and as you finish one, you'll find yourself greedily skipping right along to the next. He plants little seeds of information in one story for the reader to find in another; he makes passing reference to some of his past writings as well. He gives mysteries to solve and then leaves some with frustratingly little closure. He presents a nightmare landscape that somehow makes you want to burrow down into it, because its hellish but its also beautiful and darkly magical.

Malfi is fast becoming one of my favorite modern horror writers, and this collection only confirms that he deserves that honor.

I absolutely LOVE Ronald Malfi’s books. Ghostwritten has four dark standalone stories, all themed around a creepy cursed book.
If you’re a fan of the horror genre, these Novellas are fun to read and I would highly recommend reading Ghostwritten, especially the first three stories.
Thank you NetGalley and Titan Books for the ARC in return for an honest review.

If this isn't the perfect book for October, I don't know what is! I feel like I'm reading something new by Ronald Malfi every month, but I'm certainly not complaining. He has a wonderful depth of creativity and sense of place, as well as character. This collection of 4 horror novellas is haunting, in the best way. If you enjoy the story-within-a-story concept, these novellas are right for you. Possessed books? Yes, please! The scariest story for me was This Book Belongs to Olo. All four tales are intertwined, and I liked finding the pieces in each story. This is well written, tense, and spooky. Recommend for readers 14+. Thank you to Netgalley and Titan Books for the chance to review this advance copy.

This is the second book by Malfi that I have read now.

I didn't particularly enjoy the first book of theirs that I read but I felt that they were definitely worth giving another go and I'm glad that I did as I really enjoyed this collection of short stories.

Each story had an intriguing plot, well-developed characters, some genuinely unnerving imagery, and the appropriate accompanying atmosphere.

If you're after a few quick spooky reads then I definitely recommend this book.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for giving me a free digital copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review.