Black Mouth follows a group of childhood friends who reunite in their hometown of Black Mouth, Maryland to discover the town is still haunted by a dark secret.

It reminded me of Stephen King’s It and the Stranger Things TV show, as it deals with the themes of nostalgia, friendship, trauma, and the power of imagination. The author paints a vivid and atmospheric picture of the town that creates a sense of dread and mystery. The story is captivating and suspenseful, moving back and forth between the past and the present, and gradually revealing clues and twists. I especially liked the character of Dennis, the main protagonist’s disabled brother, and the voice acting was very well done.

However, the novel also had some flaws that made it less enjoyable for me. The main issue was that the novel feels like two separate stories that do not fit well together. The first story is about the friends and their personal issues and how they face their trauma, while the second story is about the disfigured character and his backstory and how he connects to the main story very late in the book (although I figured it out much earlier). The second story is confusing and unnecessary, as it didn't add anything to the main plot and only distracted me from the emotional core of the book. The book is also way too long, lasting for over 18 hours, and could have used some editing and pacing.

Overall, Black Mouth is a novel that has some good aspects, but also some significant drawbacks. It is a decent horror novel that fans of the genre might like, but it is not a masterpiece that will stay with me. I rate it 3 out of 5 stars.

Black Mouth by Ronald Malfi was definitely a creepy read with vibes of some King in there. I was at a 50/50 like and dislike with this one. Not what I was expecting (maybe more horror), but not bad either because it gave off those atmospheric vibes. The narration was good and kept me intrigued, but at points of this book I started to become not as interested. It fell a bit flat for me, but that's not because it was a bad book, but it wasn't what I was expecting at the ending.

Thank you to Netgalley and Tantor Audio for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed a previous novel by this author and I was looking forward to his next book. This is a very creepy book and it will be difficult not to want to cuddle with a stuffed animal while reading it. Unfortunately for a lot of children and adults in this world, there are always individuals seeking to take advantage of them. This book serves as a poignant reminder of the devastation that can be wrought be a stranger with a smile and a trick.

I have been sitting on this one for a little over a year now hoping I would come to a different conclusion. I really love Malfi's work but could not get into this one. I wanna say it is me not him! I feel blashphemous just saying this so I have not been able to post it on any social media. FORGIVE ME!

This was my first Ronald Malfi book and I'm happy to say that I really enjoyed it. I thought the plot was intriguing and paced really well throughout and the antagonist was genuinely creepy. I liked the relationship between the four friends, both as eleven year olds and as adults and thought the relationship between Jamie and his brother, Dennis was well drawn. Overall, I found this to be a very compelling read and I will definitely pick up more books by the author.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This book didn't work for me. It felt to much like Stephen King's It. I never felt a connection to the characters or that they were all that interesting to keep me reading.

Was not really into this one, that's unusual for a Malfi yarn. Oh well, it happens. I had a difficulty connecting with the narrative and found a particular character equal parts wasted and insensitive.

Ronald Malfi delivers a wonderfully sinister and strong character-driven story in "Black Mouth". Its a nice slow burn of psychological horror and so incredibly well-written. Its definitely the sort of story that has been done before as a group of friends must confront their past and the disturbing events that followed after they discovered a magician living in the forest. Having said that ... Ronald Malfi, delivers a riveting combination of nightmare coming-of-age story and the dark cost of human choices adults are confronted with. The writing style is easy to read and the execution of both supernatural and horror elements is effortlessly woven into the story line. The characters have depth and as a reader you can definitely invest in them.

This is a must read!

It said it was for fans of stephen king’s It… but it felt more like reading a book with copied ideas from it, like unoriginal is the word I’m going for here I think. No, it wasn’t the same as It of course. But it had the same kind of situation going on. I just was more excited than I should have been.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ love Ronald Malfi and he does it again with this one. Definitely worth checking out. One of my 5 star reads for 2022. Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy.

OK classic horror plot--a bunch of friends return home after many years away to discuss and maybe solve a supernatural experience that has haunted them ever since. It's a pretty good book, not Malfi's best, but a decent Halloween listen. Rounded up from maybe 3.75. I enjoyed it overall, but have come to expect more from Malfi.

The storyline reminds me of Stephens King's It, with childhood friends having to return back to their hometown to stop something evil. Alas, the story isn't as captivating as King's book. I did enjoy listening to the book, the story was interesting, but I felt that I never really connected with the characters, that they never fleshed out. A big drawback was the fact that I never really liked Jamie Warren, who is the character of the main book.

Joe Hempel narrated the audiobook and he gave an excellent performance and made the book a bit better.

This book is like a mix between IT and Revival by Stephen King, and NOS4A2 by Joe Hill. The problem is, those books are great, and this book is just not as good at doing any of those things as well as the books it reminded me of.

Black Mouth follows a group of people who have to confront some evil they encountered previously when they were children. Sounds familiar, right? This part of the book was well done. The buildup between what happened in their childhood, when they encountered a magician in the forest, and what is happening when they are older was interesting. Malfi is particularly good at setting up a creepy atmosphere, and I think the dialogue in this book was better than average. Some of the horror imagery or the psychological issues the characters were dealing with was well done.

The problem here is that most of the characters are pretty bland. I just finished and I don't think I could tell you much about any of them besides the narrator, Jamie, and his brother, Dennis. I also thought the climax of the book just descended into silliness once we started getting "answers", another similarity to IT.

Malfi tries to introduce a secondary antagonist that has ties to the same evil thing that the main group has, and I think this was the least effective part of the book. This character feels so lazy - we get access to his thoughts and he refers to the female lead as "the lesbian" every single time, okay we get it, he's homophobic. But let's hammer it in a bit more, he can start calling her a bitch every second sentence. Nuance! Also the perspective shifts of the book don't make sense. Most of it is told in first person perspective from Jamie, and then it switches to third person perspective for this character. But the book is later confirmed to be Jamie telling the story after the fact, so...what?

Overall, I think the book just suffered from constantly reminding me of better books.

TW: Murder, gory scenes, animal deaths, homophobia, bullying, family drama, depression, child abuse, sexual abuse, alcoholism, toxic parent relationship, gaslighting, death of parent

*****SPOILERS*****
About the book:For nearly two decades, Jamie Warren has been running from darkness. He's haunted by a traumatic childhood and the guilt at having disappeared from his disabled brother's life. But then a series of unusual events reunites him with his estranged brother and their childhood friends, and none of them can deny the sense of fate that has seemingly drawn them back together.Nor can they deny the memories of that summer, so long ago – the strange magic taught to them by an even stranger man, and the terrible act that has followed them all into adulthood. In the light of new danger, they must confront their past by facing their futures, and hunting down a man who may very well be a monster.
Release Date: July 19th, 2022
Genre: Horror
Pages: 400
Rating:⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

What I Liked:
1. The writing style
2. Carnivale setting
3. Creepy scenes

What I Didn't Like:
1. Sometimes felt slow/sluggish
2. Characters were easy at times to mix up
3. Reminded me TOO much of IT

Overall Thoughts: I am seriously blown away with how much I liked this book. The writing was so good. I was sucked into the book from the first few pages.

The characters were interesting. Some of them as teens came off annoying but they are teens so that is expected.

I was creeped out reading about this dude that had powers and was getting kids to hang out with him in the woods. There were some turns in this book that seriously gave me the chills.

I loved that the ending was a supernatural ending. The bond the friends had was nice. The fair setting.

Final Thoughts: I loved this book. It was creepy and I love a book with a fair setting.

Recommend For:
• Fans of It
• Strong circle of friends
• Coming of age story
• Supernatural elements
• Fair settings

Audio review - narrator was great and handled the cast with aplomb



I get the impression this is not where I should have started with Malfi's work. The book was well plotted and well written. It was compelling enough to keep me going until the end. I'm not sure I actually liked it as such. Part of the issue was that I inadvertently saw it compared to Stephen's King's IT - not only one of my favourite King Books but one of my all time favourite books. And aside from a bunch of grown up children going back to face a childhood 'monster', this doesn't bear much resemblance to IT at all. However, that wasn't a deal breaker because it was an engaging read. I just found myself in the odd position of wanting the story but not really caring about any of the characters. They just didn't gel with me and I wonder if the King comparison is why. Because no one does characters like King. Maybe my mind was performing a subconscious unfair comparison?



Anyway, 4 stars for a well written well thought out piece of horror but it was just ok for me personally. Am definitely interested in more of Malfi's work though.

I was intrigued by the description of this horror book that is said to be perfect for fans of Stephen Kings IT. I’m a huge fan of that book so I thought I’d give this one a go. BLACK MOUTH by Ronald Malfi, and narrated by Joe Hempel. The fact that it takes place in West Virginia was just an unexpected bonus.

A small group of friends experienced some unimaginable terror as children, and even though they’ve grown up in the past two decades, that shared past still haunts them. They led their own lives but they are suddenly all brought back to their childhood town, almost as if fate drew them there. They decide to figure out what really happened back then, and if it’s possibly still happening now, and what they can do to stop it.

I went into this book a little wary as I don’t care for books that are basically remakes of others, especially ones I love. But it’s truly an original and I really liked it. The characters were well described and relatable, as well as all the settings and scenery. 5 stars!!

Thanks to NetGalley and Tantor Audio for the gift of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tantor Audio for the opportunity to read and review this advance copy of Black Mouth by Ronald Malfi.

This is a DARK story. I did enjoy parts of it, but overall I felt like the pacing could be a little faster. I have read that this book has been compared to King's IT, but I just didn't feel that while listening to the audiobook. I imagined being somewhat scared while reading, partly because it seemed as though that was promised, but I didn't feel scared at all.

In Black Mouth, the main character Jamie (a struggling, recovering alcoholic) is forced back home to face his childhood tormentor. Because of this, Jamie is then faced with confronting his past and the demons he’s kept secreted away for so many years.

I thought the author did a good job of developing the characters and the narration was well done. This book just really wasn't for me, but I would still recommend it to others! Also, the writing is delightful prose. And I appreciate that! I think I just wanted to feel scared. ha!

It had a surprising ending and I'd say that was the shining star to this book. I don't want to give anything away, but readers will enjoy that much!!

4.5 stars

Another hit out of the park by Ronald Malfi! This atmospheric read had a mix of book auras. Horror, mystery, supernatural suspense all mixed under the framework of Stand By Me. Yah I know, it sounds strange, but it honestly worked.

When Jamie returns home to Blackmouth after his mother dies, he is forced to confront his disabled bother Dennis and the past he ran away from. He reconnects with his group of friends when one of them takes a picture of The Magician, a man who played a prominent role in their young lives. Jamie, Dennis and the friends go in search of this mysterious man who hasn’t aged a day and may be at the heart of a recent and strange murder investigation involving two eleven year old girls.

This book took me up and down and all around. It was an exciting ride! I became increasingly invested and keen to know what the heck was going on. Although the ending was intriguing, it didn’t quite live up to the rest of the plot but it summed things up nicely and brought with it a strong sense of closure. I’m looking forward to Malfi’s next book!!

The audiobook narration was well performed. Again, had that Stand By Me kind of performance that brought the listener into the eyes of the MC.

A gracious thank you to #tantoraudio and Netgalley for an advanced audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Not bad. Not one of my favorites from this year but a good solid book. I was looking for more scares and less drinking vomiting but hey.... Thanks to @netgalley for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

Overall I enjoyed the book. I liked the creepy feel of "It" in the sense that it was a bunch of kids that had a very traumatic experience together and must go back to finish what was started. Or Something this Way Comes because of the carnival and the theme of magic and nightmares. All of the characters were either relatable or likable except I really didn't like Jamie at all. I think it's because he was supposed to be an unreliable narrator but that wasn't the vibe I got. Alcoholism is a serious matter and I felt that he acted like it was no big deal when he is hallucinating and violently ill throughout the majority of the book but maybe I missed something there. I don't want to end on a negative note so I want to finish up by saying even though I didn't like Jamie I really enjoyed the book and will read more of Malfi's work in the future.

For nearly two decades, Jamie Warren has been running from darkness. He's haunted by a traumatic childhood and the guilt at having disappeared from his disabled brother's life. But then a series of unusual events reunites him with his estranged brother and their childhood friends, and none of them can deny the sense of fate that has seemingly drawn them back together.

Nor can they deny the memories of that summer, so long ago – the strange magic taught to them by an even stranger man, and the terrible act that has followed them all into adulthood. In the light of new danger, they must confront their past by facing their futures, and hunting down a man who may very well be a monster.