Fracassi has such a king vibe to his writing and it just works. This one was terrific and while it may be slow at times it definitely pays off. 5/5

I really wanted to love this book because the story is great, but it is simply too long. There was so much extraneous description and backstory that I ended up not really caring about the main character. Were I not listening on audio, this would have been a dnf for sure.

A CHILD WITH STRANGERS by Philip Fracassi
This is a slow burn FBI procedural/horror/ghost story/man vs. nature/creature feature novel. This book has an array of troupes/genres. You are given bits and pieces of the plot through 50% of this long novel and then things start to escalate at a breakneck speed. The action becomes non-stop. The characters are fleshed out; you even have some sympathy for the bad guys. This novel is like going to the yogurt store and getting sprinkles, Oreo cookies and Reese’s pieces on top - this book is a horror fan’s best dessert! And the ending is not cheesy and quickly put together; this is a horror dessert that will simply satisfy!

I love a big book that pulls you in so completely that you feel like 500+ pages is too short.

This felt like a combination of all the things I love about old school horror revamped and given a modern spin. It kept me enthralled from start to finish; it haunted my dreams; it left me utterly unsure of where it was going and I loved every minute.

Excellent horror read!

A Child Alone with Strangers is part crime story and part horror novel that works with great characters, settings, and prose style. It's reminiscent of the 80's era horror (King, Koontz, etc.) but with enough of its own style to set it apart and not be derivative or rest on nostalgia. Fracassi is a great writer that is only getting better with each novel and I'm always happy to hand-sell his titles.

Child-abduction thriller meets preternatural horror novel in this gripping novel from Fracassi. As is often the case in the genre, the true monsters in A CHILD ALONE WITH STRANGERS are the humans, ransomers looking for a big payout who hole up in the wrong neck of the woods. Suspension of disbelief here is key, as the intersection of a psychic child, a band of criminals, and an angry, expectant mother Old One feels implausible, even in a genre that often eschews realism. That said, readers will find themselves rooting for young abductee Henry and hoping the bad guys get their richly deserved comeuppance.

The absolute strongest aspect of this book is the characters and how damn "complete" they are.
These characters are written so fully and believably, something Fracassi is a master at.
A lot of people compare this to some of Stephen King's work, but not in the "oh it's horror and its good" kind of way but it a much more complimentary way. And I fully agree with that comparison.
His ability to flesh out characters and weave them together in beautiful (and sometimes terrible) ways is a true pleasure to witness.

I started this book and quickly found myself bored. There aren’t many books I don’t finish but this was one of the ones I didn’t. Just not my thing.

✨𝔹𝕠𝕠𝕜 ℝ𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨✨

A Cʜɪʟᴅ Aʟᴏɴᴇ Wɪᴛʜ Sᴛʀᴀɴɢᴇʀs
ʙʏ: Pʜɪʟɪᴘ Fʀᴀᴄᴀssɪ
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Henry Thorne has experienced a lot of trauma in his short life. He moves in with his Aunt and Uncle after a near death experience leaves him orphaned, and with a special ability to see into the minds of others. He’s picking up the pieces of his fractured life when the unexpected happens.

Abducted by a group of strangers looking for ransom, Henry finds himself in an abandoned farmhouse in a vast forest surrounded by monsters, both human and non human. While his captors are oblivious to his gift , he has the ability to peek into their minds and while doing so he connects to the minds of the monsters, who can sense his prying. Henry feels even more trapped knowing that the worse is yet to come.

The story is told incredibly well through multiple points of view. You get enough back story for the main characters without feeling overwhelmed, or like you’re being steered off course. The amount of unflinching violence and terror that is seen throughout is the perfect blend of intense and cringy, without feeling over the top. This will definitely sit with me for a while and I can’t recommend it enough! Philip Fracassi has quickly become a favorite author of mine!

Thanks to NetGalley ,Skyhorse Publishing, Talos, and Philip Fracassi for the ARC

#achildalonewithstrangers #philipfracassi#netgalley #skyhorsepublishing #bookstagram #horrorbooks #horrorbookstagram

A phenomenal book. Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC for an exchange for a review.

Absolutely brilliant book. I’ve read a number of Philip Fracassi books at this point, and this one might be the best of the bunch.

OMG. I absolutely loved this book and I hated putting it down to do things like work. The character of Henry was so reminiscent of Danny from "The Shining" but in such a different way as well. He was fleshed out so well I felt I really could hear him in my head. Get this book!

“Life is questions you don’t know the answers to, and figuring things out is what makes us human.”

A Child Alone With Strangers is the second novel I’ve read by Philip Fracassi and is a definite member of my top 10 reads of the year.

A tragic accident. An amazing gift. The horrors of greed. Familial love. These are just some of the things that Fracassi takes us through in this epic novel. Henry is a special and resilient child and a truly likable protagonist and I wouldn’t change any of his story — it was perfect.

A nearly 600 page horror novel can sometimes feel like a slog or like it needed some more editing, but Fracassi knew exactly how long this one needed to be for us to get the full picture. Side characters are fleshed out well and every single character introduced has just enough time on the page.

I cannot wait to read more by Philip Fracassi and you’re doing yourself a disservice if you don’t check this one out.

5/5 🌟

This excellent book is a mixture of crime and monster horror, with fascinating characters and a plot that keeps the pages turning. I was gripped by the story and finished the entire book in one night. I had only read Fracassi's short stories prior to this, and now I see how good of a writer he really is with this novel. It's perfect.

A CHILD ALONE WITH STRANGERS is the wildest mix of crime fiction/ paranormal/creature feature. A big book that reads quick as a novella. Tension, action, and horror that satisfies. No one is doing it better than Fracassi right now!

From the opening chapter we take off in a ricket ship piloted by the best writer in horror today. This book never slows down, and each character is deeply flawed and deeply sympathetic, including our villains and monsters. This book is an easy recommendation and purchase.

I can't find anything wrong with this book. Unbelievable.
Maybe the length, but honestly you don't realize it is as long as it is.
So much happens: Kidnapping, escapes, Monsters, or people who are monsters.
And to break it down even better, this is some great "old-school" horror.

I think I liked the journey to get to the conclusion even better than the great ending.
The characters are all developed nicely.
It's full of suspense, action, fears, and so many heart stopping moments.

Settle yourself in because this is one long ride, but stay with it. It is well worth it.

This was 4.5 stars for me. An electrifying mashup of genres. There’s a lot to take in here. Tension, anxiety and horror keep growing and growing. It almost feels too long because you just want relief from being on edge. Fracassi gives you a nail biting kidnapping story that alone would have been enough but then throws in psychic powers and strange creatures and this becomes a riveting look at trauma, grief, family, and parenthood. I truly loved it and it only lost that half a star because I just thought it went on a little too long and I just needed the suspense to end. This is my second Fracassi book I’ve read and he is truly a master in the horror genre. There’s something in his work that reminds of King in the best way. Thankful to have horror storytellers as exceptional as Fracassi. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC!

I’m just going to say it. I think this book is the most overlooked horror novel of 2022. Philip Fracassi has written a fucking stunner.

In search for a quick payday, a group of criminals concoct a plan to kidnap a child for some ransom money. A carefully curated plan that seems to be going smoothly. Until they get the boy, Henry Thorne, back to the hideaway: a derelict cabin in the middle of the woods.

There's something waiting for them in the cellar below. Something more terrifying than the baddies that kidnapped him, and it’s reaching out to Henry. Telling him they are not welcome here. That they need to leave before it’s too late. Mother wants them gone.

This book combines some of my favourite things: Spooky kids! Violence! Revenge! Gross siblings! Eldritch horror! Grief! Bucketloads of grief. Like, so, so much grief.

The sense of dread and tension I felt the entire time I was reading this book is unrivaled. I needed to finish this one quickly so I could breathe again.

Perfect book for King fans, and I know maybe a few of you around here.

Thank you so much to @skyhorsepub and @netgalley for an arc of this title.

When we meet Henry we learned that his mom is recently deceased and that his dad has recently been fired for racist reasons. Due to the act of his desperate father Henry is an orphan he must go live with his aunt and uncle but because the bus driver who hit Henry and his dad was drinking he wins a lawsuit for millions of dollars due to Henry’s accident with the bus he has many disabilities but also has new abilities such as being able to read peoples emotions and whether they are telling the truth or not. When a psychopath named Jim here’s about Henry’s lawsuit he devise a plan and Jim isn’t it for the long game. There’s so much I want to say about this book but don’t want to give anything away that isn’t in the summary but what I will say is Jim gathers of motley Crue of a bunch of drug addicts and alcoholics to babysit Henry while he is being kidnapped unfortunately Henry isn’t your typical kidnap victim and with agent Saul on the case and Henry’s ability to make friends with people not in the room it’s not going to go the way Jim planned it too. This book is 1 million pages long but having said that it was so good and once I started reading whenever I put the book down I kept thinking about it. This has a little bit paranormal aspects to it but it’s what I call authentically paranormal which means it’s not silly or clownish at all but totally fits with the story but be prepared this book is highly emotional towards the end and of course you feel sorry for little Henry throughout the book. This is a book I highly recommend I received it from NetGalley and the publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

This book reminded me of a Stephen King book….great and thorough storytelling, interesting character developement, a bit of supernatural/horror, very descriptive in a good way.. the child was a sympathetic, intelligent person and I empathized with him. Loved the FBI agent, loved the family. The story was intriguing and the ending slightly mysterious. All in all I would like to read more by this author.