I struggled with how to rate this one. Malerman is talented, no doubt about it, but I have mixed feelings on Spin a Black Yarn. My favorite of the five short stories was Argyle, about a man who has lived his entire life on the straight and narrow but on his deathbed reveals to his family and close friends a demented fantasy he has craved to act on every day of his entire life. I really liked that one. Half the House is Haunted and The Jupiter Drop were just ok to me and then finally Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer and Egorov (which is the least favorite of the five) just didn’t do it for me. None the less, I’d say it wasn’t a waste of my time and I’ll be back for more. Many thanks to Del Rey and Penguin Randomhouse for my eARC.

I am not in the habit of reading and reviewing short stories. I find them hard to review. But I always end up with them on my review list. I may be trying to tell myself something; who knows?

Spin a Black Yarn is the second Josh Malerman book I have read. The first was Inspection a few years ago, and I did enjoy it. So, when I saw that this book of novellas was on Randon House’s NetGalley page as a Wish only, I decided to do just that (wish on it). And imagine my surprise when I got the email saying it was granted. I was thrilled, and I knew I would like this book (based on Inspection). I was right. This book was a fast read that kept me up after I ended it.

Spin a Black Yarn has five novellas in it. I will not do my usual storyline breakdown, angles, characters, etc. It would be too confusing and time-consuming. Instead, I will briefly explain the book and then say what I liked/disliked about it.

Half the House is Haunted: The novella follows two siblings that live in a huge house. The story is sectioned into three parts: 6 and 8, 40 and 42, and 80’s. In 6 and 8, Stephanie torments her younger brother by telling him half the house is haunted, but she isn’t sure what half. In 40 and 42, Robbie visits Stephanie, a recluse, and tries to figure out why she tormented him. In the 80’s, Stephanie dies, leaving Robbie the house and a letter. This storyline took a while to grow on me. I was confused at first by how it was written (Robbie and Stephanie told alternating paragraphs). But, once I figured that out, my confusion disappeared, and I was swept up in the story. I loved the moral behind this one (face your fears). I also liked that I couldn’t figure out whether Stephanie was lying.

Argyle: This novella centers on a dying man, Shawn, who starts to confess to murders that he almost committed on his deathbed. He is confessing to his two children, wife, best friend, and mother. He states that he didn’t kill only because of his best friend, a woman named Argyle, and his sister, Nora. At first, I thought that this story was a little silly, with a dying man confessing to almost murders. But as the story went on, I started to get chills. It was a good look into the human psyche and what makes a killer tick.

Doug and Judy Buy a House Washer: This novella centers around a couple who were the epitome of jerks. They buy a device that guarantees a thorough house wash. But, when they use it, the machine washes the house and brings up everything they have ever done, good and bad. This novella was my least favorite novella. Mainly because Doug and Judy were asshats, and the author did nothing to tone them down. The ending of this story was almost too good for them, and they deserved worse than what they got (they were genuinely vile people).

Jupiter Drop: This novella centers around a wealthy man eaten up by guilt over the death of a neighbor. So, he decides to journey to Jupiter to atone for that death. This novella was the saddest out of the bunch. The man was consumed with guilt over what happened, destroying everything in his life. This drop through Jupiter’s atmosphere (and core) was supposed to be healing. Instead, it went sideways. I would love to have done what he did (dropping through Jupiter’s atmosphere in a glass apartment). What the author wrote was beautiful. Except for the end. That was sad.

Egorov: This was my favorite novella. It centers around the murder of Mikhail, a triplet, and the search for his killer. Once the killer is found, Barat and Pavel (Mikhail’s brother) devise a dastardly plan to exact revenge. This story strongly reminded me of an Edgar Allen Poe story. From the language to how everything was laid out. It was also chilling, and I was kept on edge with what Barat and Pavel were doing.

I would recommend Spin a Black Yarn to anyone over 21. There are no sexual situations, but there is language and violence.

Many thanks to Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, Del Rey, NetGalley, and Josh Malerman for allowing me to read and review Spin a Black Yarn. All opinions stated in this review are mine.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Spin a Black Yarn.

I have a love/hate relationship with the author.

I love the potential his stories have but the execution and the writing always ends up a hit or miss for me.

That's how I felt with the stories in Spin a Black Yarn.

I really liked the different spin on the haunted house theme in “Half the House Is Haunted." In this novella, the older sister, who used to torment her younger brother about their childhood home being haunted, has adapted and appreciated their home, and in some ways, has

For me, “Argyle,” where a dying man confesses to never fulfilling his dreams of being a serial killer was the most boring.

“The Jupiter Drop" is a common theme in many stories, where a man can't let go of a tragic mistake from his past, or maybe it's the past who can't let go of him.

I liked “Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer™,” where a detestable couple is forced to confront their humble origins, their less than pristine rise to the top, and the people they have wronged to get there, with typical disastrous results. If only we could wash away sins that easily.

I loved the idea of “Egorov,” where two brothers conspire to drive the murderer of their triplet to madness but the narrative was too wordy, too verbose, too much.

I was hoping for much darker stories, I'm talking really scary stuff, and none of these fit the bill but that's just me.

These novellas weren't bad, more thoughtful than I expected, which is good, but some of the writing read like random filler and unnecessary background.

Josh Malerman’s books are always a treat to read and returning to his signature town of Samhattan in these five novellas was no exception. My favorite of the short stories, all of which are eerie and thought provoking was a tie between “Half the House is Haunted” (mainly because I grew up in a haunted house) and “Argyle”. In Argyle, a dying man is confessing to his children that if it weren’t for his desire to be a good man, he would have been a prolific serial killer. It reminded me of many people I know who purport to be godly, but there is something uneasy and sinister always lurking beneath the surface. My least favorite was actually the longest novella, Egorov. Although it had gothic elements it and an interesting concept, for me it just went on a bit too long. I also never really understood why the killer murdered the triplet.

Overall, if you are a fan of Goblin and Daphne, do not miss this out on this collection which adds to the town lore of Samhattan. Great horror short stories that have just enough weird in them to make Malerman’s stories stand out from the rest of modern day horror writers.

Thank you to NetGalley, Del Rey, and Josh Malerman for an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.

Five Short Stories or Five Black Yarns.... these stories were twisted in the best of ways. This was my first read by Josh Malerman and I do not think it is going to be my last because the writing is beautiful. You could feel yourself in these atmospheres, even the surreal ones. I enjoy an author who can make my skin crawl more than any other, but I was shocked to find in this book I could be in tears, my skin could be crawling, and next I could be in a fit of giggles because each story has a completely different feel to it leading to completely different emotions.
We start off with "Half of the House" which I would easily give 4 stars. Two siblings with a two year age gap with the oldest convincing (or trying to convince) the younger part of their house is haunted. It may sound like a very strange concept because how could only part of a house be haunted... but it really makes sense in this story. We also aren't just with kids (which for some isn't all that pleasant), but we see the siblings lives almost 40 years later, and again 40 years past that and how their time in the possibly partially haunted house shaped them.
Second story (yarn) is Argyle and this one gets 5 stars from me. Our main character is on his deathbed and he's happy as a clam because he made it through his life without giving into his instincts. He didn't do it without the help of his sister and Argyle though and what would have happened if those two hadn't been with him? This short story is why I picked up the book. What happens if we give into our instincts? What happens if our mind and body are telling us to do something very bad? Every had the urge to do something you know you shouldn't do? If so, this story is for you. (Not the perfect ending I was hoping for with this story, but it still fit.)
Third yarn is "Doug and Judy Buy a House Washer" and I'm giving this one 4 stars and it might have gotten 5 if I didn't really really hate the main characters so much - but that's the point. The characters in this one are awful and deplorable and just those yuppies we all hate so much. These two squash their competition and believe no one will ever get in their way... and if they try, they will take them out however needed. For these characters, I loved that they bought something to show off their amazing selves and it turned on them and showed all their little secrets. Great story, awful characters!
Fourth, but not final, "Jupiter Drop" and this one was my least favorite. I can't even put my finger on why I didn't love it. It's a man trying to redeem himself for an accident by going to Jupiter. It's surreal and it made me heartbroken at points... but I didn't love it. It never ever goes as far as being BAD, but I don't think it had the same feel as the other stories even with me knowing it fit in with meaning. Maybe that doesn't make sense, maybe you'll read it and it will be your favorite, but it just didn't hit home with me.
Five and final yarn is my favorite and least expected, "Egorov". Barat and Pavel are out to avenge the death of their triplet brother Mikhail. I refuse to ruin anything about this one because it was a ride. It's the longest in the book and I believe part of it's length is the descriptions. I hope that doesn't make it sound boring, because the descriptions are everything. You are IN this world with these people. I read through it quicker than any other because I needed to know how it all played out and I think you will too.

I would recommend this to anyone who likes a mystery, a little bit of spooky, and whole lot of weirdness in the normal day.

Thank you, NetGalley for letting me fall into this world and give my honest review.

Let me get this out of the way right at the start. I enjoyed Spin a Black Yarn, as I have enjoyed everything I’ve read by Josh Malerman, and yet this is actually a hard book to review. The stories in this collection of novellas are just so different. Different in tone. Different in style. Different in the feelings/thoughts they evoked. And while I suppose that is often the case in most story collections, for some reason it just feels more pronounced or noticeable (? not sure that’s the right way to describe it) here. And I honestly can’t say why. And while I enjoyed all the stories to varying degrees, it’s the first story Half the House Is Haunted that has stuck with me. And again, I honestly can’t say exactly why. The style in which it is told feels somewhat off. Told indeed (not shown) as it’s more a recounting of a man’s memories of his childhood and his relationship with his sister and the house they grew up in. There is something compelling about it, his memories of his sister always trying to scare him, and yet I also feel as if I missed some point Josh was making, and that is what vexes me to no end, lol. And because of that I know I’ll be going back after I’ve given it some time to fade in my memory and read it again. I’d like to thank Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eARC of Spin a Black Yarn.

https://www.amazon.com/review/R2VRSDU80PJQ7W/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

Spin a Black Yarn is 4 short stories and a novella/novelette. My favorite of the five was The Jupiter Drop, a story about a man who takes a 2 month vacation dropping through Jupiter's atmosphere in a glass apartment. You get to feel Steve's despair as he decides to take the trip, and as he grapples with the loneliness despite having any AI companions he could have. Argyle was a strange trip, as a man admits he had been surprising serial killer urges his entire life while on his death bed. The morbid fascination of his children, the denial of other family members and close family friends as he keeps speaking, undeterred.
Half a Haunted House is told in a really interesting way, in alternating conversations with a brother and sister who grow up in a very strange house, all the way through the death of the sister. I really enjoyed the storytelling on this one, though it was a bit hard to get used to the childish back and forth the story starts out with. Doug and Judy buy the Washer tells the story of a rich couple, obsessed with being the Joneses so that everyone keeps up with them, use their brand new toy for the first time, and get quite a bit more than what they bargained for. They definitely found out what "For what we spent on this" actually means to them.
Finally, in Egorov, the remaining two triplets seek vengeance for their murdered brother. This one was a big draggy for me, I think I got used to the pacing of the short stories, and expected this longer novella/novelette to have the same pacing.

I found this to be a decent short story collection, and I really enjoyed the fact that all of the stories had ties to Samhatten, where we first met Daphne last year.

A delightfully unsettling read. This set of novellas dives into macabre introspection about life, death, and what makes someone a good or bad person. While each story has merit in its own right, Egorov stood above the others. That was a story that will stay with me for a long time. It is reminiscent of classic horror but remains timely and compelling. Quite simply it has left me haunted (happily so). Without offering any spoilers, there is a particular monologue that has reshaped the way I consider the relationship between life and death.
Individual ratings for each novella:
Half the House is Haunted: 5 stars
Argyle: 4 stars
Dough and Judy Buy the House Washer: 4 stars
The Jupiter Drop: 3 stars
Egorov: 5 stars

A big thanks to Netgalley and Random House for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The spooks and vibes were there, but just not the right ones for me.

Spin a Black Yarn by Josh Malerman is a collection of five spooky and thrilling novellas. A sister insists to her little brother that “Half the House Is Haunted” by a strange presence. But is it the house that’s haunted—or their childhoods? In “Argyle,” a dying man confesses to homicides he never committed, and he reveals long-kept secrets far more sinister than murder. A tourist takes the ultimate trip to outer space in “The Jupiter Drop,” but the real journey is into his own dark past In “Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer™,” a trendy married couple buys the latest home gadget only to find themselves trapped by their possessions, their history . . . and each other.
And in “Egorov,” a wealthy old cretin murders a young man, not knowing the victim was a triplet. The two surviving brothers stage a savage faux-haunting—playing the ghost of their slain brother—with the aim of driving the old murderer mad.

A solid read. Just not really for me.

I always look forward to a new work by Josh Malerman, even though his books don’t always end up working for me. What I appreciate about Malerman is that he is daring and unafraid to take risks with his storytelling, making his work feel fresh and inventive while also paying homage to classic horror tropes. Spin a Black Yarn is a stellar collection of five novellas that showcase his ability to, well, spin a pretty damn good black yarn – to craft bold, unsettling, imaginative stories that stick with you long after you’ve finished reading them.

In “Half the House is Haunted,” a sister frightens her little brother with stories about a sinister force that haunts their house – but only half of the house. The story follows the siblings from ages eight and six into adulthood, told in a stream-of-consciousness style composed of their back and forth conversations and inward observations. This one was a bit disorienting at first, given the method of storytelling and the unreliability of the narrators, but it wasn’t long before I became completely engrossed. The narrative is at turns full of childish whimsy and laced with malevolence, and the constant shifts in tone kept me off-balance and unsettled.

“Argyle” was my favorite in the collection. In this story, a man makes a harrowing deathbed confession to his family and friends: For his entire life, he fought dark urges compelling him to become a serial killer. He never gave in, he never killed anyone, and so he is proud to be dying a good man – but the stories he tells leave his loved ones riveted and repulsed. Malerman’s prose is mesmerizing and hypnotic and drew me almost against my will into this depraved, disturbing story that had me questioning how I would react in this type of scenario.

“Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer™” is a blistering commentary on capitalism and consumerism, featuring two of the most insufferable characters I’ve ever encountered in fiction. Think Todd and Margo from Christmas Vacation and then ramp up their awfulness even more, and that’ll just about give you Doug and Judy. In this story, this materialistic married couple buys a new-to-the-market product called the House Washer™, which cleans everything in their home…including their dirtiest secrets. This story had its sinister moments, but mostly it was just fun to watch these horrible people get exactly what they deserved.

In “The Jupiter Drop,” a wealthy tourist takes journey through Jupiter in a clear glass apartment, while also trying to come to terms with a life-altering mistake in his past. This is the most surreal story in the collection, and Malerman vividly captures both the eerie landscape of Jupiter and the effects of isolation on a human mind.

The longest novella in the collection, “Egorov,” is about a wealthy old man who kills a young man, unaware that he was a triplet. The man’s surviving brothers decide to “haunt” the old man by playing the ghost of their murdered brother, intent on driving him mad. The atmosphere of this story is rich and vibrant, transporting readers to Samhattan, Michigan’s Little Russia neighborhood at the turn of the 20th century. It’s a tense and haunting tale, full of dread and more than a few squeamish moments. Malerman’s writing reads almost like poetry in this story, which made it even more riveting.

All five novellas in this collection take place in Malerman’s growing Goblin/Samhattan universe, and I loved that interconnectedness. It’s a bold claim, but I’m starting to think Malerman just may be the Stephen King of his generation. Spin a Black Yarn is a phenomenal example of his incredible storytelling range and abilities. I love (and am frankly a little frightened of) the way his mind works, and I’ll be first in line for whatever he writes. Thank you to Del Rey and NetGalley for the early reading opportunity.

Thank you to Del Rey and Netgalley for this EARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a collection of what Malerman does really great which is short stories! This book has five novellas, all connected to a fictional town in Michigan. I have rated each story below and my overall rating is an average of those. This was a decent collection of horror and speculative fiction, but not my favorite from Malerman.

Probably my favorite novella was, Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer, which is about a married couple trapped inside a tube in their house while a machine washes everything in it. A very unique idea and it gets creepy there for a second.

Overall I didn't find these novellas too compelling, I often forced myself to continue to read, especially with the last novella, Egorov, which was 34 chapters long. I did find the stories all really unique ideas, like going on a vacation in a house that drops through Jupiter?? So strange lol.

If you have liked Malerman's short stories in the past then give this one a read!

Story Ratings:
Half a Haunted House 4 stars
Argyle 3 stars
Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer 4 stars
Jupiter Drop 3 stars
Egorov 3 stars

Overall 3.5 stars

Exactly the excellent, creepy, terrifying, and thoughtful work I'd expect from Josh Malerman. Fans will be pleased and readers new to his work will become fans.

I've read a couple of Josh Malerman's books in the past and thoroughly enjoyed them. I was excited to get a chance to review this collection, but unfortunately it just didn't hit the mark for me.

The first story, Half the House is Haunted was presented in an interesting format, which I enjoyed. Also the first part of it was fun for me because my cousin tested me the same way that Stephanie tested her brother. However the story itself was dull and I'm not really sure what the main event was. I'm sure that's entirely my failing though, and others will have a different experience with it.

My favorite of the tales, Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer. I really liked this story of terrible people having to confront their true natures. Also, I need a house washer.

The last story, Egorov, was good, although a bit too slow for my own tastes. Still, it was beautiful written, and I liked the story itself.

Overall, it just wasn't really for me, but others who prefer a slower pace and more thoughtful novellas will likely love this collection of bleak tales.

Josh Malerman does it again. Five incredible novellas that show his range as a writer. That final novella, the longest as well, works on so many levels — exploring family, revenge, ghosts and the inherent weirdness of triplets. There’s a goofy one in there that breaks up some of the horror while also still injecting all the humanity and soul I expect from a Malerman story. This is a terrific collection that I would recommend to all horror fans. It’s a great sampling of his range as well.

I am a Malermaniac and was excited to see Spin a Black Yarn available. It’s always nice to return to familiar lands and I loved the Easter eggs to previous Malerman titles, such as Daphne and Goblin. There were some additional references that I’ll have to read more about by finding these prior works. This is a collection of 5 short stories.
Half the House Is Haunted tells the story of siblings through the ages who may or may not live in a haunted house. This was just okay for me. I didn’t like the way the story went back and forth between the siblings, especially when they were younger. For me, this was ⭐️⭐️💫

Argyle tells the story of a man who was compelled to be a serial killer who resists his urges and decided to tell his family who he really is on his death bed. This was just a little too long and for me was ⭐️⭐️💫

Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer tells the story of a ruthless couple who will do whatever it takes to be successful. This I really enjoyed because who doesn’t like discovering the dirty deeds of the Rick. For me, this was a solid ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Jupiter Drop tells the story of a man who decides to go on an extreme vacation to Jupiter in an attempt to forget the grief he feels over an accident. This is another one that just felt too slow and long. As a matter of fact, I fell asleep reading this one. Another ⭐️⭐️💫

The final story is Egorov which tells the story of a family who is grieving the loss of a murdered triplet. The surviving brothers attempt to find the murderer and end up staging their own haunting! This was so much fun and very reminiscent of Poe. So this was a solid ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Overall I would rate this book at ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 stars, rounding up to ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ because I love Malerman!

My thanks to Random House/Ballantine, Josh Malerman and Netgalley.
Honestly? I wasn't a fan. I struggled and was often quite bored.
Thing is that I love Malerman and his books. Full on stories. When he does his short story crap...well, that's when he loses me. This is my second collection of shorts from this author, and I won't read anymore shorties from him.
I will however keep reading his books. Full on stories. That's where this author shines brightest.
Read this or not. You'll like it or not.

It can be very difficult to review collections of stories at times and this is one of the more difficult ones. The stories are so different from one another. I really enjoyed Argyle and Egorov but Half the House is Haunted just was not for me. The other stories fell somewhere in between. Overall I do think Malerman is great at writing horror, their stories just don't always work for me.

This is an awesome collection of 5 novellas. I loved that I could finish one quickly and wait a bit to go on to the next. These novellas showcase the authors ability to write horror and unique stories. They were all very good.

I was really looking forward to reading this short story collection. Earlier this year I ended up reading Daphne and I really enjoyed it. So then I decided let me put a request in for Spin a Black Yard. Well I am sad to say most of the stories in this collection did not do it for me. I was struggling so hard to get through this one. There ended up techinally only be one I fully enjoyed. I'm going to go through and kinda briefly talk about each one. There are only five stories in this collection.

Half the House is Haunted:

This was told in three parts. You get the perspective of a brother and sister. They are two years apart. The sister continues to scare the brother throughout his life. I did feel like the second part was a bit repetitive from part one. Overall didn't really enjoy this one.

Argyle:

This one I ended up liking. I thought it was actually pretty wild. This Dad is on his death bed talking about how he wishes he murded people. Like shit was insane. Everyone's trying to be like come on Dad, you're joking right. He's just going on about it. So that was fun.

Doug and Judy Buy the House Washer:

Hands down this was my favorite story of the whole book. Basically Doug and Judy are dicks and they buy this House Washer to basically keep up with every expensive product out there. I love that it's cleaning their house and cleaning all their dirty little secerts they have lying around the house. This was a fun one and loved reading about them just freaking out the whole time.

The Jupiter Drop

I am sad to say this one didn't hold my attention. I read it I didn't really have much to say or think about it. I mean this man spends this long journey going to Jupiter. It just didn't do it for me.

Egorov

This story was told in a bunch of chapters. It's about triplets who end up losing one of their brothers. I was trying to push through this one. However, by the time I got to chapter 7, I was like whose who I have no clue. I wasn't focused on it and I just wanted to be done. I sadly ended up calling it quits at that point.

Overall this collection only had 2 out of 5 stories I liked. I did see other people really enjoyed this so if you're a Josh Malerman fan I'm sure you'll enjoy this. I know not every story is going to be for everyone. I still want to continue to read Josh Malerman's books. I've found other books he's written enjoyable. There are backlist titles of his I want to read.

In Spin a Black Yarn, Malerman does just that, and like Pee Wee's fevered nightmare sweater someone keeps knitting and knitting and knitting and knitting and knitting, Malerman likewise keeps spinning. And spinning and spinning. This reader got caught in the yarn, wrapped in a web, tangled in the beautiful magic that is storytelling. And as the yarn got tighter, more suffocating — Master of Tension that Malerman is — I took the deepest of breaths and surrendered to the words.

Spin a Black Yarn is a glorious collection of tales, and I so very much dig Malerman's novels, and I'll probably say the same thing about his next novel, and then the same about whatever is after that, whatever form it takes, but right now, having crawled out of the black web, curiouser, stronger, enchanted, having crawled out of that puzzle of black yarn, right now I'm thinking, "man, the short form, yes. This is where Malerman SHINES!"

Get your hands on a copy and get wrapped up. It's worth all the tangles in the world.