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Bird Box by Josh Malerman  

My review 

My first book in the horror genre, I was told to read it in daylight hours. I had my wingwoman/friend, Melanie just a message away to bat away my fears and shoo the monsters that would arrive under the bed after reading the book. All the preparations were made before starting this book…. 

The story goes like this… 

Malorie and her kids, live in an abandoned house, where she has trained them to listen well, listen to the whispers, listen to changes in air movement, listen to every breath. Every lesson is taught with harsh punishments, keeping their eyes closed especially while going out to fetch water. The kids’ hearing becomes that powerful. Only the house is safe… Outside IT awaits… The entire world seems to have disappeared…. Feels like a post apocalyptic world… All alone… 

Five years ago… 

In a normal world, there comes a time when there were reports of something out there whose one glimpse caused people to kill and self mutilate. These reports started coming from all over the world. Bit by bit communication was lost, internet,  phone, news channels. Few survivors remained. There was an ad in the newspaper, when all this started, about a safe house some distance away with its address. Malorie lived with her sister and found herself pregnant when all this began. The sisters started covering the windows and stopped going out till Malorie’s sister? accidentally glanced at IT via the window and killed herself. Malorie had to then drive with her eyes closed to the safe house and find shelter amongst the survivors for the sake of her kid. The leader,Tom became her anchor there. They survived the days trusting each other and when supplies ran low, they raided other empty houses with a black cloth tied around the eyes. Soon a stranger arrived asking for shelter and dynamics of the safe house changed. The horror started. Doubts and suspicion abounded.  Who is to be trusted… 

In the present, in search of a safe oasis for herself and her kids, Malorie has to undertake a journey on the river in a small boat, blindfolded, where her kids’ listening becomes her eyes. Everything is a risk, every ripple in the water can be an animal or a horror, every sound is doubt and fear whether IT has arrived, seducing her to open her eyes… 

Will Malorie survive the journey or does she succumb to IT? How do her kids manage when she is injured? Where is this promised land, an oasis of safety?? Are there any humans still alive?? Can she ultimately open her eyes?? Can her kids ever see the world?? Do her kids have a chance of a beautiful childhood??? 

Such is the magic of Josh Malerman. 

Interweaving between the past and the present, Josh has presented this story where each sentence talks about the suspense and fear… Every word encapsulates our imagination, forces us to live the horror of IT. Our insides are churned imagining the appearance of IT. Each heart beat lives in fear of death for Malorie and her kids. There is a steady flow of adrenaline in our blood stream which never wanes away, from the beginning to the end. Josh Malerman is an illusionist, he uses his words to paint a picture of a world where horror is just a breath away… He puts fear in the IT without really describing IT…. AMAZING… BREATHTAKING… A RUSH WHICH COMES FROM FREE FALLING INTO HIS WORDS WITHOUT A SAFETY NET… 

About the Author 

Josh Malerman is the lead singer and songwriter for the rock band the High Strung. He lives in Ferndale, Michigan. This is debut book. Dedicated to his mom. 
Book Blurb 

Josh Malerman’s debut novel BIRD BOX is a terrifying, psychological thriller that is sure to stay with you long after reading.

Most people dismissed the reports on the news. But they became too frequent; they became too real. And soon it was happening to people we knew. Then the Internet died. The televisions and radios went silent. The phones stopped ringing. 

And we couldn’t look outside anymore.

Product Details 

Publication date : 27th March 2014

Publisher : Harper Voyager

Language : English 

Available on Amazon

     A horror which thrills


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