Massive flocks of birds fall out of the sky, and then all the birds disappear. Insects multiply at an alarming rate since there are no birds to keep their numbers down. David’s wife dies, and he is left alone with his daughter. But now they want his daughter. And the disease is spreading.
Those who have Wanderer’s Folly live in a world of delusions, dreams, and nightmares. David’s wife was immune to this, as is his daughter Ellie. The government and the medical community want Ellie because she could hold the key to the cure for this disease that is threatening to wipe out mankind.
I’ll admit that my first thought was that this was going to be a take on “Jesus died to save the world; would this little girl do the same?” And David was trying to save his daughter’s life.
The foreboding cover of The Night Parade would not lead anyone to believe that this is a book full of happiness and joy. This intriguing story kept my interest while I was rooting for Ellie and her dad to escape capture by the authorities.
As Ellie and her dad flee, he discovers that Ellie isn’t only immune to this sickness that is killing just about everyone, but she also has powers. Her touch can bring peace, or it can bring terror. The more time passes, the more her powers develop and the more she discovers about what she can do.
They are finally reunited with Ellie’s uncle. David hasn’t seen his brother for a long time. It kind of sucks that it took this to bring them back together. But there is also a traitor where David’s brother lives, one that puts all their lives in peril.
The author makes jumps from the present to the past several times in the story, but he always makes it clear when these jumps are occurring. His descriptions are great and make it so easy to picture in your mind just what is going on and what is being seen. The memorable characters are so much more than just cardboard cutouts; they have lives. They experience love and fear, and they want to survive.
The ending left me with the feeling that a sequel might be coming. If one is, I look forward to reading it.
I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. If you enjoy psychological horror and would like a copy of this book for your own, I have provided an Amazon link below.
Amazon Link: The Night Parade
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Favorite Sentences:
People in movies always seemed to know how to hot-wire a car—it was like tying your shoes, apparently—but he had no clue.
When it was over, the parking lot was a minefield of dead fowl, the occasional spastic jerk of a massive black wing, the incessant trilling of a chorus of car alarms.
Within that fence stood the relics of its former incarnation—the undulating rollercoaster tracks overgrown with weeds, the Tilt-A-Whirl cars sunken partway down into the earth, the bumper cars strewn about in a distant field like a herd of buffalo that has died in the middle of some prehistoric pilgrimage, a wooden carousel horse tipped on its side, weather-faded and strangled by vines, or perhaps the garishly painted boards of a gift shop tossed about like so much driftwood washed up on a beach.
Massive black flies, each one the size of a small grape, thumped senselessly against the windowpane.
New Words Learned:
deadfall – a mass of brush and fallen trees
desiccated – dehydrated
incongruous – inconsistent
keening – a wailing lament for the dead
pin oaks – an oak, Quercus palustris, characterized by the pyramidal manner of growth of its branches and deeply pinnatifid leaves.
pixelate – to divide into pixels
preternatural – out of the ordinary course of nature; exceptional or abnormal
About the Author:
Ronald Malfi is an award-winning author of several horror novels, mysteries, and thrillers. In 2009 his crime drama Shamrock Alley won a Silver IPPY Award. In 2011 his ghost story/mystery novel Floating Staircase was nominated by the Horror Writers Association for best novel and won a Gold IPPY Award for best horror novel. Most recognized for its haunting, literary style, and memorable characters, Malfi’s dark fiction has gained a following of readers of all genres. He was born in Brooklyn and eventually relocated to the Chesapeake Bay area, where he currently resides with his wife and daughter.
