I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Boys in the Valley by Philip Fracassi Published by Tor Nightfire on July 11 2023
Genres: Adult, Horror
Pages: 352
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: Evil takes over a boys’ orphanage in this gory, claustrophobic tale.
I’m so glad I finally read a book by Philip Fracassi, and after my experience with Boys in the Valley, I’m eager to read more of his work. This is a tightly plotted, emotional horror story involving demonic possession, and I went through a range of emotions while reading it, including disgust, horror, despair and shock. There is quite a bit of graphic violence, made even more horrific because the story deals with children, so do be aware if you plan on reading it. But I was so impressed with Fracassi’s writing, and the story itself was pretty scary at times (demonic possession really freaks me out!). I do a lot of reading at night in bed, but this was one case where I had to put the book down and finish it the next day.
The story begins in 1898 rural Pennsylvania with a shocking scene. We meet nine-year-old Peter, who one night witnesses the murder/suicide of his parents. The story then jumps ahead seven years to 1905. Peter is now sixteen and has been living at St. Vincent’s Orphanage in Delaware County, PA for the last seven years, a remote home for orphans run by the Catholic church. Life is hard at St. Vincent’s: food is scarce and the boys are fed only enough to keep them alive. Their days are spent toiling on the raggedy farm that abuts the orphanage, and they live under the cruel hand of Father Poole and Father White, who dole out punishments for the slightest infractions.
Despite the hunger and pain of discipline, Peter has a couple of bright spots in his life. Father Andrew has taken him under his wing, kindly teaching him everything necessary to become a priest himself someday. Father Andrew also takes Peter with him on trips to the nearby Hill farm, a homestead where most of the food for the orphans is obtained. Years ago on his first trip, Peter met Grace Hill, a vivacious girl with whom he’s developed feelings for over the years, and now Peter is torn between perhaps having a future life with Grace and entering the priesthood—obviously he can’t choose both.
One night, though, everything changes, when a group of men show up, insisting that the priests try to help an injured man, a prisoner who was shot during an arrest. The priests reluctantly agree to let the men in, but soon discover that something is horribly wrong with the man. His body is covered in arcane, ritualistic symbols, and despite his injuries, he’s abnormally strong. By taking him into the orphanage, the priests soon realize they may have invited a demon into their midst.
Fracassi masterfully creates an impending sense of doom as his story slowly unfolds. The reader is aware of the danger before Peter and the other boys are, but that doesn’t take away from the gnawing sense of unease that permeates the tale. You know bad things are going to happen, you just don’t know exactly when and what those things are. That uncertainty kept me glued to the page, and when (literally) all hell breaks loose later in the book, I wasn’t really prepared for the level of violence.
I loved the way the appearance of the demon creates a division between the boys. At first they are all more or less on the same level. They are surviving in harsh conditions, but they are surviving together. The demon changes that by separating them into groups, making them choose sides. One of the younger boys is infected first, and he becomes the evil ring leader of the group, gathering more and more boys over to the dark side. Luckily we have Peter and his friend David on the other side to balance things out, although truthfully it isn’t much of a balance, as evil seems to be winning.
Although the demon-induced violence between the boys was hard to read about, even worse for me was the way the orphans are treated by the priests. The historical time period seems to suggest that times were very tough in general. Food is scarce, especially for a remote orphanage in the middle of nowhere, and if you have the misfortune of being orphaned, it’s even worse. Throw in some power hungry priests with no compassion at all and you have a bunch of innocent boys who have no control over their lives. Father Poole in particular was a nasty piece of work, and I absolutely hated him. He’s even dug a deep hole on the property where misbehaving boys are thrown into as punishment, and Fracassi has a couple of great scenes set in that hole. And by great I mean awful! But reading about the boys’ hunger was the worst. The descriptions of the meager meals they get to eat were almost impossible to process, it was so heartbreaking.
Fracassi jumps among several points of view, which I think worked really well. Most of the story is told by Peter, but we also get the perspectives of Father Andrew, David, and Johnson, an older boy who makes life a living hell for many of the boys. Adding to the creep factor of the story, we get to experience first hand what it’s like to be possessed by a demon when one of them becomes infected. Each character also has a sad backstory, and in addition to Peter, we learn how several others ended up at St. Vincent’s. All these points of view combine to round out the story in some very effective ways.
As for the ending, it was the only thing that didn’t completely work for me. I sort of guessed how events would play out, but I thought the resolution was too vague. I wanted to feel more emotion at the end, because it really was an emotional ending, but instead it sort of fizzled out and left me wanting more.
But aside from that, Boys in the Valley is an excellent horror novel, and I’m looking forward to Philip Fracassi’s next book.
Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.
I loved this author’s short stories and I’m really looking forward to reading this one. Having read The Exorcist at an impressionable age I too find demonic possession really unsettling (as it should be!)
Me too! I was terrified by The Exorcist (still am!)
I’ve been seeing the cover for this novel several times in the pas few days but for some reason I never looked at the synopsis: harsh and cruel as the story sounds, I think I would find it absorbing and compelling. Once again it seems as if horror does not come only from supernatural entities by from very human cruelty – the juxtaposition of the two might indeed turn into a dark but engaging read.
Thanks for sharing!!!! 🙂
Maddalena@spaceandsorcery recently posted…DECEMBER PARK, by Ronald Malfi
It was such a good mix of human vs. supernatural horror:-)
Stories about demonic possession freak me out as much as I love reading them. And this book sounds pretty scary + combined with the time period I’m sure it’s quite sad as well. Thanks for sharing, Tammy!
Stephanie @ Bookfever recently posted…Mid-Year Freak Out Book Tag 2023
It was sad!
I haven’t read Fracassi yet but this sounds like a me book. To the wishlist it goes.
I’ve heard all his books are different from each other, so I can’t wait to read more!
I don’t read a ton of horror, but I’ve seen the cover of this one floating around a lot recently. I was intrigued before, but your review definitely has me wanting to check it out.
It’s definitely worth checking out if you’re in the mood!
I habe one of his books but never got around to it. This one sounds great!
He’s such a good writer, I also have Gothic which I need to go back and read.
Another new-to-me author here. I’ll have to remember this one as I’m thinking about what to read over autumn/winter. Glad you enjoyed it.
Pages and Tea recently posted…Monthly Summary: June 2023
This would be a perfect winter read:-)
Oooh, this one sounds really good! I’ll have to keep it on my list to read when/if I’m in the mood for adult horror, and I’ll definitely share it with my aunt and mom who are the ones who got me reading this type of book when I was a teenager. Great review!
Lisa Mandina (Lisa Loves Literature) recently posted…ARC Review: The Shadow Sister by Lily Meade
Thanks Lisa! I hope your aunt and mom get a chance to read it:-)
I’ve been so curious about this one, I’m so glad to such a positive review! This sounds SO interesting, I think your review has only made me more excited to check it out. I didn’t know it’d be so graphic, but I’m usually okay with that so I think it should still work. I can’t wait to check it out!
It’s definitely worth reading, although if you’re squeamish about kids getting hurt, it might be too much.
I’ve never tried anything by Philip Fracassi but this does sound pretty darn good. The multiple POVs seem to have been handled well too. I’m glad you had a good time with this, Tammy! 🙂
The multiple POVs were so well done! It added a lot of dimension to the story.
This sounds absolutely fantastic and it’s on my list of must-reads for July. I hope I’ll enjoy it as much as you did!
It was really good, I hope you enjoy it!
Yeah I did not love the end either. I feel like maybe it worked and I just didn’t “get it”, but it bugged me. The rest of the book really was good, though like you said, quite hard to read about! Wonderful review!
Shannon @ It Starts at Midnight recently posted…Reviews in a Minute: Most of July!
Thank you for a superb review that absolutely convinced me that I shan’t be touching this one with a bargepole! Well written, riveting horror that gets under your skin is definitely not what I need right now:)). But I’m delighted you enjoyed this one so much, Tammy.
I really like the sound of this one – at the same time it sounds quite horrific – which makes me want to read it even more!
Maybe one for the darker nights so that I can really terrify myself.
Lynn 😀