Book Review: The Hive by Ronald Malfi

4/5 stars. A psychological thriller/horror story set in a small community in Maryland called Mariner’s Cove, where several of its inhabitants are overtaken by the urge to turn the local water tower into a ‘hive.’ One ten-year-old boy, Cory, realizes that something is wrong as graffiti begins showing up throughout the neighborhood, and his neighbor starts acting strangely. Malfi does an excellent job of ramping up the tension, paranoia, and uncertainty in the story, as the community members become increasingly obsessed with their project and focused on the Endgame. What is happening in Mariner’s Cove and what is Endgame?

In some ways, this story reminded me of Joe Hill’s King Sorrow, that I read earlier this year, especially as the tension builds and the community members are uncertain of what will happen in the end. I was surprised to see, in his afterword, that Malfi has been sitting on this story for ten years. This is a powerful story for him to have held on to for so long. It has been a pleasure to read this story about group obsession and to think that a single driving thought can occupy the minds of so many people at once. Excellent storytelling! Highly recommended. #NetGalley #RonaldMalfi #TheHive

Additionally, the narration by Paul Bellantoni for the audiobook helped to increase the tension and paranoia throughout the story and the character interactions. Very well done!