The story carries with it some interesting themes that a lot of super smart people have dissected. The monsters feel more real than in the movie, and the fact that you have to read from line to line builds on the tension whenever anyone is in danger. If you don’t know the story–or if you’ve just watched the movie–read the book. I don’t know exactly how else to describe it, except that I found myself rooting for everyone, even the worst among the group of survivors who hid out inside the abandoned house. And here’s the part that I like the most: there’s a mixture of dread and love existing in the space between the main characters.

The problem is the book works so well that it already blows most comparable work out of the water. Keep in mind, though, that I have no second thoughts about purchasing even the worst of these books, and encourage you to check out all of them! But if watching the Netflix movie made you curious about what else might be out there (and you really, really don’t want to read the book because you saw the movie), consider this post my official ranking of Malerman novels, from best to worst. And while I liked the Netflix adaptation of his seminal work, Bird Box, I can very honestly tell you the book is better. I can now state that I’ve read all of Josh Malerman’s major novels and consider myself a fan.

Josh malerman books