The Beast You Are

Stories

By: Paul Tremblay

Narrated by: Johnny Heller, Xe Sands, Ewan Chung, Graham Halstead, Helen Laser, Jorjeana Marie, Joy Osmanski, Keith Sellon-Wright, Kirsten Potter, Neil Shah

A haunting collection of short fiction from the bestselling author of The Pallbearers Club, A Head Full of Ghosts, and The Cabin at the End of the World.

Paul Tremblay has won widespread acclaim for illuminating the dark horrors of the mind in novels and stories that push the boundaries of storytelling itself. The fifteen pieces in this brilliant collection, The Beast You Are, are all monsters of a kind, ready to loudly (and lovingly) smash through your head and into your heart.

In “The Dead Thing,” a middle-schooler struggles to deal with the aftermath of her parents’ substance addictions and split. One day, her little brother claims he found a shoebox with “the dead thing” inside. He won’t show it to her and he won’t let the box out of his sight. In “The Last Conversation,” a person wakes in a sterile, white room and begins to receive instructions via intercom from a woman named Anne. When they are finally allowed to leave the room to complete a task, what they find is as shocking as it is heartbreaking.

The title novella, “The Beast You Are,” is a mini epic in which the destinies and secrets of a village, a dog, and a cat are intertwined with a giant monster that returns to wreak havoc every thirty years.

A masterpiece of literary horror and psychological suspense, The Beast You Are is a fearlessly imagined collection from one of the most electrifying and innovative writers working today.

©2023 Paul Tremblay (P)2023 HarperCollins Publishers

Nicely distinct story collection

I enjoyed this quite a lot on the whole, it's a solid collection of stories that fit in Tremblay's distinctive authorial style. Sometimes to the point of frustration (kind of in a good way) with the things he leaves ambiguous. The quality is consistent enough that I never felt the urge to skip ahead, which is always a risk shorter story collections have. My main complaint is on the audio end - the titular Beast You Are, the longest and probably most intriguing story, was brought down somewhat by the narration. It's not terrible, but the reader uses some odd vocal inflections that rubbed me the wrong way, and it also felt somehow like they were trying to record it in an overly quiet voice. Even with the volume turned up, it still felt weirdly quiet compared to all of the other stories.

Oh well, I was still able to enjoy that one even if it wasn't ideal audio. The collection is still strong enough to get a solid recommendation.

SO GOOD!!!!!!!!

This is truly excellent short fiction from Paul Tremblay. Engaging, thought-provoking, and tense... it had me chewing the skin off my lips.

Highly recommend!!! 5 stars!

That Time Horror Made You Cry

Paul is one of my favorite writers ever. Horror that hits you at home, crawls under your bed with you, invades your safe place and eats you with small sharp teeth.
Scary in the dark of night is easy. Paul puts a spotlight on what we all truly fear.

Relish that titular novella

Relish that titular novella and Xe Sands’ narration of it! I’ll have to do another reading of the other stories with paperback in hand for the other stories, but that novella, that was an absolute gem. I’ll be listening to that one several times more. The story notes were great. The connections to the Tremblay novels and other stories of his are fantastic. I do love his experimentation and tendency to revisit characters in various forms.

Most overrated boring author

Can’t believe I gave him a shot again. Never completes a single concept and has the worst cliff hangers. Stop recommending this guy please.

Not what I expected

Was not engaging. Just weird. Maybe I missed the point, but it was a waste of time and money.

Maybe it’s not bad. Maybe I just don’t understand.

This was a rather difficult listen. Bought the audiobook to see if whisper-syncing could help with the reading experience. It didn’t. People seem to love him and his short fiction a lot so I’m convinced it must be me that’s the problem.

Unfinished stories doesn’t equal short stories

There’s nothing here .
Also Xe Sands vocal fry is beyond terrible .
Here’s four more words

Odd

This collection was odd, and seemingly unbalanced. Some stories were okay but the overall book is unbalanced and unfocused. Not his best.