Spooky friends!!! Get hype because you can now officially purchase your copy of Bad Man, by none other than Dathan Auerbach, Reddit legend (dare I say?) and author of Penpal, the book perhaps best known from making the journey from r/nosleep to unsettling novel.
Auerbach follows up on 2012’s creepy Penpal with the mysterious horror novel Bad Man, the story of a young man named Ben who never stopped searching for his missing little brother. Finding himself strapped for cash and low on employment options, now twenty-year-old Ben takes a job as a night stocker at the very grocery store where his little brother, Eric, disappeared from right under his nose five years ago. Since then, his family has fallen apart, emotionally, financially, and mentally. But with Ben now working at the store where Eric vanished, things feel even more eerie and unresolved than ever, and Ben knows something just isn’t right. As he works, he pursues his growing suspicions of his boss, his coworkers, and even his own friends, all the while struggling with the feeling that perhaps there is something happening beneath the surface that is beyond our understanding.
Y’all may remember that I was pretty excited back when I discovered Penpal and have always been really interested in Dathan’s journey from No Sleep to novelist. So when the lovely humans at Doubleday Books asked if I was interested in a copy of Bad Man, there was no way I could say no. I’m eternally grateful for Doubleday for bringing this book into my life, not just because I enjoyed reading it so much, but also because of the ripple effect this particular work of art has had on my life…but that’s a story for another time (and believe me, it’ll be a heck of a story).
This was definitely one of those books that had me swearing over and over again that I’d quit reading after “just one more chapter”. Dathan does an excellent job with this novel, weaving a truly ominous tale that simultaneously makes you uncomfortable and unable to put it down. As much as it unsettled me, I still kept wanting to read so I could find out what would happen next. The author does quite a few things very well, from the storyline to the narrator to the setting, but of course—as any Reddit veteran knows—what Dathan does best is creepy.
If you love books with just an overall spooky feeling/eerie vibes, then Bad Man is definitely for you. The most notable thing about the novel is how ominous it feels, combined with the mystery that the author deftly weaves into Ben’s devastating story. That constant feeling of “what the hell is going on here?” permeates everything, especially when the clues start showing up more and more. I won’t spoil it for y’all, but suffice it to say that when I reached the words “HI BEN” it gave me literal shivers. It was downright disconcerting.
The storyline itself is uncomfortable as all hell, too. Just the thought of the disappearance of a small child and a family struggling with that fallout is devastating, so to see it brought to life on paper really pulls at the heartstrings. It’s a story so familiar to all of us. We see these kinds of things constantly—every time we turn on the news or listen to the radio, there’s another story of a missing child or an unsolved mystery (especially if you’re like me and you obsess over things like Forensic Files and The Vanished Podcast). But Bad Man takes you and puts you inside that story, letting you see how it tears apart families and individuals, rather than lurking on the outskirts.
The creep factor definitely isn’t the only thing this book has going for it, though. I can definitely see Dathan’s growth as a writer in this novel as compared to Penpal, and I can’t say it enough…it’s been really cool seeing him come up from the Reddit ranks. In Bad Man, he does really well with the use of an imperfect narrator. Ben is no superhero—he’s a regular guy with problems just like everyone else. He’s so imperfect at times and struggling so much with the disappearance of his little brother that there were moments where I even wondered if he was reliable as a narrator, which I absolutely love. Unreliable narrators, when written well, can be so captivating and unique.
I also have to commend Dathan for the way he portrays the small town and small town environment where the story takes place. Being from a small town myself, I always enjoy seeing an accurate, relatable portrayal of that kind of setting. Not gonna lie, I get a little tired of seeing overly romanticized, country song, nonsensical portrayals of small towns.
There’s none of that from this author, who really made the small town feel of everyone sort of knowing everyone and everyone lurking just outside the perimeter of your business come alive. The lack of privacy and vague familiarity with literally everyone was clear on the page, and he brought it to life in the details, right down to the vernacular. The way Ben and his friends and coworkers spoke in a casual, almost sort of lazy manner with a bit of a drawling accent was successful in putting me right in the scene. Especially in the scenes where Ben and Marty are talking, it really felt like these could be two guys I grew up with. My only complaint was that the characters would sometimes slip in and out of the accent/way of speaking (though I suppose in real life, we all do that to some extent).
My only other slight complaint is that the ending was a little too drawn out for my personal tastes. It was one of those books where you reach a point where you kind of know what’s going o and you just want to get to the bottom of it, but instead we spend way too many chapters leading up to it and kind of baiting the reader (you know, like when Voldemort spends way too long making epic speeches about being a villain instead of focusing on just being a villain).
The baiting in this scenario just felt unnecessary. I was already on board! Totally on board. Fully boarded. Just tell me what’s up!
Overall, though, that tiny complaint is not nearly enough to detract from how much I enjoyed this book and how happy I am that it came into my life (and everything it brought with it).
I really liked the book a lot and I loved the understated, slow burn style of creepy that Dathan does so well. The plotline is really interesting, the twists are unexpected, and it’s all the sort of thing that really makes the little hairs on the back of your neck stand up when you think about it for too long. There were certainly one or two nights while I was reading that that I found myself looking over my shoulder.
Bad Man is definitely worth a read, especially for horror fans, and of course I recommend it. I will always go in for anything from this author as I’ve been on board since day one, and I’m really excited to see him continue to grow from his Reddit days and become an even more successful novelist. It’s really awesome to see him publishing with Doubleday and Blumhouse! It’s a very “started from the bottom now we’re here” moment, and I’m into it.
Definitely pick this book up when you get a chance! It was officially released on the 7th of August from Doubleday and is available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble. And let me know what you think!
Have you read Bad Man yet? Are you planning to? Let me know in the comments! You know I’d love to talk. <3