Creepy pasta turned horror hit

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Let me set the scene: it’s 2008, your girl is orange as she spends all her time in tanning beds (the future world leaders on The Jersey Shore don’t say it’s bad for you), it’s time for bed so I pull out my computer...I want to keep myself awake with horror stories...it’s Creepypasta time....hello Reddit....enter The Patient.

Parker is on his first real assignment as a psychologist. His first big patient has never been properly diagnosed, he seems to evolve over time. Every doctor that has worked with this patient, Joe, has left the field or committed suicide, but Parker is determined, smart, and young. He’ll risk everything to help Joe....he just didn’t realize how sick Joe is.

Told through a series of online journal posts, this book is the “found footage” of books. I’ve always loved this concept in movies, and I enjoyed it in this book. Creepypasta is a 2000’s phenomenon, think Slenderman here, and The Patient is the epitome of what it was. A first person narrative dealing with a paranormal entity or local urban legend. I love for stories like this.

This story is described as The Silent Patient but make it horror and that’s the perfect description. There is an atmospheric, creepy vibe from the first page. I really wanted more character development. I didn’t really feel anything for the characters, I was mainly riveted by the mystery of what was wrong with Joe.

I read this book in a day, it’s not very long. I haven’t finished a book in under 12 hrs in a long time. This is exactly the kind of story I loved when I was young. If you’re a horror fan, I recommend you check this one out on July 7th. Thank you to Netgalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for my review copy.