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Ink
From New York Times bestselling author Jonathan Maberry comes a standalone supernatural thriller Ink, about a memory thief who feeds on the most precious of dreams.
Tattoo-artist Patty Cakes has her dead daughter’s face tattooed on the back of her hand. Day by day it begins to fade, taking with it all of Patty’s memories of her daughter. All she’s left with is the certain knowledge she has forgotten her lost child. The awareness of that loss is tearing her apart.
Monk Addison is a private investigator whose skin is covered with the tattooed faces of murder victims. He is a predator who hunts for killers, and the ghosts of all of those dead people haunt his life. Some of those faces have begun to fade, too, destroying the very souls of the dead.
All through the town of Pine Deep people are having their most precious memories stolen. The monster seems to target the lonely, the disenfranchised, the people who need memories to anchor them to this world.
Something is out there. Something cruel and evil is feeding on the memories, erasing them from the hearts and minds of people like Patty and Monk and others.
Ink is the story of a few lonely, damaged people hunting for a memory thief. When all you have are memories, there is no greater horror than forgetting.
Tattoo-artist Patty Cakes has her dead daughter’s face tattooed on the back of her hand. Day by day it begins to fade, taking with it all of Patty’s memories of her daughter. All she’s left with is the certain knowledge she has forgotten her lost child. The awareness of that loss is tearing her apart.
Monk Addison is a private investigator whose skin is covered with the tattooed faces of murder victims. He is a predator who hunts for killers, and the ghosts of all of those dead people haunt his life. Some of those faces have begun to fade, too, destroying the very souls of the dead.
All through the town of Pine Deep people are having their most precious memories stolen. The monster seems to target the lonely, the disenfranchised, the people who need memories to anchor them to this world.
Something is out there. Something cruel and evil is feeding on the memories, erasing them from the hearts and minds of people like Patty and Monk and others.
Ink is the story of a few lonely, damaged people hunting for a memory thief. When all you have are memories, there is no greater horror than forgetting.
453 pages, Paperback
First published November 17, 2020
97 people are currently reading
5479 people want to read
About the author
Jonathan Maberry
518 books7,774 followersJONATHAN MABERRY is a NYTimes bestselling author, #1 Audible bestseller, 5-time Bram Stoker Award-winner, 4-time Scribe Award winner, Inkpot Award winner, comic book writer, and producer. He is the author of more than 50 novels, 190 short stories, 16 short story collections, 30 graphic novels, 14 nonfiction books, and has edited 26 anthologies. His vampire apocalypse book series, V-WARS, was a Netflix original series starring Ian Somerhalder. His 2009-10 run as writer on the Black Panther comic formed a large chunk of the recent blockbuster film, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. His bestselling YA zombie series, Rot & Ruin is in development for film at Alcon Entertainment; and John Wick director, Chad Stahelski, is developing Jonathan’s Joe Ledger Thrillers for TV. Jonathan writes in multiple genres including suspense, thriller, horror, science fiction, epic fantasy, and action; and he writes for adults, teens and middle grade. His works include The Pine Deep Trilogy, The Kagen the Damned Trilogy, NecroTek, Ink, Glimpse, the Rot & Ruin series, the Dead of Night series, The Wolfman, X-Files Origins: Devil’s Advocate, The Sleepers War (with Weston Ochse), Mars One, and many others. He is the editor of high-profile anthologies including Weird Tales: 100 Years of Weird, The X-Files, Aliens: Bug Hunt, Out of Tune, Don’t Turn out the Lights: A Tribute to Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, Baker Street Irregulars, Nights of the Living Dead, Shadows & Verse, and others. His comics include Marvel Zombies Return, The Punisher: Naked Kills, Wolverine: Ghosts, Godzilla vs Cthulhu: Death May Die, Bad Blood and many others. Jonathan has written in many popular licensed worlds, including Hellboy, True Blood, The Wolfman, John Carter of Mars, Sherlock Holmes, C.H.U.D., Diablo IV, Deadlands, World of Warcraft, Planet of the Apes, Aliens, Predator, Karl Kolchak, and many others. He the president of the International Association of Media Tie-in Writers, and the editor of Weird Tales Magazine. He lives in San Diego, California. Find him online at www.jonathanmaberry.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 267 reviews
November 19, 2023
My thanks, as always to St. Martin's Press, Netgalley and especially my man Jonathan Maberry! I've been waiting for a new Pine Deep book forever! So, I can only state that of course I'm biased! Pine Deep is one very messed up location! Luckily, Maberry has one screwy vocation! I was taking a gander at my physical bookshelves, and I realized that I've never read a Maberry book that I didn't love. I do stay away from his YA books though! I loved these characters. It's something this author does well. I want more! This story made me tense at times. Like butt clenching tense! I can handle nearly all insects. Even spiders. They have a fierce beauty. But, one of my least favorite things ever is a fly. Fruit, house, horse and especially blow flies! This story had them. In ink. Just wait! Skeeved me out! I have hard core poison sprays in my house, just waiting for a fly! Swatters? 😝 Yuck! This tale is essentially about losing memories. But, with Maberry, it's never that simple.
July 15, 2020
INK by Jonathan Maberry is a standalone supernatural suspense / horror novel. It is set in and around Pine Deep, Pennsylvania. This is the second book that I have read by this author, and it is a very type of book. The other book was Rage, an action thriller and the first book in the Joe Ledger and Rogue Team International series. However, a few things stand out equally well in both: They are well-written with characters that have depth and there is an interesting plot where the story line pulls the reader in and never looks back.
Monk Addison is a private investigator whose skin is covered with the tattooed faces of murder victims. He is moving to Pine Deep to be close to his friend tattoo-artist Patty Cakes. When tattoos start to fade on multiple people, their memories associated with those tattoos also start to fade. Who or what is causing this? Will they ever get their memories back?
The characters are compelling, fascinating, and felt three-dimensional. There was enough at stake to keep me engaged throughout the story. The world-building was excellent and gave a clear sense of place. Themes include friendships, paranormal phenomena, loyalty, loss, memories and much more.
Overall, this was a creepy, dark and excellent read. I would recommend it to those that enjoy extraordinary supernatural suspense and horror novels. There are some intense scenes. I look forward to reading more books by this excellent author.
Monk Addison is a private investigator whose skin is covered with the tattooed faces of murder victims. He is moving to Pine Deep to be close to his friend tattoo-artist Patty Cakes. When tattoos start to fade on multiple people, their memories associated with those tattoos also start to fade. Who or what is causing this? Will they ever get their memories back?
The characters are compelling, fascinating, and felt three-dimensional. There was enough at stake to keep me engaged throughout the story. The world-building was excellent and gave a clear sense of place. Themes include friendships, paranormal phenomena, loyalty, loss, memories and much more.
Overall, this was a creepy, dark and excellent read. I would recommend it to those that enjoy extraordinary supernatural suspense and horror novels. There are some intense scenes. I look forward to reading more books by this excellent author.
November 6, 2020
Review to come.
*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copy.
*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copy.
October 8, 2020
A broken heart, a lost friend, a buried child, failed hopes. Grief, survivor’s guilt, shame, regret, bittersweet nostalgia—those were the choicest cuts. Bloody and juicy.
I’ve been meaning to read Jonathan Maberry’s Rot & Ruin series since it was published literally ten years ago, so when I saw Ink on NetGalley, you can bet I smashed that request button.
Unfortunately, this one did NOT do it for me.
Plot-wise, it’s kind of a hot mess: it felt like too much of this book was sex scenes, the villain masturbating to other people’s misfortune, and a lot of talk of people screaming. Pacing-wise, it was unbearably slow and tedious. Call me heartless, but I wasn’t moved—or affected in any meaningful way—by the characters’ tragic backstories, of which there are plentiful.
Ink follows a group of people living in the small town of Pine Deep—a place haunted by the legacy of a horrific event dubbed “the Trouble,” which killed 11 000 people several decades ago. Now, a different but equally dark force has come to prey on the townspeople: the Lord of the Flies, a grotesque figure who feeds off others’ pain and trauma by stealing their tattoos and associated memories. Caught in his web are Patty Cakes, a Vietnamese-American tattoo artist mourning the brutal loss of her daughter; Monk Addison, a skip tracer and Patty’s friend, with a bloody history himself; Mike Sweeney, son of the police chief; Malcolm Crow, the police chief; Dianna Agbala, a Black psychic; Gayle Kosinski, a mom and school administrator who’s questioning her sexuality; and another three dozen characters that I’ve already forgotten.
◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️◻️
There were WAY too many character POVs. I couldn’t keep them straight, and couldn’t muster up the energy to be interested in all of their spoOoooky subplots. The sense of “something’s wrong” and “something’s coming” is very explicitly drilled into you throughout the novel, and I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop—but it never did. (Like, whatever happened to the creepy Mr. Pockets who was eating rat carcasses out of trash cans?? Maybe I missed something here?)
I also found myself neither appalled nor impressed by the villain/Pine Deep’s lore. In fact, when the book finally info-dumps all the deets about the mysterious ~Trouble~ of years past, I didn’t even flinch. Ink was supposed to be a standalone novel, but I really think that it’s better suited to people who’ve already read the Pine Deep trilogy, because it constantly seemed like I was supposed to already feel some sort of investment in the characters when I really didn’t.
Finally, I think there were just some very poor choices in phrasing throughout the novel. There’s a diversity of identities represented by the characters: Patty’s a Vietnamese immigrant, Dianna is a fat Black lesbian, Gayle is bi/questioning, and there’s also a Mexican-American woman named Sandy. This was very cool, and I noted the book’s efforts to uplift its women characters.
HOWEVER: intention doesn’t equal impact, and I found some of the wording to just be in bad taste.
➟ Patty tells Dianna “You’re not bi, you’re pure”—which, though I know wasn’t her intention, is still biphobic as heck. There’s nothing impure or invalid about bisexuality, and we shouldn’t be implying otherwise.
➟ Unless it’s backed with historical or other context, I think we can retire the word “transvestite” from modern use
➟ At one point the book refers to the Leni Lenape people as “nearly extinct.” This word, extinct, never sits well with me. I cannot STAND it when people apply this to minority populations, and particularly Indigenous peoples. We aren’t discussing an animal species in a zoology textbook here. These are an entire peoples who, to this day, are resisting, surviving, and finding pockets of resilience in the face of colonial legacies.
➟ Finally, Dianna tells Gayle: “….black folks kind of hate it when people say ‘N-word.’ Either say ‘[the literal n-word]’ when talking about racist terms, or skip the subject.” Nope nope nope. Besides coming off like it's justifying/advocating for white people using the n-word, this is a white author speaking through a Black character on behalf of ALL Black folks. BIG nope.
Bottom line: Ink bored me to tears but I’m probably still going to read Rot & Ruin. Zombies are much more my cup of tea than tattoos, anyway.
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review! All quotes were taken from an uncorrected advance proof.
July 7, 2020
Jonathan Maberry broke my heart.
He didn’t just do it once. He did it time and again as he took wonderful characters and had a truly horrific villain rip all their most precious memories from them in an incredibly perverse way.
While Ink is different from what I consider to be Maberry’s usual style, the book proves that his skill is no accident. (Note: there is a sly reference to a certain other well known character.) The tale he weaves here is dark, sensual, and horrifying. And I loved it. As a mom, especially, some scenes almost killed me.
I loved this book. I hope that he brings us future books featuring some of these characters!
*ARC provided via Net Galley
July 9, 2024
Cool story about a real creep of a memory thief looking to score some new memories along with some fresh ink.
This is not accomplished by conventional means.
Owen Minor takes them from the unexpecting.
By stealing ones tattoo, the memories associated with it are also stolen.
Blow flies are involved in this process.
Gross blow flies I suppose are better than the even grosser, earwigs.
So, I'm grateful.
I only say this because this is the second book in a row I've read where flies play a pivotal part in a story.
Who'd a thunk it?
Great characters in Patty Cake and Monk.
Sad souls with a shared sad history.
Both have meaningful tats and these are fading along with memories held dear.
Enter Dianna. Town tarot reader. Another whose tats are fading.
Together these 3 along with a couple of dumbfounded but well meaning cops, and a one night stand band together to catch the creep.
It's good vs evil in this steady character driven story of horror.
Patty and Monk were deep and emotionally damaged.
There's a real sadness that seeps through the pages here as it so often does in a horror novel.
I actually cared.
I did, really I did.
This takes place in mysterious Pine Deep.
A town that is not unknown to Maberry readers.
A good place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there.
Then there's those blackbirds...
This is a standalone novel. The town being the only connection to the previous storyline.
I'll be seeking those out for a return visit.
This is not accomplished by conventional means.
Owen Minor takes them from the unexpecting.
By stealing ones tattoo, the memories associated with it are also stolen.
Blow flies are involved in this process.
Gross blow flies I suppose are better than the even grosser, earwigs.
So, I'm grateful.
I only say this because this is the second book in a row I've read where flies play a pivotal part in a story.
Who'd a thunk it?
Great characters in Patty Cake and Monk.
Sad souls with a shared sad history.
Both have meaningful tats and these are fading along with memories held dear.
Enter Dianna. Town tarot reader. Another whose tats are fading.
Together these 3 along with a couple of dumbfounded but well meaning cops, and a one night stand band together to catch the creep.
It's good vs evil in this steady character driven story of horror.
Patty and Monk were deep and emotionally damaged.
There's a real sadness that seeps through the pages here as it so often does in a horror novel.
I actually cared.
I did, really I did.
This takes place in mysterious Pine Deep.
A town that is not unknown to Maberry readers.
A good place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there.
Then there's those blackbirds...
This is a standalone novel. The town being the only connection to the previous storyline.
I'll be seeking those out for a return visit.
July 5, 2021
Ink by Jonathan Maberry is a standalone horror filled supernatural thriller. In today’s society we all know we need to lock away our valuables or they may just be stolen but what if your most precious memories could be taken too?
Monk Addison is a private investigator who has moved to Pine Deep, Pennsylvania to be closer to tattoo artist Patty Cakes. Both have tattoos on their bodies that remind them of people and times in their lives but those tattoos have begun to fade. Somewhere in Pine Deep is a monster that is feeding on those precious memories that it’s victims hold close.
As a fan of horror I keep finding myself picking up stories hoping for something to give me the chills and finding myself more bored than anything. Ink felt like the type of book I think of as trying too hard with weird sexual content that was more a turn off than the chills I’d want. There were also just too many points of view to follow to get me connected which to me makes the story drag. Overall I came away wishing I had just passed on this one as it seemed to check all the wrong boxes for me.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.com/
Monk Addison is a private investigator who has moved to Pine Deep, Pennsylvania to be closer to tattoo artist Patty Cakes. Both have tattoos on their bodies that remind them of people and times in their lives but those tattoos have begun to fade. Somewhere in Pine Deep is a monster that is feeding on those precious memories that it’s victims hold close.
As a fan of horror I keep finding myself picking up stories hoping for something to give me the chills and finding myself more bored than anything. Ink felt like the type of book I think of as trying too hard with weird sexual content that was more a turn off than the chills I’d want. There were also just too many points of view to follow to get me connected which to me makes the story drag. Overall I came away wishing I had just passed on this one as it seemed to check all the wrong boxes for me.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.com/
October 2, 2020
Review now live at Grimdark Magazine
The concept of a dream thief, or a stealer of memories is fascinating. A creepy villain with the ability to sneak in and access the mind of victims, especially in such a way as to be unnoticed, is quite scary. What Jonathan Maberry does in Ink is that, but he takes it to a higher level. In Ink the method of the villain’s access is as intriguing as the theft itself. He gets in by way of the victim’s tattoos.
Several characters from different walks of life come together in the small town of Pine Deep, Pennsylvania. This is a town that Maberry has had as the central location for some of his works before, but it’s not necessary to read those first (I haven’t). There is a good bit of background, but the essentials are provided in story to cover the reader’s lack of experience.
Monk Addison is a skip tracer, a private investigator specializing in tracking down those who have skipped bail. On the side, he’s a bit of a vigilante with a history as a special ops soldier and mercenary. He has faces of the murdered victims of those he hunts tattooed on his skin to remind of him of why he does this grim work.
Patty Cakes is a tattoo artist settling in Pine Deep, with a gift of tattoo artistry handed down through her Vietnamese ancestry. She has a tattoo of her deceased daughter on her forearm, where she can see it each day. Except, it’s starting to fade…
Owen Minor is the Lord of the Flies, named as such as he uses his own tattoos of blowflies to access and steal the ink from people. He isn’t sure how he has this ability, but he makes use of it. The flies move out and upon making contact, can absorb the tattoos and associated memories then transmit them back to Minor for his personal use. He can also use the blowflies to quite literally get under their skin, and he’s able to exert some degree of control in the short term.
Mike Sweeney is a cop in Pine Deep who comes across a couple from out of state who got into a car accident after having an argument about the man’s missing tattoos, which he does not remember having. The woman is upset, as the tattoos were a reminder of her recent battles with cancer – something that she’s quite disturbed that her husband has forgotten. Not only the tattoos, but the memories associated with them.
Several incidents of missing tattoos are soon being connected, as Sweeney and the police chief, Malcolm Crow dig deeper to discover what sinister forces are at work in Pine Deep, which is no stranger to the weird.
As fascinating as the story is, what really brings Ink to life is Maberry’s focus on character. He creates intriguing characters with rich backstory, then as they interact with each other we as readers can really make connections.
“They held each other, clung to one another. Patty screamed and Monk wept and their heartbreak filled the whole world.”
The reader feels not only connected to the characters, but almost as if submerged in the story right alongside them. We feel their pain and confusion as they cope with lost memories and question their sanity. We feel the violation that the Lord of the Flies has made over each as he steals essential parts of their souls, and gets off on it.
I’ve read several Maberry novels and stories before, but this was my first time to visit the town of Pine Deep. It does seem to be set in the same universe as the Joe Ledger stories, of which I’ve read a few. I think it’s safe to say that I’ll be putting some of that work on my reading list, starting with the first in the Pine Deep Trilogy, Ghost Road Blues. In a perfect world, I would have read those first, but that didn’t lessen my enjoyment of Ink in the slightest.
Thanks to Sarah Bonamino at St. Martin’s Publishing Group for providing this eARC.
The concept of a dream thief, or a stealer of memories is fascinating. A creepy villain with the ability to sneak in and access the mind of victims, especially in such a way as to be unnoticed, is quite scary. What Jonathan Maberry does in Ink is that, but he takes it to a higher level. In Ink the method of the villain’s access is as intriguing as the theft itself. He gets in by way of the victim’s tattoos.
Several characters from different walks of life come together in the small town of Pine Deep, Pennsylvania. This is a town that Maberry has had as the central location for some of his works before, but it’s not necessary to read those first (I haven’t). There is a good bit of background, but the essentials are provided in story to cover the reader’s lack of experience.
Monk Addison is a skip tracer, a private investigator specializing in tracking down those who have skipped bail. On the side, he’s a bit of a vigilante with a history as a special ops soldier and mercenary. He has faces of the murdered victims of those he hunts tattooed on his skin to remind of him of why he does this grim work.
Patty Cakes is a tattoo artist settling in Pine Deep, with a gift of tattoo artistry handed down through her Vietnamese ancestry. She has a tattoo of her deceased daughter on her forearm, where she can see it each day. Except, it’s starting to fade…
Owen Minor is the Lord of the Flies, named as such as he uses his own tattoos of blowflies to access and steal the ink from people. He isn’t sure how he has this ability, but he makes use of it. The flies move out and upon making contact, can absorb the tattoos and associated memories then transmit them back to Minor for his personal use. He can also use the blowflies to quite literally get under their skin, and he’s able to exert some degree of control in the short term.
Mike Sweeney is a cop in Pine Deep who comes across a couple from out of state who got into a car accident after having an argument about the man’s missing tattoos, which he does not remember having. The woman is upset, as the tattoos were a reminder of her recent battles with cancer – something that she’s quite disturbed that her husband has forgotten. Not only the tattoos, but the memories associated with them.
Several incidents of missing tattoos are soon being connected, as Sweeney and the police chief, Malcolm Crow dig deeper to discover what sinister forces are at work in Pine Deep, which is no stranger to the weird.
As fascinating as the story is, what really brings Ink to life is Maberry’s focus on character. He creates intriguing characters with rich backstory, then as they interact with each other we as readers can really make connections.
“They held each other, clung to one another. Patty screamed and Monk wept and their heartbreak filled the whole world.”
The reader feels not only connected to the characters, but almost as if submerged in the story right alongside them. We feel their pain and confusion as they cope with lost memories and question their sanity. We feel the violation that the Lord of the Flies has made over each as he steals essential parts of their souls, and gets off on it.
I’ve read several Maberry novels and stories before, but this was my first time to visit the town of Pine Deep. It does seem to be set in the same universe as the Joe Ledger stories, of which I’ve read a few. I think it’s safe to say that I’ll be putting some of that work on my reading list, starting with the first in the Pine Deep Trilogy, Ghost Road Blues. In a perfect world, I would have read those first, but that didn’t lessen my enjoyment of Ink in the slightest.
Thanks to Sarah Bonamino at St. Martin’s Publishing Group for providing this eARC.
November 12, 2020
First I have to say I was thrilled to pieces when I found out that the setting for Ink is Pine Deep. Although this is a stand alone book and you need not have read the Pine Deep Trilogy to enjoy it you are missing out on some of the best horror fiction of all time if you have skipped it. You'll also wonder what the "trouble" is they keep referring to that Pine Deep has suffered through in the past, and that Val and Crow have managed to survive.
I don't believe the description of this book does it justice. It calls Monk Addison a private investigator. Oh No. Nope. What a boring and inaccurate description for such a complex character. A psychic vampire has come to Pine Deep. It does not need the memories of others to survive, but it revels in them. Especially in the deepest darkest most painful or life altering experiences they have had. It also gets some sort of twisted sexual thrill out of the suffering of others. Stealing their memories allows it to experience them as if they were his own, and he also has the ability to exert mind control over others, getting them to do his bidding.
All fans of the trilogy need to read this book, and if this is your first visit to Pine Deep I would recommend that you read the earlier books.
I don't believe the description of this book does it justice. It calls Monk Addison a private investigator. Oh No. Nope. What a boring and inaccurate description for such a complex character. A psychic vampire has come to Pine Deep. It does not need the memories of others to survive, but it revels in them. Especially in the deepest darkest most painful or life altering experiences they have had. It also gets some sort of twisted sexual thrill out of the suffering of others. Stealing their memories allows it to experience them as if they were his own, and he also has the ability to exert mind control over others, getting them to do his bidding.
All fans of the trilogy need to read this book, and if this is your first visit to Pine Deep I would recommend that you read the earlier books.
January 18, 2024
When you go into a book written by a giant like Jonathan Maberry you have high expectations. Fair or not, it's the truth. Now, to be honest, I did not read more than a couple chapters of this one; but my husband read the whole thing. We bought a print copy of it prior to reading as Maberry always delivers! We had no reason to think this would be any different. Unfortunately it was.
While billed in the horror section, and marketed like a horror book, Ink is unfortunately very bland and has a weird sexual component to it reminiscent of Stephen King's early works like IT. Where the horror is really just bizarre and not horrific the way you might hope or want; but instead in an icky way that is just a turn off.
Additionally, from the first few chapters I can tell you that I was not super taken with the writing on this Maberry novel. It just didn't capture me like his others usually do. Thus knowing my husbands experience was subpar I chose to put it down.
That said, I give it three stars because it did keep my husbands attention to the end at least (not a small feat some days) and so it must be just good enough.
Overall I can't recommend this one, as I didn't finish it, but I can caution that it's not to the level you might be used to for Maberry.
While billed in the horror section, and marketed like a horror book, Ink is unfortunately very bland and has a weird sexual component to it reminiscent of Stephen King's early works like IT. Where the horror is really just bizarre and not horrific the way you might hope or want; but instead in an icky way that is just a turn off.
Additionally, from the first few chapters I can tell you that I was not super taken with the writing on this Maberry novel. It just didn't capture me like his others usually do. Thus knowing my husbands experience was subpar I chose to put it down.
That said, I give it three stars because it did keep my husbands attention to the end at least (not a small feat some days) and so it must be just good enough.
Overall I can't recommend this one, as I didn't finish it, but I can caution that it's not to the level you might be used to for Maberry.
September 6, 2020
I had been waiting for another Pine Deep book from Jonathan Maberry, and it was well worth the wait.
Tattoos mean a lot to different people. What would you do if your most meaningful ones disappear and take the memories with them? Read this book and find out.
This book deserves more than five stars. I hope there are more Pine Deep books in the future.
Tattoos mean a lot to different people. What would you do if your most meaningful ones disappear and take the memories with them? Read this book and find out.
This book deserves more than five stars. I hope there are more Pine Deep books in the future.
December 7, 2020
Man that was intense and horrifying. The darkly detailed bits are something you want to close your eyes for, but then you hear a buzz. FREAK OUT ! Seriously this would make a cult classic movie. Warning it's got all the triggers. I am so going to kill ever fly I see for a awhile.
I had some trouble staying focused. The story is fragmented into several stories for most of the book. I have concentration issues so this type of writing is a challenge. Even with that I really enjoyed being horrified by Ink.
I had some trouble staying focused. The story is fragmented into several stories for most of the book. I have concentration issues so this type of writing is a challenge. Even with that I really enjoyed being horrified by Ink.
September 3, 2020
Jonathan Maberry returns to familiar stomping grounds in Ink, moving two of his newer characters, the tattoo artist Patty Cakes and her heavily tattooed bounty hunter friend, Monk, both of whom featured heavily in 2018's Glimpse, from New York to "The Spookiest Town in America," Pine Deep.
Although Maberry's fans will fondly recall Pine Deep from the mid- to late-aughts trilogy set there, as well a handful of locals who continue to play prominent roles here, like police chief Malcolm Crow, his wife Val, and their adopted son, Mike. For those who haven't explored Pine Deep previously, Maberry makes this visit highly accessible for newcomers, guiding us through this small town's quirks and oddities alongside newcomers Monk and Patty, as well as Mike, Crow, and a few others. It's worth nothing that the cast Maberry has assembled here is pretty large, and while there's a lot of people and relationships to keep track of, they do help serve the story and make Pine Deep feel like a real and well-populated small town.
Shortly after arriving in Pine Deep, Monk finds himself caught up in the town's eerie weirdness after discovering Patty blackout drunk in her tattoo parlor, bleeding from her head and hand. On her hand is the defaced tattoo of her dead daughter, Tuyet, who was brutally murdered a number of years ago, and who Patty now claims to have no recollection of at all. She's not the only resident of Pine Deep to have a sudden onset of memory loss, though, and soon others in town begin to become aware of missing tattoos and holes punched into their own personal histories.
Ink has an intriguingly weird premise - a deranged madman who feeds off people's tattoos and the memories that inspired them - that could easily get bogged down in '80s-styled silliness. Thankfully Maberry plays it all straight, crafting a decidedly serious, and dark, horror thriller. He capitalizes on the importance of tattoos in their wearers own personal narratives, and leans hard into the heartache that would follow their disappearance, as well as the associations tied to that art. Imagine having a tattoo to memorialize a dead child inexplicably vanish and struggling to cope with the guilt that goes with being unable to remember them. Or, in the case of one couple, a husband whose has lost a tattoo commemorating his wife's victory against cancer. The rift that tattoo's absence creates between them is heartbreaking, both because you can understand the wife's anger, but also because you sympathize with the man who has lost it and finds himself now accused of lying and transgressing against his spouse. Other characters don't have it nearly as lucky, though, as mental victories and years of therapy to combat suicidal tendencies are stripped away, along with the symbolically victorious semicolon inked on a hand.
Maberry crafts a sprawling narrative around this central conceit, creating a minor epic of small town horror. The use of psychic vampirism, and attacks against the citizens of Pine Deep that are analogous to rape, albeit one that is wholly mental rather than physical, presents a number of gut-twisting moments. It's difficult to ignore, too, the ways in which the attacks against women are fittingly centered around metaphorical examinations of toxic masculinity and entitlement grounded in our #MeToo era. Women are victimized, both directly and indirectly, but they don't succumb to being passive victims and are quick to fight back when the time comes, and Maberry showcases their strengths in a number of ways over the course of Ink. It's bleak subject matter to be sure, but there are still some rather brilliant points of light in all this darkness. Take for instance the burgeoning relationship between housewife Gayle and psychic reader Dianna. The former is unhappily married and beginning to understand and cope with her own sexuality and lesbian desires, particularly as they relate to the fully out-of-the-closet Dianna. I really dug the hell out of this relationship and appreciated the delicate ways in which Maberry explored their burgeoning friendship with the possibility of more.
On the other hand, my only real complaint about Ink is that, for having such a large number of prominent characters, we don't get quite enough resolution for all of the big players to fully satisfy. For as much effort is devoted toward Gayle's relationship with Dianna, and the complications that ensue on a number of levels, they're sadly forgotten in book's resolution. I could have done with a few more details to solidify the nature of their will they or won't they relationship and to answer the lingering questions surrounding their relationship. And for as thick as this story is, I wouldn't have minded a bit in the way of more gory details relating to psychic vampire's final comeuppance. Maberry gives us a multi-pronged climax, but not all of them deliver in equal measure, proving the old adage about less being more isn't always correct, nor as gruesomely enjoyable.
Despite the climax being a bit rushed and skimping in several of the areas I really wanted to see explored after 450-some pages of build-up, it was great to spend more time with Monk, a character I really wanted to learn more about after his introduction in Glimpse. Maberry does an excellent job fleshing him out, as well as his relationship to Patty. Moving Monk and Patty to Pine Deep opens the doors for further strange going-ons, and I can only hope Maberry is scheduled for another visit to these parts sometime soon.
Although Maberry's fans will fondly recall Pine Deep from the mid- to late-aughts trilogy set there, as well a handful of locals who continue to play prominent roles here, like police chief Malcolm Crow, his wife Val, and their adopted son, Mike. For those who haven't explored Pine Deep previously, Maberry makes this visit highly accessible for newcomers, guiding us through this small town's quirks and oddities alongside newcomers Monk and Patty, as well as Mike, Crow, and a few others. It's worth nothing that the cast Maberry has assembled here is pretty large, and while there's a lot of people and relationships to keep track of, they do help serve the story and make Pine Deep feel like a real and well-populated small town.
Shortly after arriving in Pine Deep, Monk finds himself caught up in the town's eerie weirdness after discovering Patty blackout drunk in her tattoo parlor, bleeding from her head and hand. On her hand is the defaced tattoo of her dead daughter, Tuyet, who was brutally murdered a number of years ago, and who Patty now claims to have no recollection of at all. She's not the only resident of Pine Deep to have a sudden onset of memory loss, though, and soon others in town begin to become aware of missing tattoos and holes punched into their own personal histories.
Ink has an intriguingly weird premise - a deranged madman who feeds off people's tattoos and the memories that inspired them - that could easily get bogged down in '80s-styled silliness. Thankfully Maberry plays it all straight, crafting a decidedly serious, and dark, horror thriller. He capitalizes on the importance of tattoos in their wearers own personal narratives, and leans hard into the heartache that would follow their disappearance, as well as the associations tied to that art. Imagine having a tattoo to memorialize a dead child inexplicably vanish and struggling to cope with the guilt that goes with being unable to remember them. Or, in the case of one couple, a husband whose has lost a tattoo commemorating his wife's victory against cancer. The rift that tattoo's absence creates between them is heartbreaking, both because you can understand the wife's anger, but also because you sympathize with the man who has lost it and finds himself now accused of lying and transgressing against his spouse. Other characters don't have it nearly as lucky, though, as mental victories and years of therapy to combat suicidal tendencies are stripped away, along with the symbolically victorious semicolon inked on a hand.
Maberry crafts a sprawling narrative around this central conceit, creating a minor epic of small town horror. The use of psychic vampirism, and attacks against the citizens of Pine Deep that are analogous to rape, albeit one that is wholly mental rather than physical, presents a number of gut-twisting moments. It's difficult to ignore, too, the ways in which the attacks against women are fittingly centered around metaphorical examinations of toxic masculinity and entitlement grounded in our #MeToo era. Women are victimized, both directly and indirectly, but they don't succumb to being passive victims and are quick to fight back when the time comes, and Maberry showcases their strengths in a number of ways over the course of Ink. It's bleak subject matter to be sure, but there are still some rather brilliant points of light in all this darkness. Take for instance the burgeoning relationship between housewife Gayle and psychic reader Dianna. The former is unhappily married and beginning to understand and cope with her own sexuality and lesbian desires, particularly as they relate to the fully out-of-the-closet Dianna. I really dug the hell out of this relationship and appreciated the delicate ways in which Maberry explored their burgeoning friendship with the possibility of more.
On the other hand, my only real complaint about Ink is that, for having such a large number of prominent characters, we don't get quite enough resolution for all of the big players to fully satisfy. For as much effort is devoted toward Gayle's relationship with Dianna, and the complications that ensue on a number of levels, they're sadly forgotten in book's resolution. I could have done with a few more details to solidify the nature of their will they or won't they relationship and to answer the lingering questions surrounding their relationship. And for as thick as this story is, I wouldn't have minded a bit in the way of more gory details relating to psychic vampire's final comeuppance. Maberry gives us a multi-pronged climax, but not all of them deliver in equal measure, proving the old adage about less being more isn't always correct, nor as gruesomely enjoyable.
Despite the climax being a bit rushed and skimping in several of the areas I really wanted to see explored after 450-some pages of build-up, it was great to spend more time with Monk, a character I really wanted to learn more about after his introduction in Glimpse. Maberry does an excellent job fleshing him out, as well as his relationship to Patty. Moving Monk and Patty to Pine Deep opens the doors for further strange going-ons, and I can only hope Maberry is scheduled for another visit to these parts sometime soon.
June 21, 2020
Here's the opening three paragraphs of my review of INK, the whole review will be published here https://www.gingernutsofhorror.com closer to publication time.
The prolific Jonathan Maberry returns with another winner, his latest Ink is billed as a standalone novel, but don’t let that fool you, this is strongly connected to his Pine Deep Trilogy (2006-2008) which began with Ghost Road Blues. However, if you haven’t read that earlier work do not fret, Ink, does not provide much in the way of spoilers, instead elusively refers to ‘The Troubles’ and if anything, this is going to make new readers want to read Pine Deep even more. And I can guarantee that is no bad thing.
Down the years I have read a lot of Maberry and there is probably more cross pollination between this and other novels that I flagged. For example, the Sheriff in Ink Malcolm Crow and Sergeant Mark Sweeney both featured in Pine Deep, who in turn mention Joe Ledger (although he does not appear directly) in passing. Anybody who knows anything about Jonathan Maberry, will recognise Ledger as the author’s most famous creation, an indestructible black-ops operative who saves the world on a daily-basis in a ten-book series which started back in 2009. Ink is a different kind of literary beast though, forgoing the smash bang wallop of Ledger for a more thoughtful and character driven work about loss, pain and memories.
However, the most impressive cross-pollination with other Maberry novels is the return of Gerald ‘Monk’ Addison who first appeared in the previous, and rather superb standalone novel, Glimpse (2018). I loved Glimpse and Monk was one of Maberry’s finest creations and I am not surprised he resurrects this tough guy for Ink. Maberry purists may wonder who would win in a tear-up between Monk and Joe Ledger? It is a close call, but something tells me the bad-ass Monk would just edge it. Monk did not star in Glimpse, and although Ink has an ensemble cast and a lot of characters, he steals the show with considerably more page-time than in his previous appearance. He is a private investigator and bail bondsman whose skin is covered with the tattooed faces of murder victims. He is a predator who hunts for killers and has a supernatural connection with the dead, particularly those tattooed on his body. The crux of the story revolves around when one of his most precious tattoos begins to disappear.
The prolific Jonathan Maberry returns with another winner, his latest Ink is billed as a standalone novel, but don’t let that fool you, this is strongly connected to his Pine Deep Trilogy (2006-2008) which began with Ghost Road Blues. However, if you haven’t read that earlier work do not fret, Ink, does not provide much in the way of spoilers, instead elusively refers to ‘The Troubles’ and if anything, this is going to make new readers want to read Pine Deep even more. And I can guarantee that is no bad thing.
Down the years I have read a lot of Maberry and there is probably more cross pollination between this and other novels that I flagged. For example, the Sheriff in Ink Malcolm Crow and Sergeant Mark Sweeney both featured in Pine Deep, who in turn mention Joe Ledger (although he does not appear directly) in passing. Anybody who knows anything about Jonathan Maberry, will recognise Ledger as the author’s most famous creation, an indestructible black-ops operative who saves the world on a daily-basis in a ten-book series which started back in 2009. Ink is a different kind of literary beast though, forgoing the smash bang wallop of Ledger for a more thoughtful and character driven work about loss, pain and memories.
However, the most impressive cross-pollination with other Maberry novels is the return of Gerald ‘Monk’ Addison who first appeared in the previous, and rather superb standalone novel, Glimpse (2018). I loved Glimpse and Monk was one of Maberry’s finest creations and I am not surprised he resurrects this tough guy for Ink. Maberry purists may wonder who would win in a tear-up between Monk and Joe Ledger? It is a close call, but something tells me the bad-ass Monk would just edge it. Monk did not star in Glimpse, and although Ink has an ensemble cast and a lot of characters, he steals the show with considerably more page-time than in his previous appearance. He is a private investigator and bail bondsman whose skin is covered with the tattooed faces of murder victims. He is a predator who hunts for killers and has a supernatural connection with the dead, particularly those tattooed on his body. The crux of the story revolves around when one of his most precious tattoos begins to disappear.
July 14, 2020
I wish to thank netgalley and the
publisher for a review copy.
I have been a Jonathan Maberry fan since
on a whim I picked up a copy of Ghost
Road Blues and immediately fell in love
with both pine deep and his writing style.
Ink beautifully expands pine deep with
new characters to get to know. Now in my
opinion, Maberry creates detailed
empathetic characters almost despite his
style. The main people in this story are
economically introduced. In other words
they all have enough backstory to be
interesting, without the author's devoting
dozens of pages to them.
Between the time readers were last
introduced to the town of pine deep and
now maberry has been a bestselling
author at least a dozen times over. My
fandom grew especially reading his Joe
ledger series. Then in June I was o&ered a
copy to review and I could not turn that
down.
Maberry's most charming writing traits
permeate this book. YET this visit to the
town with the trouble reads as a more
mature, and overall enjoyable trip.
He uses tattoos to masterful, metaphoric
e&ect, and grounds an ethereal premise
such as a memory thief into a very
enticing adventure.
publisher for a review copy.
I have been a Jonathan Maberry fan since
on a whim I picked up a copy of Ghost
Road Blues and immediately fell in love
with both pine deep and his writing style.
Ink beautifully expands pine deep with
new characters to get to know. Now in my
opinion, Maberry creates detailed
empathetic characters almost despite his
style. The main people in this story are
economically introduced. In other words
they all have enough backstory to be
interesting, without the author's devoting
dozens of pages to them.
Between the time readers were last
introduced to the town of pine deep and
now maberry has been a bestselling
author at least a dozen times over. My
fandom grew especially reading his Joe
ledger series. Then in June I was o&ered a
copy to review and I could not turn that
down.
Maberry's most charming writing traits
permeate this book. YET this visit to the
town with the trouble reads as a more
mature, and overall enjoyable trip.
He uses tattoos to masterful, metaphoric
e&ect, and grounds an ethereal premise
such as a memory thief into a very
enticing adventure.
February 6, 2021
A little disappointing.
Too much sex was in the storyline and none of it was needed or added to the story in any way.
It felt wrong... but I will admit to simply not liking descriptions of sex in the books I read.
And the constant drumbeat of Patty's daughter's name and what happened to her. I got it the first time it was all mentioned, I didn't need to read about it on what seemed like every other gawddamn page.
What was all the rain about? It really didn't have anything much to do with the plot and just seemed like something thrown in to take up page space and add to the word count.
I wanted more about Pine Deep and the people and how the town influenced the twisted "Lord of the Flies" character.
Like I said, disappointing.
Too much sex was in the storyline and none of it was needed or added to the story in any way.
It felt wrong... but I will admit to simply not liking descriptions of sex in the books I read.
And the constant drumbeat of Patty's daughter's name and what happened to her. I got it the first time it was all mentioned, I didn't need to read about it on what seemed like every other gawddamn page.
What was all the rain about? It really didn't have anything much to do with the plot and just seemed like something thrown in to take up page space and add to the word count.
I wanted more about Pine Deep and the people and how the town influenced the twisted "Lord of the Flies" character.
Like I said, disappointing.
November 17, 2020
Ink by Jonathan Maberry is a supernatural/horror novel.
First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher St. Martin’s Press, and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
My Synopsis: (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)
Pine Deep is a small town in Pennsylvania, much smaller since The Trouble, when over half of it's population died, and a lot of others left on their own accord. The remaining people just try to get on with their lives. New people have been coming though. There is a new community on the edge of town, called The Fringe, where it is acceptable to be different, and they are doing okay. There is, however, a new problem in Pine Deep. People with tattoos are having them disappear, and along with the tattoos, they are losing their memories of the tattoo and all that it meant.
Patty Cakes is a tattoo artist. She has the face of her deceased daughter tattooed on the back of her hand. She can't figure out why this tattoo is beginning to fade. Patty's memories of her lost child are also fading. She is losing her mind along with the loss of her most cherished tattoo.
Monk Addison, a friend of Patty's, is a former US Seal who wishes his memories of war would fade. He is now a bounty hunter, and his skin is covered in tattoos, some with the faces of the dead who haunt him day and night. When one of these faces disappears, he is terrified.
Diana Agbala reads tarot cards. The flower tattoo on her arm is disappearing, and she can't even remember why she had it done, but she knows she needs it. Others are losing their tattoos as well, and for some of them, losing their precious memories means they are losing their reason for living. For some, memories are all they have.
Owen Minor has always been a little strange. Even his mother disliked him. He has flies tattooed on his body. Those flies are coming to life. He isn't losing his tattoos, he is gaining memories, although not his own. He is calling himself Lord of the Flies, and he is commanding his flies to action.
Mike Sweeney is the local policeman, and one of the first to realize there is a problem in Pine Deep. Mike survived The Trouble, but now he may have to reveal what that did to him. Together with his father, and a few others, they are going to confront whatever is happening to their town.....and stop it, or die trying.
My Opinions:
Okay, this is a rather long book, and I found it slow moving. Don't get me wrong, it was captivating, just slow. There are a lot of characters to keep track of, as well as their backgrounds, and most of it is important. I never really thought about skimming, so the book is good....just a little slow.
As well, the background of Pine Deep is fed to us slowly. We know that a number of years have passed since The Trouble, but it is a long, long, long time before we get to know what that consisted of. We are given hints, but....
The characters are wonderful, deep, and interesting, and I felt I really knew them by the end. Unfortunately, the same could be said for the villain, who I didn't really want to know that well. The town itself became a character, and had its own personality. The plot was wild, and the suspense built (slowly at first), but when it burst, was great.
I will never look at another fly in the same way again.
This is the first book I have read by this author, but it will not be the last. I definitely recommend it.
For a more complete review of this book and others (including author information and a favorite quotation or two from this book), please visit my blog: http://katlovesbooksblog.wordpress.com/
October 26, 2025
What a twisted horror/suspense story Maberry has weaved. A new horror comes to Pine Deep, a psychic vampire who steals people's tattoos, along with all the memories of why they got them.
Pine Deep is a town on the eastern edge of Pennsylvania, where fifteen years earlier over half the residents were killed in a time the locals refer to as the Trouble. (as seen in the Pine Deep trilogy)
Time has passed, many locals have moved away, and those who remain will never be the same. ln that time an artsy sub-village has grown.
The horror is real in this story.
Pine Deep is a town on the eastern edge of Pennsylvania, where fifteen years earlier over half the residents were killed in a time the locals refer to as the Trouble. (as seen in the Pine Deep trilogy)
Time has passed, many locals have moved away, and those who remain will never be the same. ln that time an artsy sub-village has grown.
The horror is real in this story.
October 19, 2020
“INK” by Jonathan Maberry
From the pen of the creator of the “Joe Ledger” thrillers comes an outstanding standalone supernatural suspense thriller featuring heroes of relentless strength in the face of unbridled adversity. Some unknowable and unspeakable force has the ability to literally strip a tattoo from an individuals body for the purposes of feasting on the attached memories … the more horrendous the better. Patty “Cakes” Trang’s only memento of her brutally murdered daughter Tuyet is a finely crafted likeness of her face …. that she painstakingly fashioned on her wrist. The disillusioned Patty has recently moved her tattoo parlor from New York City to the small town of Pine Deep. Unbeknownst to Patty, this notoriously weird town is considered the most haunted town in America. It was the site of one of the worst mysterious disasters in history in which 11,641 people were slaughtered … obliquely referred to as The Trouble. (this included mass murders, arson, poisoning and brutality). Over the years the details have dissipated and a new Fringe community started moving in … bringing with it money and youth, energy and apparently Patty. Her friend “Monk” Addison is on his way to Pine Deep to join her when the calamities begin …. a horrendous storm with blinding sheets of rain engulfs his vehicle and intensifies the closer he comes …. Patty is not answering his phone calls or texts. This is just the beginning …. As an all pervasive and ominous sense of dread and impending doom permeate the narrative.
Monk is both a private investigator and “skip tracer” .. a virtual bounty hunter … and his body is festooned with the tattooed faces of those whose murder he has investigated. He cannot escape his past .. once a black ops soldier, whose job was pulling triggers and cutting throats, unfortunately even at the expense of innocents. His past weighs heavy … leading him to an unending sense of need for redemption to lessen his burden of guilt. Monk soon learns that not only Patty but several other town members and visitors have been robbed not only of their tattoos but also their attached memories.
This psychic vampire feeds off the negative emotions and memories. He seeks out victims with broken hearts, buried children … those with grief, shame, regret … these are the choicest and juiciest. The nature and origin of this abominable individual will be unfolded in the course of the narrative.
Jonathan Maberry proves to be a masterful storyteller as he weaves a twisted and demented tale culminating in a relentlessly escalating denouement . Along the way he features the themes of friendship, loyalty and love, that are not detoured by the paranormal occurrences. Thanks to NetGalley, St Martin’s Press and Jonathan Maberry for providing an Uncorrected Proof in exchange for an honest review. Publication date is scheduled for November, 17, 2020. ( at readersremains.com)
From the pen of the creator of the “Joe Ledger” thrillers comes an outstanding standalone supernatural suspense thriller featuring heroes of relentless strength in the face of unbridled adversity. Some unknowable and unspeakable force has the ability to literally strip a tattoo from an individuals body for the purposes of feasting on the attached memories … the more horrendous the better. Patty “Cakes” Trang’s only memento of her brutally murdered daughter Tuyet is a finely crafted likeness of her face …. that she painstakingly fashioned on her wrist. The disillusioned Patty has recently moved her tattoo parlor from New York City to the small town of Pine Deep. Unbeknownst to Patty, this notoriously weird town is considered the most haunted town in America. It was the site of one of the worst mysterious disasters in history in which 11,641 people were slaughtered … obliquely referred to as The Trouble. (this included mass murders, arson, poisoning and brutality). Over the years the details have dissipated and a new Fringe community started moving in … bringing with it money and youth, energy and apparently Patty. Her friend “Monk” Addison is on his way to Pine Deep to join her when the calamities begin …. a horrendous storm with blinding sheets of rain engulfs his vehicle and intensifies the closer he comes …. Patty is not answering his phone calls or texts. This is just the beginning …. As an all pervasive and ominous sense of dread and impending doom permeate the narrative.
Monk is both a private investigator and “skip tracer” .. a virtual bounty hunter … and his body is festooned with the tattooed faces of those whose murder he has investigated. He cannot escape his past .. once a black ops soldier, whose job was pulling triggers and cutting throats, unfortunately even at the expense of innocents. His past weighs heavy … leading him to an unending sense of need for redemption to lessen his burden of guilt. Monk soon learns that not only Patty but several other town members and visitors have been robbed not only of their tattoos but also their attached memories.
This psychic vampire feeds off the negative emotions and memories. He seeks out victims with broken hearts, buried children … those with grief, shame, regret … these are the choicest and juiciest. The nature and origin of this abominable individual will be unfolded in the course of the narrative.
Jonathan Maberry proves to be a masterful storyteller as he weaves a twisted and demented tale culminating in a relentlessly escalating denouement . Along the way he features the themes of friendship, loyalty and love, that are not detoured by the paranormal occurrences. Thanks to NetGalley, St Martin’s Press and Jonathan Maberry for providing an Uncorrected Proof in exchange for an honest review. Publication date is scheduled for November, 17, 2020. ( at readersremains.com)
November 20, 2020
Tattoos are more than just artwork, they are a piece of someone. They are a window to a special time, a significant event, or it is a memorial. Imagine what would happen if someone could not just steal away the tattoo but all the memories that go along with it, leaving you hollow and vacant.
Welcome back to Pine Deep. It was so good to catch up with Crow, Val, and Mike as well as to meet new friends of Patty Cakes, Monk, Gayle and Dianna. A lot has happened since The Trouble left the majority of Pine Deep dead, but the town is still a special place that seems to draw evil to it. This is a stand alone story but if you haven’t read the Ghost Road Blues trilogy than you should go do that now.
This story was an absolute blast. I had fun in this non stop adventure with a unique storyline and the best characters.
Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and of course Jonathan Maberry for a copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.
Welcome back to Pine Deep. It was so good to catch up with Crow, Val, and Mike as well as to meet new friends of Patty Cakes, Monk, Gayle and Dianna. A lot has happened since The Trouble left the majority of Pine Deep dead, but the town is still a special place that seems to draw evil to it. This is a stand alone story but if you haven’t read the Ghost Road Blues trilogy than you should go do that now.
This story was an absolute blast. I had fun in this non stop adventure with a unique storyline and the best characters.
Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and of course Jonathan Maberry for a copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.
November 19, 2023
What a unique concept from Jonathan Maeberry. He brings it all: fantasy, magic and supernatural. A young man has multiple tattoos. The creative take is the tattoos reveal another world field with those qualities. Leading to a good vs evil battle that is ongoing. I have enjoyed many books of Maeberry. This was engaging and a decent read.
*Thanks to St. Martins Press and NetGalley for the DRC.
*Thanks to St. Martins Press and NetGalley for the DRC.
November 23, 2020
*3.5 Stars
A tattoo artist named Patty Cakes, that’s all I needed to pull me in. I love it when an author can be creative, witty, and fun all at the same time. I didn’t even need the rest of the synopsis.
I’ve read Jonathan Maberry before, I’ve enjoyed his writing, but he has a lot of series. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good series, but with my ever-growing, mountainous TBR list, it is hard to commit to starting a seven or eleven book series. So, a new standalone by Maberry, I was doubly into reading Ink.
Maberry has an innovative premise with Ink, the cast of characters are fascinating, there is nothing I love more than a group of damaged souls. But with each turn of the page I felt more and more left out. What I failed to grasp from the synopsis is that all of the characters are from other books and series. This was supposed to be a standalone; and here I was, left out in the cold not knowing all the backgrounds of the characters. As the story went on, I felt like the new guy in a group who didn’t know all of the inside jokes, the one who is standing there thinking okay so what as everyone else laughs their heads off.
The whole thing left me disappointed. Ink could have / would have been an incredible standalone if it had been a standalone. I’m sure that anyone who has read the Pine Deep series, Glimpse and the other stories featuring Monk Addison loved Ink. This standalone was written for them, there is nothing better than connecting with your favorite old characters.
While the story was exceptional, it left me with a bad taste in my mouth. A little more transparency would have been nice, I was expecting something new and fresh.
*I received a copy of the book from the publisher (via NetGalley).
A tattoo artist named Patty Cakes, that’s all I needed to pull me in. I love it when an author can be creative, witty, and fun all at the same time. I didn’t even need the rest of the synopsis.
I’ve read Jonathan Maberry before, I’ve enjoyed his writing, but he has a lot of series. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good series, but with my ever-growing, mountainous TBR list, it is hard to commit to starting a seven or eleven book series. So, a new standalone by Maberry, I was doubly into reading Ink.
Maberry has an innovative premise with Ink, the cast of characters are fascinating, there is nothing I love more than a group of damaged souls. But with each turn of the page I felt more and more left out. What I failed to grasp from the synopsis is that all of the characters are from other books and series. This was supposed to be a standalone; and here I was, left out in the cold not knowing all the backgrounds of the characters. As the story went on, I felt like the new guy in a group who didn’t know all of the inside jokes, the one who is standing there thinking okay so what as everyone else laughs their heads off.
The whole thing left me disappointed. Ink could have / would have been an incredible standalone if it had been a standalone. I’m sure that anyone who has read the Pine Deep series, Glimpse and the other stories featuring Monk Addison loved Ink. This standalone was written for them, there is nothing better than connecting with your favorite old characters.
While the story was exceptional, it left me with a bad taste in my mouth. A little more transparency would have been nice, I was expecting something new and fresh.
*I received a copy of the book from the publisher (via NetGalley).
September 6, 2020
As a tattoo enthusiast, I was intrigued by the premise of this book. The story takes place in Deep Pine, a small town with a dark history, referred to simply as “The Trouble.” I’m this town, a mysterious phenomenon is occurring where people are losing their tattoos—and the memories surrounding them. Along the way we met many unique characters and learn the stories behind their body art. This was a fast moving book with a satisfying ending, although it did have a bit of the Stephen King wtf endings. I would love to see more from these characters, especially Mike.
Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy in exchange for my review!
Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy in exchange for my review!
August 1, 2022
Този път Мабери успя да изкърти ваната направо. Почти се бях отказал от произведенията му за възрастни, а е трябвало само да прескоча малко по-напред във времето, когато вече е придобил увереност като автор и не епигонства любимците си. Забавното е, че тази книга се доближава най-много като проза до Кинг, точно защото е спрял да го копира.
Завръщане в Пайн Дийп, за радост на феновете на трилогията. Мастило е самостоятелна книга, но някой от героите са познати. Отново се срещаме с Кроу, Вал и Майк Суейни, но двуцифрено число години по-късно.
Отново е есен в Пайн ДИйп и нещо гадно ще се случи, или вече се случва. Новопреселилите си тук Монк и Пати - стари приятели, очукани от гадостите в живота. Той - бивш военен, черно операции и настоящ ловец на глави, тя - наследствен виетнамски тату артист. Двамата ще се сблъскат с мистериозно изчезване на татуировки, заедно със свързаните с тях спомени. Дали ще успеят да запазят споменая за брутално убитата дъщеричка на Пати? И с какво ще трябва да се преборят с помощта на Кроу и Майк?
Мабери за разнообразие не е наблегнал на екшъна и пуцалката, а е развил един брутално психологически паранормален трилър. "Повелителят на мухите" е един от най-гнусните извратени злодеи, които съм срещал в литературата, а историите свързани с някой татуировки, сигурен съм взаимствани от реални истории, бяха сърцераздирателни.
Завръщане в Пайн Дийп, за радост на феновете на трилогията. Мастило е самостоятелна книга, но някой от героите са познати. Отново се срещаме с Кроу, Вал и Майк Суейни, но двуцифрено число години по-късно.
Отново е есен в Пайн ДИйп и нещо гадно ще се случи, или вече се случва. Новопреселилите си тук Монк и Пати - стари приятели, очукани от гадостите в живота. Той - бивш военен, черно операции и настоящ ловец на глави, тя - наследствен виетнамски тату артист. Двамата ще се сблъскат с мистериозно изчезване на татуировки, заедно със свързаните с тях спомени. Дали ще успеят да запазят споменая за брутално убитата дъщеричка на Пати? И с какво ще трябва да се преборят с помощта на Кроу и Майк?
Мабери за разнообразие не е наблегнал на екшъна и пуцалката, а е развил един брутално психологически паранормален трилър. "Повелителят на мухите" е един от най-гнусните извратени злодеи, които съм срещал в литературата, а историите свързани с някой татуировки, сигурен съм взаимствани от реални истории, бяха сърцераздирателни.
January 11, 2022
Notes:
- Ray Porter was great! Though, between Maberry's writing style & Porter's narration, it was too easy to think the story was about Joe Ledger vs the cast in Ink.
- Fun to be back at Pine Deep. I like the small connections between series.
- I've read most of the books by Maberry and this is the first one I would classify as Horror vs mystery, thriller, etc.
- While it did not come across as forced, it was very obvious that the core characters were unconventional in more than one trait/manner.
- Maberry's romantic & sex scenes have gotten better! I read erotica and it's great. That said, I wanted shorter sex scenes in this story.
- Ending could have been fleshed out better, but it was still satisfying.
- Stark, brutal, violent, disgusting, hopeful, true and fierce are good words to describe various aspects of the story.
- Ray Porter was great! Though, between Maberry's writing style & Porter's narration, it was too easy to think the story was about Joe Ledger vs the cast in Ink.
- Fun to be back at Pine Deep. I like the small connections between series.
- I've read most of the books by Maberry and this is the first one I would classify as Horror vs mystery, thriller, etc.
- While it did not come across as forced, it was very obvious that the core characters were unconventional in more than one trait/manner.
- Maberry's romantic & sex scenes have gotten better! I read erotica and it's great. That said, I wanted shorter sex scenes in this story.
- Ending could have been fleshed out better, but it was still satisfying.
- Stark, brutal, violent, disgusting, hopeful, true and fierce are good words to describe various aspects of the story.
November 17, 2020
I've just discovered a great new author! Jonathan Maberry's Ink was an enjoyable read with a clever premise. The thought that someone could steal a person's tattoo and their attached memory along with it. It was heartbreaking to see the impact this loss had on several of the characters. To not just lose that physical reminder in the tattoo itself, but also the precious memories. I imagine if something is important enough to you to memorialize it with a tattoo, it must be quite meaningful.
This story is set in the town of Pine Deep, which has apparently been the center of Maberry's books before. This is a standalone book, however, I believe it would be enriched by reading the earlier books. I'm a fan of this author's style and definitely want to read Maberry's backlog.
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I voluntarily chose to review this book and the opinions contained within are my own.
This story is set in the town of Pine Deep, which has apparently been the center of Maberry's books before. This is a standalone book, however, I believe it would be enriched by reading the earlier books. I'm a fan of this author's style and definitely want to read Maberry's backlog.
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I voluntarily chose to review this book and the opinions contained within are my own.
November 18, 2020
"To have memories carved out of one’s mind and discarded forever was obscene."
I LOVED this book. It is the best horror book I've read - in maybe forever. I've read many of author Maberry's books but this is definitely way above the rest (and I enjoyed the rest).
One thing I did discover - the book takes place in Pine Deep, Pennsylvania and frequently mentioned prior happenings in the same town. After some research I found that Maberry wrote the Pine Deep trilogy (which I've since downloaded) and, if given the chance, I think the reading experience for INK would be even better reading the trilogy prior to reading INK.
This story triggered a deep visceral response in me. The concept scared the bejeezus out of me. A despicably vile man moves to Pine Deep and he is able to steal peoples tattoos AND the memories that go with them. This isn't a big thing when it's simply a decorative tattoo but many people get tattoos to commemorate important, pivotal moments in their lives, such as the deaths of family members or friends. And once the tattoos are gone, so are all memories of that person or event. One of the people in the story compares it to a rape, an invasion.
I really enjoyed the different characters in the book, which were described in great detail. The book was scary yet full of tragedy, too.
I highly recommend this book if you enjoy horror.
I received this book from St. Martin's Press through Net Galley in the hopes that I would read it and leave an unbiased review.
I LOVED this book. It is the best horror book I've read - in maybe forever. I've read many of author Maberry's books but this is definitely way above the rest (and I enjoyed the rest).
One thing I did discover - the book takes place in Pine Deep, Pennsylvania and frequently mentioned prior happenings in the same town. After some research I found that Maberry wrote the Pine Deep trilogy (which I've since downloaded) and, if given the chance, I think the reading experience for INK would be even better reading the trilogy prior to reading INK.
This story triggered a deep visceral response in me. The concept scared the bejeezus out of me. A despicably vile man moves to Pine Deep and he is able to steal peoples tattoos AND the memories that go with them. This isn't a big thing when it's simply a decorative tattoo but many people get tattoos to commemorate important, pivotal moments in their lives, such as the deaths of family members or friends. And once the tattoos are gone, so are all memories of that person or event. One of the people in the story compares it to a rape, an invasion.
I really enjoyed the different characters in the book, which were described in great detail. The book was scary yet full of tragedy, too.
I highly recommend this book if you enjoy horror.
I received this book from St. Martin's Press through Net Galley in the hopes that I would read it and leave an unbiased review.
October 24, 2020
“If a tribe or village captures someone, an enemy [..] if the community is merciful, they cut the prisoner’s head off or hang him. If they are not merciful, they give him to the women.”
Ink is set in Pine Deep, a place where ‘trouble’ has visited before. For those who haven’t read Maberry before, he’s written a compelling series set in and aptly named Pine Deep and I was excited to revisit this cursed town & its surviving inhabitants. Pine Deep is under attack again but this time by a thief – one who can sneak in and steal your deepest and most personal memories without you ever knowing; leaving the victim with a feeling of devastation and immeasurable loss. This is what the Lord of the Flies does, he is the monster of every worse nightmare come to life. He creeps up on his victims in the most insidious of ways, feeding off their stolen memories without remorse or conscience. Ink is more than just a horror story, though. It’s a story of personal heartbreak and terrible tragedies but there’s also a sense of affinity that is found amidst friends and strangers alike, the bond that is found when fighting against a common enemy. As with all of his books, the story is freaking phenomenal but it’s the characters that really drive it. Richly detailed and deeply flawed, they are easy to relate to because they are just like us.
Ink is a standalone supernatural thriller but it revisits some of my favorite characters from Maberrys’ past series and it introduces some new ones that I have grown to love.
All the stars for this deeply moving horror thriller from one of the best in the genre! Thank you to St. Martins Griffin and Jonathan Maberry for the DRC!
Ink is set in Pine Deep, a place where ‘trouble’ has visited before. For those who haven’t read Maberry before, he’s written a compelling series set in and aptly named Pine Deep and I was excited to revisit this cursed town & its surviving inhabitants. Pine Deep is under attack again but this time by a thief – one who can sneak in and steal your deepest and most personal memories without you ever knowing; leaving the victim with a feeling of devastation and immeasurable loss. This is what the Lord of the Flies does, he is the monster of every worse nightmare come to life. He creeps up on his victims in the most insidious of ways, feeding off their stolen memories without remorse or conscience. Ink is more than just a horror story, though. It’s a story of personal heartbreak and terrible tragedies but there’s also a sense of affinity that is found amidst friends and strangers alike, the bond that is found when fighting against a common enemy. As with all of his books, the story is freaking phenomenal but it’s the characters that really drive it. Richly detailed and deeply flawed, they are easy to relate to because they are just like us.
Ink is a standalone supernatural thriller but it revisits some of my favorite characters from Maberrys’ past series and it introduces some new ones that I have grown to love.
All the stars for this deeply moving horror thriller from one of the best in the genre! Thank you to St. Martins Griffin and Jonathan Maberry for the DRC!
March 15, 2021
To those unfamiliar with Jonathan Maberry's Pine Deep trilogy, do yourself a big favor and read that first before reading his latest horror novel. Is it totally necessary? No, but trust me, the emotional impact is much better if you do.
Pine Deep is a mostly rural Pennsylvania town known for weird things happening. And very bad things too. Bad things had happened in its past in which hundreds if not thousands perished horrifically. Those who stayed behind to rebuild have tried to forget, if that's possible, like the town police chief Malcolm Crow or Iron Mike Sweeney, now a town police officer with his own dark secret. Or Val, Crow's wife, who runs the family farm.
But Pine Deep has moved on, but still attracts those who have seen and carried darkness inside. Like Patty who moved to town and opened a tattoo parlor. Or her friend Monk Addison who has his own darkness tattooed on his flesh. But all of them are unprepared for the unimaginable evil that has taken root in town, stalking the unaware and stealing more than their lives.
One of my favorite books this year and an absolute must read. Maberry is a master storyteller at the top of his game!
Highest of recommendations!
Pine Deep is a mostly rural Pennsylvania town known for weird things happening. And very bad things too. Bad things had happened in its past in which hundreds if not thousands perished horrifically. Those who stayed behind to rebuild have tried to forget, if that's possible, like the town police chief Malcolm Crow or Iron Mike Sweeney, now a town police officer with his own dark secret. Or Val, Crow's wife, who runs the family farm.
But Pine Deep has moved on, but still attracts those who have seen and carried darkness inside. Like Patty who moved to town and opened a tattoo parlor. Or her friend Monk Addison who has his own darkness tattooed on his flesh. But all of them are unprepared for the unimaginable evil that has taken root in town, stalking the unaware and stealing more than their lives.
One of my favorite books this year and an absolute must read. Maberry is a master storyteller at the top of his game!
Highest of recommendations!
July 19, 2021
I won this Jonathan Maberry book through Goodreads. It's SO BIZARRE but oh so good- about a psychotic supernatural thief who somehow has the ability to steal tattoos off people and transfer them onto himself. And not only does he steal their tattoos but he steals their memories that are associated with that tattoo.
That may not seem like anything other than freaky, but think about if you have a tattoo that you got which represents something in your life that has meaning. Lost children. Your parent. A tribute to yourself overcoming life-altering obstacles. You see that tattoo everyday. You are proud. You are wistful. Now imagine looking down and seeing an empty space where the tattoo was. You KNOW you had a tattoo once, but now it's gone. And you KNOW the tattoo represented something important, but now you have no memory of your dead child or your friends you lost in the wat... or that you once overcame a suicide attempt. How heart broken and hopeless you would feel.
That may not seem like anything other than freaky, but think about if you have a tattoo that you got which represents something in your life that has meaning. Lost children. Your parent. A tribute to yourself overcoming life-altering obstacles. You see that tattoo everyday. You are proud. You are wistful. Now imagine looking down and seeing an empty space where the tattoo was. You KNOW you had a tattoo once, but now it's gone. And you KNOW the tattoo represented something important, but now you have no memory of your dead child or your friends you lost in the wat... or that you once overcame a suicide attempt. How heart broken and hopeless you would feel.
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