| Title | : | The Girl on the Porch |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages | : | 152 |
| Publication | : | First published August 31, 2019 |
When the Tuckers’ next door neighbor mentions someone rang their doorbell late the previous night, Sarah and Kenny Tucker check their home’s security camera and discover something shocking: the doorbell ringer also visited their house and it wasn’t a teenager playing a prank, but instead a terrified young woman with a shackle hanging from her right wrist. She anxiously pressed the doorbell again and again, glancing over her shoulder as if someone was coming for her, before giving up and taking off into the dark.
Almost overnight, she becomes known as The Girl on the Porch—and she’s everywhere. There are updates on all the local networks, national coverage on CNN and Fox News, and the video goes viral on social media. Before long, everyone has seen the harrowing security camera footage.
Kenny and Sarah figure it’s only a matter of time before someone recognizes the woman, but as the days pass and no one comes forward, odd things begin to transpire around the Tucker family: a man intensely watches them at a restaurant and then vanishes, fresh footprints appear in the garden next to their house where no one should have been, a neighbor’s pet is viciously killed and mutilated, and a mysterious man has started following their daughter Natalie...
A rollercoaster ride of compelling twists and turns, The Girl on the Porch demonstrates why Stephen King says Richard Chizmar’s writing is “powerful” and Robert McCammon calls his work “hard-hitting, spooky, suspenseful, harrowing, and heartbreaking.”
The Girl on the Porch Reviews
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Alrighty then! That was a quick read. I finished it in just a few hours while at work. Stephen King said this is a book not to be missed and I'm here to tell you otherwise.
Okay, that sounds harsh so let me explain. This is not a terrible book by any means and the writing is just fine. The thing is, I was hoping for creepy and chilling, and it wasn't. I was hoping for tension you could cut with a knife but I didn't get that.
Blurb: "A rollercoaster ride of compelling twists and turns" - uh, we definitely didn't read the same story.
Maybe because this was so short I wasn't able to properly sink my teeth into it. I rarely read short stories or novellas. It just seemed like I kept waiting for something exciting to happen and it never really did. The final reveal was just sort of meh for me. This story had so much potential to be great, the idea of it nearly blew my mind, but ultimately I'd say it didn't deliver.
Is this a case of me getting my hopes up? Possibly. Give it a read and let me know what I'm missing. 3 *just okay* stars!
Thank you to NetGalley and Subterranean Press for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.
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I have never wanted an ARC so badly....🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞
It must be my lucky day or something: ARC APPROVED!!!! 💃💃💃💃💃💃💃💃 -
ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review via NetGalley.
Going with 2.5/3.0 stars with The Girl on the Porch!
I knew this was a novella going into getting an ARC for this book. I don't have issues with novellas and have enjoyed many over the years. I think the book failed in the end that it lowered my overall rating and suspense.
The Girl on the Porch starts off with someone ringing the doorbell late at night at Sarah and Kenny Tucker’s house. They hear the doorbell ringing late and just assume it’s a teenage prank. By the time they get up and go check the front door, the person has left.
The next morning Sarah decides to check their home security system and they notice a young woman with shackles hanging from one of her wrist. She keeps glancing over her shoulder and then runs away in the dark.
So, yeah, great and creepy concept but it didn’t really deliver for me. Honestly, it wasn’t because of the characters or how it affects the neighborhood. It had a type of The 'Burbs feel to it and I loved that! By the way, if you have never seen this movie then you are missing out!!
It failed for me at the end. I was wanting so much more! I really think that if Richard Chizmar could have wrapped up the The Girl on The Porch in a completely different way and scenario, I would have rated this so much higher.
Chizmar has got the skill of writing creepy and interesting plots though. I’m looking forward to trying out more of his books! -
THE GIRL ON THE PORCH by Richard Chizman is a well-written and fast-paced novella. Kenny Tucker comes downstairs for breakfast and finds his wife Sarah on her phone. Their neighbor has mentioned that someone rang their doorbell multiple times around 3:30 AM but they did not see anyone when they got to the door. Sarah checks their security video and finds a young woman with a shackle hanging from her right wrist pressing their broken doorbell repeatedly before leaving. Sarah and Kenny call the police and an investigation gets underway.
Thus starts an interesting take on the neighborhood where she was last seen. The plot is suspenseful, emotional, impactful and thought-provoking. How well do you really know your friends, neighbors and family members? How would you react in this situation? Would you be supportive of others or would you be gossipy or perhaps suspicious of everyone? How will it affect the lives of those that live in this typical suburban neighborhood?
To me this was a suspenseful mystery rather than a thriller and it is very character driven through the voice of Kenny. While the police are active and on the case, they are secondary to the people living in the neighborhood as the search for the girl is underway.
This story line kept me fully engaged and turning the pages to determine who the girl on the porch was and who her captor was. I do feel that the story could have been longer to provide more detail leading up to the finale. Despite several red herrings, the ending seemed rushed and without the normal reader cues. An extra 10-15 pages leading up to the end could have delivered a more impactful finish and answered some of the whys.
While this is the first book that I have read by Richard Chizman, I look forward to reading more of his novels.
Many thanks to Subterranean Press (@SubPress), Richard Chizman and Net Galley for a digital ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way. -
I decided to read this because a trusted Goodreads friend (Hi Michelle :) ) posted how excited she was to read this and it immediately grabbed my attention. The book summary sounded amazing so I thought for sure this would be a winner - especially when I heard it was so short (only around 150 pages). Unfortunately, I was mistaken.
So what's it about? A suburban neighborhood becomes the focus of media frenzy because around 3am one night, a girl dressed in ragged clothing with a shackle on her hand, frantically rings a house doorbell trying to find safety. She receives no answer so she goes to another house where she is caught on a security camera. She is frantically looking behind her as if she just escaped and is making sure her captor isn't behind her. Who is this girl? Where did she come from? Where did she go when no one answered? What happened to her?
This was such a clever idea, but it wasn't executed in a way that could bring the idea to its full capacity of fear, paranoia or spookiness. We didn't see anything from the girl's perspective at all, we learned almost nothing about her and there were a lot of questions left unanswered. It actually ended quite abruptly! What I find so strange is that the scariest part of the book (what is included in the summary) happens in the first chapter and from there are barely a few blips. The rest is suburban drama that frankly isn't that interesting.
I see that I am among the minority opinion, so if you're interested in this book I urge you to give it a try. It's so short it will be worth your time to check it out. I really thought the Stephen King endorsement would hold up, but that's twice now I've been burned by his recommendations. I know now I will proceed with more caution in the future!
Thanks to Netgalley, Subterranean Press and Richard Chizmar for the opportunity to read this book and provide an honest review.
Review Date: 6/11/19
Publication Date: 8/31/19 -
DO NOT READ THE BOOK’s synopsis!
It tells you way too much! This is what you need to know in order to decide if this novella is a fit for you....
When Kenny comes down to breakfast on Friday morning, he is surprised to see his wife, Sarah, glued to her cell phone.
Her friend and neighbor has texted that someone rang their doorbell, at least 10 times, around 330 AM.
Sarah remembers their dog barking furiously around the same time, so she checks their security camera footage. She discovers that a young woman frantically tried ringing their doorbell as well, not realizing it was broken. She was barefoot and dressed in an oversized t-shirt, and it looked like some kind of shackle or restraint was hanging from her wrist.
She becomes known as “The Girl on the Porch” in the media as police investigate.
I would’ve LOVED to see this creepy premise fleshed out into a full length mystery complete with news reports and social media, but this mystery is just a short novella (about 150 pages) and is actually more of an observation on just how paranoid and suspicious, your friends and neighbors, can become when a crime hits so close to home.
It’s a fast read, so when I finished, I skimmed back through to some of the scenes to see which were red herrings and which were clues. That turned out to be an interesting thing to do, because if one character in particular, had made a different decision than the one made....the result could’ve been even more devastating.
Realizing THAT is what gave me chills!
TRIGGER ALERT: 😾 killed.
I would like to thank Netgalley, Subterranean, and Richard Chizmar for the digital ARC I received in exchange for a candid review! This novella will be released on Aug. 31, 2019. -
I'm clearly in the minority here, because I really enjoyed this quick novella! When a battered woman shows up in the middle of the night ringing Kenny and Sarah's doorbell over and over, the neighborhood is sent into panic. Because the doorbell was broken, Kenny and Sarah didn't know anything unusual was happening until they saw it the following morning on their security camera. The woman is now gone, and no one knows who she is. That was definitely the creepiest part of the book!
Now referred to as 'the girl on the porch', the missing girl and her case become a media sensation. Who is she, where did she come from, and where is she now? Kenny and his neighbors have theories, and want to help. The rest of the book mostly centers around his family and the detectives on the case trying to figure out what happened. The book moves from what could have been a horror book to more of a mystery/suspense, which was fine with me.
While I was surprised by the ending, I would have loved to see the novel go a little more in depth with some of the details about what the woman experienced, and how she ended up ringing the doorbell in the middle of the night, just to circle back to some of that extra creepy horror aspect that the book started with. I think that would have made the ending more chilling, rather than just surprising. All in all, I enjoyed the book and will definitely check out more by this author!
I'd like to thank Subterranean Press for my advanced copy of the book. It was my pleasure to provide an honest review. The Girl on the Porch comes out August 31! -
“The Girl on the Porch” by Richard Chizmar is a genuine page-turner that really keeps you hooked from the start all the way to the ending. Now, keep in mind, this is a very short novella that’s a little over 100 pages and can easily be finished in just a few hours. It’s hard to put down since it builds itself nicely as you keep reading.
I’ve been a huge fan of Chizmar ever since I read “Chasing the Boogeyman” and this novella definitely captures his strong signature style of writing. He’s an awesome writer and I loved the setting, characters, and the amazing way he tells stories. I genuinely enjoyed this book and it was near a 4 and possibly a 5/5 depending on the ending but that’s where it fell flat for me. I didn’t like the abrupt ending at all and was hoping for a final twist or something to seal the deal. To be honest, the ending was a bit of a letdown as I definitely wanted more when it was all over.
I give “The Girl on the Porch” by Richard Chizmar a 3/5 only because the ending just didn’t satisfy what I was hoping to see ultimately transpire after an awesome buildup. At the end of the day, it’s a good read but more of a suspenseful thriller and not so much of an actual horror with an ending that doesn’t take your breath away or even give you a chill down your spine. It’s an okay novella, just not anything extraordinary. -
My review of
THE GIRL ON THE PORCH can be found at
High Fever Books.
Have you ever read a book so thoroughly unsure of what it was supposed to be that you had to go back and read the synopsis to see how it was being marketed and to whom? According to the publisher’s description, The Girl on the Porch is a thriller, and a harrowing one at that, “A rollercoaster ride of compelling twists and turns,” they claim. Thank God for marketing writers, because I would not have picked up on any of that from the text itself.
The Girl on the Porch is a thriller without any thrills. As far as a rollercoaster…well, picture a rollercoaster low to the ground, maybe about half an inch high, without any bends or turns or loop-de-loops, and instead of racing along you’re stuck in a creaky old car that barely nudges itself along the track. There’s no acceleration, no sense of excitement or adventure, but sweet fiddling Jesus Christ are you ever glad when it’s over, even if all your left with is the demand for your time and money back, eager to go find an actual, honest to goodness real goddamn ride!
I guess you can kinda sorta tell this book is meant to be a thriller, and marketed toward what the publisher must think is still the big trend in thrillers, since its title belongs to the burgeoning and overused formula of The Girl / With Something / Who Did Something / In-On-Or There Abouts Somewhere. This book’s initial premise is one of promise, and according to Richard Chizmar is based on a true story of a home security camera’s late-night recording of a woman in chains appearing on the porch. It’s a frightening event to be sure, one that’s ripe with all kinds of storytelling possibility. Unfortunately, the author here proceeds to drains this premise of any potential, excitement, or mystery. Chizmar takes this great idea and then frames it in the most plodding and boring way possible.
Is this book a thriller or a mystery or a real-life horror? No. Sadly, The Girl on the Porch is little more than a mundane suburban melodrama about neighborly worries and baking cookies out of guilt. It could have been a truly compelling mystery if seen through the eyes of the detectives that operate here on the periphery. It could have been an engaging thriller if the central character, Kenny, seemed even the least bit interested in trying to figure out who’s following him or leaving footprints in his wife’s garden. Instead, he’s more eager to mow his lawn. Yes, dear readers, Kenny is such a boring-ass, milquetoast protagonist that his greatest joy in life is doing yard work. Next to watching football, it’s maybe his greatest passion.
There’s a mystery man stalking this small suburban neighborhood in the wake of this unknown woman briefly appearing on Kenny’s doorstep before disappearing into the night again. Imagine how interesting that aspect of the story could be, and then nix all that from your mind entirely because instead you’re going to read about poker games, yoga classes, high school football practice, and Kenny’s favorite reading chair when he’s not cutting the grass for the bulk of this slim novella’s hundred-some pages.
Chizmar had a really neat concept here and then deliberately decided to tell it in the most mundane, antiseptic, and dullest ways possible. There’s no sense of engagement in the material here, and certainly no reason to even try connect with it. There’s no growth and certainly no arc or journey for any of the cast, and the characters are forgettable paper-thin cardboard cutouts who do next to nothing for the entire story. We do get a few very, very, very, very, very brief glimmers of interest, though, such as a too short but legitimately scary moment around the half-way mark that ultimately, like the rest of this book, ends in cliched disappointment. It’s such a small moment of potential, but ends up being little more than a cock tease in a narrative that suffers from a serious case of erectile dysfunction. This is a story that never once rises to the occasion and instead is content to be a sad, limp, shriveled up disappointment.
What’s worse is that I actually like Chizmar quite a bit. His collaboration with Stephen King for Gwendy’s Button Box was stellar, and his chapters for Serial Box’s Silverwood: The Door, Season 1 were standout entries. I’ve dug most of the short stories I’ve read from him in various anthologies. Even when I found some of his lesser works, like Widow’s Point, to be overly familiar and formulaic, I still found certain things to appreciate and had a good time reading them. Not so with The Girl on the Porch. I found myself on the verge of quitting this book several times, I was so fed up with its go nowhere, do nothing attitude, but mustered through since it’s such a short read. Then, several times I became actively angry at this book for wasting so much of my time with its utterly passive pointlessness.
If The Girl on the Porch is meant to be a thriller, then it’s the most lackluster and impotent one I’ve ever read. If it’s supposed to be a mystery, then it’s one in which not a single one of our central characters seems even the least bit interested in solving. For an author as good as Chizmar, it’s painful to see him slumming it here, and so meekly too. I had high hopes for this one, but, sad to say, this is easily the most disappointing book I’ve read this year.
[Note: I received an advance copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley.] -
What a great beginning this novella had!
Imagine reviewing your outside front door camera footage (not uncommon in the age of the Ring and the Nest) the morning after hearing your next-door neighbor's dog barking in the middle of the night and seeing an almost naked woman with a shackle hanging from her wrist banging on your door trying to get someone to help her. This is exactly what happened to Sarah and Kenny Tucker.
After the shock, the couple calls the police. Of course, the police immediately wants to know if Kenny knows the woman. Kenny denies it. Soon the news gets ahold of the story and the video goes viral. Everyone wants to know who this woman is and where is she. For the police, anyone in the neighborhood is a suspect including Kenny.
Like I said earlier, great beginning. The novella has a fast-paced and suspenseful narrative. It was hard to pinpoint who had taken this woman. Despite Sarah and Kenny having a good marriage, Sarah couldn't be sure Kenny didn't have something to do with her appearance and for that matter, her disappearance.
The Girl on the Porch was intriguing with good characters but the end failed to woo me. It was disappointing. It was choppy and incongruent with the rest of the book. Everything happened so fast. I felt like there could've been a whole chapter cluing us in and leading us into that ending. Otherwise, it made no sense. Quite a shame because it had a great promise.
Cliffhanger: No
3/5 Fangs
A complimentary copy was provided by Subterranean Press via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
MrsLeif's Two Fangs About It |
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In the middle of the night, someone bangs on the front door. It's a young woman, half dressed, something hanging from her wrist, all the while looking over her shoulder to see if anyone is around. Then she runs ....
The Tuckers captured all this on their home security camera. They had slept through this, and were astonished at what they saw. The police were called and the video went viral ... all the local newspapers, TV stations.... they refer to her as the Girl On The Porch.
The Tuckers and their friends and neighbors seem to be holding their collective breaths ... has she been found, has she come forward, has she been identified?
And then strange things begin to happen ... one neighbor's cat is killed, fresh footprints show up in the garden, A mysterious man has started following the Tuckers' young daughter.
This is a quick read ... less than 200 pages. The concept is good, but as with most short stories, the characters suffer from lack of depth. The book was hyped as a thriller, but I felt it fell flat in that area. I was a bit disappointed as this was just an okay read for me.
Many thanks to the author / Subterranean Press / Netgalley for the advanced digital copy of THE GIRL ON THE PORCH. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own. -
The Girl on The Porch was my first novella, and it left me unsatisfied. I thought it was a great idea for an exciting thriller, but in the end, I wanted more. I was missing the deepness of the plot and the well-developed characters. What had a promise of being a creepy and unnerving read ended up being just an OK story with an underwhelming ending. Maybe I am just not the right audience for novellas, and I need a full novel to appreciate the author’s work, or maybe it was just not the book for me.
Thank you NetGalley, Subterranean Press, and the author for providing me with an ARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. -
2 Stars ⭐️⭐️
That’s it? I’m all about reading a novella every once in a great while, but that’s all we get?
The Girl on the Porch sounded SO good when read the synopsis. I mean, this could’ve been waaaay better. Perhaps if it were a full length book? I don’t know, but literally nothing happened.
The beginning started off pretty strong, but it just fizzled from there. I kept reading and waiting for something big to happen. I wanted something big to happen! No twists, no rollercoaster ride. Even the reveal was meh - and so rushed.
Maybe a full length novel from this author would be more my style.
Thank you to NetGalley, Subterranean Press and Richard Chizmar for the advanced copy in exchange for my review. -
For those who are unaware, this is a novella...only 108 pages.
I believe I'm in the minority on this one...I quite liked
The Girl on the Porch. It's short, sweet, creepy, and red herrings abound. I honestly had no idea which direction the conclusion was heading.
Would I have liked a bit more meat to the story? I'd say so, yes. But ultimately, I still thought it was a fun, little read. 3.5 stars rounded up.
**Many thanks to the publisher for my advanced copy. -
A quick little Lifetime-movie thriller, well-written, but marred by a wet fart of an ending.
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My thanks to Subterranean books, Richard Chizmar and Netgalley. This was a story that I wish had been extended and built upon. It was a damned good story. I loved the characters, and the playfulness between these friends, family and some neighbors. Where it came apart though, was of course at the end. The big reveal! Dum,dum, dum! What bothered me was the fact the there weren't clues leading to the who-dunnit. A few red herrings, but no one pays attention to those. So the end was abrupt. This was a 2 1/2 star novella. Normally I'd round up, but that end. Still I enjoyed every single moment of it!
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The Girl on the Porch is a novella set in an idyllic and peaceful suburban subdivision. Early one morning, Kenny and Sarah's neighbors are woken up by someone frantically ringing their doorbell. Upon answering, no one is there. The neighbors text Sarah to see if they can see who it is, as their doorbell has a security camera in it. That is when they discover the person, a barefoot woman wearing only a long shirt and panties with a shackle on one wrist also rang their broken doorbell.
Kenny and Sarah notify the police who release the footage to the press in hopes of identifying the now dubbed girl on the porch. As the police investigate, Kenny, Sarah, and the neighbors all become suspicious and mistrust each other.
The tale shows how somethkng like this can upset a neighborhood and how people react to each other, be it with suspicion or accusations. The writing is wonderful as far as atmosphere goes. The secondary characters are not really developed like I would have hoped. I can't say why without giving too much of the story away.
There are plenty of red herrings, but no clues that lead us to guess who the guilty parties are until its revealed at the end. I still think this is a great quick read and I would recommend it. I just wish it would have been a little bit longer to get more backstory on the secondary characters and events that led to the girl arriving on Kenny and Sarah's porch. -
Thank you to NetGalley for a Kindle ARC of The Girl on the Porch.
I was stoked when my request was granted, ready for something shocking, exciting, suspenseful.
But that's not what I got.
I got a blurb of a decent premise; a young woman rings the doorbell of the Tuckers' in the middle of the night. She looks distressed and in need of help.
Unfortunately, the bell is broken, the woman disappears, and the shocking image is caught on video for all to see.
Now everyone is a suspect, including Kenny Tucker and his coterie of childhood friends.
Sounds good, right?
Unfortunately, that's all he wrote because the blurb is the best part.
There's nothing exciting or chilling and the short length of the novella makes character and plot development almost non existent.
There are no clues to unravel, no mystery to figure out, anyone can be a suspect but there is no information as to who it could be and why.
Also, I couldn't stand some of the dialogue, especially when one of Sarah's friends are discussing how attractive one of the suspects are, another friend chimes in with "So yummy."
Seriously? Do women really talk like this? Or just how the author thinks women talk? Yikes.
The murderer is not so much a revelation as a "Really?" kind of moment.
There's no exposition, no backstory, no understanding or motivation. This person did it. The end.
This was a disappointing read. -
When Stephen King recommends a book, it's usually a good one and he sure got this one right. I read this book in one sitting and loved every minute of it! Who is this half naked woman with shackles running around the neighborhood? Where did she go? And more importantly, from whose house did she escape? I thank Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this chilling book!
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Father Kenny Tucker
Mother Sarah Lynn Tucker
Daughter Natalie Tucker
Three-year-old Corgi Bandit
Broadview Homes subdivision in Hanover.
In the middle of a Thursday night, a mysterious visitor.
Who?
What?
Why?
Where?
The author has constructed a tale with a run of the mill family of three up against this dilemma of the girl on the porch.
I can gladly disclose nothing happens to the corgi and there is not dead corgi or pets risen in form of a girl on the porch.
A tale of mystery and trepidation nicely crafted with the captivating need to know of who is the visitor, and what is she after, with the whole unsettling presence of her appearance in this small tightly knitted community. -
One morning, Sarah is reviewing the door camera footage after the dog had been barking in the middle of the night. She sees a young barefoot woman with a shackle on her wrist run up to the door and try to ring the bell (which had been out-of-order for some time), then leaving. "The Girl on the Porch" becomes an overnight viral news story, on all the major networks and throughout social media.
Gradually, the paranoia increases among the neighbors and friends - Tom is quiet and lives alone; Paul was loading something into his trunk that was the size of a body - until everyone is suspicious about everyone else.
This was well-written, but I had a couple problems with the story. The ending seemed a bit rushed, and while they were worried about their safety, I feel like Sarah and Kenny weren't concerned enough.
Thanks to NetGalley for an advance copy of this title in return for my honest review. -
Rating: ★★☆☆☆+
Synopsis
From New York Times bestseller Richard Chizmar, author of Gwendy’s Button Box (with Stephen King) and The Long Way Home, comes a thriller that will forever change the way you look at your neighbors and best friends…
When the Tuckers’ next door neighbor mentions someone rang their doorbell late the previous night, Sarah and Kenny Tucker check their home’s security camera and discover something shocking: the doorbell ringer also visited their house and it wasn’t a teenager playing a prank, but instead a terrified young woman with a shackle hanging from her right wrist. She anxiously pressed the doorbell again and again, glancing over her shoulder as if someone was coming for her, before giving up and taking off into the dark.
Almost overnight, she becomes known as The Girl on the Porch—and she’s everywhere. There are updates on all the local networks, national coverage on CNN and Fox News, and the video goes viral on social media. Before long, everyone has seen the harrowing security camera footage.
Kenny and Sarah figure it’s only a matter of time before someone recognizes the woman, but as the days pass and no one comes forward, odd things begin to transpire around the Tucker family: a man intensely watches them at a restaurant and then vanishes, fresh footprints appear in the garden next to their house where no one should have been, a neighbor’s pet is viciously killed and mutilated, and a mysterious man has started following their daughter Natalie…
A rollercoaster ride of compelling twists and turns, The Girl on the Porch demonstrates why Stephen King says Richard Chizmar’s writing is “powerful” and Robert McCammon calls his work “hard-hitting, spooky, suspenseful, harrowing, and heartbreaking.”
Review
Thanks to the author and publisher for an advanced reading copy of The Girl on the Porch in exchange for an honest review. Receiving this ARC via NetGalley did not influence my thoughts or opinions on the novella.
The Girl on the Porch is an example of when a promising premise is squandered by an unsatisfying plot. I can’t say for sure that it would’ve been better had Chizmar pushed the boundaries and made it into a full-length novel, but the novella just didn’t do it for me.
Secondary characters that are supposed to be highlights of the story end up being bland and underdeveloped. The supposed “rollercoaster ride of compelling twists and turns” felt more like Big Thunder Mountain Railroad at Disney’s Magic Kingdom. Pretty straight forward with a couple of “wee” moments. It is one of those reads where you finish, shrug your shoulders, and move on to the next. You don’t really take the time to grasp what you just read because it doesn’t have any staying power.
Look. I’m quite aware that not every single book ever written over the course of history as to be hard-hitting, gritty, and have a WTF type of ending. Unfortunately, it has sort of become the norm in today’s publishing world and The Girl on the Porch happens to be an example where it was a tad too soft.
Now, let me reel you back in. Chizmar does do some great things throughout the novella. I was fairly engaged up through the halfway mark and even shouted “WHAAAA” out loud at one or two points in time. The constant whodunit mentality I had while reading is what kept me going. The good news is: you literally have no clue where the answer lies until the very end. Not that the reveal is blindsiding, but the author does a fine job at keeping it hidden. The writing is good and pretty par for the course, so not much to add there.
Overall, I am glad I gave The Girl on the Porch a shot. I still plan on reading more of Chizmar’s works as I did really enjoy Gwendy’s Button Box (which I have Gwendy’s Magic Feather on pre-order) and I’ve heard great things about Widow’s Point and A Long December. -
Chizmar is unquestionably a talented author and editor. So now having that been said…this slender volume starts off with pages and pages of praise lavished upon him and it sort of leaves you expecting…well…greatness. And frankly this novella isn’t great. It’s good, possibly even close to very good, but it isn’t mind-blowingly awesome. It reminded me very much of the late great Ketchum in a way (the meditation on the evil people do to each other and all that), but without the strong emotional engagement his work always provides and requires. But comparisons aside, this was a tight number of suspense, optimally to be read in one sitting and page count being so low, it’s easy enough to do. The story is set in an idyllic suburb with friendly neighbors., but Chizmar gets rid of that curtain immediately, in fact he rips it away from the get go when the eponymous girl appears in the middle of the night desperately trying to get someone’s attention. And now there is an ugly shadow of suspicion being cast around and a lovely neighborhood is no longer a place of peace and tranquility. This is by far the best aspect of the novella, the way Chizmar represents the insidious nature of mistrust and general unease and no one is safe from it. This provides for some fine character writing too. Plus he’s constantly throwing clues, misleading clues, mind you, so you’re never quite sure who’s responsible and what’s going on. It’s a good thing, of course, you won’t guess the ending and that’s one of the best things one can expect from a suspense thriller. Which this is, I suppose, but it’s also a pretty potent work of dark psychological fiction. For something like 60 minutes of your time, this book certainly has a lot to offer. So do yourself a favor and check it out. Greatness, such as it is, may be subjective, but it’s easy to agree that this is definitely a good story. Disturbing quick fun read. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.
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Thank you Netgalley and Subterrianian Press for an advanced copy in exchange for honest review. Richard came on my radar with Gwendy's Button Box, and his work with Steven King. This novella was good, but not great. I feel like it lacked the suspense I was hoping for. The ending felt weak to me, kind of a "meh" feeling. The book did have some jump scares. A character turns, and boom, someone is there. I will keep this short and sweet as the book doesn't come out until August. Good, not great.
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The Girl on the Porch by Richard Chizmar
This is the first time I have read anything written by Mr. Chizmar but it definitely won't be the last! This was a quick read novella that holds your attention from page 1. From seeing a scantily clad woman on your porch with a shackle hanging from one wrist ringing your broken doorbell you have to start looking at your neighbors and friends through clear eyes to figure out who could have been capable of horrible deeds done to the girl. Thank you Netgalley and the Publishers and Mr. Chizmar for this book and letting me leave my honest opinion. -
A short novella that kept my attention. You'll finish within a day; not to be one to analyze - just enjoy the read!
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First, I would like to say that this is a beautiful hardcover. There is nothing that I can say derogatorily about the aesthetic beauty of the book. I wish I could say the same about the contents. I can acknowledge the merits of a book even though it has failed to interest me. I thought long and hard about this review and must come to the conclusion that it is an underwhelming work. The Girl on the Porch felt rushed, incomplete, underdeveloped and fragmented. It is actually quite difficult for me to say this because I know that Chizmar is a talented writer and yet there was little evidence (other than a great premise) of that talent. Among the issues I had are the following. The dialogues didn’t flow well and were bland. Considering that the majority of this novella is written in dialogue form, this was a serious issue for me. The characters were flat and failed to elicit any connection with this reader. There were many scenes that seemed to have no bearing on the story and went nowhere. The ending was a disappointment. I can’t with any honesty give this more than a two-star (OK) rating. This would have been better stripped down to a short story or expanded to allow better character and plot development. Maybe with the publicity/hype and the fact that I believe that Chizmar is talented, I just expected too much? Maybe the $40 price tag (with shipping) left me expecting a story with more merit? Whatever the reason, I am greatly disappointed in The Girl on the Porch.
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Like many readers of this novella, I wanted more, more, more!
That being said, this is a pretty insidious little book.
In The Girl on the Porch, Chizmar invokes shades of one of my favorite Twilight Zone Episodes. I won’t tell you which one because it would be way too spoilery. But it’s iconic and this book definitely reminded me of it!
The story is built on the idea that we don’t really trust each other all that much. Tiny little actions and side remarks build a ton of tension here.
In fact, the tension was so strong that the reveal was a tiny bit of a letdown. I wanted more. I wanted a mass release of those tensions and suspicions. The ending was realistic, while I wanted drama.
I do put this down to my personal taste. I’m admittedly more of an epic person than a novella person.
But I enjoyed this one, marveled at Chizmar’s skill in building a very devious story, and would read him again in a heartbeat.
*ARC via Net Galley -
I really wanted to love this novella, but that didn’t happen here. I like the concept of the story, however, I think if THE GIRL ON THE PORTCH was written as a full length novel with more character depth and added suspense, I would have enjoyed it more. That’s just my personal opinion, other readers may feel differently.
This novella is like your typical who-done-it (which I love!), with a cast of characters to point the finger at. The reader is given a few scenes to speculate who the antagonist(s) might be, and keeps you guessing until the very end, which I like.
Thank you Net Galley and Subterranean Press for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. -
Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC of The Girl on the Porch
I really wanted to like this one. The premise sounded so interesting but the book fell flat for me. I wanted more from this. I wanted to know the why's and more background on the killer. We weren't given much but a big mystery with an unsatisfying ending. -
I had high hopes for this one, but it fell a bit short for me. The synopsis sounded great and the first chapter had me excited, but I think it ended up being too short. There could have been a little backstory about each character because I barely even knew who the culprit was. Like others, I thought the ending was very abrupt and the whole book left me wanting something more.
