Daphne

A Novel

By: Josh Malerman

Narrated by: Patricia Santomasso

Horror has a new name: Daphne. A brutal, enigmatic woman stalks a high school basketball team in a reimagining of the slasher genre by the New York Times bestselling author of Bird Box.

“A superb serial killer novel and a great coming-of-age story.”—Gabino Iglesias, author of The Devil Takes You Home

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: Paste

It’s the last summer for Kit Lamb: The last summer before college. The last summer with her high school basketball team, and with Dana, her best friend. The last summer before her life begins.

But the night before the big game, one of the players tells a ghost story about Daphne, a girl who went to their school many years ago and died under mysterious circumstances. Some say she was murdered, others that she died by her own hand. And some say that Daphne is a murderer herself. They also say that Daphne is still out there, obsessed with revenge, and will appear to kill again anytime someone thinks about her.

After Kit hears the story, her teammates vanish, one by one, and Kit begins to suspect that the stories about Daphne are real . . . and to fear that her own mind is conjuring the killer. Now it’s a race against time as Kit searches for the truth behind the legend and learns to face her own fears—before the summer of her lifetime becomes the last summer of her life.

Mixing a nostalgic coming-of-age story and an instantly iconic female villain with an innovative new vision of classic horror, Daphne is an unforgettable thriller as only Josh Malerman could imagine it.

Daphne Lives!

Another great one by Josh Malerman! Love how Daphne, all grim 7-feet of her, doubles as Kit's anxieties, as the secrets of a community. She's a right proper monster in her own right, too, though, belonging beside such nightmares as The Shape, Jason Voorhees, even Freddy Krueger. Truly terrifying. A modern classic.

A Great Slasher-Style Story

Overall I really enjoyed this story but the narrator wasn't the right fit for me. I had to go back several times to listen to a certain part again because everything was read with the same inflection. Some moments that should have had more impact just didn't hit because of the narrator. The story itself was enjoyable, though, very much a slasher style mystery with some tense moments.

Fun!!!

I love the story. Brought me back to my basketball days. Very smart. I still have some questions that weren’t answered but overall it came full circle and had an important message about the power of our minds

You’ll be obsessed!

I couldn’t stop listening! Everywhere I went for the past 3 days, this story went with me. Fantastic and gave me the creeps!!!

Too much introspection

I almost gave up on this when I listened to the first 45 minutes describe teenage anxiety. I could almost say that the Kit character could be removed completely from the book and it would not suffer.