Daddy

by Victor LaValle, Ramón de Ocampo (Narrator)

A father vows to protect his son from the unknown intruder on the roof...

Genres: Horror, Short Stories, Audiobook, Fiction

1 pages, Audiobook

First published January 1, 2019

About the author

Victor LaValle is the author of the short story collection Slapboxing with Jesus, four novels, The Ecstatic, Big Machine, The Devil in Silver, and The Changeling and two novellas, Lucretia and the Kroons and The Ballad of Black Tom. He is also the creator and writer of a comic book Victor LaValle's DESTROYER.

He has been the recipient of numerous awards including a Whiting Writers' Award, a United States Artists Ford Fellowship, a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Shirley Jackson Award, an American Book Award, and the key to Southeast Queens.

He was raised in Queens, New York. He now lives in Washington Heights with his wife and kids. He teaches at Columbia University.

He can be kind of hard to reach, but he still loves you.

Reviews

[karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

this, and other free short horror stories from nightfire can be found here!

happy father's day! here's a little story for all of you parents who lie awake worrying you're not doing a good enough job at it—although it's probably more befitting those of you who don't. be ever vigilant!

and is this where i register my complaint about narrators who do "baby voices" for child characters? it creeps me out.

come to my blog!

[Bethany (Beautifully Bookish Bethany) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic horror short story about fatherhood and fears of passing on our own childhood trauma to our children.

[Kelly⁷ · Rating 3 out of 5]

OMFG, THAT ENDING, THO!

[dreamgirlreading · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh my.

[Micah Hall · Rating 3 out of 5]

4/5

Another winner by Nightfire books. I love Victor LaValle; he's a wonderful modern horror writer. Very short but entertaining for an extended drive. This involves a father coming to grips with fatherhood. Horrifying in an of itself. haha

[Aeryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chilling ending

[Plus Size Bibliophile · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 Stars

This is a fast-paced thrilling short story that follows an NYC dad who believes there is a possible outside danger to his toddler son. He does his due diligence to confront the man who intends to harm his child while reflecting on the meaning of fatherhood and the father figures who influenced him growing up. The ending sent chills down my spine and raised hairs on my arms.

[Matthew Vickers · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

[Stuart Rodriguez · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a decent horror short, but it was cool to realize that this is the story the “Daddy” short film from Horror Noire is based on. The short did a good job of adapting this.

[Marco · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had previously read some work by this author (e.g. The Ballad of Black Tom) that I loved, and I was eager to read more of his work. Daddy starts quite strong, but I was a little disappointed by the ending... Overall it is still a solid short story.
The story focuses on a father that vows to protect his son from the man, an unknown intruder on the roof...

[Madhurabharatula Pranav Rohit Kasinath · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have always wanted to read Victor LaValle and listening to this story felt like a good introduction to his work. Daddy deals with parental anxiety, trying to mine this very real life situation for horror. LaValle manages to do this, to some extent, in the opening scenes but the horror itself is too vague and depends too much on the point of view of the father for it to offer any meaningful impact in a short piece. I failed to connect with the father or feel any sense of anxiety about the setup. Another grouse I have is with the ending, it felt pasted on to horrify, and felt as though LaValle was trying to follow in the horror tradition of twist endings rather than let his story end organically.

[Sassy Sarah Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

This is a fun and gripping story from Victor LaValle. It follows a father whose son keeps saying strange things and lives in an apartment with a fire escape next to his son's room. It blends trauma, the fear of fatherhood, and the supernatural (dopplegangers) incredibly well. I think this was a gripping story, but I will say that the flashback, while important, threw off the pacing in a way that a story this short can't recover from.

[Liz (Quirky Cat) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The name alone is probably more than enough to imply just how creepy this horror short story is. I mean, who wants to hear 'Daddy' in the context of something horror related, right? Well, the story itself lives up to the name, being well and truly creepy, just not in the ways you might expect.

[Wren · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was thoroughly terrified by this one. I kept hoping against hope for a different ending, but the psychological horror of never quite knowing how much was in his head and how much wasn't... Tense as hell.

[isconnorevenhere · Rating 4 out of 5]

This gave me that looking-over-your-shoulder kinda feeling. I think paranoia may be my weakness in horror - what might be there, rather than what actually is there.
I admit I celebrated that final "You can call me Daddy" though lol, it was a great way to end.

[Misty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Predictable, but still scary.

[Big Dee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dark and sinister. The kind of story that gives you hope then kicks you in the teeth at the end. Broke my heart...

[Hart_D (ajibooks) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This horror short story has a serious feeling of menace. The setting, the main character, and his fear are all so real to me. The concept is something anyone could relate to, and I especially like that the littering neighbor is also fighting her worst self. Glad I listened to this, and I feel sure it will stay with me.

[Marc D. ✨ · Rating 2 out of 5]

2/5 estrellas.

You can call me Daddy.

[Angelina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 3.5/5

[LaPassion · Rating 4 out of 5]

This scared the crap out of me. I was very jumpy around my windows for a few days, and cannot tell you how weird it was for me to enjoy this the way I did.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

At only 34 minutes, this audiobook somehow got me to cry. LaValle really knows how to hit the nerve and write horror that goes deeper than simple scares.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sufficiently creepy, though I did guess at the actual outcome of the fight.

[Ashleigh Carter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was good. Caused chills which is what I'm looking for in a short story. I wish there was more to it, of course, but that's kind of the point of these little horror stories. Leave you hanging on the edge so you have no idea what to expect and it leaves you haunted.

[K Morlando · Rating 4 out of 5]

An Interesting short audible story

[Avery · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm not sure how to put into words why I dislike this story so much. It left me feeling gross