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The Pied Piper of Hamelin
Librarian note: An older cover for this edition can be found here: 28-Nov-2016.
A sickness has come to the village of Hamelin. Born on the backs of rats, a plague begins to spread. As the town rips itself apart, a stranger appears to offer them salvation. But when the citizens of the town fail to hold up their end of the bargain, the stranger returns and exacts a toll that is still spoken of to this day. That toll? The town's entire population of children. This is the legend of the Pied Piper. It is no fairy tale. It is a nightmare. Are you prepared to hear his song?
A sickness has come to the village of Hamelin. Born on the backs of rats, a plague begins to spread. As the town rips itself apart, a stranger appears to offer them salvation. But when the citizens of the town fail to hold up their end of the bargain, the stranger returns and exacts a toll that is still spoken of to this day. That toll? The town's entire population of children. This is the legend of the Pied Piper. It is no fairy tale. It is a nightmare. Are you prepared to hear his song?
254 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 28, 2016
61 people are currently reading
140 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
August 8, 2020
I listened to this as an audiobook, so apologies if I spell some of the names incorrectly. It's narrated by Joel Crow, who does a great job.
I really enjoyed this dark retelling of the Pied Piper of Hamelin - it's part historical fiction, part horror and part fairy tale. This is definitely a very gory book - lots of violence and gore, and several gruesome deaths. This is not one for the faint-hearted.
It begins with the Mayor, who is very proud of his brand new (and expensive) cobblestone road, while the rest of the town sees it as a waste of money. He hopes that this investment will encourage further trade in the town, rather than just from the river. Meanwhile, the rats are coming off the boats and spreading the Plague throughout the town. The town believes that the real reason for the Plague is that Hamelin is being punished for buying roads rather than Churches. As more people begin to die, measures become more extreme.
The story is very well-written and kept me gripped to the end, with a couple of unexpected twists along the familiar tale. I liked that the point of view changes between each of the characters in the town. I even found myself sympathising with characters who were the 'bad guys' at certain points throughout the story, such as the Priests and the Piper. Alisetta (the blacksmith) was probably my favourite character and is the closest this story has to a hero. But to be honest, all of the characters have grey morality - there are no truly good characters here. This made it all much more realistic - people generally aren't 'good' or 'evil', they are always inbetween.
The Pied Piper of Hamelin is a fantastic read - whether you listen to it as an audiobook or read it as an eBook, you won't be disappointed!
I really enjoyed this dark retelling of the Pied Piper of Hamelin - it's part historical fiction, part horror and part fairy tale. This is definitely a very gory book - lots of violence and gore, and several gruesome deaths. This is not one for the faint-hearted.
It begins with the Mayor, who is very proud of his brand new (and expensive) cobblestone road, while the rest of the town sees it as a waste of money. He hopes that this investment will encourage further trade in the town, rather than just from the river. Meanwhile, the rats are coming off the boats and spreading the Plague throughout the town. The town believes that the real reason for the Plague is that Hamelin is being punished for buying roads rather than Churches. As more people begin to die, measures become more extreme.
The story is very well-written and kept me gripped to the end, with a couple of unexpected twists along the familiar tale. I liked that the point of view changes between each of the characters in the town. I even found myself sympathising with characters who were the 'bad guys' at certain points throughout the story, such as the Priests and the Piper. Alisetta (the blacksmith) was probably my favourite character and is the closest this story has to a hero. But to be honest, all of the characters have grey morality - there are no truly good characters here. This made it all much more realistic - people generally aren't 'good' or 'evil', they are always inbetween.
The Pied Piper of Hamelin is a fantastic read - whether you listen to it as an audiobook or read it as an eBook, you won't be disappointed!
December 8, 2025
Well that indeed was a different take of the pied pipper. I thought it was a really good read!
May 23, 2020
Stay up and read til it's done!
I loved this book! Smartly written with wonderfully wrought characters. I loved this twist on the classic tale. Downright creepy.
I loved this book! Smartly written with wonderfully wrought characters. I loved this twist on the classic tale. Downright creepy.
October 6, 2025
It's amazing how a random meeting at a local event on a hot as hell summer day can bring something so cool into your life.
I guess I'll just cut to the chase: This book did not disappoint! I got super absorbed into the writing and the plot went into directions I did NOT expect. I've been around the block when it comes to fairytale retellings, so you can imagine my pleasant surprise when all the twists came right after another.
There were some grammar issues, typos, errors, and the pacing was a bit wonky at times (everything about the Brothers of the Whip, while disturbing and interesting to read about, felt a bit hastily tacked on compared to Engels, the Lord, and even the Piper's backstory), but none of it was enough to be a full dealbreaker.
I loved how it really dived into the POV of the townsfolk, exploring their complex and tragic circumstances. You understand where they are all coming from, even as they do more and more horrible things to one another.
This story had me on the edge of my seat, and of course the Piper himself stole the show, but didn't detract from it.
Thanks for the awesome book and for signing it for me, dude! :D
I guess I'll just cut to the chase: This book did not disappoint! I got super absorbed into the writing and the plot went into directions I did NOT expect. I've been around the block when it comes to fairytale retellings, so you can imagine my pleasant surprise when all the twists came right after another.
There were some grammar issues, typos, errors, and the pacing was a bit wonky at times (everything about the Brothers of the Whip, while disturbing and interesting to read about, felt a bit hastily tacked on compared to Engels, the Lord, and even the Piper's backstory), but none of it was enough to be a full dealbreaker.
I loved how it really dived into the POV of the townsfolk, exploring their complex and tragic circumstances. You understand where they are all coming from, even as they do more and more horrible things to one another.
This story had me on the edge of my seat, and of course the Piper himself stole the show, but didn't detract from it.
Thanks for the awesome book and for signing it for me, dude! :D
October 11, 2023
A good October tale. This is just what it sounds like. The pied piper but with more horror. It was pretty good but it had some editing issues. Missing words, typos that sort of thing. But the story was solid. I've not read the original so I'm not sure how different this one might be but I'm pretty sure this one is darker just because of who the author is. There's plague, religious zealots, a piper, creepy forest, creepy Forest Lord. I liked the background about the piper, where he started, how he got to be the piper and what it was like to be that. It had a strong female character which I enjoyed. Overall I did enjoy it and now I kinda wonder what the original story is like.
August 16, 2019
Outstanding
This story became a historical novel as well as a very well written horror story. I kept thinking about the story during the day and could not wait to continue to read where I left off. I definitely recommend this book to anyone that is both a historical fiction reader and a horror fan.
This story became a historical novel as well as a very well written horror story. I kept thinking about the story during the day and could not wait to continue to read where I left off. I definitely recommend this book to anyone that is both a historical fiction reader and a horror fan.
October 30, 2020
The Black Death has come to Hamelin and no one is safe. Either the plague will get you or your neighbors will kill you thinking that you are cursing everyone else.
Then the Piper comes along and plays music that calls the rats away. How did he learn such music? And why does it make your head so foggy? Are dark forces at work?
Then the Piper comes along and plays music that calls the rats away. How did he learn such music? And why does it make your head so foggy? Are dark forces at work?
June 10, 2022
A horrifying new take on an old story
I have heard the story of the Pied Piper all my life and thought it was a horror story on its own. I went into this expecting a basic retelling. I was pleasantly surprised to find an engaging tale that turned the old stories on their heads. Would recommend to anyone!
I have heard the story of the Pied Piper all my life and thought it was a horror story on its own. I went into this expecting a basic retelling. I was pleasantly surprised to find an engaging tale that turned the old stories on their heads. Would recommend to anyone!
October 22, 2022
Jacy Morris is a master of his craft, this book has everything I could want out of a horror novel. Lot of writers and story tellers could benefit from sitting back and watching his pacing and prose. Heavily recommend.
May 17, 2020
A good story most of the way, it just seemed to fall apart towards the end, like there was really no point to it all.
June 18, 2020
horror or the piper
Good fast pace terror tale that is totally different than the original. Moves along quickly without a bunch of boring filler and repeating .
Good fast pace terror tale that is totally different than the original. Moves along quickly without a bunch of boring filler and repeating .
March 14, 2024
At first, I didn't think I'd like this book. Man was I wrong. This is my kind of fairytale.
Favorite quote from this book.... "If this was how God worked, then he wasn't worth believing in."
Favorite quote from this book.... "If this was how God worked, then he wasn't worth believing in."
April 26, 2024
This was a really interesting read! A nice twist on a children's tale, good imagery, a bit nasty! Well written & a good fun read!
August 8, 2025
I have always liked the tale of the Pied Piper and what this story means. This version is a nice take on the story. I highly recommend it.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews