I Found a Circus Tent in the Woods Behind My House: a Novella (I Found Horror) Paperback – January 17, 2023

This is my second venture into Mr. Farthing's writing. I finished the Puppet book back in August and it was a fantastic read (I accidently posted this to the wrong book, prior). I am not sure what took me so long to read this one. The puppet book was so experimental that I did not think lightning could strike twice, but it absolutely did. Ben Farthing is obviously not an author that got lucky with a single novella, but an extremely talented writer that can consistently deliver. Once again, Mr. Farthing uses literary devices that most experienced writers would shy away from. In this book, he introduces us to a Father, son duo as our protagonists. A middle-aged father, and his four-year old son. The book works hard to establish that this is the father's story, and not anyone else's. This is extremely important to establish, or the literary devices Farthing uses, would not work. Basically, our hero finds himself trapped in a circus tent, occupied by Carnies. What the author does here, is absolutely amazing. The Carnies are sympathetic to the reader, while villains to the father and son. We get small banter from them about their regrets, and they often come off as sad, and reluctant participants to what is happening. This duality in character is yet again a testament to the author's talent as a writer. Most established authors would have a hard time pulling this off.Even more impressive, is the glimpses we get into how the circus operates. There is a very clear structure, and rules as to what is happening, but because this is the Dad's story, we never get a clear explanation as to the nature of the circus. If the author waivered even once from the Dad's perspective, the book would have diverged into the Carnies story, which would have led to a loss of tension and mystery. The fact that the author restrained himself from going into these details, while teasing us all the way speaks for the author's professionalism. It was a very risky direction that could have easily alienated the reader. The author gives us just enough information about the Circus to excite the imagination of the reader, while still giving us a satisfactory conclusion for our protagonist.The author makes expert use of foreshadowing. Like a swashbuckler, he wields this weapon far better than most established authors that I know of. It's not obvious, nor heavy handed and doesn't push the story to the point it eclipses the final as I have seen in other stories. It's there to enhance and raise the tension of the story and not to diminish the character's progression. I about panicked when the father mentions it was the last time he was a good dad. As a father of a young child myself, this kind of talk makes me very uneasy as it’s the one thing I fear most in my personal life.Mr. Farthing has a style that is very similar to Joyce C. Oates in, "Where have you been, Where are you going." This is not a bad thing, and if you've never read that short story, you owe yourself a favor. There is a lot of similarities between the two stories in how they are structured.Once again, I do have to add some criticism. The first person perspective is a turn-off for me. However, I don't think this particular story would have worked any other way. Had he used 3rd person, the all-important Dad perspective would have been lost and the story would have derailed. There was also room to continue the story and explain the nature of the circus. At the end, the Dad's story clearly ends. He then returns to investigate the circus, giving us space for the circus story. However, this story is unrealized and not explored. This could have been a great Part 2. Again, I applaud the author's restraint, but I can understand why some readers may feel cheated. Maybe he will come back to this title in the future.Mr. Farthing is truly the most talented author most people have never heard of. I truly do believe he belongs in the same category as Joyce C. Oates. I sincerely hope to read much more from him and that he gets the recognitions he obviously deserves.

I really enjoyed this mysterious story. The horror depicted in this book actually terrified me. I love the emotions this book brought out of me.This story follows a man and his son. They are playing in the woods and stumble upon a circus tent. And they never could have guessed what peeking into the tent would hold.This story was super short and thrilling. I gave this four stars, as I personally, would have liked more depth to the villains and to learn of their story to bring everything together.Well done! This was fun and creepy af!

I have become a bit obsessed with Ben Farthings’ ‘I Found Horror’ book series, and ‘Circus Tent’ did not disappoint. It was weird and tense, as a reader I felt real peril, and as a dad this triggered some primal fears. Any new ‘I Found Horror’ book from Ben always goes to the top of my TBR pile.

Boring? not at all. It could improve a lot though. The premise is about a small circus tent but the narration goes like thrice what it should be, the events in the text could be told in thirty pages, specially considering that the father is telling the story from the future, and assuring you that both he and his son have not in the tent, soThe father in the narration seems a bit false, like written by a lady (?) protective, yes, but in a maternal way; not in the paternal way that also protects but in a way that asks you to learn and be strong, and in some parts instead of a father reacting it reads more like the father is posting a psychology article for likes and clout. But the parts that made me feel this story like an advert is when the father mentions that his son has a Star Wars pajama and that he spends time in Disney +... I don't know children that like any of those, old Star Wars is loved by adults, and the new Star Wars is intended for adult women, no boy is playing around to feign being Rey Palpatine. And about Disney +, with what they put is programming risky for responsible parents, and the rest that enjoy it are adults (I guess, I don't know personally anyone that loves it), but the children I see are more daydreaming with dinosaurs and being Owen, and they watch more YouTube kids in their cellphones, with programs that go viral with simple guys just moving the dinosaurs with their own hands. It sounds more like an adult saying what is "correct" for a children to like rather than letting them be children.

I've never been afraid of clowns but now thanks to Ben Farthing I'm afraid of the entire circus!Read this with my son before bed (he's 12) and we both loved it! It left us immediately looking for our next I Found book.

Hey so this book was written so easily to read but was quite gripping from the start! Definitely an intense story that will have you not wanting to put the book down! I want to read more from this talented author!!!

I used to read A LOT. Haven't much lately, and wanted to find a really different type of book that could pull me in. Saw ads on Facebook for this and I Found Puppets Living in my Apartment Walls. Since i am a total weirdo they seemed just right. I bought both. Read them in 2 days. Excellent writing. Great story. Shorter length so gets into the action fast and keeps you hooked. If you have ever dealt with an emergency while also taking care of a small child, that is the base level of nerves you start with and build from there. Let me tell you, I literally got to THE SENTENCE that was the pinnacle of fear in this book and had to put it down. Just the image in my head at that moment was terror. I believe that is a first for me. I've had to stop reading before to think over what I'd read. Or even look up info. But this really just was that scary. And horror is my favorite genre. I've read hundreds of horror stories. These books are so different. This one in particular I would LOVE to see made into a movie. I hope and pray that there are many more of these weird and disturbing "I Found" books. I need them.

Livro de suspense e terror que aborda pai e filho tentando fugir do circo aterrorizante e ao mesmo tempo intrigante.

This was our book of the month for June, to be honest when I ordered it did not realize that it was less then a 100 pages, but the good thing is it grabbed me right from the beginning, could not put it down, and when I did I was constantly thinking about it, it was creepy, scary, exciting and a real good read, enjoyed every page of it, can’t wait for his next one.

Just finished this nightmare-inducing tale. If you haven’t already checked out this book, get on it! It’s a fast read, and it throws you straight into the action and doesn’t let up until the end. Before today I wasn’t afraid of clowns, or jugglers, for that matter. I had no fear of being trapped inside an endless canvas warren of circus tents that had sentience and the type of inhabitants that you can’t escape from in a fever dream. I have no kids, so I’ve only considered the terrible pressure of guilt-wrenching parental responsibility in the face of peril in passing before.Thanks to Ben Farthing, these things are going to be weighing heavily on my mind the next few days! An outstanding read that wasn’t anything at all like I expected

I think I was as obsessed with the thing in the platforms above as the MC was. Fun, short, creepy little book. Actually wish there was more to it. Would have loved to know the backstories of the circus performers and have certain questions answered.

Well I do love a creepypasta tale and this one is well worth the hype I've seen it has everything action, tention had me holding my breath well played Ben Farthing well played! I will definitely be diving into puppets next