Reviews with content warning for Mental illness - We Sold Our Souls

Of all of Grady Hendrix's novels, I expected this one to be my favorite before I had read any of them. Overall, I really enjoyed this novel, but it is not my all-time favorite from Grady Hendrix, it definitely falls somewhere in the middle of the pack.
"We Sold Our Souls" follows a young woman named Kris. In the 1990's, her band, Dürt Würk, was ready to make it big and finally have their chance at fame. Unfortunately, everything fell apart one night, a night that no one in the band seems to remember. Now, in present day, one member of the former band is a musical idol and set to go on his farewell tour. Kris, sick of her horrible life, decides finally to confront him and get to the bottom of what happened decades ago and uncover why Dürt Würk never made it.

This novel is just like every other Grady Hendrix in the sense that he has his own special brand of comedic horror. This story is graphic, has violence and death, but it is still funny past all of the blood and gore. I really loved Kris as a character. She presents herself as real and authentic. Her dreams were shattered, and she was left to pick up pieces she should not have had to do. She struggles with dealing with the failure of her youth and she feels trapped in a terrible life she never wanted. But, once she finally gets that inspiration to fight for herself and her beloved band, she will stop at nothing for answers. Her whole character arch really takes you through a myriad of emotions and you cannot help to root for her.
I also really enjoyed the metaphor of "selling your soul" for your art. Without giving too much of the story away, someone in the band has sold his soul to become successful. I think this is such an interesting idea and discussion because fame tends to really cloud even the best person's judgment. Purists want the art to matter above all else, so when someone sells their soul, meaning they sacrifice their art for success, some people are outraged. But, at the same time you want to respect the hustle and the ambition to make it in this world because of their art.

I have thoroughly enjoyed all of Grady Hendrix's books, and I look forward to continue enjoying more from him!

Content Warnings

chezler24's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

A story of never giving up, reigniting passion, and finishing what you've started. Hendrix does it again by weaving an easy-to-read horror/thriller which also serves as an homage to heavy metal and rock. Throughout the book, we follow Kris Pulaski as she slowly realizes what truly led to the demise of her band and the larger powers at play behind the music industry and the world at large. Kris goes on a journey to come face to face with the man she blames for the worst event in her life that made her fall short of glory; however, she realizes soon that he isn't the real mastermind behind everything that happened to her. The conspiracy theory notes didn't always hit for me, but the odes to metal and the idea of music telling a story larger than itself kept me glued to the page.

Content Warnings

wirewrappedlily's review against another edition

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dark sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

Content Warnings

erin_a_ziraphale's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Metal, rock, music, legends and a world that is out to burry you when you no longer are a useful tool, the dreams of boys that blaze everything on their path, take no survivours and destroy all the women on their way.
This one of the weirdest books I have ever read in my life, if you are willing to ignore BIG flagrant issues it has handling mental illness and conspiracy theories that dip too much into Q-anon terrotory making them valid

No Mr. Hendrix, my mental illness doesn't make me or other mentally ill people "magic" or "more attuned to hear the cry of troglodyte", my meds aren't for mind controling me, in fact they keep me from tearing my hair and my sking with my nails! and Capitalism™️ sure sucks, but racist, misogynistic, antisemetic conspiracy theorist DO NOT AND WILL NEVER HAVE A POINT

this a solid read for anyone digging a good eldritch horror read or for any music lovers that ever dreamed of becoming legends, really.
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How does a sparrow destroy a mountain? One pebble at a time.

Content Warnings