Scan barcode
A review by lilibetbombshell
Friend of the Devil by Stephen Lloyd
4.0
There are two literary colloquialisms that came to mind when I finished this book: one, this is definitely a case where you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover (because this book is so much more fun than the cover suggests); and two, if there was a book I thought would make a great movie, it’s this one. Though, given Stephen Lloyd formerly wrote for various tv shows, this doesn’t surprise me. Heck, if this was a tv show, I’d watch it. A little bit Buffy (the overarching plot), a little bit Harry Potter (which you can see in the school’s librarian to an extremely creepy effect), a little bit Riverdale (in our dogged female lead, school journalist, Harriet), a little bit Supernatural (which we can see in our Vietnam vet insurance investigator, Sam), a little bit Stranger Things (puzzles, dungeons, D&D, quests, side quests)? A sprinkle of Constantine (spoilers!)?
This book is a horror book and a suspense book, but it never takes itself too seriously. There’s a dry wit to it, as well as a mean sense of humor that tickles that awful place inside of me that likes to see gory and awful stuff happen to horrible characters in books. There are deaths you wouldn’t get to see in books or movies that take place in present-day because of how technology has changed (this book takes place in 1980, which we know because one character is wearing a huge Reagan pin all the time and complains about people who love Jimmy Carter), and those deaths are such a delight because if you’re a fan of slasher films or horror films you know just how that vivid imagery would look on film and it’s delightful.
That’s another thing: this book has some seriously vivid imagery that just knocked my socks off and made this book incredibly engaging to read. This book isn’t about narrative style or atmosphere or deep-diving into anything. It’s just a fun, page-turning, propulsive, tilt-a-whirl, gory, creepy, wry, slick, and incredibly clever book that fans of genre tv will love and fans of genre fiction will find to be a fast and light read.
About that cover: it’s far too serious for how fun this book is and I think they should’ve taken that into consideration, because covers do matter in book sales, especially when it comes to social media influencing.
About that movie or tv show: can you guys get on that?
Thanks to NetGalley, Penguin Group Putnam, and G. P. Putnam’s Sons for early access to this title in exchange for a fair and honest review. .
This book is a horror book and a suspense book, but it never takes itself too seriously. There’s a dry wit to it, as well as a mean sense of humor that tickles that awful place inside of me that likes to see gory and awful stuff happen to horrible characters in books. There are deaths you wouldn’t get to see in books or movies that take place in present-day because of how technology has changed (this book takes place in 1980, which we know because one character is wearing a huge Reagan pin all the time and complains about people who love Jimmy Carter), and those deaths are such a delight because if you’re a fan of slasher films or horror films you know just how that vivid imagery would look on film and it’s delightful.
That’s another thing: this book has some seriously vivid imagery that just knocked my socks off and made this book incredibly engaging to read. This book isn’t about narrative style or atmosphere or deep-diving into anything. It’s just a fun, page-turning, propulsive, tilt-a-whirl, gory, creepy, wry, slick, and incredibly clever book that fans of genre tv will love and fans of genre fiction will find to be a fast and light read.
About that cover: it’s far too serious for how fun this book is and I think they should’ve taken that into consideration, because covers do matter in book sales, especially when it comes to social media influencing.
About that movie or tv show: can you guys get on that?
Thanks to NetGalley, Penguin Group Putnam, and G. P. Putnam’s Sons for early access to this title in exchange for a fair and honest review. .