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A review by raforall
Friend of the Devil by Stephen Lloyd
4.0
Review in the April 2022 issue of Library Journal
Three Words That Describe This Book: isolated setting, sinister, multiple pov
DRAFT REVIEW:
Sam is a military vet, with serious PTSD, turned insurance company investigator, called to an isolated boarding school off the coast of Massachusetts to settle a claim they have made on an irreplaceable rare book. Harriet is a headstrong, DnD loving school newspaper reporter who is sick and tired of being bullied. At first alone, in alternating storylines, and then slowly converging as they work together, Sam and Harriet come to realize that there is more going on at Danforth Putman than meets the eye. There is an occult force underpinning the centuries old school, one that has wielded its power through that missing book, one that may be connected directly to the Devil himself. A compelling Horror Thriller with very wide appeal, Lloyd works a strong sense of place, claustrophobic and unsettling, to draw readers into the disturbing mystery before unleashing a stunning, sinister, and thought provoking twist that will both devastate and leave readers begging for another Sam and Harriet adventure*.
Verdict: While it would be easy underestimate this novel a YA Riverdale** or Stranger Things knock off, especially since Lloyd is an award winning TV writer, the story is definitely more adult, as if Jack Reacher was called to the creepy school in Sarah Read's THE BONE WEAVER'S ORCHARD.
NOTES:
This one surprised me. It was going along like a boilerplate= Horror-Thriller but it evolved into something more thought provoking and deeply sinister than I was expecting. Ending was 100% nailed! This debut will have wide appeal.
Riveredale is jokingly referred to and I think that is good. But this is more Jack Reacher goes to visit the school in Sarah Read's THE BONE WEAVER'S ORCHARD.
A great entry into the satanic subgenre. Excited to write this review and let people know about this one.
Three Words That Describe This Book: isolated setting, sinister, multiple pov
DRAFT REVIEW:
Sam is a military vet, with serious PTSD, turned insurance company investigator, called to an isolated boarding school off the coast of Massachusetts to settle a claim they have made on an irreplaceable rare book. Harriet is a headstrong, DnD loving school newspaper reporter who is sick and tired of being bullied. At first alone, in alternating storylines, and then slowly converging as they work together, Sam and Harriet come to realize that there is more going on at Danforth Putman than meets the eye. There is an occult force underpinning the centuries old school, one that has wielded its power through that missing book, one that may be connected directly to the Devil himself. A compelling Horror Thriller with very wide appeal, Lloyd works a strong sense of place, claustrophobic and unsettling, to draw readers into the disturbing mystery before unleashing a stunning, sinister, and thought provoking twist that will both devastate and leave readers begging for another Sam and Harriet adventure*.
Verdict: While it would be easy underestimate this novel a YA Riverdale** or Stranger Things knock off, especially since Lloyd is an award winning TV writer, the story is definitely more adult, as if Jack Reacher was called to the creepy school in Sarah Read's THE BONE WEAVER'S ORCHARD.
NOTES:
This one surprised me. It was going along like a boilerplate= Horror-Thriller but it evolved into something more thought provoking and deeply sinister than I was expecting. Ending was 100% nailed! This debut will have wide appeal.
Riveredale is jokingly referred to and I think that is good. But this is more Jack Reacher goes to visit the school in Sarah Read's THE BONE WEAVER'S ORCHARD.
A great entry into the satanic subgenre. Excited to write this review and let people know about this one.