The Demonists Review (Demonist Series)

There is more to our world than meets the eye—darker things, crueler things. Exorcist John Fogg and his wife, psychic medium Theodora Knight, know what lurks in the shadows. But even they’re not prepared for the worst Hell has to offer…

It was supposed to be a simple exorcism, a publicity stunt to firmly establish John and Theodora’s thriving paranormal investigation empire in the public eye. But something went wrong, leading to an on-air massacre that unleashed a malicious host of demons and left Theodora catatonic, possessed by countless spirits.

John sets out on a desperate quest to find a cure for his wife, but his obsession brings him face-to-face with an even more terrifying problem: Theodora’s possession is only one piece of a deadly plot that is threatening the entire world. Because an ancient evil is about to make Earth its battlefield—and without John and Theodora’s intervention, there is no chance for salvation…-Goodreads Synopsis

The Demonists Review

This is definitely one of those cases where you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. The cover of The Demonists is very ‘pretty’, and my initial judgement was that this was going to be a book with a fantastic premise that was screwed up because of weak writing making it more acceptable to the masses. While it doesn’t go into The Exorcist level possession vulgarity, The Demonists is not a book that panders to the delicate sensibilities, and it’s one that you may want to read for yourself first if you have any teens interested in reading it. It does trigger for child loss.

I liked the fact that Thomas Sniegoski took it a step further than possession books normally do, by tying it in to the overall war in good versus evil. I was curious as to how well that was going to work out, but he did a good job of it. The almost breakneck pace is fantastic. This is one of those stories that sucks you down into it and leaves you feeling like you’ve been pulled through a knothole backwards by the time it’s done. The book could have been done a bit better, and I would have loved to have seen this book extended by about 20-30 pages, but overall I’m very satisfied with what I read. This is my first read from this author, and though I’m not impressed to the point I’ll rave about it, he’s definitely an author I will read more from.

Overall, it’s a solid entry into the horror sub-genre of possession, and the twist on it puts it a step above what you’re used to getting from these type of books. It might not knock your socks off, but it is a very fun way to spend a few hours. Definitely look into it if you’re a horror fiend.

Read The Demonists for yourself now – if you’re not too scared. Buy it on Amazon.com

Title: The Demonists | Series: Demonist #1 |  Author: Thomas Sniegoski (site) | Publisher: Roc (site) | Pub. Date: 2016-4-5 | Pages: 336 | ISBN13: 9780451473523 | Genre: Horror | Language: English | Triggers: SIDS | Rating: 4 out of 5 | Date Read: 2016-5-15 | Source: Library

IF YOU’VE LOST A CHILD: READ THIS. IF NOT, YOU CAN SKIP IT:  Mothers of infants lost to SIDS are going to have a hard time reading this book. I would be completely shocked if it didn’t trigger you. Even though my child was not lost to SIDS, it definitely bothered me. At the same time, I will say that Sniegoski treats the SIDS death with the solemnity that it deserves. It is not used as a shock factor death, but is more treated as a terribly sad thing that obviously had a huge impact on the mother’s life.  So even though it bothered me, it didn’t bother me the way reading about child death in horror books normally does.

Also, you know that dream? The one you have where your child is crying in their casket? The mother has this dream. It’s absolutely horrifying because it is so real. It twists your heart to pieces, and yet at the same time, it was kind of comforting to read it. I know that sounds crazy, but hear me out. Before I read about it in this book, I assumed that dream was a rare thing. So to actually read about it in a book. To have someone else acknowledge that they’ve had it/thought about it too… it was strangely reassuring. You know, that affirmation that you’re not as crazy as you thought you were? It’s that.  So yes, this book will probably trigger you if you’ve lost a child, especially if you’ve lost a child to SIDS. However, it’s written very well and ‘real’, so it might be worth giving it a chance anyways. Especially if you enjoy paranormal horror. It’s not a huge part of the story, but you need to know it’s there.

Thanks for reading this review of The Demonists. Did you read and review the book yourself? Feel free to leave a link so I can check it out!