Devil's Footsteps

by E.E. Richardson

Bryan was 10 when his brother, Adam, just . . . disappeared. That was five years ago, and now Bryan is the only one who seems to remember what happened.

Until he meets two others with their own unsolved mysteries. It seems that Adam isn’t the first to disappear. Someone or something is after the kids in their neighborhood.

The adults can’t hear it, and they can’t see it or feel it—but the kids can. And it all comes back to the skipping rhyme that every child in town knows by heart . . . and the Dark Man who haunts everyone’s worst nightmares—while they’re awake.

Genres: Horror, Young Adult, Fantasy, Fiction, Childrens, Teen, Middle Grade

192 pages, Hardcover

First published March 3, 2005

About the author

E.E Richardson is a twenty-two year old cybernetics graduate who now lives as a recluse.

Reviews

[Leo · Rating 2 out of 5]

A game turned deadly. Kids gone missing in this horror book for teens or kids but found it on teen section. Bryan is trying to find out what happened to his brother Adam. Meh. The book did nothing for me. Didn't find it exciting and fun as I wanted but I found another book besides is that seemed weirdly about similar subject so maybe that one is a better win!

[Kathy Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a YA book that sounded intriguing. I really liked “Anna Dressed in Blood” so figured I’d read another YA book instead of moving on to something deeper. This story is about Bryan who feels so guilty over what happened to his brother, Adam, that he can’t move on with his life. His parents are lost in their own misery so are no longer interested in life or the son that lived through the terror that day.

Bryan meets up with a couple of other boys who have also seen the Dark Man and together they try to figure out who this Dark Man is and why he keeps stealing children.

The book doesn’t exactly grab you at the beginning but it does make you want to keep reading to find out how Adam’s disappearance and the nursery rhyme the kids know are connected. Richardson does a great job at character development and suspense. Her descriptions are simple yet enough to help one picture the scenes as they unfold. The nursery rhyme, Devil’s Footsteps, is creepy to me, I imagine it would be terrifying to a child if there was a chance that it was real.

My only complaint about the book is the ending wasn’t as good as it could have been. It seemed rather rushed but it doesn’t take too much away from the enjoyment of the story. I would recommend this to everyone who likes YA supernatural fiction. The book gets an A from me.

[Arybo ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rilettura: ottobre 2019

Sempre meglio che non sapere.

Una storia molto più profonda di quello che si potrebbe pensare: il vuoto dell’assenza, la tristezza continua, la totale assenza di riflessi da parte degli altri, la città che non parla e non sente, la frustrazione di non essere ascoltati. Un microcosmo che potrebbe stare bene in una storia alla Stephen King, proprio per l’intrecciarsi di horror e vita vera, fatta di sentimenti e di paure.

———————
Mi era venuta una fissa così allucinante con questo libro che, per mesi, sono andata in giro canticchiando la poesia su cui si fonda tutta la trama. E credendoci anche. Sì, macabro, lo so.

[Mir · Rating 3 out of 5]

Darkness. Wolves. The Forest. Buried secrets. Death. Impalement on a meat hook. Abandoned houses. Isolation. Seeing loved ones tortured. Being chased. Threatening strangers. Parental abandonment. Limbs bursting from the earth to drag you under. Clowns.

Okay, the clown only gets a passing mention, and there were no snakes or spiders. But this book still felt a bit like a laundry list of fears, most touched on too briefly to really instill any terror in the reader. And the denouement with the steps was pretty predictable. But it was an okay quick read, mindless entertainment without any distracting internal inconsistencies or language problems.

[Antonella Imperiali · Rating 3 out of 5]

Per primo venne il fuoco, il sangue per secondo...
Terza è la tempesta, che al quattro annega il mondo...
Al cinque c’è la rabbia, al sei l’odio abissale...
Settima è la paura, ottavo il più gran male...
Il nove è la tristezza, e dieci fa il dolore...
All’undici la morte... poi il dodici, l’amore...
Tredici passi alla porta del Diavolo...
Dall’Uomo Nero non si torna, non si torna davvero...

Bryan aveva otto anni quando - cinque anni prima - durante il gioco della filastrocca, vide sparire nel bosco il fratello maggiore. Inspiegabilmente. Nessuno ha mai creduto alle sue parole. La sua famiglia non si è mai ripresa dall’accaduto e vegeta di giorno in giorno, senza più emozioni e interessi. Nemmeno nei suoi riguardi.
Ma Bryan non è l’unico a conoscere la filastrocca (in effetti è una tiritera che sa tutto il paese), non è l’unico a sentire che qualcosa non va, che qualcosa di misterioso e innominabile incombe sulla città e rapisce i bambini: sicuramente è lui, è l’Uomo Nero che ha steso la sua mano adombrando tutto e tutti.
Altri due ragazzi, Smokey e Jack, hanno vissuto esperienze simili, vivono tuttora le stesse sensazioni e le stesse inconfessabili paure. Il caso li ha fatti incontrare; ora sono in tre e sono insieme.
Il parco, il bosco, le strade, i vicoli, i campi e le case abbandonate sembrano infestati da esseri o cose che si manifestano solo se i ragazzi vi si avventurano mossi dalla sete di vedere e capire, in cerca di una verità che dia loro un senso a quello che è accaduto e che sta ancora accadendo, ma che la gente si rifiuta di vedere.
Il coraggio e un po’ di malcelata spavalderia sono dalla loro parte, l’importante è non credere a tutto ciò che si vede e riuscire a combattere le fantasie più abominevoli e terrificanti che l’Uomo Nero presenta.

”So che non è la realtà. Lo so che non è così, lo so che non è la realtà...” Lo sapeva, ma la consapevolezza non aveva potere, non era sostenuta dalla forza di convinzione. Lo sapeva, ma stava soffocando a morte per la paura...

E nonostante la paura, Bryan accetta la sfida; è l’unico modo per far finire tutto, per far venire alla luce la verità, per riportare ordine, ma soprattutto pace in un mondo turbato dal Male.
E, recitando la filastrocca, percorre i Tredici Passi...

Un romanzo per ragazzi sulla falsa riga del più famoso IT, godibile anche per un pubblico di lettori più adulto (come me...).

3,5 stelle effettive.

________________________________________
🗣 RC 2019 - Consigli (da Stefania)
📚 RC 2019 - Abbatti la TBR -> 44
🤔 RC 2019 - Esimio sconosciuto
📚 RC 2019 - Lo scaffale traboccante
🔠 RC 2019 - Alphabet Titoli-> T
💀 HI 2019 - HC -> Task 29

[Bern · Rating 2 out of 5]

I know what y'all are thinking: weeks neglecting to write reviews and Bernardo picks this stupid book no one has ever heard of to write one about.

Well tough shit for y'all. GET OVER IT (as my geometry teacher yells whenever she reasserts her laziness).

This book had like 184 pages so it's obviously no odyssey,and it's one of those horror books written by people who've never watched good horror movies/read Stephen King novels (the good ones, by which I'm referring to both the good horror movies and the good Stephen King novels. The man is more inconsistent than melting jell-o). But I did like the emotional undertone between the main character and his parents (even though it wasn't deep or anything. It did add layers to the thin plot, though).

So yeah, apparently I'm being southern and parenthesis-y today.

Deal with it, y'all.

God, I'm such a bitch.

[Nina (Death, Books, and Tea) · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's just a game, isn't it. Like one of those skipping rhymes, chants for little kids. A rhyme that predicts how you'll die. But anyway. It's just a rhyme. But not for Bryan. His brother went missing, when playing this game, and Bryan saw the Dark Man who took Adam away. Then Bryan finds two more boys who lost someone, apparently to The Dark Man. Somehow the children of the town are going missing and the Devil's Footsteps chant is somehow tying it all together.
An original idea. Creepy chants aren't common in the world of horror, or at least as main parts in the horror. So it's nice seeing something different.
The writing style is fairly simple, a little descriptive, easy to follow, leaving a fair bit to the imagination. I didn't really like the third person to start with, but got used to it and started enjoying it a bit more as we went on.
The characters are well built up, with realistic reactions and personalities. Bryan you could easily get into the head of, understanding reasoning for actions.
The plot seemed to follow one track with a lot of 'I didn't see that coming's every now and again. It was really fast paced, which was good. The suspense was built brilliantly throughout. You're left to wonder about the Dark Man, what he can and can't do, and so on throughout the book.
I love the climax so much,on the path of stepping stones. It was a great climax, but the very end ie the last chapter, seemed a little rushed for my liking, and disappointing..

There's not that much to say about this book other than it's one you should read if you want something a little different.
Overall: Strength 3.5 rounded up to a 4 to a good piece of horror for the slightly younger audience

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first impression of this book was that it was surprisingly (and conveniently) easy to get into - I was hooked from the start. That's a huge plus for me. It's exceedingly easy to become lost in the portrayed world, and take you from reality. Also a huge plus for me!

I appreciated how strongly the boys felt against the Dark Man and their town; How passionately they wanted people to stop turning a blind eye to the fact that children are disappearing, and their bravery for doing something about it.

The Devil's Footsteps is very fast paced and suspenseful - though I'll admit that at times it could cross over to borderline predictable - it was a very quick read as I couldn't find myself putting it down. I'd recommend this book to anyone that enjoys horror and thrill.

[Justine Naboya · Rating 3 out of 5]

i wanted a quick and easy read, and that’s exactly what this was — bonus points that it’s actually vaguely creepy as well. kind of like a YA version of King’s It, with the small town and mysterious evil presence that feeds on your fear. if i’d read it in my younger teen years, i know that rhyme would’ve stuck with me well into adulthood.

[Bethany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick and spooky! Great book for horror lovers!

[Georgie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely brilliant! Loved how the story's scariest parts all took place in broad, summer daylight. Loved the setting of a small town beset by a dark force, and a group of kids facing it down.
Reminded me of Stephen King's IT - but this is even better.

[Lucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bryan was only ten years old when older brother Adam dissapeared. The police questioned him for hours afterward, trying to get him to give more details on the Dark Man who he said had taken Adam, but Bryan knew even then that the Dark Man was far more than a single human man--he was the embodiment of all nightmares, and he had stolen away his brother.

Now, five years later, Bryan has been reliving the moment when Adam was stolen away in his dreams. He is friendless and alone, with parents who have drifted away in their grief.

And then he meets Stephen and Jake. They have both had their own encounters with the Dark Man, and just like Bryan, they can't let it go. Together, the three of them begin to push back at the voiceless nightmare that has held their small town in silent thrall for over a century--stealing children and forcing the rest of the world to look away.

This book is terrifying. It is what a teen horror novel should be. It's scary, it doesn't pull its punches. It's terrifying not because it's gory--because it's not--but because it goes there. It goes into the place where primeval nightmares live, and nothing is safe. It doesn't do the RL Stine thing where it gives you a cliffhanger chapter ending and then the next chapter lets you down. It just keeps escalating. It keeps getting scarier.

This book is the stuff that real, true nightmares are made of.

Unfortunately, the end is a bit weak. It wraps things up, but a little too easily, a little too pat, a little too quickly--and in once place, a little too predictably. That brings it down from five stars to four. But the rest of this short book is so terrifyingly good that it's still a very worthwhile reading experience for any horror fan.

[Mikayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been wanting to read this book for who knows how many years, and I finally did. I was not disappointed. This is a horror story but it is not gory, or slasher...y. It is the kind of horror that creeps up on you, like flicking off a light at one end of the hallway and feeling the need to run when you are halfway to the other side, like the moment you consciously realize that you are home alone in a house that is almost always full of people; there is a sense of wrongness. You don't notice how scared you are until there is a noise you didn't expect to hear. It isn't terrifying, it is thin layer upon thin layer of creepiness, and that is almost worst.

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book definitely captured my attention. It was a very quick read with a fairly good adrenaline rush. Kind of scary, kind of not, I thought the storyline was very good, and I was pleased with the ending.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

i really loved the poem! But over all it was a good book, i liked it

[Hollow May · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was good, not great. The story automatically took off on first page, no build up. Think of the movie IT because it's basically like that...but something else sinister than Penny Wise the clown ;)

[Karl · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was great, one of my favourite books I've ever read

[Faye Hope · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book was a quick read. I really enjoyed it. A good book to read around Halloween. It was like reading a scary movie.

[aliya]

can you believe i still remember the entire rhyme from this book??? i read it in fourth grade????

[elle (taylor's version) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bryan was ten years old when his brother Adam vanished in the middle of the woods, stolen away from this world by a creature he can only describe as the Dark Man, not human at all but a thing composed of every scary thought and nightmare. Five years on, Bryan is still dreaming of that moment every night and propels himself through each day with no motivation or feeling. Then he meets Stephen and Jake, two teenage boys who have encountered the Dark Man too, and with research discover that Adam was one in a long line of children gone missing and never found. Together they decide that enough is enough, and it is time to uncover the mystery of the Dark Man stealing children and forcing the town to forget.

This was a long overdue re-read for me. I loved this book when I was younger and have vivid memories of reading it in the back of the car, and I still can recite the rhyme that kicks off the whole plot off by heart with ease. I feel like this book has almost been forgotten about, but I still love it even now. It’s a clever pre-teen horror novel that is written well, the kind of scary that is slow and gradual and gives you that intense immediacy feeling, like you’ve all of a sudden realised someone has been watching you for some time. There are very prominent themes of loss and losing one’s childhood as you grow up but they are handled with enough care that I don’t think anyone would really find them to be inappropriate for a young audience.

Honestly, the whole book is essentially a watered down version of A Nightmare on Elm Street crossed with IT by Stephen King made accessible for younger readers. The somewhat more mature reader in me would ask for more development and stronger world building to set it apart from these classics, but I forgive this book those sins because it’s such a fun, quick read that I think a lot of older people would enjoy just as much as children, if they don’t take it too seriously.

[Nick Halliwell · Rating 3 out of 5]

1. I chose this book for a few reasons, one being that I enjoy scary books. Another reason is that I needed one more IR book, and this book and its cover stood out to me in the library.

2. This book is about a boy named Bryan, who loses his brother at a young age. His brother's name was Adam, and he suddenly disappeared with the evil Dark Man one day while they were playing in the forest. Five years after Adam's disappearance, Bryan meets up with two other boys who have lost people to the Dark Man, and they set off to learn the secrets behind the children's rhyming game, The Dark Man, and the actual Dark Man.

3. I enjoyed this book because it wasn't too long of a story and there were many cliffhangers. I wasn't the biggest fan of the ending, although it was overall a decent book. There were several quick scares and there were a lot of really good details.

4. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading scary books or books in general. I say this because it has a very good storyline and it is bursting with details. Also, I would recommend this book because it is a good stress reliever because it is short and it leaves you wanting to always know what will happen next.

[Sugar Free · Rating 5 out of 5]

C’è un pedofilo che rapisce e uccide piccole vittime innocenti ma gli adulti del paese, coloro che dovrebbero vegliare sui bambini, fingono di non vedere. Chiudono gli occhi e si voltano dall’altra parte, lasciando che l’Uomo Nero porti le sue prede nel bosco.
Bryan, il protagonista, decide di mettere fine a tutto questo e inizia con gli amici un’avventura che cambierà per sempre le loro vite.
Questo libro non è un libro per bambini, è un romanzo che dà i brividi, fa riflettere e mette a nudo la fanciullezza violata delle vittime di pedofilia.
Ciò che l’autore reitera, con uno stile davvero fine, è la presenza del buio che nelle menti dei protagonisti rappresenta il male: il buio che si stende su tutto, come una coltre soffocante.
Il romanzo non annoia ma tiene il lettore impegnato fino alla fine.

[Alisha Weston · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book when I was 14 and enjoyed it so I decided to re read it. As an adult I can see why it’s aimed at teens, it’s an interesting story but just lacking a little.
I did find myself feeling spooked when I read it late at night in my bed, but I feel that there are many more great horror books with better storylines.
I liked the ending and how he faced each of the challenges with each footstep, and his family dynamic was interesting and sad to read about. I enjoyed how the mystery unfolded and came to a satisfying conclusion - and it made me happy to see how his family finally cared at the end of the book. I do think it was a bit basic though and could have explored relationships and stories a bit more.

To me the spookiest part was the wolves stalking them, i actually felt anxious reading that!

[Hell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know where I stand with this one.
On one hand it was a fantastic metaphor, on the other hand I wish it had been more than a fantastic metaphor.
I feel like we got a ton of build up to little payoff and rushed endings.
I personally would have preferred for more time to be spent exploring each of the steps and the worlds created around them than Dark Man build up that didn't seem to come to much of a head.
It was very reminiscent of It.
The writing at times also threw me off and I had to reread parts to fully grasp what the author meant or how it was supposed to be phrased.
I dunno, I'd say closer to a 3.5 than a 3, enjoyable enough for a quick read between shifts at work but I wanted more.

[Jude · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book but it seemed like a copy of IT by Stephen King. The characters were different but they went through the same emotional turmoil and even the monster was similar. The fact that no one cared about the missing kids showed up in both books. All in all I enjoyed the book but it was a blatant rip-off of a beloved Stephen King book.ItDevil's Footsteps

[Helena · Rating 3 out of 5]

I grabbed this book from the bookshare in work en route to the hairdressers one day as I’d left my kindle at home. I didn’t realise it was a YA book. The blurb was good and I’d not heard of it before so took a gamble.

Like many of the reviewers here, I did feel it reminded me of It but it is a well written book with some beautiful prose that really paints a picture for the reader. The characters draw you in and it’s hard not to imagine the horrors they experience throughout.

While it didn’t blow me away, I did enjoy the book and will drop it back to the bookshare for somebody else in work to enjoy.

[Danielle Bentley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting storyline, love the idea of legends like this that predict how you die etc but what a disappointment.

It started off quite promising and I was really getting into it but as I read on I got bored. I finished the book in one sitting, partly because I wanted to see what happens and who the Dark Man was but mainly because I didn’t want to put it down and have to pick it up some other time to finish it, the idea felt like a chore. I don’t like putting books down and not finishing them you see.

I’m disappointed to be honest, I was expecting to be spooked and hooked.

[Vevve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Plockade upp denna boken pga den var lättläst + min kompis hade tipsat om den. Det var skönt för hjärnan att få en liten paus

Jag gillade karaktärerna men ibland rörde jag ihop dem säkert ba jah som läste för snabbt xD tyckte vissa scener bara var utfyllnad och kändes som författaren inte visste hur det hela skulle sluta och drog ut på det. :/

Tyckte dock det var bra det här med att föräldrarna var deprimerade efter deras ena son hade försvunnit och Bryan var arg på dem. Den biten var realistisk. Jag tyckte boken var bra förutom att den drog ut på slutet xd

[Rants and Bants · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not bad, not great. It basically read to me like a poor man’s Nightmare on Elm Street/It. It seems I’ve been having this issue a lot with books lately, which is probably why I don’t come on here as much anymore. Man. And I’m usually a sucker for “missing kids/supernatural”-type stories, but I just was bored with this one too. I couldn’t connect to any of the characters, and the random occurrence of the wolves just made no sense to me, nor did the ending. It seemed like it was a super metaphorically-driven kind of plot rather than anything concrete. Oh well.

[Bee · Rating 4 out of 5]

🌟🌟🌟🌟
.
Reading this book was one of the weirdest experiences of my life.
.
This story felt eerily similar to IT. A]The Devil’s Footsteps takes place in a weird small town where the list of missing/runaway children almost outnumbers those still around. Like in IT the adults of this town almost seem to forget or become oblivious to rising number of disappearances and odd happenings.
.
Years after Bryan’s brother dies in the woods while repeating the rhyme that accompanies climbing the Devil’s footsteps, he teams up with two other boys in an attempt to hunt down, solve and stop the Dark Man, who uses your biggest fears to trap and steal you, from taking anymore children.
.
While this story felt a little more than familiar there were some really unique scares, and the energy and pacing of this story was a wild ride!
.
Now, I say this was one of the most bizarre reading experiences of my life because I find myself foggy on some of the finer details of the plot. Not because it wasn’t memorable or exciting. I loved every page… I’m wondering if there is something more sinister at work here, making another adult forget whats going on…..