The Devil's Best Trick: How the Face of Evil Disappeared

by Randall Sullivan

Part true crime story, part historical account, part religious and literary analysis, an investigation into how humankind has identified and confronted evil through the figure of the Devil from acclaimed journalist Randall Sullivan How we explain the evils of the world – and the darkest parts of ourselves – has preoccupied humans throughout history. A sweeping and comprehensive search for the origins of belief in a Satanic figure across the centuries, The Devil’s Best Trick is a keen investigation into the inescapable reality of evil and the myriad ways we attempt to understand it. Instructive, riveting, and unnerving, this is a profound rumination on crime, violence, and the darkness in all of us.  In The Devil’s Best Trick , Randall Sullivan travels to Catemaco, Mexico, to participate in the “Hour of the Witches” -- an annual ceremony in which hundreds of people congregate in the jungle south of Vera Cruz to negotiate terms with El Diablo. He takes us through the most famous and best-documented exorcism in American history, which lasted four months. And, woven throughout, he delivers original reporting on the shocking story of a small town in Texas that, one summer in 1988, unraveled into paranoia and panic after a seventeen-year-old boy was found hanging from the branch of a horse apple tree and rumors about Satanic worship and cults spread throughout the wider community.  Sullivan also brilliantly melds historical, religious, and cultural conceptions of from the Book of Job to the New Testament to the witch hunts in Europe in the 15th through 17th centuries to the history of the devil-worshipping “Black Mass” ceremony and its depictions in 19th-century French literature. He brings us through to the “Satanic Panic” of the 1980s and the story of one brutal serial killer, pondering the psychology of evil. He weaves in writings by John Milton, William Blake, Oscar Wilde, Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville, Mark Twain, and many more, among them Charles Baudelaire, from whose work Sullivan took the title of the book. Nimble and expertly researched, The Devil’s Best Trick is a meld of the historical breadth of preeminent historians Elaine Pagels and Karen Armstrong and the true-crime propulsion of Patrick Radden Keefe and Michelle McNamara. Randall Sullivan, whose reportage and narrative skill have been called “extraordinary” and “enthralling” by Rolling Stone , takes on a bold task in this book – essentially crafting, from over a decade of research, a biography of the Devil.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Religion, True Crime, Audiobook, Theology, Christianity

352 pages, Hardcover

Published May 14, 2024

Reviews

[Hannah Greendale (Hello, Bookworm) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Darker than expected and somewhat problematic. Proceed with caution.

Watch my BookTube video featuring books with Satan & demons .😈



"I felt convinced of three truths. The first was that [...] there was a Devil. The second was that I did not want to know him. And the third was that I already did."

The Devil’s Best Trick is non-fiction that blends true crime and literary history to chart how evil and the Devil have been portrayed in historical, religious, and cultural contexts across centuries.

The book opens with some unsettling stories of inexplicable events that launch readers into a story of true crime surrounding a teen boy's mysterious death. This story is peppered throughout the first half of the book (and revisited in the final pages) and had me riveted.

Sullivan occasionally pauses the true crime narrative to explore how evil and the Devil appear throughout history, ranging from Mesopotamian or Egyptian gods and religious texts to 19th century literature and the satanic panic of the 1980’s. These passages are brief yet dense, and I especially enjoyed reading about how the Devil took form in various works of classic literature.

In the second half of the book, Sullivan shares an unsettling anonymous letter he received in the mail while writing this book, then he writes about a couple serial killers he had to look into at various points in his career. This portion of the book is very graphic and upsetting, despite Sullivan being discreet.

Finally, Sullivan shares his time spent in Mexico exploring the history of the Aztecs and researching witches and black magic. Then he circles back to the true crime mystery to bring the book to a chilling conclusion.

Why is the book problematic? Because in researching it, Sullivan went to Texas and he went to Mexico, and he concludes that Mexico is "the epicenter of the Devil’s power on earth."

TW: If you’re sensitive about SA, murder, child abuse, or animals being harmed, be warned that it’s all in here, so proceed with caution.

The Devil’s Best Trick is not a flawless book. It covers a lot and can feel disjointed at times, but it’s nonetheless fascinating and undeniably makes for a super creepy read.

I'd like to extend my deepest gratitude to the good people at Grove Atlantic for sending me a copy of this book after I requested it.

[Nati Paso · Rating 1 out of 5]

Randall Sullivan's "The Devil's Best Trick" presents a historical exploration of the devil, yet it fails in its execution due to its baseless and offensive claims about Mexico. As a proud Mexican, I am appalled by Sullivan's assertion that Mexico is the epicenter of evil. This unfounded and prejudiced statement not only misrepresents a vibrant and culturally rich nation but also perpetuates harmful stereotypes.
Sullivan's time spent in Catemaco, Veracruz, a few short weeks, is insufficient to understand the complexities and nuances of Mexican culture and history. His hasty conclusion that Mexico is where the devil lives is a gross oversimplification and a disservice to the rich traditions and resilient spirit of the Mexican people. Such an irresponsible claim has led me to petition the Mexican consulate to bar this man from ever visiting Mexico again.
Moreover, Sullivan's narrative conveniently ignores the significant role the United States has played in the rise of cartels and violence in Mexico. Decades of demand for illegal drugs in the U.S. have fueled the power and proliferation of these criminal organizations. Additionally, lax gun control laws in the U.S. have allowed for the smuggling of firearms into Mexico, further exacerbating the violence. It is not Mexico's inherent nature that has led to its current challenges but a complex interplay of economic, political, and social factors, many of which are influenced by its northern neighbor.
The author also attempts to link human sacrifices by the Aztecs to the presence of the devil, a claim that is not only historically inaccurate but also culturally insensitive. Human sacrifices were practiced by various ancient civilizations worldwide, including certain cultures in Europe and Africa. To single out the Aztecs is to ignore the broader context of pre-Christian rituals across humanity. Such practices were not exclusive to Mexico and certainly do not serve as evidence of an inherent evil in Mexican culture.
Historically, human sacrifice has been a part of many ancient societies, often conducted for religious or ritualistic purposes rather than as a testament to evil. Understanding these practices within their historical and cultural context is crucial rather than using them to malign a particular group of people unfairly.
In conclusion, Randall Sullivan's offensive and baseless claims about Mexico overshadow any potential merits of the book. His lack of cultural understanding and sensitivity is glaring, and his narrative does a disservice to the rich and diverse heritage of Mexico. I strongly discourage anyone from reading this book.

[Bill Wallace · Rating 1 out of 5]

On the first page of this vile little volume, the author, attending a convocation of witches in Mexico, offers a remarkable sentence, describing the apparel of the man conducting the ceremony while wearing the “skin and fur of an anteater.” He writes: “The anteater’s bared teeth rested on the man’s forehead, its long tail trailing down his back.” By the time I got to the end of the book, I understood that a man who believes in anteater teeth will believe any kind of nonsense.

A rambling, disorganized mélange of amateur scholarship, satanic panic muckraking, and credulous religiosity, THE DEVIL’s BEST TRICK is occasionally entertaining in the same way an issue of the old WEEKLY WORLD NEWS was, especially one of those issues that featured the skull of Satan or the devil appearing over various landmarks to indicate their badness. I was reminded more than once of Maury Terry’s sensational volume THE ULTIMATE EVIL, but Terry is a better, or at least a more entertaining writer.

I picked this up from the library because I’d read a review describing it as a crazed history of the devil, which is a fair take that doesn’t mention the pathetic insistence that the devil is real and the subtext that implies the Catholic church is the only thing that stands between him (which I should capitalize and write upside down, the way the author does) and mankind. We get a rambling, vigorously pro-pope history of the church’s view on evil through the centuries, including mild disapproval of witch persecutions and the inquisition, a long, pointless exploration of a possible cult murder in Childress, Texas at the peak of the 80s hysteria over heavy metal and other sins, and an account of the most famous “real” exorcism in US history (recorded entirely by devout Catholics, of course). There’s also a scathing denunciation of Mexico as the true home of the devil. Thank god those conquistadors did their best to suppress it!

The problem of course with a book like this is that the rising tide of fundamentalist bullshit in this country feeds on gullibility and a book like this, told with pious assurance and published by a respectable press, leads us one step closer to the theocratic world a vocal minority of our fellow citizens want to bring into being. It doesn’t hurt that it tacitly supports walling off those wicked devil-worshippers to the south. Maybe the Atlantic Monthly Press can follow this one up with a revised edition of the Malleus Maleficarum, a useful tool now that we know who our real enemy is.

[Krystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Narrated by Lane Hakel
Presented by Dreamscape Media

Wow this was riveting! I'd happily listen to it again.

There's a lot in this, but it's very well put together. It discusses a broad range of topics that feature evil and the Devil, but it keeps things neat and tidy on delivery. It's bookended by the author's personal experience in Mexico with the "Hour of the Witches" ceremony, and tied together throughout with the story of Tate Rowland and his mysterious death, thought to be linked to cult activity.

I was absolutely fascinated with the main story, and will definitely be looking for more information on the murder! I also really enjoyed the discussion of evil/the devil in literature (fancy that) and thought it was really well researched.

It covers such a broad spectrum and at times I did zone out a little (particularly when it was heavily religious) but that said there were also a lot of times I had to go back because I'd missed something.

The narration was fantastic - presented really well, clear and easy to follow. It kept me entertained and, as mentioned, I'd easily listen to it again. I do feel this is one that would convey more on a second read, so I'll probably look at getting a physical copy if I can.

A fascinating look at the subject material. Well written and cleverly structured. I'd highly recommend it to anyone interested in the subject material.

With thanks to NetGalley for an audio ARC

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

[I received a free audiobook copy from Dreamscape Media and Netgalley. This review is done freely, honestly and without payment]
[Ich habe ein kostenloses Hörbuchexemplar von Dreamscape Media und Netgalley erhalten. Die Rezension erfolgt freiwillig, ehrlich und ohne Vergütung.]
Thank you! <3



(DEUTSCH WEITER UNTEN)


Oh, difficult.
I think the book had a lot of potential, but somehow it wasn’t fully explored for me. Maybe it just took too many „wrong“ turns.

You definitely get a rough overview of the history of the devil, but it’s difficult to squeeze so much human and religious history into just one book.
I think I would have put the foreword, in which the author talks about his own encounters with the devil and how he came to write the book, at the end. As it was, I simply went into the whole thing with a rather biased view. The author already seemed to me to be very sure of his opinion and not open enough about the subject matter.

We start the book with two different timelines. One is the time of the Satanic Panic, where we enter into a criminal case, and the other is the story of the devil, which began much, much earlier. This goes on for a few chapters and the switching between the timelines kept throwing me off the flow of the book. Especially because the narrative styles are very different. Sullivan describes the more current and also personally experienced things very informally and the historical aspects (from earlier times) are more reminiscent of a real specialised book. These two different styles really bothered me.
Also, in one scene, the appearance of a woman in Mexico is described in an unnecessary and sexualised way. Also how Sullivan had to stare at her again and again because she was so beautiful. (What is that doing in a book like this?!)

Later, the timelines became one and we actually only followed Sullivan’s report on his experiences in Mexico, which I found very one-sided. Definitely exciting, but too much focus on just ONE thing.

In my opinion, this book wants too much. I would have liked more detail on various points and less on others. I think the book is somehow suitable for a rough overview (if you want to prove the existence of a devil/being), but if you want to delve deeper into different topics/epochs, you should look into other works.

I also miss more current statements from people (perhaps also religious people) who don’t believe in the devil. All in all, I found it very one-sided.
I expected an objective book, but somehow didn’t get it.


Englisch audiobook:
Lane Hakel did a wonderful job and kept me engaged as much as possible. Hakel’s voice was clear, the pace was pleasant and the audio itself was flawless.
If you are interested in the book, I highly recommend the audiobook.


(DEUTSCH)


Hach, schwierig.
Ich denke, dass das Buch viel Potenzial hatte, aber irgendwie wurde es für mich nicht ausgeschöpft. Vielleicht wurde auch einfach zu oft „falsch“ abgebogen.

Man bekommt definitiv einen groben Überblick über die Geschichte des Teufels, aber so viel Menschheits- und Religionsgeschichte in nur ein einziges Buch zu packen ist eben schwer.
Das Vorwort, in welchem der Autor über eigene Begegnungen mit dem Teufel und wie er zur Thematik des Buches kam, erzählt, hätte ich, glaube eher ans Ende gesetzt. So bin ich einfach recht voreingenommen in die ganze Sache eingestiegen. Der Autor wirkte auf mich bereits sehr sicher in seiner Meinung und nicht offen genug der Thematik gegenüber.

Wir starten in das Buch mit zwei verschiedenen Zeitsträngen. Einmal die Zeit der Satanic Panic, wo wir in einen Kriminalfall einsteigen und dann noch die Geschichte des Teufels, die viel, viel früher begann. Dies geht einige Kapitel so und das Switchen zwischen den Zeitsträngen hat mich immer wieder aus dem Fluss des Buches gebracht. Vor allem auch deshalb, weil die Erzählweisen sich doch stark unterscheiden. Die aktuelleren und auch selbst erlebten Dinge beschreibt Sullivan sehr umgangssprachlich und die geschichtlichen Aspekte (von früher) erinnern mehr an ein richtiges Sachbuch. Diese zwei verschiedenen Stile haben mich doch massiv gestört.
Auch wird in einer Szene das Aussehen einer Frau in Mexiko auf unnötige und sexualisierte Weise beschrieben. Auch, wie Sullivan sie immer wieder anstarren musste, weil sie ja so schön war. (Was hat das bitte in so einem Buch zu suchen?!)

Später wurden die Zeitstränge zu einem und wir sind eigentlich nur noch Sullivans Erfahrungsbericht in Mexiko gefolgt, was ich doch sehr einseitig fand. Definitiv spannend, aber zu viel Fokus auf genau EINE Sache.

Meiner Meinung nach will dieses Buch zu viel. Zu verschiedenen Punkten hätte ich mir mehr Details gewünscht und zu anderen weniger. Ich glaube, für einen groben Überblick (wenn man die Existenz eines Teufels/Wesens beweisen will) eignet sich das Buch schon irgendwie, aber wer genauer in verschiedene Thematiken/Epochen eintauchen will, der sollte zu anderen Werken greifen.

Auch fehlen mir aktuellere Aussagen von Menschen (vielleicht auch religiösen Menschen), die nicht an den Teufel glauben. Alles in allem für mich doch sehr einseitig.
Ich habe ein objektives Buch erwartet, aber irgendwie nicht bekommen.


Englisches Hörbuch:
Lane Hakel hat einen wundervollen Job gemacht und hat mich, so gut es ging, am Ball gehalten. Hakels Stimme war klar, das Tempo angenehm und der Ton an sich war astrein.
Wer sich für das Buch interessiert, dem kann ich das Hörbuch wirklich nur ans Herz legen.

[Sharon · Rating 1 out of 5]

CW: animal abuse, animal death [this book opens with scenes of graphic animal abuse and murder, proceed with caution], antisemitism, islamophobia, violence, suicide, description of injuries, colonization, xenophobia, cannibalism, violence, gun violence, kidnapping, sexual violence, sexual assault, rape, (minor) drug abuse/drug trafficking, (implied) homophobia, (implied) transphobia

THIS BOOK MADE ME WANT TO SCREAM (in a bad way 🙃)
This review is written from the perspective of a Reform Jew who has studied cultural anthropology at a collegiate level. Judaism is not a monolith and I don't speak for all Jewish people.

My first criticism is that I would argue that this book relies on a false premise to make its points - that being that Judeo-Christian is a phrase that means anything. Because not only does it not, it has become a shorthand for the supersession of Christianity over Judaism. Essentially that, because of Jesus, Judaism is defunct.
While this book never states that directly, its opening interrogation of a professor of Jewish studies teeters dangerously close to such ideology. (Forgive me for not being able to pull up his name - I listened to an audiobook so I can't scrub the text for it.) Sullivan spends an entire chapter attempting to interrogate the Jewish concept of Satan, only to be told by said professor to stop trying to make sense of God. Because the Jewish interpretations of God are, I would argue, significantly different to the current Christian view.
There was, of course, a focus on Satan/the Devil/the Root of All Evil™/etc. as presented in Jewish theology. While Satan may have been an important element of second temple period Jewish ideology, guess what! We've been out of the second temple period for over 2,000 years! Jewish theology has evolved significantly. There is no focus on satanic figures in most of the current American Judaism that I'm aware of. And I spent 12 years at a Jewish religious school. The most Satan I got was from watching Supernatural or being handed Chick Tracts by religious freaks who wanted to harass non-Christian children.

And then we jump to another religion, Islam, that does have more of a focus on capital E Evil discussed in this book, only for it to be dismissed by the author because it doesn't make sense within the theology he's been taught. Make it make sense.

My second criticism is the formatting. Who organized this book? It's extremely confusing and disjointed, jumping back and forth between historical theology, true crime, questionable suicides, the Satanic panic, and then extremely racist and xenophobic descriptions of Mexico, as well as some very questionable colonial apologetics.
It should have started with the author's personal stake in this (that he converted to Catholicism in 1995 while reporting in Bosnia) and used the true crime and Satanic panic as a frame for a conversation about religious belief in a deity of evil vs the secular thoughts. There you go. There's a book.
That actually was the book I thought I signed up for so I certainly would have had a better time.

Lastly, but more than certainly not least, we have the second half of the book.
About the modern portions, all I have to say is 1. to claim any single country is the "heart" of all evil on Earth is gratuitous and smacks of racism and 2. it's okay to say you don't understand a religion without saying it's demonic.

As for the Cortés portion...
1. Genuine religious belief does not excuse colonial behavior or mass violence.
2. Judging other cultures by social moral codes is acceptable. Judging other cultures by moral codes imposed by YOUR religion that is not their religion is not.
3. I am baffled by some of the sources referenced about the historical actions of both Conquistadors and the Aztecs. I was dissatisfied by the analysis presented and would like to read more on my own - because as far as I was aware, human sacrifice and elements of cannibalism were widely accepted parts of the cultural and religious practices of the Aztecs, but the Spanish also committed acts of mass murder, sexual violence, and slavery. So as far as I'm concerned it sounds like a great time to not be there.

Overall, a very unconvincing and disorganized exploration that is biased towards a Catholic world view. And when I want that, I'm just going to rewatch Evil.

Side note, this is a Storygraph review that I loved and would recommend reading it.

[Henry HW · Rating 1 out of 5]

This “history of Satan”, is racist, ahistorical, and horrifically organized. Worse, because of a few absurdly surface level reviews that treat this disaster of a book and argument as a fun spooky story/ interesting historical exploration, left learning NYT, Atlantic etc. readers are eating it up. In order to back up my harsh words I’ll point to the end of the book, where Sullivans absurd inability to look past his own ideology and failure to engage with basic historiography (already looming increasingly large through the books second half) became most apparent and offensive. Following chapters where he implies that there may be some credence to conspiracy theories that the Satanic Illuminati/ Masonic lodges have had an outsized/shadowy role in dictating world affairs, he moves bizarrely to the Spanish conquest of Mexico. Immediately after making light of historians tendency to look for what they want to find in history, he spends chapter after painful chapter implying that Aztec gods were avatars/representatives of Satan. Beyond the absurdity of this assumption, he continuously DEEPLY misrepresents Aztec civilization, and its conquest by the Spanish. While acknowledging that he is relying more than is the current vogue on Spanish sources (instead of indigenous ones) it’s clear he was completely unable to read them with any critical eye. As soon as his summary of the story starts he’s framing Aztec society as evil, and making excuses for Spanish massacres of “crazed” civilians. These excuses run counter even to sources contemporary of the conquest, which saw these massacres as brutalities. If he had any more than cursory knowledge about the world in which the conquistadors lived, he would know that it was a common and well established tactic of the Spanish at this time, popularized during the reconquista and imported with genocidal effect to the Caribbean, to use massacres of civilians to inspire terror and demonstrate military might. This is not a controversial argument but an established fact, and despite his clear lack of acquaintance with it, no one familiar with studies of this period would argue its veracity. Most absurd of all, of the many examples that could be listed from this section of the book, was his off handed remarks that it was in Tenochtitlan, upon being bribed by the Aztecs, that the Spanish began to hunger for gold. Sullivan here is attempting to shove this piece of history so fiercely into the mold he wants it in that he managed to erase from his mind the constant and overt references to the conquistadors desire to make their fortunes, coming even before landing on the continent. The incredibly famous words of Cortez himself “we Spanish have a sickness of the heart only gold can cure” must have blown right by his head, either through horrifically negligent research, or a lack of ability to process or store any information that could add nuance to this story. No, instead to Sullivan it was Aztec corruption that infected the god fearing righteously guided conquistadors. Insanity. And why must he avoid nuance in this story of the conquest of the Aztecs? To support is utterly INSANE conclusion, that Mexico was and is, exceptionally linked to Satanism and Satanic practices. Rambling and out of no where as this books conclusion in Mexico is (most of it being spent in the American south, the Balkans, the ancient Levant, and Western Europe) the only slack I can cut Sullivan is that he was clearly having some trouble finishing it. Having worked on it for a decade and at one point referencing how he deleted 200 pages after receiving an anonymous letter he clearly assumed to be from Satanists, the best I can do is find some sympathy for a man who may have lost a bit of his mind working on an over ambitious project he was obviously under qualified for. The fact that people, educated “coastal elite” type people, have managed to read this book and missed its crushing inaccuracies, adoptions of racist colonial tropes and language, and utterly out of this world overtly racist completely disconnected from reality conclusion is not surprising, but like this book, a disappointment I should have seen coming. (Old racist) Journalists should not try to write history, and you should not read “The Devils Best Trick”.

[Audrey Approved]

Ok I told myself I was going to push through and finish this one, but I'm at 60% and find myself constantly checking to see how much of the book I have left to finish (5.5 hours in audio)... so DNF it is!

I was really excited for The Devil's Best Trick! The blurb sounded so good, albeit pretty ambitious (so much breadth promised, and even a comparison to Patrick Radden Keefe) - but whoever wrote the book description did Sullivan dirty because this is wildly boring and has none of the intricate storyline weaving and humanistic reporting that I find characteristic of good narrative nonfiction. At the 2/3rds mark, there are three main storylines - a religious and literary history of the Devil that spans hundreds, if not thousands of years with pretty rote regurgitation of events, dates, names and quotes (this part is incredibly dull), a small amount of time on the author's own experiences/relationship with the Devil, and an inordinate amount of time on the 1988 murder of a Texan teen. The latter events were the impetus for the 1980 Satanic Panic which I first learned about in All the Lies They Did Not Tell, and is by far the most interesting part of the book, but reads like some sort of true crime podcast. Unfortunately I feel like The Devil's Best Trick tried to do so much it ended up feeling like multiple books in one, and I've lost interest in reading any of them...

I do think the cover is fantastic.

I got my eARC from Netgalley and Grove Atlantic Press.

[lizard · Rating 2 out of 5]

EDIT: After a few months of brewing on this book and considering how I’ve recently felt about others with similar offenses, I have altered my rating and review.

Justin Martyr, early Christian philosopher and brief character in this book, is described as saying: "The worst evil of all, is to say that neither good nor evil is anything in itself, but that they are only matters of human opinion."

This is, to some extent, what this book grapples with. What, or who, is the Devil? What is, or who embodies, good and evil?

This book is split into two; it's getting four stars from me because the first part was five-star worthy, and the second part was, simply, not: it was so good, it set itself up for disappointment later on. The first part was half murder-mystery, half the evolution of Abrahamic (Jewish into Christian, with one mention of Muslim) theology on the devil. Buddhism and Hinduism were mentioned briefly, but not enough to characterize the subjects as anything but Abrahamic—which, of course, makes sense. This is about a uniquely Abrahamic, as this book shows, Christian entity.

The beginning portion of this book I enjoyed deeply, I learned a lot and was kept on the edge of my seat to find out what would happen next, alternating between vignettes set in a dusty town in Texas' panhandle—scene to a horrific death or two—and recalls to theologians, philosophers, and writers, from B.C. to the 1900s with a stop-over in discussing Freemasonry and the Illuminati. Plus, one very very creepy letter Sullivan received.

Still, the second half was uniquely interesting (and horrifying) to me, given that one of my interests has been Meso- and Central-American pre-colonial histories. The author travels to the "witchcraft capital of Mexico" to learn about the population's interactions with the devil, and witness their annual Black Mass. On the way, however (and featured more heavily in Appendix A), Sullivan makes some curiously opinionated statements about the Aztecs and the remaining native populations and traditions. Suffice to say, he's not an Aztec fan; he doesn't think their gods (and, more importantly, their gods' demands for human flesh) deserve some sort of cultural respect. Coming off the heels from reading Camilla Townsend's Fifth Sun , I was a bit caught off guard.

I like books that teach and engage me, in whatever manner that may happen. This book very much did that, with the added bonus of having less dense moments in the form of true crime tales, those expressions of evil we're all most familiar with, as opposed to Romantic philosophy on the subject. But not only did it lose that fascinating quality in the second half, it got straight up xenophobic.

ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

[Janalyn, the blind reviewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Devil‘s Best Trick, how the face of evil disappeared by rattle Sullivan from exorcisms to demonic rituals even satan worshipers rattle Sullivan covers it all invent some. Despite the title almost makes you believe Satan is real and around the corner he has some truly astounding firsthand accounts of things that rattled him (A little pun intended.) he even goes into the Bible to discuss what it has to say about evil The ancient Greeks in much much more this is one of the best books I have read in a while he has written some really good books but this one is truly awesome with no stone unturned personal in public events are documented in this book and it is just so good there’s even an interesting True Crime story out of Texas that when he first started talking about it I thought it was all made up by teens there’s so much in this book and way more than I can put in this review just know it is a great book and if you’re into the macabre and things on the darker side of life then you will definitely enjoy this book. Trust me when I say there are some truly astounding accounts in this book that are all validated in one way or another and it leaves you awe struck. I haven’t even mentioned the great narration by Lane Hacklel he has a perfect voice for this informational type reading and I thought he did a brilliant job. I want to thank Dreamscape media for my free arc copy via NetGalley. Please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

[Alex Strohschein · Rating 3 out of 5]

'The Devil's Best Trick: How the Face of Evil Disappeared' is a really odd book to review. It could have been two completely separate books but, like any scintillating case of true crime, Randall Sullivan leaves readers on a cliffhanger of suspense as he juggles between the suspicious deaths of a young man and his older sister in small-town Texas, a sweeping history of a being or idea (the Devil, depending on your interpretation), and a journey to Catemaco, the heartland of witchcraft in Mexico.

I trust Sullivan more as an investigate journalist than I do as a historian. He traces the emergence of the Devil from antiquity up to the present, examining the Devil and the demonic in Christian Scripture, the writings of the Church fathers and medieval theologians, and how evil was addressed during the Enlightenment. Some of his explanations (for instance, of realism vs. nominalism) strike me as too shallow and simplistic to be adequate.

In the second half of the book, Sullivan turns his attention to Mexico. He chronicles the conquest of the Aztec Empire by Hernán Cortés. This was the most compelling part of the book for me. Whereas today's historiography sharply condemns the West's colonial forays across the globe, Sullivan soberly explicates just how brutal and cruel the Aztecs were, both as overlords of other indigenous peoples in Mexico as well as their insatiable hunger for human sacrifice to appease their pagan gods. My hypothesis has always been that whereas in the 21st century in the secular ("secular") West, the Devil is best served by being hidden, in the Majority World and in times past, it was to his advantage to reveal himself as a supernatural rival to God. Could it be that it was the Devil who demanded from human beings human sacrifice and all manner of other terrible vices? Certainly, other peoples like the Canaanites and Assyrians practiced human sacrifice but when it comes to considering the West's colonization of the Americas, anti-colonial activists and critics rarely mention the merit that was stamping out human sacrifice among Mesoamerican civilizations.

Related to this is the fascinating figure of Bartolomé de las Casas. Sullivan credits Las Casas with the "revisionist" account of the Cholula massacre where "3000 armed warriors" were killed by the Spanish in battle (even though Las Casas lived from 1484-1566) whereas Cortés claimed his forces attacked to prevent an ambush he had been warned about by his consort Malinche (who in turn had been warned by the wife of a Cholula soldier). Sullivan writes:

The central revisionist version of what happened at Cholula was published thirty-three years later by the Spanish Dominican friar Bartolomé de las Casas, who was thousands of miles away when what he called "a massacre" took place. According to Las Casas (an opponent of slavery and an advocate for native peoples - a well-meaning man, but not an entirely credible witness), Cortés decided shortly after arriving in Cholula "to organize a massacre...in order to inspire fear and terror in all the people of the territory." While the Cortés/[Bernal Díaz del Castillo] version of events held sway for hundreds of years, the Las Casas story began to be preferred by twentieth-century historians (especially south of the border), inclined as they were to see all indigenous peoples of the Western Hemisphere as innocent victims and Europeans as a murderous invading force (pp. 209-210).

When I first heard of Las Casas I was pleased to discover a Christian advocate for the rights of indigenous peoples all the way in the 16th century and while this is indeed laudable, Las Casas also went so far as to defend the practice of human sacrifice among Mexico's indigenous peoples (see the Valladolid debate). At one point in his life, while he vociferously opposed enslaving America's indigenous peoples, he did not have the same qualms about enslaving Africans (though he later also came to condemn African slavery as also wrong).

Sullivan travels with a bodyguard/translator to Catemaco in Mexico, notorious for its ties to witchcraft and sorcery, and meets those who have connections to "brujeria." Many reviewers of this book castigate Sullivan for this section of the book and while it's true his telling is rather condensed and narrow, I think it demonstrates the naivete of secular Westernizers to discount the reality of supernatural evil that lurks in dark corners of our world.

All in all, a hard book to rate because it feels a bit too loosely connected. Besides the account of the Spanish conquest of the Aztecs, I was most drawn to the true crime sections of the book and the ending of that narrative was rather lacklustre. I would like to read 'The Devil's Best Trick' in conversation with Andrew Delbanco's The Death of Satan: How Americans Have Lost the Sense of Evil.

[Margaret Gipson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This wins the award for the weirdest book I’ve read this year! The historic and literary survey of Satan was my favorite part, the true crime element was my least favorite. Still, it was interesting to read about some of the reasons for the “satanic panic” I remember vaguely from childhood. A few of the stories he tells from crime reporting felt unnecessarily grizzly and upsetting, and there have definitely been times in my life when I would not have continued reading. I thought the travelogue sections were going to be a complete eye-roll but in the end I was riveted and couldn’t look away long enough for a single roll.

This feels a bit scattered and it could have used a stronger central thesis, but it also kept me reading, scared my socks off, and gave me lots to think about.

[Krista | theliterateporcupine]

DNF at 22%. I really struggled to find the point of this work since there wasn't a defined thesis. The more I listened, the more the jumps from a random teenager's death to the ancient philosophers jarred my reading experience. I was hoping there would be more of a cultural and religious discussion on the Devil, but it seemed more biographical in nature and meandering in discussion.

[Will Haslam · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the better books I’ve read. It probably resonates with me more than some because I’m a religious person. He blows wide open the devil’s most effective and insidious lie, which is articulated in the Book of Mormon as follows:

“others he flattereth away, and telleth them there is no hell; and he saith unto them: I am no devil, for there is none—and thus he whispereth in their ears, until he grasps them with his awful chains” - 2 Nephi 28:22.

[Bill78624 · Rating 1 out of 5]

Perhaps your interest in this book was stirred by the review in the New York Times, which concluded: "This book will doubtless be made into a television show, and this is the rare case where that’s good. I wouldn’t watch it; just reviewing the book has me petrified. Reading it, I was once again 12 and alone in the house." This is utterly outlandish, a devilish trick of sorts inspired by the book's title.

As a long-time professional book-reviewer, I can report that sometimes a book we are asked to review is such a mess that a tongue-in-cheek, over-the-top response seems to be the only alternative to penning a scathing review. If you really want to know what you are in for with this book, let me recommend the far more accurate review that appeared in the Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/...

[Lex]

This book was truly all over the place and there were basically no connections made between the three different storylines the author centered on. He jumped between the murder of a boy in Texas to religious beliefs regarding the devil to a very racist take on Mexico essentially being the root of all evil.

I’m biased for sure because I’m myself Mexican but it’s bold as hell of him to argue that Mexico is an evil country because of the fact that Aztecs practiced human sacrifice. A shit ton of society’s practiced human sacrifice so to pin that as a reason as to why Mexico is evil and the home of the devil is truly out of pocket.

He had some good points in there but he doesn’t know how to tell a story and jumped way too much around.

[Girard Bowe · Rating 2 out of 5]

I came for the exorcisms, but left for the pedantry. Too much historical analysis of the devil presented in an unstructured fashion. Sullivan also interleaves throughout the book the story of a 1988 teenage suicide in Texas, which had Satanic undertones. As tragic as this death was, there is no proof of Satanic activity, just teen-agers dabbling in Anton Szandor LaVey's The Satanic Bible and a credulous populace.

The best part for me was at the beginning when Sullivan describes an exorcism he witnessed. Otherwise a boring read. It did get me to rewatch The Usual Suspects, so all was not lost.

Oh, and Sullivan misuses the word "obviate" - twice (who's the pedant now?!).

[Chaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmm. Some parts I enjoyed, and I was fascinated by the deeper dive into different religious theologies of evil. As a book, though, it didn't quite work. Confounding logic, sweeping generalizations, and a stilted narrative made it a harder read than expected.

[Caroline Angell · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was initially excited to receive a review copy of this book. I’ve taught classes on the Devil in literature and have a lifelong fascination with the subject. Humanity’s attempts to make sense of its own darker impulses are eternally relevant. Sadly, that is not the topic of this book. The author is no historian or scholar—or even a credible journalist. His oeuvre includes books on the Oak Island treasure pit, Masonic conspiracies, and other topics you might find on the shelve alongside pyramid-building aliens and Bigfoot. The marketing of this book is more deceptive than any trick up old Beelzebub’s sleeves. What you’ll find here is a scattered blend of ignorance, paranoia, bad writing and worse research, outright misinformation, and blazing, unvarnished bigotry. Seriously. It’s wild encountering a mainstream book this unabashedly tone deaf and racist in the twenty-first century. It’s mind boggling that an editor read and greenlit this. Sullivan writes unencumbered by critical thinking, reflection, or the basic tenets of writing that one learns in their first high school English class- using credible sources, backing up claims with evidence, considering opposing views, avoiding straw man arguments, etc.

Every nonfiction writer comes to the page with their own biases and beliefs. Standard practice is to disclose them to readers right off the rip. Sullivan does nothing of the sort, halfheartedly framing himself an impartial observer, though his agenda becomes apparent immediately.
 
Rather than reflecting critically on the Devil hysterias of the past (the Satanic Panic, witchhunts, etc), the author perpetuates the same hysteria and intolerance of difference that led to these atrocities. The book opens with a lurid tableau of a Black Mass ritual in Mexico, which Randall and his bounty hunter sidekick were invited to attend for his research. The local participants are painted as exotic, menacing savages straight out of the Temple of Doom. On page 6, Sullivan characterizes Latino men as pedophiles, while sexualizing the teenage participants in the same breath (he describes the young women as possessing “that combination of soft, childlike facial features and a nubile brown body that seems to be the ultimate aphrodisiac to many Latin men”). Eww.

Not sure why I read further after this point. I guess a morbid curiosity about how far this dumpster fire would spread. The book is wrapped around a true crime narrative about a teen’s suicide in the 90’s with supposed occult underpinnings. Though he criticizes the McMartin preschool scandal and some of the era’s other embarrassments, Sullivan actually falls prey to all the Satanic hysteria. The stories always begin with a quiet kid in scary black clothing coming to town. Terrifying! His sidekick shares her own hilariously sensationalized account, straight out of daytime TV. A quick Google search of the case reveals nothing whatsoever of the sort, apart from a few speculations on dubious horror-themed blogs and podcasts. In fact, many of the claims made throughout the book can be debunked by a brief Google search. Sullivan boosts his journalistic credibility even further by flirting with antisemitic Illuminati conspiracy theories. The only remarkable thing about the book is the author’s ability to so thoroughly embarrass himself in so few pages.
 
Sullivan gets distracted from the book’s supposed purpose. He is more interested in attempting to prove the existence of a literal God and Devil with horns (a task that has eluded far greater minds for centuries) and launching ad hominem attacks against anyone that doesn’t share his narrow belief system. He cherry picks only Christian scholars with a literal biblical interpretation to back up his pseudophilosophical babble and calls upon extreme degenerates like the Marquis de Sade to prove why atheism is bad. He claims “Sade is the legitimate outcome of true atheism.” In Sullivan’s toddler logic, the only options available to a person are Christian fundamentalism and being an unhinged sexual predator, apparently. He recounts the deathbed conversions of Oscar Wilde and Baudelaire with a sneer, dutifully trotting out the tired old “atheist in a foxhole” cliche. Perhaps the most outrageous quote in the book (though boy there is stiff competition) is Sullivan’s assertion that “Moral relativism is even more destructive to social order than Christian dogma.” Tell that to the millions who were tortured and burnt at the stake over the centuries, bro.

Sullivan isn’t concerned with such victims, though. He wrings his hands over the problem of evil at length, the existence of serial killers, how anyone could commit terrible acts of violence. Surely only the supernatural could be responsible. On the terrible violence of the Spanish Inquisition, witch hunting, colonialism, or slavery, however, he wastes little breath. Less than a footnote. The author’s empathy doesn’t extend beyond white Christian Americans.

I finally hit my breaking point when he framed the infamous conquistador Cortes as a misunderstood genius and the thousands of Indigenous people he slaughtered as inhuman cannibal savages. I thought we as a species had moved beyond perpetuating ahistorical racist tropes to justify all the atrocities committed by Europeans in the name of greed, but I guess I was wrong. Sullivan takes it even further, pushing back against the pushback against the racist tropes: “Revisionist histories have challenged the Spanish version of events, largely relying on theories supported by weak evidence and a determination to vilify Cortes and make the Aztecs into a great and misunderstood civilization.” When I read that sentence, I was speechless. Never mind that every civilization has practiced human sacrifice, even the beloved Vikings. Or that all these supposed accounts of the “sheer horror of the Aztec sacrifice rituals” were conveniently written by the very people who were r*ping and murdering them. There can be no reasoning with a person who sees nothing wrong with the extermination of an entire race of people. No conversation. Nothing.

Real demons abound on every page of the book. Colonialism. Misogyny. Groupthink. White supremacy. Yet the author willfully avoids any sort of cultural criticism or analysis, choosing instead to fret about a scary goat-man with horns. Ludicrously, he even attempts to blame the Ku Klux Klan on Satanism (kind of difficult to imagine these bearded old Confederate guys running around sacrificing goats under a full moon), conveniently ignoring the group’s ties to Christian evangelism. Sorry bro, it wasn’t Satan. It was racist old white dudes like you.

It would all be hilariously stupid if it weren’t so damn sinister. Misinformation is patently dangerous. Violence against these groups is very real and ongoing. Once you strip away a person’s humanity and transform them into a monster, you can justify anything done to them. When I envision the demonic, this is what I see: tears shed over a white teenager’s suicide and frosty indifference to the massacre of millions in the same breath. I see the elaborate mental gymnastics required to maintain this level of cognitive dissonance. I see a scared little man flailing for a sense of control in a world where people unlike himself exist. That indeed, is the definition of Hell.

[BJ Richardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars rounded up. Randall Sullivan is a journalist turned author who cut his teeth exposing corruption and crime in LA. In 2007, he published a book investigating how the Roman Catholic Church went about investigating the lives of potential saints. In that book, he chronicles how this investigation led him to faith. This book is the counter to that one. Here, Sullivan sets out to explore the idea of Satan, a being of pure evil.

In the early chapters, Sullivan recounts an investigation of a case that was ruled a suicide in late 80's suburban Texas. Chapters of this case alternate with chapters exploring the history of the belief in evil and, more specifically, an Evil One. As both of these lines move closer to the present, Sullivan transitions to a detailed history of the Spanish early encounter with the Aztecs, whom they believed to be devil worshippers. While I agree that modern revisionist history has gone too far in one direction, Sullivan overstates his case believing too uncritically Cortes and crew's rationalization of their actions. The Aztec culture was clearly evil, but not necessarily evil for evil's sake.

Sullivan also brings up the witch trials that morphed into a literary craze for Black Masses in the 18th century, the famous 1928 exorcism of Emma Schmidt, and brujas in Mexico from the 1970's to the present. In this last one, he recounts his trip to Catemaco in ways that allow his hatred for Mexico to seep through.

Sullivan shares throughout this book how his belief that the devil was more a concept than a real person (or being) was shaken but not ultimately shattered. He sums up: No matter who or what the Devil was, believing in his or its existence didn't make me feel any less responsible for my own numerous failings and countless sins. I believed the Devil was to blame, but I knew I was. And only because I knew my own guilt had I arrived at a conclusion that was truly terrible: I did indeed hold the door he hides behind.

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Devil's Best Trick is an interesting exploration of the question of the existence of personified evil (i.e. Satan/The Devil). Sullivan discusses the history of the Satan figure as well as his investigations into modern day evils.

Disclaimer: While intriguing and informative, the book does include descriptions of horrible evils that are difficult to read.

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Randall Sullivan frames The Devil's Best Trick with a question: Is Satan real or is evil simply a facet of human nature? The first two-thirds of the book deliver a theological and philosophical analysis of Satan, interspersed with true crime stories. By unspooling personifications of evil literally and figuratively, Sullivan sets up an exciting premise.

Unfortunately, it falls apart in the final third of the book. Sullivan recounts a Black Mass he attends in a jungle in Mexico that is beautifully written and inarguably unsettling. He also interviews descendants of notable brujos which again, compelling, as the author never disputes the existence of occultists. However, this travelogue, along with a rehashing of Aztec rituals from the 1300s, are used to prop up the author's surprising — and nebulous conclusion — the country is ground zero for Satan. What?

The book's sudden shift to an undercooked, geographic explanation for evil not only undermines its central thesis but comes across disrespectfully. That being said, its first half is worth a read for its thought-provoking exploration of paradoxes and similarities between religions about good vs. evil.

[Cassidy A. · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF and also a rant:

Honestly They Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrigue’s does a better job of considering this topic, despite his fictional book not even being about it, than Sullivan does. And it is short and sweet and funny and nuanced and it even deals with the cannibalism.

I was hoping this would be an interesting look into how evil has been presented throughout history, and it did do a bit of that, but it also is essentially Christian focused and culminates in framing Aztec and Mexican religiosity as an epicentre of devil worship at the time of first contact which is not only a blatantly Eurocentric approach (which I am sure Sullivan loves people pointing out as he seems to find contextualizing historical and religious information to be “woke,” preferring instead to base his views off of vibes he feels, or the accounts he trust because they come from Christians, or something - no one tell him that people of other religions have also accounted experiencing similar evil as he did in Bosnia and Herzegovina and interpreted it within their own framework of evil) but also fails to recognize a motivation Cortes had for exploring the new world which was not just conquest but also finding more people that could be relocated as slaves - maybe that is not devilish enough idk, or maybe it is but only when POC and/or non-Christians are doing it? Idk.

Sullivan uncritically accepts the Castillo account of the Cholula massacre and condemns other accounts despite there being several, some of them constructed with input from Cortes and others on the expedition, and letters from Cortes indicating a “preemptive assault.” Additionally there are even first hand accounts that vary. He appears unwilling to accept historical expertise when it counters his view but will accept it when it means choosing a version of the story he finds more favourable(hence he accepts the primary source indicating 2,500 dead but not the one indicating 20,000).

What did evil mean to a people that relied on slavery? How did that differ between members of the Christian religion and Mayan and Aztec religion? How did this differ across cultural groups considering religion was diverse in the Americas at the time of contact? (And if you can’t answer these questions because you don’t have the sources then you could not just make shit up). All fascinating question that you cannot expect answered here.

All in all Graham Hancock and Sullivan could probably bond over their selective condemnation of academia and the scientific and historiographical approaches that inform good study of the past, and constant reevaluation of information with new evidence.

[Kimberly kimlegacyh Huff · Rating 3 out of 5]

It feels impossible to rate this book. The premise is compelling; the execution is perplexing. For the first 2/3 of the book, I would have given it 5 stars for its research, history, and quality of writing. I would have given it 3 for its organization, which is “loose.” I did enjoy the varied sections, including the theology, history, true-crime-“podcast” feel, and personal analysis. However, Sullivan fell short in weaving those together at the end. I would have given it 1 star for most of the last 1/3 of the book where he goes off the rails by making some pretty egregious claims about Mexico and its people. I actually wanted to punch Sullivan in the head for some of the things he wrote. Ultimately, I’m glad I read it, but the last 1/3 ruined what could have been a fantastic book!

[Colin Thomas · Rating 2 out of 5]

Never decides if the devil is real or not. Or I guess maybe decides the devil IS real and I find that hard to stomach in a book that also is claiming to reporting.

Has a few weird obsessive moments it follows that feel unlinked to the topic of the devil. Long and graphic section about serial killers. Lots of discussion of the Aztecs.

Some interesting history, but with a nonsense spin and a suspect agenda.

[Matt Allen · Rating 2 out of 5]

While interesting in parts and informative, I cannot believe that this book was what the author intended to publish. It feels like the real book was chucked in the bin and two thirds of it was replaced with an academic study of the history of the devil. I don’t mind this, and I found it very interesting, it just feels like a different book. The rest of it is a story of the 80s satanic scare told from the perspective of murder and suicide in west Texas that may or may not support the authors central premise, that Satan is real and among us. Sprinkle in an ultimately fruitless trip to find Brujos in Mexico, a weirdly inserted history of Aztec human sacrifice and Spanish conquistadors that seems intended to lead the reader to the conclusion that Mexico is the Devil’s playground (shockingly racist), some true-crime serial killer content, and good old fashion Catholic exorcism, and you get a weird, thin gruel of opinion regarding the nature of evil in our world.

To be fair, the author received a letter that apparently scared him off of writing what he, stated in the book, originally intended. But nothing more is really said about the letter (which may or may not have come from the Devil himself) or its origins. That would have made a truly interesting book. As it stands, the authors states in the last sentence: “”I did indeed hold the door He (printed upside down) hides behind. And the only thing worse than throwing it open was leaving it closed.” Maybe throwing it all the way open would have been dangerous but as it stands I do not feel it was thrown open nearly enough to create the impact the author intended.

[Kathy · Rating 1 out of 5]

During his time covering the Bosnian war the author converted from atheism to Catholicism. What followed was an examination of evil on earth and a desire to prove the existence of the devil. There are some interesting bits about Satan’s appearances as a character in the Bible, in philosophy, and in literature. But Sullivan is hell-bent (forgive me) to prove Satan’s earthly existence - perhaps to explain wartime atrocities - and he tells woo-woo stories, including the appearance of a well-dressed scary man snaking through a Roman crowd making eyes at him. A large segment of the book is about a teenage suicide (or was it a satanic sacrifice???) that is lifted almost verbatim from the Texas Monthly article available online. And don’t get me started on drawing satanic conclusions from Aztec sacrifices and the Mexican drug trade.

Sorry, I’m not convinced of the devil’s existence. I think all hell on earth is derived from human activity rather than something supernatural.

[Seth Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Actual Rating 8/10

Although dense at times, particularly when it comes to historical figures, dates, movements, etc, Sullivan threads three separate pieces of narrative together in a natural, entertaining, and thought provoking manner

1/3 of the book details the evolution of how the Devil, or evil itself, has manifested itself throughout culture, history, and religion. The second 1/3 details the case of Tate Rowland, a supposed suicide with potential occult links, along with several accounts of human embodiments or acts of evil. The last 1/3 is more personal and reflective, with the author venturing into Mexico to observe the Hour of the Witch and discover more about the indigenous Witchcraft, brujería.

Well put together and engaging, would highly recommend whether your interests are in religion, history, or the occult.

[Chloe Eaton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Léo Taxil is an icon

[Reggie · Rating 1 out of 5]

The devil’s best trick was getting me to read this book! What a mess, and not helped by the author claiming that Mexico is where the Devil lives. Truly a mixed bag and a premise with huge holes.