The Devil Thinks I'm Pretty

by Charlene Elsby

"Explosive and propulsive, The Devil Thinks I'm Pretty proves Charlene Elsby to be a formidable talent. This book will haunt you."—Juliet Escoria, author of Juliet the Maniac“Depraved, stark, and dripping in blood, The Devil Thinks I'm Pretty by Charlene Elsby is an experience that demands to be felt. Unique prose, dark musings, and an experimental structure blend beautifully with the layers of grief and bodily autonomy. In the main character’s labyrinthine mind, readers will find themselves seduced into what I can only describe as a really messed up coming-of-age story (in all the best, gory ways).”—Sara Tantlinger, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of The Devil’s Dreamland"The Devil Thinks I’m Pretty is an astonishing mirage, a novel full of dish soap and restaurant clothes, of summer months and arcane sex, of trailer parks and dishcloths, or cocks and thighs and food processors, fryer grease and the coal-black bodies of Erinyes, of maintenance fees and telephone bills. Elsby taunts and teeters on the rock face of reality and delirium, chaos carnivals where words transmute into data dumps of unreliable memory, into unapologetic rebellion against the literary mundane. A supernatural work of cigarette attitude and wit that shatters the cosmic rollercoaster, a seismic flare-up that left me exhilarated and questioning my own framework of despondency. A welcome addition to the Charlene Elsby manifest. Take a cool walk among the home décor of the Devil, it’s lustful, you’ll quite like it."—Shane Jesse Christmass, author of Belfie Hell"Unlike Plato's realm of eternal forms, which he associates with the sun, Charlene Elsby's Devil lurks in the solar eclipse, in the eternal shadows that undergird existence. A bildungsroman unlike any other, The Devil Thinks I'm Pretty had me laughing out loud & deeply disturbed. Through surgically precise prose, Elsby conjures a lean & mighty novel set in a trailer park full of memorable characters, devilish disruptions, & a plot that thickens towards an unforgettable finale. I read it in one sitting."—Logan Berry, author of Run-Off Sugar Crystal Lake"As the unnamed narrator of Charlene Elsby’s The Devil Thinks I’m Pretty so wisely observes, “We do define people according to what’s been done to them, not what they’ve done.” There are those who fuck, and there are those who are fucked. There are performers and there are objects. And at the center of it all, like the brilliant, blinding core of a burning star, there is the image of Marilyn Monroe, whose beauty belonged only to those around her. With intense and direct language, Elsby reminds us that corrupting forces are always at work, howling mockery at our very desire to be loved."—David Peak, author of Corpsepaint

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Horror Thriller, Adult

182 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 13, 2023

Reviews

[Janie · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first book by Charlene Elsby. What was I waiting for? I loved the writing, so bitingly intrepid, with a knife's edge of experimentation and of wit. You just know that the worst is yet to come, yet offer yourself to the author's dispassionate lack of mercy, and feel the threat of execution long before the matches are lit. I'm gutted.

Thank you for the buddy read, inciminci!

[inciminci · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elsby really sets a benchmark on how to build suspense in The Devil Thinks I'm Pretty. From the first page to the breathtaking finale, apart from a few breadcrumb clues, the reader has practically no way of guessing what this book is essentially about and where it leads; a coming of age story, four friends messing around, the privation of a girl on the margins of society, vice and evil, or all of the above... The wait pays off, I can tell you so far.
Outstanding.
Thank you Janie, for buddy reading with me. It won't be my last Elsby book.

[thevampireslibrary · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you haven't read any of her work, why? I bang on about it all the time what is the hold up babe 😠 one of the most talented unique authors in horror today, everytime I try to write a review I feel whatever I say doesn't do the book justice, this is one of my favourites so far, told in a dark and disturbing stream of consciousness style this was a highly addictive read, who was our unnamed protagonist and what the hell was going on, it was all pretty innocuous in the beginning..untill it wasn't😅 however there was a sense of dread and unease from the start that had me on edge, themes of beauty and morality are explored, I loved the ambiguity of this, is it a twisted coming of age story? Is it possession? Is it supernatural? THIS WAS SO GOOD, I always feel like my IQ raises after reading an Elsby book, clearly a highly intelligent woman(queen, goddess amongst mere mortals) and this shows in her writing and I feel I absorb tiny bits of it like a little leech

[Emma E. Murray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely beautiful and grotesque and perfect.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my 2nd Elsby book. This is like a fever dream in a trailer park that I didn't know what was going on, but enjoyed the story a lot.

[Cleo · Rating 1 out of 5]

We have got to stop selling boring books as experimental horror

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

"She always said that she would use a gun if she did it, but she lied. She was too concerned about staying pretty. What men thought. If I told her what she looked like dead, she would have been so embarrassed."

This is a highly experimental horror novel, that leans fully into being a novel of vagueness and subtlety. Reading The Devil Thinks I'm Pretty is like watching the precession of the dead, you simply cannot peel your eyes away from such a horrific sight. It's a really rather difficult novel to review, because, what even is this book? Is it a hyper messed up coming of age story? Is it the end of the world, is it possession? Is the devil of these pages real or purely metaphorical? For all of these questions we're fed nothing more than a tiny trail of breadcrumbs. Regardless of the conclusion you arrive at, one thing is clear, this novel is entirely without mercy. It's brutal, unforgiving and soaked in pure cruelty.

There's a captivating yet extremely depressing bleakness that shades this entire thing, it's absolutely gutting, it's completely and utterly obliterating and is one of the most harrowing reading experiences you'll ever get. The Devil Thinks I'm Pretty is a highly intoxicating read, there's just something about it that makes it impossible to stop. It's almost beautiful, how feral and ghoulish of a novel this is. The whole thing is entirely ambiguous, even as the book propels us towards its sickening conclusion, we're left in the dark. The only honest way to describe this novel is to say that it's an acid trip and a fever dream in a trailer park of a rotting town, everything is all so intense and grotesque and completely awful.

"You think that if you're in with the devil, you'd get something out of it, like money and a nice place to live, people to like you even if they don't like you. So then I look around my trailer and think that if the devil were in me, I'd be better off than I was."

There's a ton of violence to this story but, instead of relying upon the gratuitous and shocking to deliver a fantastic experience, The Devil Thinks I'm Pretty is so very nuanced and complex, there's almost a gorgeousness to the way the violence is handled. As a novel it's as enthralling and barbaric as it is surreal and erotic, it even leans into an almost Bataillean edge. A deep, dark pit of existential dread consumes the pages of this novel as it bridges the gap between grit-lit and horror with philosophical musings. If trailer park horror isn't already a genre, it should be, and this should be the genre defining book - it's a pure work of art, it's absolutely fucking unnerving, it's the kind of book that will leave you reeling for breath, it's the kind of book that will linger in your mind for months after it's over.

"I thought of how if someone died, I would miss them, even if I'd killed them. How it's possible to now lament what hasn't yet been destroyed, because it will be destroyed and I will have a hand in it. Change is inevitable. Becoming rules being. And I am the source of its movement."

[Marc Nash · Rating 4 out of 5]

Five stars until the last 20 pages or so.

Video review https://youtu.be/kGbqnvBMq5o

[Benoit Lelièvre · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the most difficult Elsby novels I've read so far.

Charlene Elsby is a difficult writer by design. Her unreliable narrators loves to distort time and blur sequences of events. The Devil Thinks I'm Pretty is her most Bataillian work to date, centering its themes around sex, desire and the mixing life drive and death drive. All of her novels err towards horror, but this one actually bridges the gap between existential and all out horror. I didn't think I could be freaked out by an author I know the work of pretty well, but I was! Well worth digging into if you like the coarser, more literary stuff.

[Paige Kohanski · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a TRIP but one well worth taking!! The writing style was insanely unique and had me sucked in from the very first page. The ending was INSANE.

[Emily Kulesza · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rounded up from 2.5 stars. Not what I wanted this book to be. Had some shocking scenes, but I wasn’t a fan of the overall storyline. At least it was a quick read.

[Sasha Antonakakis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Literally couldn't put it down. The prose flows so well, that I could just travel through her thoughts effortlessly. Even if I hadn't cared for the rest of the book (how could I not love it of course), the last thirty-six pages would be worth the price of admission alone. Those were some of the most fascinating and thrilling pages of a book I've read in a long time.

"Change is inevitable.
Becoming rules being.
And I am the source of its movement."

[Josette Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am at a loss on how to review this book. It was different than anything I have read. Reading about the corruption of so many souls was unnerving. There were many references as to how our bodies are connected to our souls. There were some squeamish parts that I had to breathe through. This book really made me think. This is one of those book that stick with you for awhile.

[liss · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reading “The Devil Thinks I’m Pretty” felt like pulling teeth.

It’s as though someone tried to make Jennifer’s Body into a white-trash, edge-lord’s wet dream — and made it worse.

The main character has about as much personality as a wet sock, and her idea of wit is almost as boring as her day to day life. The first one hundred pages are the exact same thing, over and over. Work, school, sex, “I’m so edgy”, “The devil wants to fuck me”. What kind of horror even is this?

There has been NO build up toward anything even remotely chilling or off putting, and the main character is so annoying that it’s hard to feel any sympathy or mesh with her at all. She’s a bitch, and she thinks she’s so cool that it’s giving me second hand embarrassment.

All of the characters lack any depth — I know more about how horny MC is than I know about anything else, and I was looking for a psychological thriller, not a smut novel.

Feels like one of those booktok books — porn with plot. Can we go back to writing things with some actual fucking meaning please? I don’t care if someone’s dick is throbbing, or if she wants to tear his clothes off with her teeth. Fuck my life.

Some professional reviewer said this book is “an astonishing mirage”. Get a grip. “Depraved, stark and dripping in blood” WHERE. Such a shit read. If you’re looking for any kind of horror, I assure you the only horrorshow you’ll experience is the boredom of trying to get through 200 pages of this wank-fest.

[Katie Underwood · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this one more than I did.

Surrealism meets Indie horror meets classism meets possession (I think?)

An ultra slow burn, but almost *too* slow of one. Still not quite sure if this book is about female rage, possession, demons, or all of the above.

[Jan Stinchcomb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Darkly beautiful and highly disturbing. If trailer park is a genre, this book is the apex.

[Lauren Moser · Rating 3 out of 5]

Originally wanted to give this 3 stars because the spiral into delusion was so slow at times the book felt like it dragged on. In hindsight, the ability to create such a gradual spiral into delusion and make it hard for even the reader to notice until it’s too late is really cool.

A fun horror read of a teenage girl who believes she has the devil in her.

[Miranda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a disturbing read, but also very delicious. I love the way that Elsby will just tie our narrator's deluded inner thoughts as she is going about her everyday business. I think an excellent book to partner with this is Come Closer by Sara Gran. It's always great to read a descent into madness.

[the_bfp · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid little literary horror novella that toes the line between psychological horror and body horror and does some interesting things with prose.

I thought the narrator and Bridget were particularly interesting characters, the boys less so. I also thought that it could have ended at the climax rather than going for a few more scenes. But all in all, I thought it was well written and engaging, and I enjoyed reading it.

[Ben Russell · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I asked her if she was ever afraid of the monsters, and she told me no, in fact, it made her sad when, at the end, the monster would break apart and turn back into the people she knew.”

This was my first Charlene Elsby book and immediately became a fan. Her blunt, yet complex and experimental style is beautiful. As someone who grew up in the rural south, I instantly became immersed in the trailer park atmosphere, reminding me of the many late nights I spent smoking cigs at the diner wondering what lives the other customers and workers led. From the very beginning you can tell the narrator has something sinister in the works, but nothing prepared me for the insane body horror screen play finale.

[Madison McSweeney · Rating 5 out of 5]

A horror novel about class, cruelty, and loss of innocence as sharply observed as it is revolting. Elsby occasionally reminds us of her protagonist’s humanity, even as the girl is trying very hard to abandon it.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

destroyed me.

[pk]

did not quite hit the way i was hoping, will be rereading in a few months

[Palindrome · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm giving up on this one. Nothing interesting happens, and I'm 40% in. Too many books I know I'll enjoy.

[Whitney · Rating 3 out of 5]

What the fu…
So boring then the last few chapters were so weird. Like a hit and run that leaves you questioning what just happened.

[Mindy Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

our unnamed teenage protag never gives us the details of how she came to know the devil, but she drops hints that they are quite well acquainted as she very straightforwardly narrates her life; high school, boys, fucking, a dead mother, a shitty diner job in a shitty trailer park, and the utter, yet loving, complete annihilation of a human being. this was gorgeous and brutal and blunt and funny and vicious and disgusting and really i don't think i've ever read anything else with a female protag that made me feel quite the way this has. the culmination of the book was one of the most fucked up, horny, sickeningly flawless romps of luscious nastiness that i've ever read. charlene, you are my hero. to tempt potential readers, here are a few lines that struck me as i was making my way through the book-

"we looked at knives, and i saw the look in his eye when i said i was going to use mine on him someday, not scared, never scared, just thrilled by the thought of doing something new, something literary, blood for aesthetic purposes."

"you're the world to me. i told you. i meant that before you, the world was something else for me, the things in it all borrowed. someone else's things that i was using for a while."

"more flies came up, and i coughed. i tried to cough as hard as possible so the contractions in my throat would kill them. so they'd go straight down the drain and not fly into the other room, where my friends were. it's polite to deal with one's own infestations."

shit, dude. 5/5, highly recommend.

[Maddis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Closer to a 3.5

A sort of machiavellian romance story. The narrator is a twisted girl, who is restrained by her circumstance and constrained by her flesh. What she is missing-- or what she is waiting to embrace-- is this titular 'devil'.

Mild spoilers:
This devil appears to be represented as the connectedness of objects, objects which may not otherwise have any actual connection. Arguably nothing is connected at all, and any connections we seek are manmade often for the purposes of categorization. IE, not real-- it is the nothing that the narrator and Vincent discuss. It is this devil that connects her to her flesh, and is what connects her to environment. That is until, it appears that this devil takes over, which was tactfully executed through the medium shift of a snuff film script

My main complaints in the book generally lie in the presentation of information, which can sometimes read as being too direct and explanatory. While some of the main ideas in the book leave the reader to ponder, its presentation of information appears a little patronizing to the reader (such as the inclusion of these parentheses, to further explain information which could otherwise be surmised by an observant reader). I was also disappointed in the ending, which I feel did not carry the tour de force that the pages just before it did. Too rushed, too little payoff, and a little cliche.

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I truly love Charlene Elsby. I am also very honoured that she has been willing to send me many of her books directly, this being one of them.

The main character resides in a trailer park and works at a diner while going to school. Her interests are dark, her experiences are generally negative due to being lower class, and her mom is dead. Every step of the way, this girl is finding herself noting down those who wronged her and reaching into the ether for a perceived devil that haunts her existence and sways her decisions. As the girl grows in experience, she develops relationships that delve into the psychosexual. The wickedness that surrounds her spreads to others like a disease. The really intriguing part is where some of the others she comes into contact with bring their own plaguing darkness, and amongst themselves they swap evil like spit until their malformed ideals align, or misalign.

This book is written very well. It claws at you and begs you to pay attention to it. Don't miss out on Charlene Elsby's works and this is one hell of a place to start if you are new to her art.

[Aspyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m not even sure I know how to review this? And I’ve also stopped writing reviews for the most part but I just feel like I have to say something about this one. First and foremost being, what the fuck?

I read reviews about people saying that it was slow, and it dragged, which I agree with - however, I couldn’t stop reading. I had no clue really what was going on or where the story was going. I couldn’t even find an actually description of the book’s story anywhere… just the quotes in the back describing it.

I could tell I was in the head of someone with lots of, well, let’s say, issues. But I really had no clue what was going on… still don’t. I feel like I have so many questions.

- Is Vincent the devil? If he was the devil, who was she referring to before chapter 10?
- What do the stanzas at the beginning of some chapters mean? Who are they by?

Anyway, I started really enjoying it when Bridget came in… and you know the rest. I can’t entirely tell how I feel about the book, hence the 3 star rating. But I will definitely give another one of her books a try. Thanks for reading my ramble.

[Noelia · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an intriguing, chaotic, and quite disturbing read! I don’t think I really understood some parts but I kinda liked that about this book. Is it supernatural, is it possession, is it just plain old craziness? Or maybe it’s just feminine rage at society and at the roles we have to play? Wtf was real?! I’m still trying to figure it out! 😳

The narrator made me cringe in utter disgust sometimes …and other times, she was so relatable that I was very uncomfortable lol. One way to describe the narrator would be: a girl on a quest to be loved, to be saved 🙈 (and I’m low-key cackling at myself rn because it sounds so innocent but it’s *really* not).

Charlene Elsby has a voice that reminds me a bit of Ainslie Hogarth’s Motherthing or Stephen Graham Jones’ My Heart is a Chainsaw in the sense that it’s a sort of “stream of consciousness” style. So sometimes, I found myself a bit lost in what was going on—which I liked at times, and at other moments, I just wanted answers.

Sometimes, I just wanted to close my eyes and wish for a happy ending! The dread was real in this book.

On a related note, I’m super excited to check out Hexis and Psychros now by this same author. Those have been on my TBR for forever lol