Trading Bullets with the Devil

by Kirsten Cross, Mark Steensland

"You saying you forgot?"

"Forgot what?"

"The promise you made at Al-Qa'im. Anytime, you said. Anywhere. No questions. You'd be there."

"You can't be serious."

"Without me, you're a five-year old pile of vulture shit in the desert."



Former Marine Rebecca "Beck" Tibbet needs help.

Her ex-husband has taken their daughter to live with The Lightbringers.

But what seems like a harmless bunch of Jesus Freaks is actually a devil-worshipping doomsday cult bent on igniting Armageddon.

And with less than 36 hours to go, Beck must reassemble her squad and lead them on one last mission, deep into the cult's hideout in an abandoned gold mine, where she will soon be...

Trading Bullets with the Devil



Published as a trade paperback and eBook



"TRADING BULLETS WITH THE DEVIL is a smart occult thriller that doesn't let up for a second. Highly recommend!" --Kevin Lucia, acclaimed editor and author of THE HORROR AT PLEASANT BROOK



"Steensland and Cross land a knockout punch that is guaranteed to put the reader flat on their back." --Wesley Southard, award winning author of CRUEL SUMMER and WHERE THE DEVIL WAITS





MARK STEENSLAND self-published his first book while in fourth grade and has been telling stories ever since—some of them true. He became a professional journalist before graduating high school, writing about movies for such magazines as Prevue, Millimeter, and American Cinematographer. He holds a bachelor's in film studies from UC Santa Barbara, a master's in creative writing from CSU Sacramento, and an MFA in screenwriting from Chapman University. His award-winning films (including Peekers and The Ugly File) have played in festivals around the world. His first novel—Behind the Bookcase—was published in 2012 by Random House. A movie based on The Special, a novella co-written with James Newman, was released in October 2020. He most recently wrote Jakob's Wife, starring Barbara Crampton.

Kirsten (Kes) Cross has reached her fifth decade and hasn’t quite worked out how the hell that even happened yet. She spends her days in a little cottage on Exmoor in Devon with roses around the door (no, really) writing web content to pay the bills while she builds up a bespoke jewelry business. In between, she writes the occasional scary-as-all-heck stuff and has been a regular contributor to SNAFU from the very first outing. Her story, “Sucker of Souls” was included in the Emmy award-winning Love, Death & Robots. She has no idea how that happened, but says it was fun being sprinkled by a bit of Hollywood magic. When not writing or making shiny things, she spends the rest of her time travelling around the country on her beloved British Army Armstrong motorcycle, occasionally stopping and pointing at the scenery for no apparent reason.

Genres: Horror

Kindle Edition

Published December 10, 2024

Reviews

[Kate Victoria RescueandReading · Rating 4 out of 5]

“One sound unites mankind. One sound is present at birth. At death. And at all points in between. A heartbeat. It’s how we know we’re alive. It’s what binds our spirit in this world, and the next.”

This awesome cover by Marc Green is immediately captivating! I was intrigued once I saw it, then the authors’ synopsis ensured this book had its claws in me!

Once started, I was not let down; I loved the fast paced action in this story! You’re immersed right away in a war with demons and the unholy, and the thrills only ramp up as the plot unfolds.

A group of ex soldiers, Beck, Gabriel, Carver, and Velasquez, gather to fight a dark cult who have kidnapped Beck’s daughter. It’s a race against the clock as their lives, souls, and the fate of the world come up against Legion.

“That was the nature of the job. You play stupid games with Hell, you win stupid prizes. You trade bullets with the devil, you end up getting hurt. That fucker’s a good shot. Almost as good as Beck. Almost. But not quite.”

I really enjoyed the characters, the events that unfolded, and the resolution at the end. It kind of felt like this was Book 2 in a series, as a lot of past events are referenced, I think those could’ve been clarified a bit more in this story. I would’ve liked to know more about the main characters’ backgrounds (how DO they know how to fight monsters?). I also couldn’t figure this out (maybe I missed something?): the squad is trying to rescue Cathy, but have no info on the Armageddon plans the Lightbringers have spoken about. Suddenly, there’s a shift with the main characters and they all seem to talk like Cathy is integral to the evil plot, like they’ll potentially stop the end times by rescue ing her? I just didn’t understand where this idea/knowledge was coming from as neither Reid or Pete said anything about that. Also why did they want Kip back so badly?

Thank you to the authors & Cemetery Dance for a copy!

[Milt Theo · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Trading Bullets with the Devil" is blockbuster supernatural cult horror at its best: Beck, Gabriel, Carver and Velasquez, former marines forged in the fires of battle in Afghanistan and each other's ride of die, go against the satanic cult of the Lightbringers - a group of demonically possessed satan worshippers, one of whom, namely Beck's ex-husband, has brought their young daughter, Cathy, to the cult. Beck calls on her friends to help her save Cathy - and hellish mayhem ensues. The book is full of non-stop action, entertaining scenes of shoot 'em up combat, but also great moments of friendship, tons of vulgarity and banter, though very little gore.

The plot is easy to follow and the characters are compelling: Beck proves to be a hothead, Gabriel is now a monk, Carver is the sweet giant of the group and Velasquez is the friend who will always stick by your side. The book has some great visuals, it's like a Die Hard movie with very strong vibes of the TV series "Supernatural". The authors keep dropping hints about the squad's past adventures and nightmarish trips to Hell (literally!) - setting up the background story for a group of professional monster hunters, I for one would be happy to see again!

If you love military horror with a strong dose of the supernatural, then this is the book for you!

[Bookaholic__Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

That cover is legit nightmare fuel!! I loved this story. It had great pacing and excellent characters and was overall super unique. Military horror definitely isn't a genre that I read much of at all, but I was pleasantly surprised with this and enjoyed it.

I received a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

[Alison Faichney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, fast paced read. The book is heavy on action and is easily a story that could be adapted into a movie. There’s few lull periods in the story and our characters are constantly dealing with new challenges.

I did wonder if this was a sequel as there’s clearly a significant history between our four main characters: Beck, Velasquez, Carver and Gabriel. I’m not sure if they’ve been featured in another story, but this is one that could be expanded into a series. The characters have good chemistry and I would love to get dragged back into their world as it seems like a fascinating one with a cornucopia that of evil.

The pacing is solid and while the book does have an occasionally corny quip, the dialogue felt true. If the book had been longer additional dimension would’ve really benefited our characters. We’re given their basic details and personality cues but never get to see what created these individuals.

If you like fast paced supernatural action, this is a solid horror entry with some military-esque vibes. I haven’t read anything by these authors prior, but would love to check out some more of their work.

[ScarlettAnomalyReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Snagged this as an ARC from the publisher, CD, so thank you !

Its heavy on the supernatural aspect and i enjoyed that, i tend to read more, its the evil inside that does you end.

This was a nice little , group bands together to save one of their own, in this case the daughter of Beck, whose idiot ex has decided to fuck around with a cult AND involve their daughter.

I thought this being in the military vein , there would be a ton more gore, and honestly I didn't really think about it too much, but then again, the story was incredible, and that's what my brain focused on.

This was a really solid story of old friends, the promises they make to each other, actions, and how the fuck to beat a crazy ass cult.

Recommend this one, especially if you are looking for a little more military horror and a little less everyday people getting sucked into things.

[Josette Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Any time a book’s premise is that of possession it is a must read. When the opportunity to read and review this book came up, I snagged it quickly. The book starts off with surveillance discussion then we find out about the team that must save Cathy from a devil worshipping cult. All the members of this ragtag group are former military. These people have seen the worst of humanity so they are the perfect group to go after a end of the world cult. What they are not prepared for is how easily people can be possessed by this entity. The battles are gruesome and the reader can feel the terror and hopelessness the victims feel when taken over. This book was a different take on possession and I enjoyed every page.

[LZW · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this! It was much different from the horrors I normally read (I feel there isn’t a lot of military x paranormal books out there) coming off the end of my favorite show The Lioness….Beck so reminded me of Jo from the show! I love a badass chick how is down for everything to safe the ppl she loves! This was so so good, I could see it being a series of them hunting down satanists around the globe! I definitely want more of their lives!!

[Lauren Fitch]

DNF @ 20%

[MeroWana · Rating 1 out of 5]

Trading Bullets with the Devil
October Edition of Twisted Retreat

I soooo wanted to like this book. The beginning was kind of promising, the middle was a struggle to get through, but I powered through with the hope that the epic demonic battle I was promised at the end was some crazy, action-packed, kickass fight scene. It was not. It was far too cliché, and apparently, everything is solved with the Holy Water they were just carrying up their ass this whole time. It was unrealistic, and that is a wild thing to say about a book with demons. The supernatural aspect was underbaked; they didn't bother expanding on the possession, the Big Bad Boss had maybe three total pages where he made an appearance or was mentioned, and had no dialogue. It gave me nothing to be scared of.

A startling amount of the military speak was incorrect, and the damage was unrealistic. Several 'mushroom' clouds were created in explosions that just wouldn't have the umph necessary firepower-wise with the materials listed. When I'm reading a 'blended' universe, I would hope for the real-world portion to stay as such.

Also, they killed the guy who arguably had the most personality and character development in the entire story. R.I.P Kip, you will be missed.

[Jensen McCorkel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is very fast paced and full of action from the start. Its written like an military action sequence, not really a horror. Because of this writing style there is no real depth to the characters and the world building is not really there so it was hard to become immersed into the story. It felt like I was being told a story not actually being in a story. This story is an action packed, fast paced story that never dives too deep. It leans on typical tropes like doomsday cult and time limited rescue missions which can make parts of the story a bit predictable. Overall this was just not executed as well as I would have liked but if you are someone who enjoys military tactics and a fast paced, high adrenaline story, this might be right up your alley.

[Tomasz · Rating 2 out of 5]

A cheapo effort (OK, "effort" should be taken very loosely here - more like "basic writing competence" and "not giving a wet fart about sense or continuity"), this is a pile of shoddy action sequences thrown together without much in the way of, uh, idk, character creation, plot logic, basically whatever except the possessed whaling on our valiant protagonists, until holy water comes for the rescue. Surprisingly boring for all the sound and fury. Not recommended.

[Brianna ♡ · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF @ 30%. Very badly written and the worst cliche cult vibes…

[Sara Applegate · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think in some ways this could have used a little more proofreading but there were no unforgivable sins. Overall it was a fun and easy read and I very much enjoyed it!