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The Devil and Winnie Flynn
Told as an ongoing letter to a friend, Winnie’s story is a heartrending mystery and a pop culture critique in the vein of Libba Bray’s Going Bovine and Beauty Queens—with illustrations throughout that recall the quirky, dark, and distinct aesthetics of Ransom Riggs’s Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children.
Winnie Flynn doesn’t believe in ghosts. (Though she wouldn’t mind a visit from her mom, explaining why she took her own life.) When her mysterious aunt Maggie, a high-profile TV producer, recruits Winnie to spend a summer working as a production assistant on her current reality hit, Fantastic, Fearsome, she suddenly finds herself in the one place her mother would never go: New Jersey.
New Jersey’s famous Devil makes perfect fodder for Maggie’s show. But as the filming progresses, Winnie sees and hears things that make her think that the Devil might not be totally fake after all. Things that involve her and her family. Things about her mother’s death that might explain why she’s never met Aunt Maggie until now.
Winnie soon discovers her family’s history is deeply entwined with the Devil’s. If she’s going to make it out of the Pine Barrens alive, she might have to start believing in what her aunt is telling her. And, find out what she isn’t.
Winnie Flynn doesn’t believe in ghosts. (Though she wouldn’t mind a visit from her mom, explaining why she took her own life.) When her mysterious aunt Maggie, a high-profile TV producer, recruits Winnie to spend a summer working as a production assistant on her current reality hit, Fantastic, Fearsome, she suddenly finds herself in the one place her mother would never go: New Jersey.
New Jersey’s famous Devil makes perfect fodder for Maggie’s show. But as the filming progresses, Winnie sees and hears things that make her think that the Devil might not be totally fake after all. Things that involve her and her family. Things about her mother’s death that might explain why she’s never met Aunt Maggie until now.
Winnie soon discovers her family’s history is deeply entwined with the Devil’s. If she’s going to make it out of the Pine Barrens alive, she might have to start believing in what her aunt is telling her. And, find out what she isn’t.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published October 13, 2015
9 people are currently reading
1528 people want to read
About the author
Micol Ostow
78 books392 followersMicol Ostow has been writing professionally since 2004, and in that time has written and/or ghostwritten over 40 published works for young readers. She started her reign of terror with Egmont with her novel FAMILY, which Elizabeth Burns named a favorite of 2012 on her School Library Journal-syndicated blog, A Chair, a Fireplace, a Tea Cozy. Micol's graphic novel, SO PUNK ROCK (and Other Ways to Disappoint Your Mother), was named a 2009 Booklist Top Ten Arts Books for Youth Selection, a Booklist Top Ten Religion Books for Youth Selection, and a Sydney Taylor Notable Book for Teens. She received her MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from the Vermont College of Fine Arts.
Her young adult horror novel, AMITY, will release from Egmont in August 2014, and her first chapter book series, LOUISE TRAPEZE, will debut in Spring 2015 from Random House.
She lives and works in Brooklyn, NY, alongside her Emmy Award-winning husband, their daughter, and a finicky French bulldog. Visit her at www.micolostow.com.
Her young adult horror novel, AMITY, will release from Egmont in August 2014, and her first chapter book series, LOUISE TRAPEZE, will debut in Spring 2015 from Random House.
She lives and works in Brooklyn, NY, alongside her Emmy Award-winning husband, their daughter, and a finicky French bulldog. Visit her at www.micolostow.com.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 124 reviews
March 10, 2021
Full Review on The Candid Cover
3.5 Stars
The Devil and Winnie Flynn is the ultimate book to get you ready for Halloween! Written as a letter, this book has such an amazing and unique concept that I loved every minute of. However, towards the end of the book, there was far too much paranormal for my taste, despite the fact that the whole book is paranormal.
The Devil and Winnie Flynn is written in a very mysterious way that really suits the book. It is told as a letter from the main character to a friend. I’ve always liked this idea because it gives the story an actual purpose to be told in the first person. Winnie is writing to her friend,Lu, about all her paranormal experiences that occur throughout this book while she is on set of her aunt’s TV show. At first, I found it strange that the book is written as a letter, but once you get into it, it becomes really enjoyable.
The plot of this story is quit unique. It is about a girl who is helping to produce a TV show, which she doesn’t want to do. I found this to be a really interesting change from other TV show books where the main character is the star. What Sets this book apart is the concept of how Winnie’s role on the show reflects her personality. She is more of a behind the scenes kind of girl, than one demanding attention all the time. I always love when books show characters’ identities through their work.
Possibly, my experience in the paranormal genre is not that broad, because this book gets so paranormal it becomes too much. The beginning of the novel starts off fine, but then the story seems to veer off in all sorts of paranormal directions. Without spoiling the book, the ending just seemed to scatter all over the place. I think the book would have been much better without that whole section. I honestly loved everything else about The Devil and Winnie Flynn, but the intensity of the paranormal lost me.
The Devil and Winnie Flynn is told as a letter and has a very fascinating TV show concept. Unfortunately, the levels of paranormal were too high for me to enjoy the rest of the book. I would definitely recommend this book to fans of Miss Peregrine’s, though, because there are many similar elements .
3.5 Stars
The Devil and Winnie Flynn is the ultimate book to get you ready for Halloween! Written as a letter, this book has such an amazing and unique concept that I loved every minute of. However, towards the end of the book, there was far too much paranormal for my taste, despite the fact that the whole book is paranormal.
The Devil and Winnie Flynn is written in a very mysterious way that really suits the book. It is told as a letter from the main character to a friend. I’ve always liked this idea because it gives the story an actual purpose to be told in the first person. Winnie is writing to her friend,Lu, about all her paranormal experiences that occur throughout this book while she is on set of her aunt’s TV show. At first, I found it strange that the book is written as a letter, but once you get into it, it becomes really enjoyable.
The plot of this story is quit unique. It is about a girl who is helping to produce a TV show, which she doesn’t want to do. I found this to be a really interesting change from other TV show books where the main character is the star. What Sets this book apart is the concept of how Winnie’s role on the show reflects her personality. She is more of a behind the scenes kind of girl, than one demanding attention all the time. I always love when books show characters’ identities through their work.
Possibly, my experience in the paranormal genre is not that broad, because this book gets so paranormal it becomes too much. The beginning of the novel starts off fine, but then the story seems to veer off in all sorts of paranormal directions. Without spoiling the book, the ending just seemed to scatter all over the place. I think the book would have been much better without that whole section. I honestly loved everything else about The Devil and Winnie Flynn, but the intensity of the paranormal lost me.
The Devil and Winnie Flynn is told as a letter and has a very fascinating TV show concept. Unfortunately, the levels of paranormal were too high for me to enjoy the rest of the book. I would definitely recommend this book to fans of Miss Peregrine’s, though, because there are many similar elements .
April 1, 2016
Oh Christ was this book annoying.
The story went all over the place, the characters were annoying as all hell, and we went from "looking for the Jersey Devil" to "MAGIC AND SUPERNATURAL SHIT EVERYWHERE". And for a book that promised to be "terrifying"? It was not.
Most annoying things:
Winnie's voice went back and forth for me, between "okay she's sassy and snarky" to "okay now she's actually being a contentious little jackass". Everyone else was relatively two-dimensional. There was very little character development- the only one that I can really pinpoint with any clarity is Winnie's transformation from skeptic to believer, and even then, it was just... Just not pulled off well, at all, given that it happened over the course of a book that couldn't quite keep track of where it was going.
The constant. Whining. About. Horror. Movie. Tropes. Holy. Freaking. Shit. Again and again and again. I don't know if the author thought she was being "original" by dissecting and lamp-shading horror-movie tropes and cliches EVERY FIVE PAGES, but it wasn't original, it was irritating and it actually got to a point where I was growling "Oh shut up" out loud whenever it happened.
I mean, seriously- how much time do you need to dedicate to ripping apart horror movies in your horror-book? How much time do you need to whine about it? And the worst part is, by association of this being a horror book, it sounds painfully like the author is trying to say "UGH this genre may have a few gems but it's SO OVERDONE- btw isn't my book awesome?" I doubt that's how she intended it to come across, but unfortunately, that's how it did.
Finally, this author hit on one of my most hated things: Misrepresenting history so that we can whine about how bad women have had it previously. And by that, I mean the "history is full of men trying to destroy powerful women" horseshit that Maggie and Winnie both spouted.
Look, I won't get into a full history lesson, because that will decimate the remaining 17,974 characters I have left for this review, and may actually require me to continue it in a Part 2.
All I'll say is that the "bluh bluh men have always tried to fuck around with powerful women" bs irritates me for three reasons:
First, I have yet to read/watch a single thing with this as a message that didn't come across as a blatant plea to the female sectors of your audience for pats on the back for how pro-women you are. And as a woman, that makes me want to vomit.
Second, going off the first, there is a way to convey that women were not treated well in previous decades without getting up on your soapbox and preaching. Other books have done it, and done it well- and they succeeded because they were subtle, factual, and simple about it. Anything to the effect of "The big bad menz have been conspiring to keep women down for all of history" makes it pretty damn clear you're preaching, and preaching from a place of someone with a very rote understanding of actual history and the role of women in it.
Which leads us to Three: it is possibly the most insultingly simplistic view of women's history that a person could have to suggest that it's always been the Big Bad Men who have tried to keep women down, or that they did it strictly because they were women and not, y'know, actual military or political threats. I'm getting really sick of hearing this bs argument regurgitated again and again ad nauseam in fiction.
And also, it's a little insulting from the perspective in this book when the "power" that the Big Bad Menz were trying to suppress were things like "the ability to persuade people to see things your way" and "the ability to make people forget things you don't want them to remember" (because lol neither of those could possibly be used for nefarious purposes, right?).
So yeah. Not a fan of this book. Not at all.
The story went all over the place, the characters were annoying as all hell, and we went from "looking for the Jersey Devil" to "MAGIC AND SUPERNATURAL SHIT EVERYWHERE". And for a book that promised to be "terrifying"? It was not.
Most annoying things:
Winnie's voice went back and forth for me, between "okay she's sassy and snarky" to "okay now she's actually being a contentious little jackass". Everyone else was relatively two-dimensional. There was very little character development- the only one that I can really pinpoint with any clarity is Winnie's transformation from skeptic to believer, and even then, it was just... Just not pulled off well, at all, given that it happened over the course of a book that couldn't quite keep track of where it was going.
The constant. Whining. About. Horror. Movie. Tropes. Holy. Freaking. Shit. Again and again and again. I don't know if the author thought she was being "original" by dissecting and lamp-shading horror-movie tropes and cliches EVERY FIVE PAGES, but it wasn't original, it was irritating and it actually got to a point where I was growling "Oh shut up" out loud whenever it happened.
I mean, seriously- how much time do you need to dedicate to ripping apart horror movies in your horror-book? How much time do you need to whine about it? And the worst part is, by association of this being a horror book, it sounds painfully like the author is trying to say "UGH this genre may have a few gems but it's SO OVERDONE- btw isn't my book awesome?" I doubt that's how she intended it to come across, but unfortunately, that's how it did.
Finally, this author hit on one of my most hated things: Misrepresenting history so that we can whine about how bad women have had it previously. And by that, I mean the "history is full of men trying to destroy powerful women" horseshit that Maggie and Winnie both spouted.
Look, I won't get into a full history lesson, because that will decimate the remaining 17,974 characters I have left for this review, and may actually require me to continue it in a Part 2.
All I'll say is that the "bluh bluh men have always tried to fuck around with powerful women" bs irritates me for three reasons:
First, I have yet to read/watch a single thing with this as a message that didn't come across as a blatant plea to the female sectors of your audience for pats on the back for how pro-women you are. And as a woman, that makes me want to vomit.
Second, going off the first, there is a way to convey that women were not treated well in previous decades without getting up on your soapbox and preaching. Other books have done it, and done it well- and they succeeded because they were subtle, factual, and simple about it. Anything to the effect of "The big bad menz have been conspiring to keep women down for all of history" makes it pretty damn clear you're preaching, and preaching from a place of someone with a very rote understanding of actual history and the role of women in it.
Which leads us to Three: it is possibly the most insultingly simplistic view of women's history that a person could have to suggest that it's always been the Big Bad Men who have tried to keep women down, or that they did it strictly because they were women and not, y'know, actual military or political threats. I'm getting really sick of hearing this bs argument regurgitated again and again ad nauseam in fiction.
And also, it's a little insulting from the perspective in this book when the "power" that the Big Bad Menz were trying to suppress were things like "the ability to persuade people to see things your way" and "the ability to make people forget things you don't want them to remember" (because lol neither of those could possibly be used for nefarious purposes, right?).
So yeah. Not a fan of this book. Not at all.
Read
June 20, 2015This is SO fun.
Following her mother's apparent suicide, Winnie is spending the summer with her aunt Maggie in New Jersey. Her aunt is the creator of a reality TV show that investigates strange and paranormal activity, FANTASTIC, FEEARSOME. Maggie's a production assistant while they delve into the mystery of the Jersey Devil.
On the surface, this is a story about that. But it's much more about the exploration of grief, of the things that scare us, of tropes and story telling, and so much more. It's written with illustrations, script pieces, and more scattered throughout. Ostow weaves in some great twists to this one, and throughout the book, we're given insight into the background of producing a "reality" TV show through Winnie's realistic and very grounded voice. She's writing it as a journal to her best friend Lucia, which takes readers even one step further from the action. It's a very smart, very FUN horror story that would work for those who don't necessarily like horror but who might want to.
Add this to the growing category of YA books featuring teen girls who love horror flicks. There's a category here for a reason, and the Ostow team offers not only a great entry into it, but they offer more fodder for why it is girls gravitate toward, find comfort in, and love a good scary story.
Following her mother's apparent suicide, Winnie is spending the summer with her aunt Maggie in New Jersey. Her aunt is the creator of a reality TV show that investigates strange and paranormal activity, FANTASTIC, FEEARSOME. Maggie's a production assistant while they delve into the mystery of the Jersey Devil.
On the surface, this is a story about that. But it's much more about the exploration of grief, of the things that scare us, of tropes and story telling, and so much more. It's written with illustrations, script pieces, and more scattered throughout. Ostow weaves in some great twists to this one, and throughout the book, we're given insight into the background of producing a "reality" TV show through Winnie's realistic and very grounded voice. She's writing it as a journal to her best friend Lucia, which takes readers even one step further from the action. It's a very smart, very FUN horror story that would work for those who don't necessarily like horror but who might want to.
Add this to the growing category of YA books featuring teen girls who love horror flicks. There's a category here for a reason, and the Ostow team offers not only a great entry into it, but they offer more fodder for why it is girls gravitate toward, find comfort in, and love a good scary story.
January 11, 2018
Hmm. I liked the idea of this. The format of the book is cool, with scripts and pictures throughout, and the idea is super interesting (reality show looking for the Jersey Devil). I mean, when did you ever see a book ABOUT the Jersey Devil that wasn't locally published "nonfiction" by some weirdo who lived in New Jersey and totally saw it one time? And even those are thin on the ground. I used to work at a bookstore in New Jersey, and we had like, two Jersey Devil books on the Local Interest shelf, and yes they were self published by local weirdos who also listed which diners were haunted and which ones had the best pie.
Anyway, this book. Was fun, and spooky. And you can tell that the Ostows (a brother and sister team) super love Jersey and really had a ball playing with the urban legends and whatnot. But I feel like the execution was just not the best. (Not an actual execution. The execution of the story.) I was very confused about what they were doing and who everyone was in relation to the main character for the first bit of the book. Towards the end I felt like there were some serious elements that needed to be handled with more gravitas. The main character needed to ask a LOT more questions, especially where family secrets and possible murders were concerned.
But I didn't hate it, and I would recommend it as a fun YA book for fans of Buffy or Supernatural. I really felt like an early episode of Supernatural, actually.
Anyway, this book. Was fun, and spooky. And you can tell that the Ostows (a brother and sister team) super love Jersey and really had a ball playing with the urban legends and whatnot. But I feel like the execution was just not the best. (Not an actual execution. The execution of the story.) I was very confused about what they were doing and who everyone was in relation to the main character for the first bit of the book. Towards the end I felt like there were some serious elements that needed to be handled with more gravitas. The main character needed to ask a LOT more questions, especially where family secrets and possible murders were concerned.
But I didn't hate it, and I would recommend it as a fun YA book for fans of Buffy or Supernatural. I really felt like an early episode of Supernatural, actually.
October 27, 2015
I wanted to like The Devil and Winnie Flynn so much. I'm a huge horror buff, so the premise of The Devil and Winnie Flynn was right up my alley. It just seemed so interesting. Unfortunately, this book fell flat in almost every conceivable way. I get where The Devil and Winnie Flynn wanted to go. It wanted to be like Scream. A hip horror movie that follows all the typical tropes while simultaneously making witty jokes about them. This was no Scream. Mainly because the characters in Scream didn't suck the way they did here.
I absolutely LOATHED 95% of the characters in The Devil and Winnie Flynn. I loathed no one more than Winnie. This chick was an utter asshole. There's just no way around it. She starts off the book with "I don't like to judge, but..." and then proceeds to judge the shit out of everyone. And I get that she's a cynic, I do. Hell, I'm a cynic to mostly everything. But I look at things with an open mind. Not only was Winnie close-minded, but she was extremely nasty about it, too. She was constantly putting down anything and everything she didn't believe in. This made it hard to root for her. And since she's such a jerk, why should I care what happens to her? I didn't. And so, the book failed me right then and there.
The supporting characters were no better. Casey was a little less aggravating than Winnie, but not by much. I absolutely hate reading a book where the only thing the female characters do is fight and snipe over the "hot" guy...especially when there's way more important stuff to be focusing on. And again, I get that the author wanted to be all "witty" when it came to overplaying a love triangle (because they're only doing it for reality TV), only it's not witty at all when you're actively engaging in a love triangle and trying to excuse it by saying it's only for TV. Uhh, no. You're doing a love triangle. You are being wholly unoriginal. Own up to it. Seth and Ivan were boring. Amanda and Elaine (or Jane or whomever) were all interchangeable and served no great purpose to The Devil and Winnie Flynn.
The drawings in this book were another thing that served no purpose. They added nothing to the overall story. If you're going to use multimedia in a book, for the love of all that is good and holy, make sure it's relevant and important! I did like the interview sections, though. Just the format, I mean. The information that was given in it was meh...and a little blah. In fact, the book as a whole as blah. Some things regarding the Jersey Devil were interesting, but nothing more than I can get from a Wikipedia article.
The only redeeming quality of The Devil and Winnie Flynn was Maggie. She was the only interesting character in a book full of dull and/or horribly aggravating characters. I would have loved to have her featured more. However, her penchant for calling everyone by sugary names was so annoying. The least she could have done was kept referring to them by the same sugary names throughout the novel. But calling everyone things like juicy fruit and pumpkin nut in the same sentence kept making me want to throw this book against the wall (more than I already did before).
Overall, The Devil and Winnie Flynn was a bust. It could have been interesting, but the author focused too much on characters that were filled to the brim with suckage. Not recommended.
I absolutely LOATHED 95% of the characters in The Devil and Winnie Flynn. I loathed no one more than Winnie. This chick was an utter asshole. There's just no way around it. She starts off the book with "I don't like to judge, but..." and then proceeds to judge the shit out of everyone. And I get that she's a cynic, I do. Hell, I'm a cynic to mostly everything. But I look at things with an open mind. Not only was Winnie close-minded, but she was extremely nasty about it, too. She was constantly putting down anything and everything she didn't believe in. This made it hard to root for her. And since she's such a jerk, why should I care what happens to her? I didn't. And so, the book failed me right then and there.
The supporting characters were no better. Casey was a little less aggravating than Winnie, but not by much. I absolutely hate reading a book where the only thing the female characters do is fight and snipe over the "hot" guy...especially when there's way more important stuff to be focusing on. And again, I get that the author wanted to be all "witty" when it came to overplaying a love triangle (because they're only doing it for reality TV), only it's not witty at all when you're actively engaging in a love triangle and trying to excuse it by saying it's only for TV. Uhh, no. You're doing a love triangle. You are being wholly unoriginal. Own up to it. Seth and Ivan were boring. Amanda and Elaine (or Jane or whomever) were all interchangeable and served no great purpose to The Devil and Winnie Flynn.
The drawings in this book were another thing that served no purpose. They added nothing to the overall story. If you're going to use multimedia in a book, for the love of all that is good and holy, make sure it's relevant and important! I did like the interview sections, though. Just the format, I mean. The information that was given in it was meh...and a little blah. In fact, the book as a whole as blah. Some things regarding the Jersey Devil were interesting, but nothing more than I can get from a Wikipedia article.
The only redeeming quality of The Devil and Winnie Flynn was Maggie. She was the only interesting character in a book full of dull and/or horribly aggravating characters. I would have loved to have her featured more. However, her penchant for calling everyone by sugary names was so annoying. The least she could have done was kept referring to them by the same sugary names throughout the novel. But calling everyone things like juicy fruit and pumpkin nut in the same sentence kept making me want to throw this book against the wall (more than I already did before).
Overall, The Devil and Winnie Flynn was a bust. It could have been interesting, but the author focused too much on characters that were filled to the brim with suckage. Not recommended.
July 20, 2015
The premise of this book got me through the first quarter or so where I was trying to get my bearings. A behind the scenes YA that takes place on the set of a reality show about ghost hunters? It's hard to say no to that. At first, it can feel a bit disjointed as Ostow plays around with form. One minute it's narration via letter, then it's illustrations, then it's screenplay format, then it's a graphic novel. But once you find the rhythm it all starts to work.
This is a book built around horror tropes and atmosphere is important. The illustrations do a good job of helping you visualize the setting and give a sense of fun and mischief.
Fantastic, Fearsome! is a reality show created by Winnie's famous aunt Maggie Leader. She doesn't know Aunt Maggie well, since Maggie and Winnie's mother were estranged. The novel is set a few months after the unexpected suicide of Winnie's mom (perhaps the biggest stretch in the book isn't the supernatural but that Winnie seems so with it after such a tragedy) where Winnie is hoping to get to know Maggie but isn't sure if that's the best idea. Add in a search for the Jersey Devil with a group of young ghost hunters, a love triangle, and actually supernatural stuff, and it all gets pretty interesting pretty quickly.
The reality show setting is the best part of the book. The mix of fake and real, the scripting of situations, the behind the scenes plotting all keep the book more lighthearted than you'd expect. It's certainly not a heavy read and the supernatural doesn't ever hit legitimately scary territory so if horror isn't for you, you should still enjoy yourself highly.
This is a book built around horror tropes and atmosphere is important. The illustrations do a good job of helping you visualize the setting and give a sense of fun and mischief.
Fantastic, Fearsome! is a reality show created by Winnie's famous aunt Maggie Leader. She doesn't know Aunt Maggie well, since Maggie and Winnie's mother were estranged. The novel is set a few months after the unexpected suicide of Winnie's mom (perhaps the biggest stretch in the book isn't the supernatural but that Winnie seems so with it after such a tragedy) where Winnie is hoping to get to know Maggie but isn't sure if that's the best idea. Add in a search for the Jersey Devil with a group of young ghost hunters, a love triangle, and actually supernatural stuff, and it all gets pretty interesting pretty quickly.
The reality show setting is the best part of the book. The mix of fake and real, the scripting of situations, the behind the scenes plotting all keep the book more lighthearted than you'd expect. It's certainly not a heavy read and the supernatural doesn't ever hit legitimately scary territory so if horror isn't for you, you should still enjoy yourself highly.
November 8, 2016
Loved. It.
Just what I needed and wanted :3
Review to come soon!
Just what I needed and wanted :3
Review to come soon!
June 24, 2016
This book sets out to be a sort of homage to old-school horror films. As an ideal, it is certainly appealing, but I don't think the book succeeds. That is probably due to the fact that it is nowhere near as well written and clever as, let's say, the movie Cabin in the Woods, to be taken as a serious homage, nor is it campy and self-aware enough to be a more tongue-in-cheek kind of tribute.
I can appreciate the originality that went into the construction and development of this book. The authors' creativity really shone throughout the entire reading experience. But originality can only take you so far when, in all honestly, everything about the book is just plain bad.
Is it intentionally bad precisely because it is meant to imitate old-school horror films that are, by today's standards, kind of cheesy? Maybe. It's certainly a possibility. Still, even if they are cheesy today, what we like about watching all of those monster/slasher films is that they are fun. And guess what this book isn't?
Overall, this is is a difficult book to get through. The narration is insufferable. Winnie's voice is grating, whiny, immature, pretentious and hateful. And there's no purpose to her rampant, dismissive condescension and contempt. This is not some complex narrator we have here. She's just really that poorly drawn. And the narrative style itself is irritating and almost impossible to take seriously, never mind enjoy. At first, the use of visual aids through the novel was an interesting gimmick, but it got old really fast and it disrupted the story.
Moreover, the books spends sooooooo long setting everything, building up the anticipation for some big climax, for some spectacular reveal and then... nothing. Not only was it anti-climactic, by the time the end rolled around, I was as bored as I had been since the beginning. And it wasn't worth it. Not the overly dragged set up, not the eternal passages about nothing at all.
Plus, not a single one of the characters was even remotely interesting. Same with the ominous promise of a monster, the cliche horror, the contrived romance. The whole idea behind this novel was either to horrify or to entertain. In my particular case, it failed on both fronts.
I can appreciate the originality that went into the construction and development of this book. The authors' creativity really shone throughout the entire reading experience. But originality can only take you so far when, in all honestly, everything about the book is just plain bad.
Is it intentionally bad precisely because it is meant to imitate old-school horror films that are, by today's standards, kind of cheesy? Maybe. It's certainly a possibility. Still, even if they are cheesy today, what we like about watching all of those monster/slasher films is that they are fun. And guess what this book isn't?
Overall, this is is a difficult book to get through. The narration is insufferable. Winnie's voice is grating, whiny, immature, pretentious and hateful. And there's no purpose to her rampant, dismissive condescension and contempt. This is not some complex narrator we have here. She's just really that poorly drawn. And the narrative style itself is irritating and almost impossible to take seriously, never mind enjoy. At first, the use of visual aids through the novel was an interesting gimmick, but it got old really fast and it disrupted the story.
Moreover, the books spends sooooooo long setting everything, building up the anticipation for some big climax, for some spectacular reveal and then... nothing. Not only was it anti-climactic, by the time the end rolled around, I was as bored as I had been since the beginning. And it wasn't worth it. Not the overly dragged set up, not the eternal passages about nothing at all.
Plus, not a single one of the characters was even remotely interesting. Same with the ominous promise of a monster, the cliche horror, the contrived romance. The whole idea behind this novel was either to horrify or to entertain. In my particular case, it failed on both fronts.
November 16, 2015
I highly enjoyed this creepy story; it reminded me in many ways of a teen version of Marisha Pessl's Night Film. More to come.
July 25, 2019
Illustrations by David Ostow
Audiobook narrated by Jessica Almasy
From the book jacket Winnie Flynn doesn’t believe in ghosts. (Though she wouldn’t mind a visit from her mom, explaining why she took her own life.) When her mysterious aunt Maggie, a high-profile TV producer, recruits Winnie to spend a summer working as a production assistant on her current reality hit, Fantastic Fearsome, she suddenly finds herself in the one place her mother would never go: New Jersey.
My reactions
I read this only because I needed to fulfill a challenge for a paranormal read, and this YA novel was readily available at the library. Not a genre I gravitate towards.
Basically it’s a “woo-woo” teen horror flick book. I rolled my eyes so often I made myself dizzy. Didn’t find anything scary about it. Dialogue was stilted. And basic premise was terrible. At least on audio I could double the speed and get through it more quickly.
The text version is a sort of combination of traditional text novel and graphic novel, being illustrated by David Ostow. Some of these drawings are very detailed and I found them interesting.
Jessica Almasy did a credible job of narrating the audio, but she had mediocre material to work with. Not her fault. 3*** for her narration.
Audiobook narrated by Jessica Almasy
From the book jacket Winnie Flynn doesn’t believe in ghosts. (Though she wouldn’t mind a visit from her mom, explaining why she took her own life.) When her mysterious aunt Maggie, a high-profile TV producer, recruits Winnie to spend a summer working as a production assistant on her current reality hit, Fantastic Fearsome, she suddenly finds herself in the one place her mother would never go: New Jersey.
My reactions
I read this only because I needed to fulfill a challenge for a paranormal read, and this YA novel was readily available at the library. Not a genre I gravitate towards.
Basically it’s a “woo-woo” teen horror flick book. I rolled my eyes so often I made myself dizzy. Didn’t find anything scary about it. Dialogue was stilted. And basic premise was terrible. At least on audio I could double the speed and get through it more quickly.
The text version is a sort of combination of traditional text novel and graphic novel, being illustrated by David Ostow. Some of these drawings are very detailed and I found them interesting.
Jessica Almasy did a credible job of narrating the audio, but she had mediocre material to work with. Not her fault. 3*** for her narration.
November 10, 2015
The Main Character/ Narrator is constantly tearing people apart. Within the first two pages she had mentally destroyed no less than 4 characters based on their physical appearance alone. The narration style is irritating as she continuously breaks the story in order to comment to "Lu"
"The grounds are sprawling, spanning the length of at least three football fields. (That's an approximation, Lu, obviously you get that the cross-country runners know nothing from team sports)."
The narration is further broken up by tv show paraphernalia, cast bios, production notes, and, at one point, a 3 page long release form. That is where I really broke. I AM NOT HERE TO READ BORING STANDARD RELEASE FORMS and shame on the author for wasting pages with this tripe.
Nonetheless, I don't feel I will be missing much because at the *almost* halfway point, NOTHING HAD HAPPENED. I have a huge TBR pile with some awesome titles and I no longer have the patience to wait for this to get good. The devil can have you, Winnie Flynn.
*UPDATE: The first time around, I DNF this at 45%. Then it showed up in my BookRiot Quarterly Box so I decided to give it another shot. I got through it, but it never really got any better. Having a physical copy (rather than an e-arc) meant the pictures and formatting worked much better, but I still didn't like any of the characters and the plot was pretty lackluster with an end that was just too easy.
"The grounds are sprawling, spanning the length of at least three football fields. (That's an approximation, Lu, obviously you get that the cross-country runners know nothing from team sports)."
The narration is further broken up by tv show paraphernalia, cast bios, production notes, and, at one point, a 3 page long release form. That is where I really broke. I AM NOT HERE TO READ BORING STANDARD RELEASE FORMS and shame on the author for wasting pages with this tripe.
Nonetheless, I don't feel I will be missing much because at the *almost* halfway point, NOTHING HAD HAPPENED. I have a huge TBR pile with some awesome titles and I no longer have the patience to wait for this to get good. The devil can have you, Winnie Flynn.
*UPDATE: The first time around, I DNF this at 45%. Then it showed up in my BookRiot Quarterly Box so I decided to give it another shot. I got through it, but it never really got any better. Having a physical copy (rather than an e-arc) meant the pictures and formatting worked much better, but I still didn't like any of the characters and the plot was pretty lackluster with an end that was just too easy.
November 28, 2015
Well this story was slightly disappointing. On the cover of the book is a blurb by author Michael Buckley-"One of the most terrifying reads of the year. It will haunt you long after you've finished it." I don't need Winnie's throat tickling, cough inducing, lie detecting to know that is a lie.
If you have read 'Project 17' by Laurie Faria Stolarz then you will like 'The Devil and Winnie Flynn'.
Winnie Flynn is a teen who just lost her mother to suicide. Her estranged Aunt Maggie comes to the rescue after the funeral to take her away for some recuperation and family bonding. In all actuality her Aunt wants her to be a PA for her paranormal reality t.v. show. The show is searching for 'The New Jersey Devil' and hires a trio of young people called Devil Hunters. Winnie doesn't believe in ghosts or devils and thinks this whole fiasco is a lame waste of time. She of course goes along with it because she is interested in knowing her Aunt and....it's summer what else is she going to do?
I have read Micol Ostow's other horror book Amity and thought it to was just a meh horror book. Nothing too scary. Creepy yes, but nothing scream worthy. It was a easy and light read. If you want to break into horror then this is a good stepping stone. No major scares to worry about.
I may or may not read another Micol book they are just too tame for my taste.
If you have read 'Project 17' by Laurie Faria Stolarz then you will like 'The Devil and Winnie Flynn'.
Winnie Flynn is a teen who just lost her mother to suicide. Her estranged Aunt Maggie comes to the rescue after the funeral to take her away for some recuperation and family bonding. In all actuality her Aunt wants her to be a PA for her paranormal reality t.v. show. The show is searching for 'The New Jersey Devil' and hires a trio of young people called Devil Hunters. Winnie doesn't believe in ghosts or devils and thinks this whole fiasco is a lame waste of time. She of course goes along with it because she is interested in knowing her Aunt and....it's summer what else is she going to do?
I have read Micol Ostow's other horror book Amity and thought it to was just a meh horror book. Nothing too scary. Creepy yes, but nothing scream worthy. It was a easy and light read. If you want to break into horror then this is a good stepping stone. No major scares to worry about.
I may or may not read another Micol book they are just too tame for my taste.
November 21, 2016
I feel a bit foolish about how long this book took me to finish, but I was busy and life was hard and the book wasn't just DEMANDING that I read it. It was a solid, decent book. I think this book would be really enjoyable to have in my classroom library if I taught in the tri-state area (NJ, NY, PA, duh), but I think it could be fun for my students too. It plays with all the tropes of horror movies with ~spooky and haunted elements~ and it knows it's doing it, which makes it fun. It was especially fun for me to read since I have the Jersey knowledge--from the places like Asbury Park and Clifton and the Pine Barrens, to knowing a bunch of the ghost legend stuff that is *slightly* changed from Weird NJ. I loved that it mentions La Llorona at one point since I always use La Llorona to remind students that folklore is regional and not universally known, so it was cool to see someone else making the La Llorona/Jersey Devil connection too. I also loved that it included illustrations. More books with illustrations included throughout the story.
Anyone who enjoys Weird NJ (or Weird Anywhere, really), tropes, and YA would enjoy this book. I'm fairly certain a dog barked at some point in this book, but I can't remember.
Anyone who enjoys Weird NJ (or Weird Anywhere, really), tropes, and YA would enjoy this book. I'm fairly certain a dog barked at some point in this book, but I can't remember.
Read
March 13, 2016Odd mix of playful, magical, and scary that really worked for me. The illustrations and other "artifacts" like script excerpts were really fun. Winnie's voice was great except for the constant addresses to the friend she was supposedly writing to in first person present tense ("this spooky thing is happening right now, Lucia"), which took me out of the story more than I wanted. I would recommend it for a good, campy, slightly creepy October read!
Read
December 11, 2015Graded By: Poshdeluxe
Cover Story: Juvie
BFF Charm: Yay!
Swoonworthy Scale: 4
Talky Talk: Dear Lucia
Bonus Factors: Ghostbusters, Reality TV, Illustrations
Relationship Status: Spirited
Read the full book report here.
Cover Story: Juvie
BFF Charm: Yay!
Swoonworthy Scale: 4
Talky Talk: Dear Lucia
Bonus Factors: Ghostbusters, Reality TV, Illustrations
Relationship Status: Spirited
Read the full book report here.
October 25, 2024
There are definitely some things in liked about the book, and some things that were a miss for me. I love when books use different “media” forms for the narration like newspaper articles, story boards, and scripts so I loved that about The Devil & Winnie Flynn. The illustrations were great and I think really added to the book. The mystery of the Kallikak women was good and sadly what happened to women too often.
I hated Winnie as the narrator. She was way too angsty and annoying to be likable. I think the author kept the skeptic bit up too long and I just wanted her to get past it sooner. There are other books with the same problem and it’s always kind of boring up until the main character just goes with the paranormal thing. Then it gets more interesting. I thought the ending seemed a bit abrupt. I also HATED the romance between Winnie & Seth. It felt like too much insta-love. Just because there are only 2 guys in the whole book and only one of them is hot, doesn’t mean you can skip the buildup and there should be a reason she likes him besides him being hot. Teen books are so bad at that, but it probably does go with the age.
Overall, entertaining to read so 3 stars.
I hated Winnie as the narrator. She was way too angsty and annoying to be likable. I think the author kept the skeptic bit up too long and I just wanted her to get past it sooner. There are other books with the same problem and it’s always kind of boring up until the main character just goes with the paranormal thing. Then it gets more interesting. I thought the ending seemed a bit abrupt. I also HATED the romance between Winnie & Seth. It felt like too much insta-love. Just because there are only 2 guys in the whole book and only one of them is hot, doesn’t mean you can skip the buildup and there should be a reason she likes him besides him being hot. Teen books are so bad at that, but it probably does go with the age.
Overall, entertaining to read so 3 stars.
April 4, 2021
1.5
Since this book seems to love piggybacking off of other better written horror stories and shoving movie names/references down the reader’s throat, I’ll leave you with a Roger Ebert quote that summarises how I felt while reading The Devil and Winnie Flynn: “I hated this [book]. Hated hated hated hated hated this [book]. Hated it. Hated every simpering stupid vacant audience-insulting moment of it. Hated the sensibility that thought anyone would like it. Hated the implied insult to the audience by its belief that anyone would be entertained by it.”
Coming off of reading an excellent YA horror (Rules for Vanishing) to this REALLY nailed that home. Oh, and the ableism (R slur and tourettes as an adjective, nice) and way it handled topics like self-harm and suicide were not good, bordering in disrespect tbh. The story doesn’t really take off until the end of the second arc and by then you’re exhausted of poking the book and asking it to _do something!!!_.
Since this book seems to love piggybacking off of other better written horror stories and shoving movie names/references down the reader’s throat, I’ll leave you with a Roger Ebert quote that summarises how I felt while reading The Devil and Winnie Flynn: “I hated this [book]. Hated hated hated hated hated this [book]. Hated it. Hated every simpering stupid vacant audience-insulting moment of it. Hated the sensibility that thought anyone would like it. Hated the implied insult to the audience by its belief that anyone would be entertained by it.”
Coming off of reading an excellent YA horror (Rules for Vanishing) to this REALLY nailed that home. Oh, and the ableism (R slur and tourettes as an adjective, nice) and way it handled topics like self-harm and suicide were not good, bordering in disrespect tbh. The story doesn’t really take off until the end of the second arc and by then you’re exhausted of poking the book and asking it to _do something!!!_.
October 13, 2019
I was expecting more from this book and maybe I should have dampened my hopes for it because in the end I really didn't enjoy it. It had fun creepy vibes throughout I will admit, but it had such a weak ending, and I truly didn't like our main character of Winnie as a person, so reading this was much more like going through the motions to find out what was happening rather than for enjoyment.
The romance was unnecessary and pointless, the plot focused around New Jersey in a way that I think the author wanted the reader to be in on the joke, but being from the UK I had no idea what the little inputs of information about the state were for, if that makes sense. It just felt off all the way through until the end where it got really bad. The ending felt like the author wasn't sure how to finish so just wrapped everything up super quick.
I liked the illustrations and the attempt to make it seem a bit more fun in the layout with comic book strips and forms, script sheets what have you. I will say I didn't like the fact that every chapter started with white writing on a black page because the font made it really hard to read.
I really would not recommend this.
Trigger warnings for loss of a loved one (parent), suicide and in depth talk of methods of suicide, blood, self harm, neglect and abuse of mental health patients, shock therapy, unauthorised hysterectomies, uneducated and ignorant views on the mentally ill, use of the word retard to describe someone, and negative comments on acne and scarring.
The romance was unnecessary and pointless, the plot focused around New Jersey in a way that I think the author wanted the reader to be in on the joke, but being from the UK I had no idea what the little inputs of information about the state were for, if that makes sense. It just felt off all the way through until the end where it got really bad. The ending felt like the author wasn't sure how to finish so just wrapped everything up super quick.
I liked the illustrations and the attempt to make it seem a bit more fun in the layout with comic book strips and forms, script sheets what have you. I will say I didn't like the fact that every chapter started with white writing on a black page because the font made it really hard to read.
I really would not recommend this.
Trigger warnings for loss of a loved one (parent), suicide and in depth talk of methods of suicide, blood, self harm, neglect and abuse of mental health patients, shock therapy, unauthorised hysterectomies, uneducated and ignorant views on the mentally ill, use of the word retard to describe someone, and negative comments on acne and scarring.
February 17, 2016
After taking some time to reflect on this book after I'd finished reading it, I decided to change my original rating from four stars to two, cause I couldn't help but realize that I really didn't like this book as much as I had thought.
The idea of this is what first drew me in. I liked that our MC, Winnie Flynn (obviously) was going to be working as a PA on the set of her aunt's hit reality show, Fantastic, Fearsome, a show that features haunted locations and/or famous local lore. So the fact that this was going to address New Jersey's famous 'Jersey Devil', while at the same time working as spooky setting for this book, was what had me interested in reading this.
Winnie is brought in to the production by her aunt, to pretty much "keep busy" after her mother's suicide, and it's not right away, but things do progress to the strange and supernatural aspect of this book. With that, Winnie is pulled into the world even more, and soon finds that her family (including her mother) are actually embroiled in the whole Jersey Devil mess.
So, to start off with, again, I liked the idea of Winnie working on the set of a supernatural reality show. I wanted to see a lot of haunting and ghostliness. Basically, I wanted this to be a spooky read, because I'm a sucker for such things. If only I was given one moment that was genuinely scary...but alas, it was not so, sigh.
I also didn't care much for the characters. I did not like Winnie, and couldn't feel a connection to her and her somewhat judgmental-self. Right off the bat, she's describing the members of the "devil"-hunting team featured in the Jersey edition of Fantastic, Fearsome, even going so far as to calling Casey, "Blue Hair" (until she finally learns her name), just because her hair has blue streaks in it that she feels "demands attention". I, for one, think blue hair sounds awesome, and would likely assume the one with the color is someone who's maybe a bold, fun-loving individual, and creative. Anyway, moving on from my own personal gripe.
She describes Ivan's hair as an "explosion of curls with no place to grow but out", and credits his hair with the reason as to why he may be in this group, because "maybe with hair like that, his options were limited". (Really?)
To continue with the hair description, Seth is the one with the ponytail, but Winnie decides that his clothes fit him well, so she can "reserve judgement on his hairstyle".
I don't know what the deal was with all the hair descriptions...but I have to say that I was not impressed by any of it. Winnie and her superficial self was just a bore to me.
I also have to say that there were no really exceptional characters for me. Boo.
I'm trying to think if there's anything I wanted to mention that I maybe did like, but I've got nothing. The storyline was mediocre, and the characters even more so. If I had to choose whether or not I'd read this again, I wouldn't. I also will not be recommending this.
The idea of this is what first drew me in. I liked that our MC, Winnie Flynn (obviously) was going to be working as a PA on the set of her aunt's hit reality show, Fantastic, Fearsome, a show that features haunted locations and/or famous local lore. So the fact that this was going to address New Jersey's famous 'Jersey Devil', while at the same time working as spooky setting for this book, was what had me interested in reading this.
Winnie is brought in to the production by her aunt, to pretty much "keep busy" after her mother's suicide, and it's not right away, but things do progress to the strange and supernatural aspect of this book. With that, Winnie is pulled into the world even more, and soon finds that her family (including her mother) are actually embroiled in the whole Jersey Devil mess.
So, to start off with, again, I liked the idea of Winnie working on the set of a supernatural reality show. I wanted to see a lot of haunting and ghostliness. Basically, I wanted this to be a spooky read, because I'm a sucker for such things. If only I was given one moment that was genuinely scary...but alas, it was not so, sigh.
I also didn't care much for the characters. I did not like Winnie, and couldn't feel a connection to her and her somewhat judgmental-self. Right off the bat, she's describing the members of the "devil"-hunting team featured in the Jersey edition of Fantastic, Fearsome, even going so far as to calling Casey, "Blue Hair" (until she finally learns her name), just because her hair has blue streaks in it that she feels "demands attention". I, for one, think blue hair sounds awesome, and would likely assume the one with the color is someone who's maybe a bold, fun-loving individual, and creative. Anyway, moving on from my own personal gripe.
She describes Ivan's hair as an "explosion of curls with no place to grow but out", and credits his hair with the reason as to why he may be in this group, because "maybe with hair like that, his options were limited". (Really?)
To continue with the hair description, Seth is the one with the ponytail, but Winnie decides that his clothes fit him well, so she can "reserve judgement on his hairstyle".
I don't know what the deal was with all the hair descriptions...but I have to say that I was not impressed by any of it. Winnie and her superficial self was just a bore to me.
I also have to say that there were no really exceptional characters for me. Boo.
I'm trying to think if there's anything I wanted to mention that I maybe did like, but I've got nothing. The storyline was mediocre, and the characters even more so. If I had to choose whether or not I'd read this again, I wouldn't. I also will not be recommending this.
August 30, 2015
After Winnie's mother dies in a sudden suicide, she decides to intern for a summer with her Aunt Maggie who runs a paranormal T.V. show. Winnie is a definite skeptic but after witnessing some things she's not so sure anymore. That combined with the cute paranormal investigator, the New Jersey Devil, and the truth behind her mothers death will make for one interesting summer...
I was lured into this book with the creepy cover and the promise of some ghosts or supernatural happenings. It turns out it was a little less focused on ghosts and more on the New Jersey Devil, but that was okay with me! Overall it was a pretty good read but it wasn't very memorable. I read it less than a week ago and I feel like I've already forgotten key points in the plot which usually doesn't happen to me until at least a month has gone by.
The romance was mainly superficial and that really annoyed me. It was sort of "love" at first sight for Winnie and I hated how gullible she was with everything. It wasn't really insti-love but still after just meeting him and not really knowing him it just seemed like he was the best thing ever to her. Overall he annoyed me (sorry, I forgot his name) and I just couldn't stand him the whole book. There was also a plot twist at the end that I won't get into but I saw it coming. It was really predictable.
There were awesome illustrations throughout the book and I loved looking at them. They seemed to add so much to the story and it helped me to imagine things better. They might have been one of my favorite parts and they made the book a lot more enjoyable! They added half a star to my rating.
Overall I might recommend this based on if you like ghost shows on T.V. Just saying, my favorite is Ghost Hunters even though this book gave me a whole new perspective on them!
***I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.***
I was lured into this book with the creepy cover and the promise of some ghosts or supernatural happenings. It turns out it was a little less focused on ghosts and more on the New Jersey Devil, but that was okay with me! Overall it was a pretty good read but it wasn't very memorable. I read it less than a week ago and I feel like I've already forgotten key points in the plot which usually doesn't happen to me until at least a month has gone by.
The romance was mainly superficial and that really annoyed me. It was sort of "love" at first sight for Winnie and I hated how gullible she was with everything. It wasn't really insti-love but still after just meeting him and not really knowing him it just seemed like he was the best thing ever to her. Overall he annoyed me (sorry, I forgot his name) and I just couldn't stand him the whole book. There was also a plot twist at the end that I won't get into but I saw it coming. It was really predictable.
There were awesome illustrations throughout the book and I loved looking at them. They seemed to add so much to the story and it helped me to imagine things better. They might have been one of my favorite parts and they made the book a lot more enjoyable! They added half a star to my rating.
Overall I might recommend this based on if you like ghost shows on T.V. Just saying, my favorite is Ghost Hunters even though this book gave me a whole new perspective on them!
***I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.***
July 13, 2015
17-year-old Winnie Flynn is a teenager in crises. Not only is she trying to recover from her mother suicide, she is starting over again in the most literal sense. With her father escaping into his work, Winnie finds herself interning for her Aunt Maggie on a reality TV show. A paranormal show. Although Winnie is a closet horror fan, she has a very realistic worldview. Slowly the girl realizes she is surrounded by both believers and nonbelievers and that lies abound. After a night of partying- drinking - Winnie finds a note on the bathroom mirror. Not suicide. Does it mean her mother? Then the coughing fits begin. What triggers them? According to Aunt Maggie, the Leader women have powers. This novel, written in journal format to Winnies best friend Lucia, explores the confused teen's feelings, experiences, and discoveries in letter format. Winnie's reactions to the other characters, her observations on the scriprs and special-effects that create this not so real show, and the immediacy of her experiences place the reader in the center of the story. With insider jokes about scenes from scary movies, B actresses, and the final girl, a reader who enjoys horror movies will be drawn into the story. A reader who enjoys a coming-of-age story will identify with Winnie. And reader who wants to be terrified will be pulled into the story by unfolding events. This is a fast, fun read.
December 27, 2015
The Devil and Winnie Flynn uses an epistolary novel to tell the story of Winnie's summer spent in New Jersey following her mother's shocking suicide. Winnie is spending the summer with her estranged aunt, Maggie Leader, who is also an accomplished television producer with a hit reality show entitled Fantastic, Fearsome. The story unfolds as a letter to Winnie's best friend, Lu, detailing Winnie's summer spent as one of Maggie's production assistants. In addition to the letter there are illustrations, maps and official documents which work to weave this intriguing story which blends contemporary and paranormal fiction with pleasing results. It took me a bit to connect with Winnie because in at the start of the book she was quite judgmental and somewhat acerbic. As the book progresses the reader sees Winnie mature and develop
Into a more likable individual who is more capable of forming personal relationships. I wasn't sure about this book in the beginning because its pacing was slow but once it hit its stride I began to enjoy it. Good read, recommend for fans of paranormal fiction or reality television.
Into a more likable individual who is more capable of forming personal relationships. I wasn't sure about this book in the beginning because its pacing was slow but once it hit its stride I began to enjoy it. Good read, recommend for fans of paranormal fiction or reality television.
September 13, 2025
When I started reading this book, I thought it'd be okay, nothing too good but nothing too bad. But I have to be honest; I can't like this book, and I couldn't recommend it to anyone. Although Micol has a pretty decent writing style, the story just didn't cohere properly, and I felt more and more disengaged the longer I read the text, especially towards the end of the book.
Now, I don't want to say that I didn't enjoy any part of this book at all. I really liked the interspersion of illustrations, television scripts, online articles that were included throughout the book. These little segments following chapters did help a lot with understanding the scenery, how the show was filmed, and the secrecy behind the Jersey Devil. In addition, I did like Ostow's writing style, although her characters, not so much.
The first thing that frustrated me about this book is that it felt like it didn't know what it wanted to be. For the first half of the book, it was a sort of watered-down horror following a bunch of filming crew and actors for a paranormal investigation show, but then there was some sort of romance segment which devolved into a Harry Potter-esque "you have powers" sort of deal. That sort of whiplash honestly ruined the reading experience for me, because everything had to come out of the blue. Our protagonist Winnie finds herself crushing over one of the actors from the show, Seth, but the book never really does anything with this plotline. There's a little bit of hand-holding, hair-touching, and eye-contacting, but other than that, there is genuinely no point to have this little romance included in the book, especially when the romance scenes are truly few and far between in the larger context of the book.
In addition, the whole "powers" deal all felt like a bunch of bullshit. Winnie's power is that she coughs when somebody tells a lie to her, and this power gets alluded to only a few times before it is truly revealed halfway into the book. It just feels like a betrayal; this story is (or at least was) focused on paranormal investigations and some of the tools and talismans utilized in this line of research, but then it devolved into "some humans have power that only they can wield in this world." If this book has just stuck to the paranormal investigation stuff and developed that even more, this book could have easily ended up at three or even four stars. Winnie could have found some sort of talisman that could detect lies, and it would have been better than mentioning completely out-of-the-blue that Winnie (and other women in her family) have magical powers.
The ending was also filled with so much whiplash I almost quit fifteen pages to finishing. Winnie's aunt wants to summon the Jersey Devil, and she needs a drop of Winnie's blood to do it, so Winnie is running off into the forest. She sprains her ankle, and she gets saved by a completely random woman that hadn't been mentioned since twenty chapters ago. If there is any trope that I HATE the most in a book, it would be deus ex machina because it rarely feels unlazy and tied into the story. So sure, Winnie gets save by this lady, eyeroll, whatever. Then, plot twist! This lady is actually evil, and Winnie's aunt is trying to summon the Devil to save her family (from what is genuinely never made clear). And even more, the lady is a part of a World Order to contain demons and prevent their summoning. Mind you, this is like the last 30 pages of a 300-page book, and all throughout, I just kept thinking, "What the fuck? Where'd this come from? Why'd they need this?" This sort of ending just felt so disingenuous to the rest of the book, adding exposition just when the book is about to conclude.
Let's talk about the inclusion of Winnie's friend Lucia (whom the former refers to as "Lu") in the book. The book is written in the first-person, but through so called letters which are written to this mysterious Lu whom we are never introduced to or know anything about. Then, ten pages from the end, we find out Lu is Winnie's best friend, and Winnie was keeping her updated with the paranormal show's filming and invited her to a screening of the episode when it was finished. It's wholesome, but I fail to understand why Lu was even included in the book when she has so, so little effect on the story. This book could have easily been rewritten not to include Lu, and I wouldn't even bat an eye, because her character feels so unimportant to the story and we don't even get to know her until the book is ending.
Now, onto the characters. I think Winnie was an okay main character, but she feels really one-dimensional throughout the book. In the first half, she's a non-believer who always has to complain about how "this thing only happens in the horror movies" and that "the paranormal is real." And it's like, I agree with her too, but I was really willing to suspend by disbelief for this book, and her incessant nagging was so grating and genuinely made me feel like nothing paranormal was actually going to happen. Winnie realizes she coughs when people lie, and suddenly she believes in ghosts and everything, and it all just feels like bullshit. Winnie's "growth" is the greatest out of all the characters, but she is still so flat, complaining about how everything is so cliché and confusing me even more with her story. And if Winnie, the main character is this flat, then I don't even need to talk about the others.
I started out liking this book, but after that it was just disappointment after disappointment. I think the word "unnecessary" describe it best. So much was written, yet it felt like so little was told, and as much as I would've liked to enjoy this book, I couldn't when the plot was so thin, the characters were so flat, and the ending was so terrible. I can't in good conscience recommend this book to anyone.
Now, I don't want to say that I didn't enjoy any part of this book at all. I really liked the interspersion of illustrations, television scripts, online articles that were included throughout the book. These little segments following chapters did help a lot with understanding the scenery, how the show was filmed, and the secrecy behind the Jersey Devil. In addition, I did like Ostow's writing style, although her characters, not so much.
The first thing that frustrated me about this book is that it felt like it didn't know what it wanted to be. For the first half of the book, it was a sort of watered-down horror following a bunch of filming crew and actors for a paranormal investigation show, but then there was some sort of romance segment which devolved into a Harry Potter-esque "you have powers" sort of deal. That sort of whiplash honestly ruined the reading experience for me, because everything had to come out of the blue. Our protagonist Winnie finds herself crushing over one of the actors from the show, Seth, but the book never really does anything with this plotline. There's a little bit of hand-holding, hair-touching, and eye-contacting, but other than that, there is genuinely no point to have this little romance included in the book, especially when the romance scenes are truly few and far between in the larger context of the book.
In addition, the whole "powers" deal all felt like a bunch of bullshit. Winnie's power is that she coughs when somebody tells a lie to her, and this power gets alluded to only a few times before it is truly revealed halfway into the book. It just feels like a betrayal; this story is (or at least was) focused on paranormal investigations and some of the tools and talismans utilized in this line of research, but then it devolved into "some humans have power that only they can wield in this world." If this book has just stuck to the paranormal investigation stuff and developed that even more, this book could have easily ended up at three or even four stars. Winnie could have found some sort of talisman that could detect lies, and it would have been better than mentioning completely out-of-the-blue that Winnie (and other women in her family) have magical powers.
The ending was also filled with so much whiplash I almost quit fifteen pages to finishing. Winnie's aunt wants to summon the Jersey Devil, and she needs a drop of Winnie's blood to do it, so Winnie is running off into the forest. She sprains her ankle, and she gets saved by a completely random woman that hadn't been mentioned since twenty chapters ago. If there is any trope that I HATE the most in a book, it would be deus ex machina because it rarely feels unlazy and tied into the story. So sure, Winnie gets save by this lady, eyeroll, whatever. Then, plot twist! This lady is actually evil, and Winnie's aunt is trying to summon the Devil to save her family (from what is genuinely never made clear). And even more, the lady is a part of a World Order to contain demons and prevent their summoning. Mind you, this is like the last 30 pages of a 300-page book, and all throughout, I just kept thinking, "What the fuck? Where'd this come from? Why'd they need this?" This sort of ending just felt so disingenuous to the rest of the book, adding exposition just when the book is about to conclude.
Let's talk about the inclusion of Winnie's friend Lucia (whom the former refers to as "Lu") in the book. The book is written in the first-person, but through so called letters which are written to this mysterious Lu whom we are never introduced to or know anything about. Then, ten pages from the end, we find out Lu is Winnie's best friend, and Winnie was keeping her updated with the paranormal show's filming and invited her to a screening of the episode when it was finished. It's wholesome, but I fail to understand why Lu was even included in the book when she has so, so little effect on the story. This book could have easily been rewritten not to include Lu, and I wouldn't even bat an eye, because her character feels so unimportant to the story and we don't even get to know her until the book is ending.
Now, onto the characters. I think Winnie was an okay main character, but she feels really one-dimensional throughout the book. In the first half, she's a non-believer who always has to complain about how "this thing only happens in the horror movies" and that "the paranormal is real." And it's like, I agree with her too, but I was really willing to suspend by disbelief for this book, and her incessant nagging was so grating and genuinely made me feel like nothing paranormal was actually going to happen. Winnie realizes she coughs when people lie, and suddenly she believes in ghosts and everything, and it all just feels like bullshit. Winnie's "growth" is the greatest out of all the characters, but she is still so flat, complaining about how everything is so cliché and confusing me even more with her story. And if Winnie, the main character is this flat, then I don't even need to talk about the others.
I started out liking this book, but after that it was just disappointment after disappointment. I think the word "unnecessary" describe it best. So much was written, yet it felt like so little was told, and as much as I would've liked to enjoy this book, I couldn't when the plot was so thin, the characters were so flat, and the ending was so terrible. I can't in good conscience recommend this book to anyone.
November 28, 2015
I really liked this book, because of many themes and vibes within the story. I loved the constant kind of spooky, creepy theme of the story, from the mist around the asylum they explore to the endless twists and turns of the plot. I found it interesting how the plot began to develop and tiny details that originally seemed inconsequential, like Winnie's coughing when she lied, suddenly made sense. My only contradiction to giving this book five stars is how the ending turned out. I feel like the ending was hurried, rushed, and overall unpleasant to read. The ending was fairly unclear, with the whole topic of 'the devil is now being summoned and he is huge and enormous'. I felt that it was a cheap way to get rid of characters that I did not enjoy reading. I think i would have found this to be a favorite read if not for the rushed ending.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 23, 2024
I had a lot of fun reading this one! I enjoyed the historical fiction mixed with horror mixed with reality TV. I also loved the artwork and layout of this book. There were times when I felt the author didn't really know what direction they wanted the story to go so it felt all over the place, but then came together in the last few chapters. This one isn't really that scary or creepy for that matter but more of a fun ghost story. I haven't read anything on the Jersey Devil, so for me it was a fun read that I'd recommend. I feel like this book would be great for people who don't really read horror, but might want to dip their toes in the genre or teens looking to get into the genre.
This book was a traveling book in my Facebook Group literALLY BOOKiSh 📚🖤
This book was a traveling book in my Facebook Group literALLY BOOKiSh 📚🖤
March 5, 2016
I was looking forward to reading this book because it is set in New Jersey and explores the legend of the Jersey Devil. The narrative voice was clever and sardonic, which I enjoyed. I think my students will love discovering this legend, perhaps for the first time.
The only thing I would point out is that the ending seemed a little rushed and I would have liked more in terms of explanation.
The only thing I would point out is that the ending seemed a little rushed and I would have liked more in terms of explanation.
October 27, 2015
This was such a wonderful (and creepy!) novel with a vivid, compelling voice. I loved the letter format of the novel, and the illustrations really added to it in a great way. I highly recommend this novel - it's something a little different.
August 19, 2019
A reality TV shows investigates the Jersey Devil
This YA novel follows the story of Winne, who recently lost her mother, as she goes to live and help the aunt she barely knows on her reality TV show called Fantastic Fearsome which she both produces and presents. The latest filming takes her to one place her mother would never go: New Jersey, an area her mother has a history with. Winne doesn’t believe in the supernatural but as the filming progresses she hears and feels things that make her question whether there is some truth in the legend of the Jersey Devil.
I found the TV reality show setting quite entertaining because of the mix of fake, staged and real elements of paranormal activity as well as the teenage goings on behind the scenes, which kept it fairly light hearted. As horror novels go it was not scary, so if you like to jump you’ll have too look elsewhere for a dose of real chills. Because it mixes horror with the television setting it might attract a wider readership, but real horror-hounds are going to feel short-changed as there is even less blood than scares.
I liked the numerous pictures which were integrated into the story which were pretty good pieces of art, but they didn’t really add much to the book apart from breaking up the flow of the text. The interview parts were interesting, with a lot of detail, but again it didn’t really add anything to the characters or the plot and seemed like padding in a book which was already quite long and slow moving.
I enjoyed picking up the many movie references along the way including: The Shining, The Blair Witch Project, Buffy, The Evil Dead and many more I probably missed. But if you aren’t a horror movie buff like me you’re probably quite confused when Winne mentions ‘I love you and I know’, a famous Star Wars reference. Winnie would frequently talk about a horror movie clique or trot out a reference. I’m also not sure if it was a good idea Winnie shading classic movies like The Blair Witch Project, one of the best horror films of the last twenty years. The author may have thought they we being original but quite a lot of the novel was too top heavy in references to other books and films. I’m not sure if this would be a good book for the new horror reader as many of these in-jokes are going to go straight over their heads.
I also failed to understand why Winne called herself the ‘Final Girl’ when barely anyone died? Also, would a non-horror fan know what a Final Girl was anyway? The pacing in this book was extremely slow and when it started to build up, the end result was very disappointing. The big ‘reveal’ was seriously lame. The majority of the book was presented with Winnie writing to her best friend and this slowed things down further and was a serious tension killer. The Jersey Devil made one appearance with no imagination put into its arrival and it was decidedly underwhelming.
Overall, I would not recommend this book if you’re looking for a good scare or a solid introduction to horror, it’s too slow and not enough happens. Many readers may well find it very boring. I have listed some of my favourites below. If you like your horror to bring on sleepless nights The Devil and Winnie Flynn is not the book to do that. I live in Britain and did some internet searching on the Jersey Devil as I was not familiar with the myth, so perhaps an American teenager might identify more with it as the novel provides lots of extra information about the real myth.
This YA novel follows the story of Winne, who recently lost her mother, as she goes to live and help the aunt she barely knows on her reality TV show called Fantastic Fearsome which she both produces and presents. The latest filming takes her to one place her mother would never go: New Jersey, an area her mother has a history with. Winne doesn’t believe in the supernatural but as the filming progresses she hears and feels things that make her question whether there is some truth in the legend of the Jersey Devil.
I found the TV reality show setting quite entertaining because of the mix of fake, staged and real elements of paranormal activity as well as the teenage goings on behind the scenes, which kept it fairly light hearted. As horror novels go it was not scary, so if you like to jump you’ll have too look elsewhere for a dose of real chills. Because it mixes horror with the television setting it might attract a wider readership, but real horror-hounds are going to feel short-changed as there is even less blood than scares.
I liked the numerous pictures which were integrated into the story which were pretty good pieces of art, but they didn’t really add much to the book apart from breaking up the flow of the text. The interview parts were interesting, with a lot of detail, but again it didn’t really add anything to the characters or the plot and seemed like padding in a book which was already quite long and slow moving.
I enjoyed picking up the many movie references along the way including: The Shining, The Blair Witch Project, Buffy, The Evil Dead and many more I probably missed. But if you aren’t a horror movie buff like me you’re probably quite confused when Winne mentions ‘I love you and I know’, a famous Star Wars reference. Winnie would frequently talk about a horror movie clique or trot out a reference. I’m also not sure if it was a good idea Winnie shading classic movies like The Blair Witch Project, one of the best horror films of the last twenty years. The author may have thought they we being original but quite a lot of the novel was too top heavy in references to other books and films. I’m not sure if this would be a good book for the new horror reader as many of these in-jokes are going to go straight over their heads.
I also failed to understand why Winne called herself the ‘Final Girl’ when barely anyone died? Also, would a non-horror fan know what a Final Girl was anyway? The pacing in this book was extremely slow and when it started to build up, the end result was very disappointing. The big ‘reveal’ was seriously lame. The majority of the book was presented with Winnie writing to her best friend and this slowed things down further and was a serious tension killer. The Jersey Devil made one appearance with no imagination put into its arrival and it was decidedly underwhelming.
Overall, I would not recommend this book if you’re looking for a good scare or a solid introduction to horror, it’s too slow and not enough happens. Many readers may well find it very boring. I have listed some of my favourites below. If you like your horror to bring on sleepless nights The Devil and Winnie Flynn is not the book to do that. I live in Britain and did some internet searching on the Jersey Devil as I was not familiar with the myth, so perhaps an American teenager might identify more with it as the novel provides lots of extra information about the real myth.
April 26, 2020
After her mother dies of suicide, skeptical Winnie is shipped off across the country to assist her horror-reality producer aunt Maggie in her new show Fantastic, Fearsome: New Jersey, in which Maggie and a team of paranormal specialists will hunt down the Jersey Devil.
The Devil and Winnie Flynn, despite its potential for action and excitement and the inclusion of multimedia pieces such as show scripts and illustrations by the author's brother, David Ostow, ultimately struggles with pacing. While readers get to know Winnie and her sardonic ways, it's difficult to become invested in Winnie and her story. Perhaps this is a side effect of starting with a character so dedicated to logic and judging others -- qualities that may be attributed to the trauma of her mother's death, but don't help readers care for Winnie -- but too many times, the story seemed to be met with winds of resistance to slow it down. Winnie's harsh judgment of others also makes the characters who otherwise populate the novel come across as one-dimensional and stock-like. If Winnie can't see beyond one kid's hair (an early series of comments Winnie makes about one character that might be interpreted as antisimetic), in her hands as narrator, it's difficult for readers to round out those she speaks of themselves.
That said, as a narrator, Winnie no doubt has a distinct voice, particularly as the novel serves as an ongoing letter to the best friend she left behind in California. This frame isn't explained until almost the very end, which, while readers can figure out what is going on in terms of Winnie writing this ongoing letter, the why -- both for Winnie and for the structure of the novel -- is vague at best.
The plot overall is promising, even if the execution isn't stellar. A romantic subplot feels rather additional, especially because of its half-hearted buildup that makes the reader question whether there's anything romantic happening at all for much of the story. Supernatural elements don't make a real appearance until nearer the end, which shifts the atmosphere of the book pretty significantly and in a way that is almost jarring. Literally divided into numbered parts, the book ultimately feels like more than one book that couldn't quite decide what it wanted to be.
Necessary to the lore of the novel, the New Jersey setting is solid enough and gives readers who haven't explored particular parts of the state sufficient detail to be immersed in the space. A supplemental nod to the realities of the Jersey Devil history provides additional setting texture to the novel and invites readers to do their own further research on the topic and people mentioned in the story.
Unless you're a big fan of Jersey Devil lore, this one is unfortunately skip-able.
The Devil and Winnie Flynn, despite its potential for action and excitement and the inclusion of multimedia pieces such as show scripts and illustrations by the author's brother, David Ostow, ultimately struggles with pacing. While readers get to know Winnie and her sardonic ways, it's difficult to become invested in Winnie and her story. Perhaps this is a side effect of starting with a character so dedicated to logic and judging others -- qualities that may be attributed to the trauma of her mother's death, but don't help readers care for Winnie -- but too many times, the story seemed to be met with winds of resistance to slow it down. Winnie's harsh judgment of others also makes the characters who otherwise populate the novel come across as one-dimensional and stock-like. If Winnie can't see beyond one kid's hair (an early series of comments Winnie makes about one character that might be interpreted as antisimetic), in her hands as narrator, it's difficult for readers to round out those she speaks of themselves.
That said, as a narrator, Winnie no doubt has a distinct voice, particularly as the novel serves as an ongoing letter to the best friend she left behind in California. This frame isn't explained until almost the very end, which, while readers can figure out what is going on in terms of Winnie writing this ongoing letter, the why -- both for Winnie and for the structure of the novel -- is vague at best.
The plot overall is promising, even if the execution isn't stellar. A romantic subplot feels rather additional, especially because of its half-hearted buildup that makes the reader question whether there's anything romantic happening at all for much of the story. Supernatural elements don't make a real appearance until nearer the end, which shifts the atmosphere of the book pretty significantly and in a way that is almost jarring. Literally divided into numbered parts, the book ultimately feels like more than one book that couldn't quite decide what it wanted to be.
Necessary to the lore of the novel, the New Jersey setting is solid enough and gives readers who haven't explored particular parts of the state sufficient detail to be immersed in the space. A supplemental nod to the realities of the Jersey Devil history provides additional setting texture to the novel and invites readers to do their own further research on the topic and people mentioned in the story.
Unless you're a big fan of Jersey Devil lore, this one is unfortunately skip-able.
February 1, 2018
Writing: Average. However, there were multiple sentences that seemed to have typos. One sentence seemed like a big typo from a previous draft that no one caught in editing and honestly who edited this because they didn't catch these multiple errors before printing?? There was also a section where certain characters were supposed to be in a specific order and then a sentence later they were in a different order as if the author forgot halfway through the page who was next to who - continuity?? I knocked a star off right off the bat for these errors. On top of that I knocked another star off for calling Han Solo HANS - it's Han. If you're going to make a pop culture reference at least get the characters name right. Again, not sure if this is just a typo but if it is, where was your editor? or a beta reader? Did anyone read this before printing?
Plot: Tedious until about halfway through when the action starts to pick up. Ending felt rushed and anticlimactic with things wrapping up far too neatly. For a story about a devil, I never really felt scared and when the ending came around I expected so much more. Minus another star.
Characters: Basic and boring, even the MC is pretty vanilla. I kept reading hoping for the plot to get good rather than for Winnie to become interesting. Also where was the chemistry between ANY characters? I didn't even care if Winnie liked Seth since we knew almost nothing of value about him aside from his occupation and looks. Minus another star.
Illustrations: Neat but also not really necessary. Most of the time they didn't even add to the plot in any meaningful way.
*Also as stated in other reviews - the horror movie tropes thing was just annoying, as if the author was trying to step back and say "aren't I clever, using these tropes to point out how my own work is totally not tropey" even though it is in a really boring, barely tried way.
*Personal nitpick: The black pages with white writing at the beginning of each chapter were difficult for me to read.
Plot: Tedious until about halfway through when the action starts to pick up. Ending felt rushed and anticlimactic with things wrapping up far too neatly. For a story about a devil, I never really felt scared and when the ending came around I expected so much more. Minus another star.
Characters: Basic and boring, even the MC is pretty vanilla. I kept reading hoping for the plot to get good rather than for Winnie to become interesting. Also where was the chemistry between ANY characters? I didn't even care if Winnie liked Seth since we knew almost nothing of value about him aside from his occupation and looks. Minus another star.
Illustrations: Neat but also not really necessary. Most of the time they didn't even add to the plot in any meaningful way.
*Also as stated in other reviews - the horror movie tropes thing was just annoying, as if the author was trying to step back and say "aren't I clever, using these tropes to point out how my own work is totally not tropey" even though it is in a really boring, barely tried way.
*Personal nitpick: The black pages with white writing at the beginning of each chapter were difficult for me to read.
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