What do you think?
Rate this book
The Jersey Devil
Everyone knows the legend of the Jersey Devil. Some believe it is an abomination of nature, a hybrid winged beast from hell that stalks the Pine Barrens of southern New Jersey searching for prey. Others believe it is a hoax, a campfire story designed to scare children. But one man knows the truth...
THE DEVIL AWAKES
Sixty years ago, Boompa Willet came face to face with the Devil—and lived to tell the tale. Now, the creature’s stomping grounds are alive once again with strange sightings, disappearances, and worse. After all these years, Boompa must return to the Barrens, not to prove the legend is real but to wipe it off the face of the earth...
THE BEAST MUST DIE
It’ll take more than just courage to defeat the Devil. It will take four generations of the Willet clan, a lifetime of survivalist training, and all the firepower they can carry. But timing is critical. A summer music festival has attracted crowds of teenagers. The woods are filled with tender young prey. But this time, the Devil is not alone. The evil has grown into an unholy horde of mutant monstrosities. And hell has come home to New Jersey...
THE DEVIL AWAKES
Sixty years ago, Boompa Willet came face to face with the Devil—and lived to tell the tale. Now, the creature’s stomping grounds are alive once again with strange sightings, disappearances, and worse. After all these years, Boompa must return to the Barrens, not to prove the legend is real but to wipe it off the face of the earth...
THE BEAST MUST DIE
It’ll take more than just courage to defeat the Devil. It will take four generations of the Willet clan, a lifetime of survivalist training, and all the firepower they can carry. But timing is critical. A summer music festival has attracted crowds of teenagers. The woods are filled with tender young prey. But this time, the Devil is not alone. The evil has grown into an unholy horde of mutant monstrosities. And hell has come home to New Jersey...
378 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published August 30, 2016
70 people are currently reading
1228 people want to read
About the author
Hunter Shea
66 books1,008 followersHunter Shea is the author of over 25 books, with a specialization in cryptozoological horror that includes The Jersey Devil, The Dover Demon, Loch Ness Revenge and many others. As part of the new horror line at Flame Tree Press, his novel Creature has gained critical acclaim. His novel, The Montauk Monster, was named one of the best reads of the summer by Publishers Weekly. A trip to the International Cryptozoology Museum will find several of his cryptid books among the fascinating displays. Living in a true haunted house inspired his Jessica Backman: Death in the Afterlife series (Forest of Shadows, Sinister Entity and Island of the Forbidden). In 2011, he was selected to be a part of the launch of Samhain Publishing’s new horror line alongside legendary author Ramsey Campbell. When he’s not writing thrillers and horror, he also spins tall tales for middle grade readers on Amazon’s highly regarded Rapids reading app.
An avid podcaster, he can be seen and heard on Monster Men, one of the longest running video horror podcasts in the world, and Final Guys, focusing on weekly movie and book reviews. His nostalgic column about the magic of 80s horror, Video Visions, is featured monthly at Cemetery Dance Online. You can find his short stories in a number of anthologies, including Chopping Block Party, The Body Horror Book and Fearful Fathoms II.
A lifetime New Yorker, Hunter is supported by his loving wife and two beautiful daughters. When he’s not studying up on cryptozoology, he’s an avid explorer of the unknown, having spent a night alone on the Queen Mary, searching for the Warren’s famous White Lady of the Union Cemetery and other mysterious places.
You can follow his travails at www.huntershea.com.
An avid podcaster, he can be seen and heard on Monster Men, one of the longest running video horror podcasts in the world, and Final Guys, focusing on weekly movie and book reviews. His nostalgic column about the magic of 80s horror, Video Visions, is featured monthly at Cemetery Dance Online. You can find his short stories in a number of anthologies, including Chopping Block Party, The Body Horror Book and Fearful Fathoms II.
A lifetime New Yorker, Hunter is supported by his loving wife and two beautiful daughters. When he’s not studying up on cryptozoology, he’s an avid explorer of the unknown, having spent a night alone on the Queen Mary, searching for the Warren’s famous White Lady of the Union Cemetery and other mysterious places.
You can follow his travails at www.huntershea.com.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 162 reviews
February 6, 2017
When Jersey Devil sightings spike, Sam Willet and his family head to the New Jersey Pine Barrens for a reckoning sixty years in the making. With a cryptozoologist and a van full of firepower, will they be able to bring down the devil and live to tell the tale?
My young eyes first encountered the legend of the Jersey Devil in Monsters You Never Heard of sometime before the age of ten. I thought it was kind of lame and forgot about it until it was featured in an early X-Files episode. Anyway, since Hunter Shea is the bee's knees, I figured I'd give this one a shot when I saw the price dropped to ninety-nine cents. I'm cheap, what can I say.
The Jersey Devil is the story of Sam Willet and his family's axe to grind with the Jersey Devil, who terrorized Grandma Willet six decades earlier. Aided and abetted by a noted cryptozoologist, they walk into the Pine Barrens. Some of them even manage to hobble out.
This book is about as gentle as a trip to a slaughterhouse. Character after character are introduced, only to be fed through the Jersey meatgrinder once you feel something toward them. The body count is off the chart. The Devil's origins are explored and its mythology is expanded upon. And its many children go on a feeding frenzy...
I'd say this is the goriest Hunter Shea novel I've read yet and the threat of the Jersey Devil was probably the worst. After a while, I was just hoping one or more members of the Willet clan would survive.
The Jersey Devil is a gory good time, highly entertaining but definitely not for the squeamish. Four out of five stars.
My young eyes first encountered the legend of the Jersey Devil in Monsters You Never Heard of sometime before the age of ten. I thought it was kind of lame and forgot about it until it was featured in an early X-Files episode. Anyway, since Hunter Shea is the bee's knees, I figured I'd give this one a shot when I saw the price dropped to ninety-nine cents. I'm cheap, what can I say.
The Jersey Devil is the story of Sam Willet and his family's axe to grind with the Jersey Devil, who terrorized Grandma Willet six decades earlier. Aided and abetted by a noted cryptozoologist, they walk into the Pine Barrens. Some of them even manage to hobble out.
This book is about as gentle as a trip to a slaughterhouse. Character after character are introduced, only to be fed through the Jersey meatgrinder once you feel something toward them. The body count is off the chart. The Devil's origins are explored and its mythology is expanded upon. And its many children go on a feeding frenzy...
I'd say this is the goriest Hunter Shea novel I've read yet and the threat of the Jersey Devil was probably the worst. After a while, I was just hoping one or more members of the Willet clan would survive.
The Jersey Devil is a gory good time, highly entertaining but definitely not for the squeamish. Four out of five stars.
September 29, 2017
Review later. Maybe.
October 30, 2017
Holy Shit, Batman, this is one hell of a gore feast! Which is of course, what I was after when I started to read the latest Hunter Shea book. But, even I think Shea overachieved himself this time. This book has some really pretty disturbing parts, from brutal death scenes to women almost being raped. I can face quite a lot, but even I found some parts hard to read. Shea doesn't shy away from brutal scenes that's for sure.
However, besides that, the book also has an interesting story. The heart of the story is a family that has been waiting for the Jersey Devil to show up again. Why? They have some pretty personal reasons for wanting to go after the Jersey Devil. But, they soon find out that it's not that easy. It's not one Jersey Devil they have to face, it's a legion. And, soon everything just goes wrong and they have to fight for their lives against the monsters.
This is a perfect book for people that like monsters. People that are hard to scare or frankly just want a read an interesting story with some nasty and brutal parts. And, that's me. I have to admit that I enjoy reading books like this. I like finding books that make me uncomfortable. And, this one sure did that!
I want to thank Kensington Books for providing me with a free copy through NetGalley for an honest review!
However, besides that, the book also has an interesting story. The heart of the story is a family that has been waiting for the Jersey Devil to show up again. Why? They have some pretty personal reasons for wanting to go after the Jersey Devil. But, they soon find out that it's not that easy. It's not one Jersey Devil they have to face, it's a legion. And, soon everything just goes wrong and they have to fight for their lives against the monsters.
This is a perfect book for people that like monsters. People that are hard to scare or frankly just want a read an interesting story with some nasty and brutal parts. And, that's me. I have to admit that I enjoy reading books like this. I like finding books that make me uncomfortable. And, this one sure did that!
I want to thank Kensington Books for providing me with a free copy through NetGalley for an honest review!
February 9, 2017
Sweeeeeet.
I mean, I was expecting a cryptozoologist's nightmare with a focus on building sympathetic characters even in New Jersey, and all of this is right on target, but I didn't expect to love the whole damn redneck family or their never-ending bullets and their heavy-set will-to-revenge.
I had a great time reading this. This is horror done right. The build-up wasn't too long, the reveals were properly horrific, and the end was extremely satisfying. And bloody. Oh goodness, do any of you like a good gorefest? I do.
Hell, I love it. Especially when we get to ride with a bunch of lovable red-necks that have fallen in way too deep. Old School. Get your heart pumping in time to the shotgun barrel.
No spoilers, but keep your eye on that octogenerian. He's not only a man with a plan and a cadre of kids. He's an action hero. :)
Thanks to Netgalley for a wild ARC!
I mean, I was expecting a cryptozoologist's nightmare with a focus on building sympathetic characters even in New Jersey, and all of this is right on target, but I didn't expect to love the whole damn redneck family or their never-ending bullets and their heavy-set will-to-revenge.
I had a great time reading this. This is horror done right. The build-up wasn't too long, the reveals were properly horrific, and the end was extremely satisfying. And bloody. Oh goodness, do any of you like a good gorefest? I do.
Hell, I love it. Especially when we get to ride with a bunch of lovable red-necks that have fallen in way too deep. Old School. Get your heart pumping in time to the shotgun barrel.
No spoilers, but keep your eye on that octogenerian. He's not only a man with a plan and a cadre of kids. He's an action hero. :)
Thanks to Netgalley for a wild ARC!
September 22, 2017
3.5/5 stars!
The Jersey Devil, as you may have guessed, is a creature feature. It was fun and bloody, which are the top things I'm looking for in a book of this nature.
I thought it was a little too long, and a little far fetched, (but then again, most creature features are over the top.)
It was an entertaining and light read which was perfect for my mood.
You can get your copy here: The Jersey Devil
Recommended!
The Jersey Devil, as you may have guessed, is a creature feature. It was fun and bloody, which are the top things I'm looking for in a book of this nature.
I thought it was a little too long, and a little far fetched, (but then again, most creature features are over the top.)
It was an entertaining and light read which was perfect for my mood.
You can get your copy here: The Jersey Devil
Recommended!
February 10, 2017
This review and the rest of the crap I write can be seen @ my blog Bark's Book Nonsense . Stop by and say hey.
As the title suggests, this book is all about The Jersey Devil. He with the scary goat/horse faced visage and foul breath, who haunts hapless humans out there in the Jersey Pines. After reading this story, I do believe his name suits him just fine. He is a horrible beast and the things he does made me shudder in revulsion. It takes a lot to do that to me but this book delivered in that department.
This is a crazy, gruesome monster book where the monsters are truly monsters and not some poor little misunderstood, mistreated creature who has been wronged by mankind. These things are Evil. The framework is about a family seeking out and seeking revenge on The Jersey Devil who did them a big wrong many years previous. What they find deep in the woods is far more terrifying and depraved than they ever could have expected.
Be warned, lots of people die in the most gruesome of ways, perhaps a small town’s worth of people. I do not exaggerate. Okay, maybe I do, but not in this case. The body count here is out of control and no living thing is safe, that includes animals and children too. It is a death free for all that is often pretty gross and unrelenting. I say this not to spoil your day or the book but only so you’ll guard your heart going in. This one is most definitely not for the faint of heart. Characters, oh-so-many characters, are introduced, given a little backstory and just when you start to fear for their lives and are secretly screaming at them to get the hell out of the woods right-this-second-you-dummies, they become a little snack for a hungry monster. This happens time and again which is probably one of my only complaints. Somewhere around the last third I became a little exhausted at meeting yet more new people knowing their fate was sealed up tight. It started to get a wee bit repetitive and predictable there for a bit but the end made up for it as secrets were revealed. I do love learning secrets.
I’m giving this a four because there aren’t enough truly horrific monster books out there in the world that have decent people at the core of the story and this one has both and does them most excellently.
As the title suggests, this book is all about The Jersey Devil. He with the scary goat/horse faced visage and foul breath, who haunts hapless humans out there in the Jersey Pines. After reading this story, I do believe his name suits him just fine. He is a horrible beast and the things he does made me shudder in revulsion. It takes a lot to do that to me but this book delivered in that department.
This is a crazy, gruesome monster book where the monsters are truly monsters and not some poor little misunderstood, mistreated creature who has been wronged by mankind. These things are Evil. The framework is about a family seeking out and seeking revenge on The Jersey Devil who did them a big wrong many years previous. What they find deep in the woods is far more terrifying and depraved than they ever could have expected.
Be warned, lots of people die in the most gruesome of ways, perhaps a small town’s worth of people. I do not exaggerate. Okay, maybe I do, but not in this case. The body count here is out of control and no living thing is safe, that includes animals and children too. It is a death free for all that is often pretty gross and unrelenting. I say this not to spoil your day or the book but only so you’ll guard your heart going in. This one is most definitely not for the faint of heart. Characters, oh-so-many characters, are introduced, given a little backstory and just when you start to fear for their lives and are secretly screaming at them to get the hell out of the woods right-this-second-you-dummies, they become a little snack for a hungry monster. This happens time and again which is probably one of my only complaints. Somewhere around the last third I became a little exhausted at meeting yet more new people knowing their fate was sealed up tight. It started to get a wee bit repetitive and predictable there for a bit but the end made up for it as secrets were revealed. I do love learning secrets.
I’m giving this a four because there aren’t enough truly horrific monster books out there in the world that have decent people at the core of the story and this one has both and does them most excellently.
September 18, 2017
4.5 stars!
THE JERSEY DEVIL, by Hunter Shea, is a fast paced rampage of the type of "old-school" horror I've always loved. The best thing, for myself, in reading a new book based upon an existing legend, is what the author brings into it to make the story uniquely his/her own. Hunter Shea is an author that has yet to fail me in that regard.
THE JERSEY DEVIL, a legendary folklore of a winged beast, originates in the Pine Barrows of Southern New Jersey--a vast, wooded region easy to lose oneself in. Some think it is a form of hybrid demon, others, a "scary story" made up to keep children from straying into the Barrens. Then there are those families that insist: ". . . He comes from a power greater than anything on earth . . ."
Three generations of the Willet family believed in the Jersey Devil, for reasons all of their own.
"Every family had their secrets."
Hunter Shea has everything you could want in a story like this: authentic, believable characters that you come to know intimately through both their words and actions; an intense scope of atmosphere that retains the authenticity and mood as the novel progresses; violence, gore, and other monstrous scenes; and an ending that fits in perfectly with the tale he brings to life.
Even the secondary characters come off as "real" in this environment. Shea doesn't waste words on unnecessary filler--every part he creates has a reason for being here. The sense of family loyalty is especially prevalent when we are introduced to the lifestyles of those living near the Barrens. When one of their own is affected, the entire family feels it.
"Now, it was simply a matter of an eye for an eye."
This is one tale of the Jersey Devil that you won't want to put down until the very last page . . .
Highly recommended!
***re-read September 2017: I think I enjoyed this one even more the second time through.***
THE JERSEY DEVIL, by Hunter Shea, is a fast paced rampage of the type of "old-school" horror I've always loved. The best thing, for myself, in reading a new book based upon an existing legend, is what the author brings into it to make the story uniquely his/her own. Hunter Shea is an author that has yet to fail me in that regard.
THE JERSEY DEVIL, a legendary folklore of a winged beast, originates in the Pine Barrows of Southern New Jersey--a vast, wooded region easy to lose oneself in. Some think it is a form of hybrid demon, others, a "scary story" made up to keep children from straying into the Barrens. Then there are those families that insist: ". . . He comes from a power greater than anything on earth . . ."
Three generations of the Willet family believed in the Jersey Devil, for reasons all of their own.
"Every family had their secrets."
Hunter Shea has everything you could want in a story like this: authentic, believable characters that you come to know intimately through both their words and actions; an intense scope of atmosphere that retains the authenticity and mood as the novel progresses; violence, gore, and other monstrous scenes; and an ending that fits in perfectly with the tale he brings to life.
Even the secondary characters come off as "real" in this environment. Shea doesn't waste words on unnecessary filler--every part he creates has a reason for being here. The sense of family loyalty is especially prevalent when we are introduced to the lifestyles of those living near the Barrens. When one of their own is affected, the entire family feels it.
"Now, it was simply a matter of an eye for an eye."
This is one tale of the Jersey Devil that you won't want to put down until the very last page . . .
Highly recommended!
***re-read September 2017: I think I enjoyed this one even more the second time through.***
June 13, 2019
My first Hunter Shea and what a ride..!!
Is this literary horror? - No
Is it high art? - No
Is this a blood-soaked action-packed thrill ride that will make you duck for cover every time a sparrow's shadow crosses over your head while you're weeding the tomato patch? - OH YEAH.
And there is a wee Trigger Warning - there are a number of references to rape and attempted rape...however, as someone for whom this is a huge TW, and avoids anything with rape scenes, don't avoid this book for that reason. Trust me, Mr Shea knows how to deal with it, that's why he got the extra star *********************************
Is this literary horror? - No
Is it high art? - No
Is this a blood-soaked action-packed thrill ride that will make you duck for cover every time a sparrow's shadow crosses over your head while you're weeding the tomato patch? - OH YEAH.
And there is a wee Trigger Warning - there are a number of references to rape and attempted rape...however, as someone for whom this is a huge TW, and avoids anything with rape scenes, don't avoid this book for that reason. Trust me, Mr Shea knows how to deal with it, that's why he got the extra star *********************************
September 10, 2016
This is the second book I've read by Hunter Shea, who is quickly becoming my go-to author when I want a fairly mindless but absolutely satisfying horror read. When I say mindless, I don't mean it in a derogatory sense at all. I just mean that I'm not quite up for a literary horror read or having to think too terribly hard about the book I'm holding, which is my usual preference. Shea's writing is excellent and he's what I like to come home to when I've had a rough day and all I want is a cold beer, my pajamas, and a comfortable read. The Jersey Devil is just such a book.
The Willet family is marked by the Devil--The Jersey Devil. When new sightings of and attacks by the Devil start piling up in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey, it attracts the attention of not only the Willet's, but a well-known cryptozoologist, Norm Cranston, who has spent his entire career chasing monsters but never actually seeing one. Known by most as a myth, the Jersey Devil had been said to only to kill livestock and scream outside of houses, however something is now killing people and in increasing numbers. Already an unknown entity, if the 'Devil' has changed and started killing people, can they actually kill something that isn't even supposed to exist?
Another great read by Hunter Shea from whom I can't wait and plan to read more.
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
The Willet family is marked by the Devil--The Jersey Devil. When new sightings of and attacks by the Devil start piling up in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey, it attracts the attention of not only the Willet's, but a well-known cryptozoologist, Norm Cranston, who has spent his entire career chasing monsters but never actually seeing one. Known by most as a myth, the Jersey Devil had been said to only to kill livestock and scream outside of houses, however something is now killing people and in increasing numbers. Already an unknown entity, if the 'Devil' has changed and started killing people, can they actually kill something that isn't even supposed to exist?
Another great read by Hunter Shea from whom I can't wait and plan to read more.
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
August 23, 2016
Review copy
A romp through the Pine Barrens of New Jersey with multiple twists, layers, and additions to the mythos of The Jersey Devil.
I've lived in Southeastern Pennsylvania most of my life. It's close enough to South Jersey that I've grown up fascinated by the tall tales of The Jersey Devil. As a result I come to Hunter Shea's new book with a firm grasp on all of the hearsay from over the years While Hunter keeps the history of the legend in tact, he really just uses those stories as a starting point for his own tale which makes anything you may have heard before look like a child's bedtime story.
The Jersey Devil begins five years ago with Jane Moreland and her abusive husband Henry. Henry's lying on the floor, dead, having hit his head on the coffee table when he tripped while taking a swing at his wife during one of his drunken stupors. Serves the bastard right. Out of fear of the police, Jane wraps Henry's body in a tarp and takes it deep into the Pine Barrens to bury it. What happens next is just the beginning of a non-stop thrill ride.
As a writer, Hunter Shea holds nothing back, he leaves it all on the written page, as bloody as it may be. I liked the immediate action in the story, but then a slow build to an even bigger payoff. Some of the descriptions of the attacks which take place are exceedingly violent and visceral. There are numerous twists, each one darker than the last. This is not a story for the squeamish, but the rest of us can certainly enjoy the gut-wrenching monster mayhem.
Strongly recommending, just not around mealtime, unless you are looking to lose your appetite or bring up your lunch if you've already eaten.
Published by Pinnacle, The Jersey Devil will be available in both paperback and e-book formats on August 30th, 2016, but can be pre-ordered now.
From the author's bio - Hunter Shea is the author of several novels and his short stories have appeared in numerous magazines and anthologies, including Shocklines : Fresh Voices in Terror. published by Cemetery Dance. His obsession with all things horrific has led him to real life exploration of the paranormal, interviews with exorcists and other things that would keep most people awake with the lights on. He lives in New York with his family and vindictive cat.
A romp through the Pine Barrens of New Jersey with multiple twists, layers, and additions to the mythos of The Jersey Devil.
I've lived in Southeastern Pennsylvania most of my life. It's close enough to South Jersey that I've grown up fascinated by the tall tales of The Jersey Devil. As a result I come to Hunter Shea's new book with a firm grasp on all of the hearsay from over the years While Hunter keeps the history of the legend in tact, he really just uses those stories as a starting point for his own tale which makes anything you may have heard before look like a child's bedtime story.
The Jersey Devil begins five years ago with Jane Moreland and her abusive husband Henry. Henry's lying on the floor, dead, having hit his head on the coffee table when he tripped while taking a swing at his wife during one of his drunken stupors. Serves the bastard right. Out of fear of the police, Jane wraps Henry's body in a tarp and takes it deep into the Pine Barrens to bury it. What happens next is just the beginning of a non-stop thrill ride.
As a writer, Hunter Shea holds nothing back, he leaves it all on the written page, as bloody as it may be. I liked the immediate action in the story, but then a slow build to an even bigger payoff. Some of the descriptions of the attacks which take place are exceedingly violent and visceral. There are numerous twists, each one darker than the last. This is not a story for the squeamish, but the rest of us can certainly enjoy the gut-wrenching monster mayhem.
Strongly recommending, just not around mealtime, unless you are looking to lose your appetite or bring up your lunch if you've already eaten.
Published by Pinnacle, The Jersey Devil will be available in both paperback and e-book formats on August 30th, 2016, but can be pre-ordered now.
From the author's bio - Hunter Shea is the author of several novels and his short stories have appeared in numerous magazines and anthologies, including Shocklines : Fresh Voices in Terror. published by Cemetery Dance. His obsession with all things horrific has led him to real life exploration of the paranormal, interviews with exorcists and other things that would keep most people awake with the lights on. He lives in New York with his family and vindictive cat.
August 12, 2016
I’ve switched over to reading e-books almost exclusively, but back when I was making obsessively compulsive trips to our local Big Chain bookstores I would see paperbacks the publisher had labeled as a Guaranteed Good Read. I don’t know if this marketing practice is still in use, but I think it’s a label that should be slapped onto the covers of Hunter Shea’s books. I’ve read half a dozen Shea books so far, and not a single one has been a disappointment. If anything, the dude just keeps getting better and I’d say The Jersey Devil is certainly a high-water mark.
As the title indicates, this book is about – wait for it! – the Jersey Devil, a rather infamous cryptid lurking deep in the Pine Barrens. Shea knows his cryptid mythology, and unravels it in entertaining fashion here, giving it a fun bit of horrific depth and adds a few new wrinkles of his own devising. This Jersey Devil is a big, mean, old son of a gun, and hungrier than Chris Christie at a football stadium’s concession stand!
While the monster element is certainly a load of fun, it’s the human element that really makes the story shine. The Willet clan are a family of farmers, with their eldest patriarch, Sam “Boompa” Willet, having once previously squared off against the Devil and managed to survive. When people begin to go missing in the woods, and rumors of Jersey Devil sightings crop up again, Sam knows it’s down to he and his family to finish the job he started decades prior.
Let me just say, first and foremost, the Willet clan are a fun bunch to hang around with for a few hundred pages. Sam is an easy favorite, but his grandchildren certainly aren’t any slouches, either. They’ve all got enough meat on their bones to give you reason to care about their fates, which is of the utmost importance in a story like this, and in horror in general. Shea knows perfectly well that the monster is merely a lure to hook readers in, but it’s the characters that truly count at the end of the day.
Of course, you also need some guts and gore because it is, ultimately, horror. And jeez, does Shea deliver in that regard, too. The body count here is ridiculously high, and the amount of blood spilled in the Big Finale could be counted by the bucket-load. There’s a wonderfully delicious bit of spectacle throughout the whole book. Clearly, the author had tremendous fun writing this one, as well as a big appreciation for the Jersey Devil mythos, and that enthusiasm shows throughout.
Plain and simple – this book is just pure bloody fun. High-octane action, guts galore (in terms of both gutsy characters and actual guts dropping onto the forest floor), and enjoyable characters make this a stand-out creature feature. If you’re looking for some violent, fast-paced action horror, this, fellow readers, will do you nicely.
[Note: I received an advanced copy of this title for review from the publisher via NetGalley.]
As the title indicates, this book is about – wait for it! – the Jersey Devil, a rather infamous cryptid lurking deep in the Pine Barrens. Shea knows his cryptid mythology, and unravels it in entertaining fashion here, giving it a fun bit of horrific depth and adds a few new wrinkles of his own devising. This Jersey Devil is a big, mean, old son of a gun, and hungrier than Chris Christie at a football stadium’s concession stand!
While the monster element is certainly a load of fun, it’s the human element that really makes the story shine. The Willet clan are a family of farmers, with their eldest patriarch, Sam “Boompa” Willet, having once previously squared off against the Devil and managed to survive. When people begin to go missing in the woods, and rumors of Jersey Devil sightings crop up again, Sam knows it’s down to he and his family to finish the job he started decades prior.
Let me just say, first and foremost, the Willet clan are a fun bunch to hang around with for a few hundred pages. Sam is an easy favorite, but his grandchildren certainly aren’t any slouches, either. They’ve all got enough meat on their bones to give you reason to care about their fates, which is of the utmost importance in a story like this, and in horror in general. Shea knows perfectly well that the monster is merely a lure to hook readers in, but it’s the characters that truly count at the end of the day.
Of course, you also need some guts and gore because it is, ultimately, horror. And jeez, does Shea deliver in that regard, too. The body count here is ridiculously high, and the amount of blood spilled in the Big Finale could be counted by the bucket-load. There’s a wonderfully delicious bit of spectacle throughout the whole book. Clearly, the author had tremendous fun writing this one, as well as a big appreciation for the Jersey Devil mythos, and that enthusiasm shows throughout.
Plain and simple – this book is just pure bloody fun. High-octane action, guts galore (in terms of both gutsy characters and actual guts dropping onto the forest floor), and enjoyable characters make this a stand-out creature feature. If you’re looking for some violent, fast-paced action horror, this, fellow readers, will do you nicely.
[Note: I received an advanced copy of this title for review from the publisher via NetGalley.]
Read
September 21, 2017You know what - this started out good, but I'm throwing in the towel at about 70 % (or chapter 32, if someone's keeping count).
The writing is good (even if I felt like quality declining with the pagecount increasing. But that may be my boredom more than actual fact). Some things I've gotten hung up on - mainly the fact that a lot of dialog is built up with very proper use of the English language with quite eloquent sentences and actually quite cumbersome expressions, even during the most extreme and pressing situations.
The characters are also good (in a slightly cartoonish way) - the problem is that I don't care one bit about what's in store for them. It is a quite fun mythology to elaborate on (I never encountered this beast anywhere before, not even while spending lots of time in and around Philly), but I felt that the "Jaws 4 (This time it's personal)"-flavored storyline of the chosen/spared family can never end well. And that really was another thing I did not care about finding out.
At about half the book, I honestly felt that I had invested all the time I was prepared to in this story, but I made an effort to push on. But when the characters who's only place is to up the body count stopped having own chapters (from introduction to gory leftovers), but instead was having their entire book equivalent of a cameo on just a few pages, my patience wore too thin.
The writing is good (even if I felt like quality declining with the pagecount increasing. But that may be my boredom more than actual fact). Some things I've gotten hung up on - mainly the fact that a lot of dialog is built up with very proper use of the English language with quite eloquent sentences and actually quite cumbersome expressions, even during the most extreme and pressing situations.
The characters are also good (in a slightly cartoonish way) - the problem is that I don't care one bit about what's in store for them. It is a quite fun mythology to elaborate on (I never encountered this beast anywhere before, not even while spending lots of time in and around Philly), but I felt that the "Jaws 4 (This time it's personal)"-flavored storyline of the chosen/spared family can never end well. And that really was another thing I did not care about finding out.
At about half the book, I honestly felt that I had invested all the time I was prepared to in this story, but I made an effort to push on. But when the characters who's only place is to up the body count stopped having own chapters (from introduction to gory leftovers), but instead was having their entire book equivalent of a cameo on just a few pages, my patience wore too thin.
August 6, 2016
This creature feature novel should come with an extra large bucket of popcorn....recalling the Saturday afternoon monster movies of my youth, with a healthy dash of "Die Hard" style mayhem thrown in. Pure, escapist fun.
When the legendary Jersey Devil returns to it's old stomping grounds, the Pine Barrens of New Jersey, all Hell breaks loose, as the once elusive creature is now hunting....and it may not be alone.
Only the Willet clan, all four generations of them, dare to challenge the Devil's reign of terror, to end a family curse. And the Willets are ready for war. Joined by a cryptozoologist, they head into the Pine Barrens armed to the teeth to face a legend.
And that may just be exactly where it wants them.
Hunter Shea brings his own spin to the Beast of the Barrens, expanding on the original legend with terrifying results, while peopling his novel with characters that are truly characters.
Non-stop, fast paced fun from the first page to the last.
Highly recommended.
This was an eArc from Netgalley.
When the legendary Jersey Devil returns to it's old stomping grounds, the Pine Barrens of New Jersey, all Hell breaks loose, as the once elusive creature is now hunting....and it may not be alone.
Only the Willet clan, all four generations of them, dare to challenge the Devil's reign of terror, to end a family curse. And the Willets are ready for war. Joined by a cryptozoologist, they head into the Pine Barrens armed to the teeth to face a legend.
And that may just be exactly where it wants them.
Hunter Shea brings his own spin to the Beast of the Barrens, expanding on the original legend with terrifying results, while peopling his novel with characters that are truly characters.
Non-stop, fast paced fun from the first page to the last.
Highly recommended.
This was an eArc from Netgalley.
August 30, 2016
As a kid, I was fascinated with cryptozoology. Limited to books in the times before the internet, I'd page through, reading and studying the illustrations and now, so many years later, I can perfectly visualize the Jersey Devil again thanks to Mr. Shea. If you've never heard of it before, you're in for a treat as Mr. Shea brings it to life!
Because of my childhood fascination, I was pretty stoked to read Mr. Shea's book and it was a blast! The story has a large cast of characters, some that appear long enough to serve their purpose before moving on, but the main characters are the Willet family. Driven to search for answers after a mysterious mark appears on them, the family teams up with crypto hunter Norm Cranston after Jersey Devil sightings start surfacing. Along the way, the family engages in epic battles as they fight to learn the truth behind their marks and struggle to put an end to it once and for all.
This novel is a wonderful retake on the old tale and is one that any horror fan should NOT miss! The plot moves smoothly and it seemed like there was action on every other page, making this one a fast read that was hard to put down while never getting bogged down. While the likable family characters were great, I especially loved all the minor characters that appeared and disappeared throughout the book; you'll have to read it to see why!
If you're into monsters, cryptozoology, action or losing your fear of things that go bump in the night, do yourself a favor and pick this one up. You will not regret it.
Thank you to Kensington and NetGalley for the book in exchange for an honest, unbiased review!
Because of my childhood fascination, I was pretty stoked to read Mr. Shea's book and it was a blast! The story has a large cast of characters, some that appear long enough to serve their purpose before moving on, but the main characters are the Willet family. Driven to search for answers after a mysterious mark appears on them, the family teams up with crypto hunter Norm Cranston after Jersey Devil sightings start surfacing. Along the way, the family engages in epic battles as they fight to learn the truth behind their marks and struggle to put an end to it once and for all.
This novel is a wonderful retake on the old tale and is one that any horror fan should NOT miss! The plot moves smoothly and it seemed like there was action on every other page, making this one a fast read that was hard to put down while never getting bogged down. While the likable family characters were great, I especially loved all the minor characters that appeared and disappeared throughout the book; you'll have to read it to see why!
If you're into monsters, cryptozoology, action or losing your fear of things that go bump in the night, do yourself a favor and pick this one up. You will not regret it.
Thank you to Kensington and NetGalley for the book in exchange for an honest, unbiased review!
August 30, 2016
I’ll be honest, I don’t like New Jersey. Granted, my experience with New Jersey has been limited exclusively to the Interstates as I have been passing through. I’m sure that there are some very lovely parts of the Garden State, I’ve just never seen any of them as I sat at a standstill for hours on the Interstate. Hunter Shea has given me more reasons to be leery about New Jersey with its “brown recluse and black widow spiders…there are rattlesnakes out here and bobcats too.” Then of course, there is the Jersey Devil. Summer vacation in Jersey has been put on a permanent hiatus, thanks to Hunter Shea.
Hunter Shea is quickly becoming one of my go-to authors. Last September it was The Dover Demon, now a year minus two days, The Jersey Devil, and I’ve managed to squeeze in three others in between these two. I like his approach - an intricate, well developed plot with just the right touches of humor and sarcasm; it all balances out to a perfect, entertaining story.
I really embraced the family as the protagonist in The Jersey Devil. We didn’t just have one hero to save the day, but a whole clan working together to overcome insurmountable odds. I have a great deal of respect for an author who breaks the mold, doing something outside the norm. Hunter Shea built up all of the Willets equally, each one carried their weight in the story.
If you don’t know the story of the Jersey Devil, here is your invitation. The Devil has a home – it’s in Jersey.
*I received a copy of the book from the publisher (via NetGalley) in exchange for an honest review.
Hunter Shea is quickly becoming one of my go-to authors. Last September it was The Dover Demon, now a year minus two days, The Jersey Devil, and I’ve managed to squeeze in three others in between these two. I like his approach - an intricate, well developed plot with just the right touches of humor and sarcasm; it all balances out to a perfect, entertaining story.
I really embraced the family as the protagonist in The Jersey Devil. We didn’t just have one hero to save the day, but a whole clan working together to overcome insurmountable odds. I have a great deal of respect for an author who breaks the mold, doing something outside the norm. Hunter Shea built up all of the Willets equally, each one carried their weight in the story.
If you don’t know the story of the Jersey Devil, here is your invitation. The Devil has a home – it’s in Jersey.
*I received a copy of the book from the publisher (via NetGalley) in exchange for an honest review.
October 4, 2016
The Jersey Devil is the latest release from Hunter Shea and it's effectively what you have come to expect from this prolific horror author. A group of characters come together to survive against some kind of monster - in this case, the titular mythical figure - before carnage and chaos ensue.
The Jersey Devil is a B-move come to life. It demands to be read on a Friday night with a six pack of beers, in place of the old creature features they used to run on late night TV in my part of the world. Shea attempts to imbue his novel with something a little deeper, but having most of his characters belonging to one family, and thus ramping up the stakes regarding the death of any one of them, but this is only mildly successful, as it's fairly obvious from very early on, which characters are likely to die.
The book is also quite long - in fact, I'd go so far as to say, too long. There are too many repetitive scenes of minor characters being set up, only for them to be killed by the end of their scene, or put into position so they can be offed later in the story. It slows the pace considerably and robs the book of some of its hard-earned momentum.
But fans of cryptid horror are likely to lap this up. So if that sounds like you, make sure to pick this one up sooner rather than later.
2.5 Creatures Playing With Their Food for The Jersey Devil.
The preceding was based on an copy provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
The Jersey Devil is a B-move come to life. It demands to be read on a Friday night with a six pack of beers, in place of the old creature features they used to run on late night TV in my part of the world. Shea attempts to imbue his novel with something a little deeper, but having most of his characters belonging to one family, and thus ramping up the stakes regarding the death of any one of them, but this is only mildly successful, as it's fairly obvious from very early on, which characters are likely to die.
The book is also quite long - in fact, I'd go so far as to say, too long. There are too many repetitive scenes of minor characters being set up, only for them to be killed by the end of their scene, or put into position so they can be offed later in the story. It slows the pace considerably and robs the book of some of its hard-earned momentum.
But fans of cryptid horror are likely to lap this up. So if that sounds like you, make sure to pick this one up sooner rather than later.
2.5 Creatures Playing With Their Food for The Jersey Devil.
The preceding was based on an copy provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
August 25, 2021
I’m not a huge fan of “monster” books, but this was entertaining enough!
August 3, 2025
THE LEGEND LIVES...THE DEVIL AWAKES...THE BEAST MUST DIE!...Everyone knows the legend of the Jersey Devil. Some believe it is an abomination of nature, a hybrid winged beast from hell that stalks the Pine Barrens of southern New Jersey searching for prey. Others believe it is a hoax, a campfire story designed to scare children. But one man knows the truth.
I grew up on ghost stories and other "scary Irish creatures" that, as kids, my Irish grandmother entertained us with. As a result, none of us were never truly scared, we just loved the idea of it all being real, and the worse the story was, the better. I was 10-years old when I and two of my cousins that were close to my age visited more family in New Jersey with my grandfather. He and our uncle took us on "The Adventure of Our Lifetimes" to the Pine Barrens, after telling us all about the "Jersey Devil" in all its glorious, (to us), dripping gory details. Oh...we were more than ready to see this creature. BRING IT ON!! Of course, we didn't see anything other than about a hundred trillion zillion boring pine trees...it was the middle of the afternoon, and no self-respecting "Jersey Devil" would make an appearance at that time of day...and my "kill-joy", level-headed grandfather was adamant that we were not under any circumstances, staying until it was dark! Bummer!
Hunter Shea gives us a bit of "Devil History" along with a blood cudgeling horror story to get us ready to meet the "Star of the Show". It seems that the Legend of the Jersey Devil dates back to a dark and stormy night in 1735 when Mother Leeds had just given birth to her 13th child. (13 kids...I wonder if she had thought about feeding her husband...no, we won't go there.) The midwives that helped her swore that she’d given birth to a demon. The "Jersey Devil" is supposed to stand on two goat-like legs complete with sharp cloven hooves. Its upper body resembles a dragon or snake with short arms ending in razor sharp claws, and a pair of massive bat-like wings to give it the gift of flight. The head is said to look like a horse or large goat with eyes that glow a fiery red in the dark. The native Lenape People called the area "Popuessing", meaning “place of the dragon”. Later the Dutch would call it "Drake Kill" or "Dragon Channel". Oh Yeah...10-year-old me would have diffidently wanted to see that!!
It seems that too many thrill seekers decide to explore the Pine Barrens at a crucial time in the Devil’s life and the Willet Family, who have a long-kept family secret regarding the Devil, want to be at ground zero, lock, stock and barrel, when this creature shows up again. I began to wonder if these folks were perhaps "one brick short of a full wall" as they began to prepare for the "meeting". They watched the news, they read the articles in the newspapers...they were taking it all very, very seriously. People began to arrive...it started with one person, soon it was several couples, added to by one group after another of stupid, foolish campers. Jersey Devil Smorgasbord" and 'Take-Out" Service had arrived! Soon, one after another they start to go missing and the body count begins to rise fast...a cryptid hunter, Norm Cranston, enters the Barrens ready for the battle of his lifetime. No one knows what is going on. It seems that after years of just a few random sightings, the Devil is now getting a bit sloppy. He’s allowing himself to be spotted a lot more, and he’s not doing a lot to hide his kills.
The Jersey Devil is a thrill ride of fun. Dismembered limbs are flying, and heads are rolling, literally. Blood and gore abound and nowhere is safe. And all this is even before the hunters even meet one of the decedents of Mother Leeds who is reluctant to help them despite, or maybe because of, the recent uprising of violent activity. I thought, finally someone with a little sense! I bet, if they had existed at that time... the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce and Visitor's Center would have been thrilled! "Visit New Jersey and be dinner".
If you are planning a trip to New Jersey and are tempted to take a stroll through the legendary Pine Barrens...read Hunter Shea's "The Jersey Devil" before you go and you may find that you are "smarter than you look" and change your mind. If not...well...it was certainly a pleasure knowing you.... you'll be sorely missed.
I grew up on ghost stories and other "scary Irish creatures" that, as kids, my Irish grandmother entertained us with. As a result, none of us were never truly scared, we just loved the idea of it all being real, and the worse the story was, the better. I was 10-years old when I and two of my cousins that were close to my age visited more family in New Jersey with my grandfather. He and our uncle took us on "The Adventure of Our Lifetimes" to the Pine Barrens, after telling us all about the "Jersey Devil" in all its glorious, (to us), dripping gory details. Oh...we were more than ready to see this creature. BRING IT ON!! Of course, we didn't see anything other than about a hundred trillion zillion boring pine trees...it was the middle of the afternoon, and no self-respecting "Jersey Devil" would make an appearance at that time of day...and my "kill-joy", level-headed grandfather was adamant that we were not under any circumstances, staying until it was dark! Bummer!
Hunter Shea gives us a bit of "Devil History" along with a blood cudgeling horror story to get us ready to meet the "Star of the Show". It seems that the Legend of the Jersey Devil dates back to a dark and stormy night in 1735 when Mother Leeds had just given birth to her 13th child. (13 kids...I wonder if she had thought about feeding her husband...no, we won't go there.) The midwives that helped her swore that she’d given birth to a demon. The "Jersey Devil" is supposed to stand on two goat-like legs complete with sharp cloven hooves. Its upper body resembles a dragon or snake with short arms ending in razor sharp claws, and a pair of massive bat-like wings to give it the gift of flight. The head is said to look like a horse or large goat with eyes that glow a fiery red in the dark. The native Lenape People called the area "Popuessing", meaning “place of the dragon”. Later the Dutch would call it "Drake Kill" or "Dragon Channel". Oh Yeah...10-year-old me would have diffidently wanted to see that!!
It seems that too many thrill seekers decide to explore the Pine Barrens at a crucial time in the Devil’s life and the Willet Family, who have a long-kept family secret regarding the Devil, want to be at ground zero, lock, stock and barrel, when this creature shows up again. I began to wonder if these folks were perhaps "one brick short of a full wall" as they began to prepare for the "meeting". They watched the news, they read the articles in the newspapers...they were taking it all very, very seriously. People began to arrive...it started with one person, soon it was several couples, added to by one group after another of stupid, foolish campers. Jersey Devil Smorgasbord" and 'Take-Out" Service had arrived! Soon, one after another they start to go missing and the body count begins to rise fast...a cryptid hunter, Norm Cranston, enters the Barrens ready for the battle of his lifetime. No one knows what is going on. It seems that after years of just a few random sightings, the Devil is now getting a bit sloppy. He’s allowing himself to be spotted a lot more, and he’s not doing a lot to hide his kills.
The Jersey Devil is a thrill ride of fun. Dismembered limbs are flying, and heads are rolling, literally. Blood and gore abound and nowhere is safe. And all this is even before the hunters even meet one of the decedents of Mother Leeds who is reluctant to help them despite, or maybe because of, the recent uprising of violent activity. I thought, finally someone with a little sense! I bet, if they had existed at that time... the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce and Visitor's Center would have been thrilled! "Visit New Jersey and be dinner".
If you are planning a trip to New Jersey and are tempted to take a stroll through the legendary Pine Barrens...read Hunter Shea's "The Jersey Devil" before you go and you may find that you are "smarter than you look" and change your mind. If not...well...it was certainly a pleasure knowing you.... you'll be sorely missed.
September 1, 2016
The Pine Barrens -3.5 stars...
I love horror stories based on old legends so I was excited about reading this book. The legend goes that the Jersey Devil haunts the Pine Barrens of Southern New Jersey and he's always looking for prey...
Shea then takes that legend to another level. I enjoyed the whole creature feature aspect and I thought the main characters, Norm the famous cryptozoologist and the Willet family who's been haunted by the Jersey Devil for years, were pretty cool.
What I didn't particularly care for though was the whole human & creature sex/rape thing. I thought that whole story line was just too much. I like stories and scare more easily if they're a little more realistic. Then there was another part were Shea compared the Jersey Devil to a cross between a child with down syndrome and a goat. I mean really?!- Political correctness went straight out the window with this book- just a heads up!
So the book could definitely use some more editing. Not only for the above mentioned, but in my copy there weren't any clear separations between POVs so it was confusing to read. It was one of those books where I had to read, then back up, then read again. Plus there were way too many side stories and extraneous characters that I think the story could have done without.
Overall I enjoyed it until it went off the rails and went beyond my willingness to suspend my disbelief but I'm sure there are others who may enjoy it. If you don't particularly care for stories with rape in the subject matter though, then you might want to steer clear.
*I received this ARC from NetGalley & Kensington Books in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!
I love horror stories based on old legends so I was excited about reading this book. The legend goes that the Jersey Devil haunts the Pine Barrens of Southern New Jersey and he's always looking for prey...
Shea then takes that legend to another level. I enjoyed the whole creature feature aspect and I thought the main characters, Norm the famous cryptozoologist and the Willet family who's been haunted by the Jersey Devil for years, were pretty cool.
What I didn't particularly care for though was the whole human & creature sex/rape thing. I thought that whole story line was just too much. I like stories and scare more easily if they're a little more realistic. Then there was another part were Shea compared the Jersey Devil to a cross between a child with down syndrome and a goat. I mean really?!- Political correctness went straight out the window with this book- just a heads up!
So the book could definitely use some more editing. Not only for the above mentioned, but in my copy there weren't any clear separations between POVs so it was confusing to read. It was one of those books where I had to read, then back up, then read again. Plus there were way too many side stories and extraneous characters that I think the story could have done without.
Overall I enjoyed it until it went off the rails and went beyond my willingness to suspend my disbelief but I'm sure there are others who may enjoy it. If you don't particularly care for stories with rape in the subject matter though, then you might want to steer clear.
*I received this ARC from NetGalley & Kensington Books in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!
December 13, 2016
This was really good. Like, really for reals really good.
This is a monster story done right. Characters you care about, written well and with depth. A monster that is horrifyingly horrible and horrid. Tons of gore that never seems to be there as a crutch for lack of talent and/or ideas.
The body count in this one is unbelievable, but yet at the same time kinda...believable. Yeah, I don't know if I understand what I said there either. But I stand behind it.
Just like I'd stand behind YOU, cowering, if I was faced with the terror that is....
THE JERSEY DEVIL!!
This is a monster story done right. Characters you care about, written well and with depth. A monster that is horrifyingly horrible and horrid. Tons of gore that never seems to be there as a crutch for lack of talent and/or ideas.
The body count in this one is unbelievable, but yet at the same time kinda...believable. Yeah, I don't know if I understand what I said there either. But I stand behind it.
Just like I'd stand behind YOU, cowering, if I was faced with the terror that is....
THE JERSEY DEVIL!!
September 9, 2016
2.5 stars
I had high expectations for this book after absolutely loving the fast-paced splatterfest The Montauk Monster.
Unfortunately, for me, this book wasn't even close. Yes, it had the blood and gore that's a throwback to good old horror "B" movies, but this book just plodded on and on and on. Seriously, it felt like it would never end. Once again, if someone would have just edited this book by at least 100 pages, this would have been such a great book.
Sadly, this was a disappointing one for me.
I had high expectations for this book after absolutely loving the fast-paced splatterfest The Montauk Monster.
Unfortunately, for me, this book wasn't even close. Yes, it had the blood and gore that's a throwback to good old horror "B" movies, but this book just plodded on and on and on. Seriously, it felt like it would never end. Once again, if someone would have just edited this book by at least 100 pages, this would have been such a great book.
Sadly, this was a disappointing one for me.
June 18, 2018
A pretty good and quick monster romp with a high body count and some pretty cool creepy crawlies. Fast and entertaining.
Geriatric morning wood, grimey Pineys, a feral lactating lass , half a camper, a deer stampede, birthmark hooves and “the family that hunts together…”
Geriatric morning wood, grimey Pineys, a feral lactating lass , half a camper, a deer stampede, birthmark hooves and “the family that hunts together…”
October 27, 2016
Gah! Why?
Okay, so I don't think I should have read this book. It was not for me. I love B-movies (low budget), but B-Books (Low effort or skill) seem to be a mashed-up mess. Unbelievably cheesy story based on a somewhat decent backstory with animated, but cardboard under-cooked characters with awesome ideas that fizzle out along the way. Yes, this book had some interesting things going on, but we also heard and saw The Jersey Devil way too much to make him an effective foe. His little spawnings were cool, in that tear your throat out type of way, but I needed more that that.
The characters knew too much about guns and everyone knew how to use them. They were a very ride-or-die family and I dug that too, to a certain extent.
I guess you could say this read was over-done. Hmm. Now I'm confusing myself. It just didn't hit the spot
It took me for-ev-er to finish this read.
2* clawmarks
Okay, so I don't think I should have read this book. It was not for me. I love B-movies (low budget), but B-Books (Low effort or skill) seem to be a mashed-up mess. Unbelievably cheesy story based on a somewhat decent backstory with animated, but cardboard under-cooked characters with awesome ideas that fizzle out along the way. Yes, this book had some interesting things going on, but we also heard and saw The Jersey Devil way too much to make him an effective foe. His little spawnings were cool, in that tear your throat out type of way, but I needed more that that.
The characters knew too much about guns and everyone knew how to use them. They were a very ride-or-die family and I dug that too, to a certain extent.
I guess you could say this read was over-done. Hmm. Now I'm confusing myself. It just didn't hit the spot
It took me for-ev-er to finish this read.
2* clawmarks
September 6, 2016
I will cut right to the chase. Around 90% in, the following description for the jersey devil was used:
Hopefully the offensiveness of that description is self-explanatory.
I tried to keep reading. I made it to 94% but I don't remember a single word past "goat".
You do what you want. The book had merits before the error of judgment, but I won't go into them here. This is the first Hunter Shea book that I've read. I will read more (unless I find more shit like I found here). As for this book, it is not one that I would ever recommend.
"Dammit!" he cursed, aiming for the other, the one that looked like a cross between a child with Down syndrome and a goat.
Hopefully the offensiveness of that description is self-explanatory.
I tried to keep reading. I made it to 94% but I don't remember a single word past "goat".
You do what you want. The book had merits before the error of judgment, but I won't go into them here. This is the first Hunter Shea book that I've read. I will read more (unless I find more shit like I found here). As for this book, it is not one that I would ever recommend.
September 16, 2016
All the time I was reading "The Jersey Devil" I couldn't help but feel I was caught up in the middle of a B-horror film (only better) and it was a fun feeling. "The Jersey Devil" tells the story of the Willet family, who has been obsessed with the Devil for years and for good reason. The grandfather, Sam, also known as Boompa (awesome grandpa-nickname by the way) and his family run a rural farm. When individuals start reporting sightings of perhaps the Devil himself in and around the Pine Barrens of New Jersey, Sam and his family decide to head out in hopes of putting an end to the Jersey Devil once and for all. Also in tow is Norm, a famous monster hunter, who has known Sam for years and who is anxious to find out more about the Willet family's desire to track down and kill this elusive entity, while perhaps solidifying his name within the monster hunting community.
Shea has packed a lot of action into this book and it is pretty much non-stop from the start. He also does a great job of combing history with present time events while disclosing the reasons the Willet family has spent much of their spare time tracking down an urban legend. This is not a book for the faint at heart as there is lots of death, blood and gore but if you read a lot of horror, I doubt that will deter you. Even though on the outside this book appears to be a straight up gore-fest creature feature, what really makes it click for me is the characters. I LOVED Boompa! He was an sometimes-grumpy old man, but the love he has for his family is intense. I spent a lot of the book afraid he was going to have a heart attack, and EVERYONE kept asking him to slow down but Boompa is an extremely driven individual. I must admit, he reminds me a lot of my Grandpa, who is even older than Boompa, and you can't convince him to slow down either so I could definitely relate to the Willets. I also enjoyed April, Boompa's granddaughter, who sounds like someone I might enjoy hanging around with during my down time.
Shea's "The Jersey Devil" isn't perfect. I believe some people will and actually have found it to be in poor taste and extremely crude. And that's OK, everyone is entitled to their own opinions and I respect them all. However, I didn't take read too seriously and if you love campy, action-packed creature books/movies, then you might what to give this quick fast-paced book a try. I see myself checking out more of Shea's works in the future.
Shea has packed a lot of action into this book and it is pretty much non-stop from the start. He also does a great job of combing history with present time events while disclosing the reasons the Willet family has spent much of their spare time tracking down an urban legend. This is not a book for the faint at heart as there is lots of death, blood and gore but if you read a lot of horror, I doubt that will deter you. Even though on the outside this book appears to be a straight up gore-fest creature feature, what really makes it click for me is the characters. I LOVED Boompa! He was an sometimes-grumpy old man, but the love he has for his family is intense. I spent a lot of the book afraid he was going to have a heart attack, and EVERYONE kept asking him to slow down but Boompa is an extremely driven individual. I must admit, he reminds me a lot of my Grandpa, who is even older than Boompa, and you can't convince him to slow down either so I could definitely relate to the Willets. I also enjoyed April, Boompa's granddaughter, who sounds like someone I might enjoy hanging around with during my down time.
Shea's "The Jersey Devil" isn't perfect. I believe some people will and actually have found it to be in poor taste and extremely crude. And that's OK, everyone is entitled to their own opinions and I respect them all. However, I didn't take read too seriously and if you love campy, action-packed creature books/movies, then you might what to give this quick fast-paced book a try. I see myself checking out more of Shea's works in the future.
October 4, 2016
Interesting take on an old legend
A little background on myself first. I grew up on Long Island, NY - not far from New Jersey, the shore, and of course, the legend of The Jersey Devil. In 1982 when the Colorado Rockies hockey team moved to New Jersey, I voted for the new team name and became a huge New Jersey Devils fan - and still am to this day. And yes, I've even been to the Pine Barrens in "search" of the Devil.
So when I heard about The Jersey Devil by Hunter Shea, I was intrigued; and approached it with some trepidation. As Hunter notes in the book, people who are aware of the legend tend to be protective and don't like others messing around with it.
I was pleasantly surprised. The story revolves around a family that have a strange connection to the Devil. They all have a horseshoe mark on their abdomens and, after an increase in sightings, decide to find out its meaning - once and for all.
There were a few things I didn't like (causing the rating to drop from 4 to 3 stars). The first was the fact that the Devil in the story attacks and kills people. In the centuries the Devil has existed, its left people alone. Now, I realize this was crucial to the story, and there was a reason for it, but it's like turning The Loch Ness Monster into the Kraken - you just don't mess with it that much. Had it been a story about another creature, it would have been better.
But, don't let that distract you from reading this fine story. Unless you are from the area and have an affinity for the legend, I think you'll enjoy it. While this was my first Shea book, it won't be my last.
A little background on myself first. I grew up on Long Island, NY - not far from New Jersey, the shore, and of course, the legend of The Jersey Devil. In 1982 when the Colorado Rockies hockey team moved to New Jersey, I voted for the new team name and became a huge New Jersey Devils fan - and still am to this day. And yes, I've even been to the Pine Barrens in "search" of the Devil.
So when I heard about The Jersey Devil by Hunter Shea, I was intrigued; and approached it with some trepidation. As Hunter notes in the book, people who are aware of the legend tend to be protective and don't like others messing around with it.
I was pleasantly surprised. The story revolves around a family that have a strange connection to the Devil. They all have a horseshoe mark on their abdomens and, after an increase in sightings, decide to find out its meaning - once and for all.
There were a few things I didn't like (causing the rating to drop from 4 to 3 stars). The first was the fact that the Devil in the story attacks and kills people. In the centuries the Devil has existed, its left people alone. Now, I realize this was crucial to the story, and there was a reason for it, but it's like turning The Loch Ness Monster into the Kraken - you just don't mess with it that much. Had it been a story about another creature, it would have been better.
But, don't let that distract you from reading this fine story. Unless you are from the area and have an affinity for the legend, I think you'll enjoy it. While this was my first Shea book, it won't be my last.
July 9, 2016
Review of THE JERSEY DEVIL by Hunter Shea
The common thread in Hunter Shea's stories is that a reader learns to expect the unexpected. [Just read I KILL IN PEACE.] Every cryptid he writes of is never the cryptid we have learned to expect, but something different, stranger, "meta." Here the common, ordinary legend of "The Jersey Devil" transforms into something far more terrifying (as if the original Jersey Devil and its purported origin wasn't frightening enough).
Another factor in Hunter Shea's books is that he manages capably to juggle a sizeable number of characters while rendering each and all actual individuals, deeply definining them and then turning them loose to interact with others in the cast. In THE JERSEY DEVIL, I was impressed by the family ties of multiple families, and found myself wishing these could be true for families everywhere. Also, Mr. Shea's portrait of the "Lone Cryptozoologist" and his cat (and his failings and foibles) is both endearing and enlightening.
Surprisingly, Hunter Shea's THE JERSEY DEVIL is, I think, the first book-length treatment I have read on this topic. I'm certain it's going to color all the others I've yet to read.
The common thread in Hunter Shea's stories is that a reader learns to expect the unexpected. [Just read I KILL IN PEACE.] Every cryptid he writes of is never the cryptid we have learned to expect, but something different, stranger, "meta." Here the common, ordinary legend of "The Jersey Devil" transforms into something far more terrifying (as if the original Jersey Devil and its purported origin wasn't frightening enough).
Another factor in Hunter Shea's books is that he manages capably to juggle a sizeable number of characters while rendering each and all actual individuals, deeply definining them and then turning them loose to interact with others in the cast. In THE JERSEY DEVIL, I was impressed by the family ties of multiple families, and found myself wishing these could be true for families everywhere. Also, Mr. Shea's portrait of the "Lone Cryptozoologist" and his cat (and his failings and foibles) is both endearing and enlightening.
Surprisingly, Hunter Shea's THE JERSEY DEVIL is, I think, the first book-length treatment I have read on this topic. I'm certain it's going to color all the others I've yet to read.
September 6, 2016
Read the full review on HorrorTalk - http://www.horrortalk.com/reviews/boo...
Hunter Shea is an author who’s been around the block a few times. With more than twelve novels and novellas to his name, he’s as productive as the most prolific writers in genre fiction and it can be said with confidence that his books could all come with a Guaranteed Great Read seal on their covers. That’s a statement especially true of his monster stories. Hunter is the undisputed king of cryptids and his reign is likely to remain unchallenged for a long time to come, as every successive creature feature he produces serves to further cement his dominance in the field. With The Jersey Devil, the latest entry in Shea’s lexicon of savagery, he’s once again outdone himself with a bloody, brutal thrill ride through the Jersey Pine Barrens.
Read the full review on HorrorTalk - http://www.horrortalk.com/reviews/boo...
Hunter Shea is an author who’s been around the block a few times. With more than twelve novels and novellas to his name, he’s as productive as the most prolific writers in genre fiction and it can be said with confidence that his books could all come with a Guaranteed Great Read seal on their covers. That’s a statement especially true of his monster stories. Hunter is the undisputed king of cryptids and his reign is likely to remain unchallenged for a long time to come, as every successive creature feature he produces serves to further cement his dominance in the field. With The Jersey Devil, the latest entry in Shea’s lexicon of savagery, he’s once again outdone himself with a bloody, brutal thrill ride through the Jersey Pine Barrens.
Read the full review on HorrorTalk - http://www.horrortalk.com/reviews/boo...
April 22, 2019
This is an old-fashioned creature-feature book; it reminded me a lot of the great old Gargoyles movie. It follows the efforts of the Willet family in their efforts to hunt down and halt the ravages of the titular Jersey Devil, which has been enhanced by some carelessly discarded toxic waste. There is, of course, lots of carnage along the way... There should have been a character named Brodeur somewhere in a 378 page book with this title, but other than that I got just what I was expecting.... with lots of butter and extra salt.
August 25, 2016
I had high expectations going into this book. For one, it's Hunter Shea, one of the best horror writers currently working in the genre, one who always brings his "A" game. Two, it's The Jersey Devil! Born and raised in Dirty Jersey, I've heard just about every JD tale out there, and I've watched pretty much every crappy movie made on the subject. My big question going in was "how the heck is Shea going to do something different on this dirt-old legend?" Familiar with the author's work, I trusted him to cook up something fresh. High expectations usually lead to disappointment, but Hunter Shea's new monster masterpiece was anything but.
If you're expecting a quiet, backwoodsy horror novel, something in the same vein as The Witch or Blair Witch Project, you're in for a surprise. And a good one at that. The Jersey Devil starts out strong, introducing us to a family of characters, all of whom bear the cloven mark of the devil. They don't know why they've been branded, but with the help of a local cryptozoologist, they intend to find out. So the group travels to the Pine Barrens with guns--lots and lots of guns--with hopes to hunt the damned thing down, only they discover not just one Jersey Devil, but multiple Devils. From there, it's a guns-a-blazing bloodfest full of violence, mayhem, gory details, and the most vile creature the Garden State has to offer. And no, I'm not talking about Chris Christie!
Although horror, The Jersey Devil draws a lot of parallels to the western genre in terms of themes, which I thought was an excellent choice on the author's part. It had this Magnificent Seven vibe to it.
There's a lot to love about this book. The main characters were well developed and given clear arcs. The pacing was fast, every chapter ending with that one line that made me scream, "damn you, Hunter, well I can't stop now!" I enjoyed the story and appreciated a new take on the Devil and Momma Leeds' story, rather than sticking with the same old regurgitated Hollywood crapola. Hunter Shea took a big swing on this one and knocked it past the parking lot.
The only thing I wished Shea would have done was dedicate more pages to the family and the cryptozoologist, giving them more depth, rather than spending time with ancillary characters that end up becoming Devil fodder.
If you're familiar with Shea's books, you won't be disappointed with his new horror novel. If this is your first trek into his dark lair of monster mayhem, expect a kick-ass creature feature that doesn't take itself too seriously, well-written prose, and endless buckets of blood splatter. Fans of the midnight movie sub-genre rejoice - Hunter Shea has brought you another monster masterpiece!
4.5/5
***I received an ARC of this book and this is my unbiased review***
If you're expecting a quiet, backwoodsy horror novel, something in the same vein as The Witch or Blair Witch Project, you're in for a surprise. And a good one at that. The Jersey Devil starts out strong, introducing us to a family of characters, all of whom bear the cloven mark of the devil. They don't know why they've been branded, but with the help of a local cryptozoologist, they intend to find out. So the group travels to the Pine Barrens with guns--lots and lots of guns--with hopes to hunt the damned thing down, only they discover not just one Jersey Devil, but multiple Devils. From there, it's a guns-a-blazing bloodfest full of violence, mayhem, gory details, and the most vile creature the Garden State has to offer. And no, I'm not talking about Chris Christie!
Although horror, The Jersey Devil draws a lot of parallels to the western genre in terms of themes, which I thought was an excellent choice on the author's part. It had this Magnificent Seven vibe to it.
There's a lot to love about this book. The main characters were well developed and given clear arcs. The pacing was fast, every chapter ending with that one line that made me scream, "damn you, Hunter, well I can't stop now!" I enjoyed the story and appreciated a new take on the Devil and Momma Leeds' story, rather than sticking with the same old regurgitated Hollywood crapola. Hunter Shea took a big swing on this one and knocked it past the parking lot.
The only thing I wished Shea would have done was dedicate more pages to the family and the cryptozoologist, giving them more depth, rather than spending time with ancillary characters that end up becoming Devil fodder.
If you're familiar with Shea's books, you won't be disappointed with his new horror novel. If this is your first trek into his dark lair of monster mayhem, expect a kick-ass creature feature that doesn't take itself too seriously, well-written prose, and endless buckets of blood splatter. Fans of the midnight movie sub-genre rejoice - Hunter Shea has brought you another monster masterpiece!
4.5/5
***I received an ARC of this book and this is my unbiased review***
Displaying 1 - 30 of 162 reviews