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The Devil Tree #1
The Devil Tree
Based on the Port St. Lucie Legend
Back in the 1970s, a series of bizarre incidents occurred at what has since been known as "The Devil Tree." Beneath this ancient denizen, evil was wrought by a sick serial killer, calling upon forces most evil and dark. People were hung there ... and bodies buried there ... exhumed by the police. Overcome by superstition, some tried to cut down the tree, to no avail. Since then, it has stood in a remote section of a local park --- left to its own devices --- quiet in its eerie repose -- until now! Best-selling psychological-thriller author Keith Rommel has imagined the whole tale anew. He's brought the tree to life and retold the tale with gory detail only possible in a fiction novel. Action-packed, with spine-tingling detail, this thriller is beyond parallel in the ground it uncovers ... one author's explanation of what may have really been said -- what may have really happened -- under Port St. Lucie's "Devil Tree."
Back in the 1970s, a series of bizarre incidents occurred at what has since been known as "The Devil Tree." Beneath this ancient denizen, evil was wrought by a sick serial killer, calling upon forces most evil and dark. People were hung there ... and bodies buried there ... exhumed by the police. Overcome by superstition, some tried to cut down the tree, to no avail. Since then, it has stood in a remote section of a local park --- left to its own devices --- quiet in its eerie repose -- until now! Best-selling psychological-thriller author Keith Rommel has imagined the whole tale anew. He's brought the tree to life and retold the tale with gory detail only possible in a fiction novel. Action-packed, with spine-tingling detail, this thriller is beyond parallel in the ground it uncovers ... one author's explanation of what may have really been said -- what may have really happened -- under Port St. Lucie's "Devil Tree."
- GenresHorror
194 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2015
12 people are currently reading
508 people want to read
About the author
Keith Rommel
42 books116 followersKeith Rommel is a multi-award-winning author and screenwriter that has penned over a dozen novels and co-written three movies. Three of the four stories from the Shade of the Reaper series have been adapted to film. Rommel’s stories have been called “intelligent fiction”.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
April 23, 2015
File this one under “How didn’t I think of this first?” Keith Rommel’s latest book. THE DEVIL TREE, is a story so strange and compelling, I can’t believe it flew under my radar! Thankfully, the true story has gotten the full horror treatment by a master at the top of his game.
I mean, Jeez, the name alone is worth the price of admission (or Ebook/print). The fact that the actual tree still stands in Port St. Lucie, Florida, the scars of its sordid history visible on its bark, makes this tale all the more chilling.
Over the past couple of years, Keith Rommel has become a true friend – a friend I’m envious of because he can walk to Mets spring training games. Yes, I can drive 20 minutes to CitiField to see them during the regular season and playoffs (fingers crossed), but spring training is something special. Kinda like Keith, and just like The Devil Tree.
Now, I’ve talked to Keith about the writing of this book. Basically, it was like a fever that came over him, and the only prescription was….not more cowbell…but to write until his fingers bled. In just a few weeks, he wove a fictional story around the tapestry of truth, plucking the most sinister aspects of what happened at the Devil Tree and amping up the scares. This is his most visceral book to date, a departure from his previous work, and he nails it.He even includes pictures taken of the tree in its current state. To me, the scariest stories are always the one that contain a kernel of truth. This one has enough kernels to send tiny demons dancing up your spine.
What happens at The Devil Tree is not for the faint of heart. Read the book, then visit the old, twisted tree if you can find it. Just don’t try to bring harm to the tree, and cleanse yourself in holy water when you’re done.
I mean, Jeez, the name alone is worth the price of admission (or Ebook/print). The fact that the actual tree still stands in Port St. Lucie, Florida, the scars of its sordid history visible on its bark, makes this tale all the more chilling.
Over the past couple of years, Keith Rommel has become a true friend – a friend I’m envious of because he can walk to Mets spring training games. Yes, I can drive 20 minutes to CitiField to see them during the regular season and playoffs (fingers crossed), but spring training is something special. Kinda like Keith, and just like The Devil Tree.
Now, I’ve talked to Keith about the writing of this book. Basically, it was like a fever that came over him, and the only prescription was….not more cowbell…but to write until his fingers bled. In just a few weeks, he wove a fictional story around the tapestry of truth, plucking the most sinister aspects of what happened at the Devil Tree and amping up the scares. This is his most visceral book to date, a departure from his previous work, and he nails it.He even includes pictures taken of the tree in its current state. To me, the scariest stories are always the one that contain a kernel of truth. This one has enough kernels to send tiny demons dancing up your spine.
What happens at The Devil Tree is not for the faint of heart. Read the book, then visit the old, twisted tree if you can find it. Just don’t try to bring harm to the tree, and cleanse yourself in holy water when you’re done.
April 17, 2017
OMG! What a freaking cool story and so creepy. Not sure if I will be able to fall asleep tonight or ever go outside again. Thank you, Keith. This story was very well written and delivered with an incredible twist I absolutely did not see coming. Do not read if you are faint of heart or prone to nightmares. Otherwise, why haven't you read it yet?
April 18, 2017
Oh yes!
If the idea of evil existing in an object or specific place frightens you, this is the book for you! Eerie and truly disturbing, a very scary story!
If the idea of evil existing in an object or specific place frightens you, this is the book for you! Eerie and truly disturbing, a very scary story!
May 3, 2015
Quick and brutal, The Devil Tree starts off with a bang and never lets up. Rommel writes this novel at a torrid pace. Hearing that the tree in this book is real makes me want to find it down in Florida.
June 9, 2016
interesting enough to keep me reading, but its organization was lacking cohesion and the characters were two dimensional
July 11, 2017
I enjoyed
I literally just finished the book and...
I really enjoyed the whole story. It leaves you clueless until the very end, when you're finally able to add everything up. With that being said, thank you Keith Rommel for the very satisfying ending.
(I've read a lot, and in doing so I forget some stories, or need reminding of what it was about years later, very few stories/books stay stuck in my mind in a favoring way, "The Devil Tree" will surely stick with me!)
I literally just finished the book and...
I really enjoyed the whole story. It leaves you clueless until the very end, when you're finally able to add everything up. With that being said, thank you Keith Rommel for the very satisfying ending.
(I've read a lot, and in doing so I forget some stories, or need reminding of what it was about years later, very few stories/books stay stuck in my mind in a favoring way, "The Devil Tree" will surely stick with me!)
June 4, 2024
The story telling is fantastic; you get a deep dive into all the important characters without the book being to long.
You may have some confusion on why some characters are there, but it all ties together and I promise you haven't figured out what needs to happen until the end and even then the end gives you something to think about.
This is a good horror mixed with fantasy that will keep you wanting to read until the end.
You may have some confusion on why some characters are there, but it all ties together and I promise you haven't figured out what needs to happen until the end and even then the end gives you something to think about.
This is a good horror mixed with fantasy that will keep you wanting to read until the end.
July 22, 2022
Great story. Cool pictures in the back of the book showing the tree the legend is based on. I got to meet the author at a horror convention and bought his book by chance. Great story telling and surprising plot twists. This was an easy read that left me wanting to know more!
September 1, 2019
Good read, some thing was missing.
April 14, 2023
Not a Bad Story, but ..... ......
I was raised on ghost stories and myths so have read many over the years. Real horror, the kind that disturbs your dreams and makes your hair stand on end is the ominous unseen and unknown, the lurking menace that may or may not show itself. It is the psyche that is haunted long afterwards by whatever "it" was. There is no need for gore or violence to instill real fear, and that is where Mr. Rommel fell short of earning 5 stars in my review. The actual story would have been great if it would have just been about a serial killer or who-done-it, but making it into a supernatural serial killer who-done-it left it lacking true purpose as a scary story, what I believe it was touted to be for the reader.
I enjoyed the author's style of writing which made this a quick read and the fact this has an affiliation with a real location is intriguing. What went on with the dead bodies though was vulgar and unnecessary to the storyline. A good story does not need gratuitous sex or violence to accomplish its mission, and I hope Mr. Rommel does not hang his hat on these devices for future success.
I was raised on ghost stories and myths so have read many over the years. Real horror, the kind that disturbs your dreams and makes your hair stand on end is the ominous unseen and unknown, the lurking menace that may or may not show itself. It is the psyche that is haunted long afterwards by whatever "it" was. There is no need for gore or violence to instill real fear, and that is where Mr. Rommel fell short of earning 5 stars in my review. The actual story would have been great if it would have just been about a serial killer or who-done-it, but making it into a supernatural serial killer who-done-it left it lacking true purpose as a scary story, what I believe it was touted to be for the reader.
I enjoyed the author's style of writing which made this a quick read and the fact this has an affiliation with a real location is intriguing. What went on with the dead bodies though was vulgar and unnecessary to the storyline. A good story does not need gratuitous sex or violence to accomplish its mission, and I hope Mr. Rommel does not hang his hat on these devices for future success.
April 24, 2016
This is one of those stories that invades your psyche, compelling you to soak up every word even though in this genre, horror, you know it's not going to be a happy ending. I love oak trees, their strength, their power, truly an amazing tree...but I like what the author has done here.
He's taken a normally pleasant experience to the darker "what if" extreme and then built an entire story around it. Great characters, interesting, fascinating...this story is truly hard to put down. Highly recommend.
He's taken a normally pleasant experience to the darker "what if" extreme and then built an entire story around it. Great characters, interesting, fascinating...this story is truly hard to put down. Highly recommend.
April 5, 2015
The Devil Tree is a ton of bloody fun. It’s a gripping and terrifying tale with a razor sharp supernatural edge. Keith Rommel delivers a fast-paced, chilling horror story that pulls no punches. Beware the woods.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews