Devil's Ways

by Anna Kashina (Editor), J.M. Sidorova (Editor), Persephone D'Shaun

There is no light without dark; no highlights without shadows; no good without evil. The Devil is where things happen. Where stories begin. This collection brings together stories from multiple cultures, featuring the Devil both as an abstract concept and a creature, a terror, a force of nature, an enemy, a trickster, and so many more.

Step into the world of shadows, and travel through Devil's many incarnations spanning centuries of history and myth, from the Ancient Greece, African and Caribbean folklore, dark ages in Europe, all the way to the present day.

This anthology features new and established authors from diverse, multicultural backgrounds.

Genres: Short Stories, Horror, Gothic

223 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 25, 2020

About the author

Anna Kashina is a critically acclaimed award-winning author of “The Majat Code” series, featuring adventure, swordplay, intrigue, and romance in a historical fantasy setting. She is the author of the official novelization of Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana, a bestselling video game by Nihon Falcom Co.

Awards: 2015 Prism Award (Fantasy, and "Best of the Best" grand prize), Locus Award Nominee, 2013 ForeWord Book of the Year (IndieFab) Award, 2014 Independent Publishers Book Award (IPPY).

Reviews

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Devil's Ways was not what I expected. This anthology is phenomenal.

Each author presents their own perception of what and/or who the devil is. Some stories are steeped in folklore, while others mesmerize you into believing it to be quiet when it ends with a shake and a scream. These are not run of the mill stories of the demon with horns. The devil can come in any shape and size, in any form. He does not play by the rules. Even when dealing with his own family.

Thanks to NetGalley and Dragonwell Publishing for an ARC in return for an honest review.

[Jypsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Rockstar Book Tours for a complimentary copy. I voluntarily reviewed this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

Devil's Ways
By: Nancy Kress, Ben Loory, et. al.


REVIEW ☆☆☆☆
Devil's Ways is an anthology of short stories that all center around a theme. In this case, each is a variation on the Devil and how this creature of darkness is represented or interpreted within a society or a belief system. There are numerous ways to explain the existence of the Devil and evil in this world. Although I'm not familiar with the authors, I found each story uniquely compelling and insightful. Reading a darker type of book is out of the box for me, but I am glad I did because I needed something different. If you are interested in cultural diversity in relation to the Devil's existence, then this anthology is perfect for you.

[Edwina Harvey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Caveat: I have a short story in this anthology.
The theme for this anthology is that there is no good without evil, and that the Devil takes many guises. What you get with this anthology is 12 totally different interpretations of evil and the Devil.

The first story on offer, 'Nzembe' by Persephone D'Shaun, is set in Africa and written in a 'sleight-of-hand" style so the reader feels they can follow the story and know what's going on, but they aren't entirely sure. The "what the heck just happened?" ending is excellent writing, and leaves the reader to draw their own conclusions. It's a great start to this anthology.

'Death and the Lady' by Ben Loory is a total contrast to 'Nzembe' It opens with "A lady goes to church one Sunday morning and notices Death sitting beside her in the pew..." Its delight is its quirkiness as Death and the lady have perfectly normal conversations.

R.S.A Garcia lives in Trinidad and Tobago, where she sets her story, 'Fire In His Eyes and Blood on His Teeth.' I like her writing style, having read her novel, Lex Talionis. I found this story, of how a woman falls for a devil to whom she gives her all again and again, letting him control her, incredibly poignant and also a reflection of problems of our times only just being acknowledged. It was a great read., and tells the story by a great author.

Michael Swanwick 's story 'Of Finest Scarlet Was Her Gown' offers the only female devil in this anthology and tells the story through the eyes of Su-yin, whose father is a General, collected and driven away into Hell. So she follows him there. This is more a coming-of-age story that relates the power of self-control in a most unexpected setting.

'The Devil's Ninth Question" by Andy Duncan tells the story of a foundling, Pearl, who operates the Diorama of the Infernal Regions in a vaudville/burlesque museum until she slips into another dimension and encounters the Devil, better known at=s Petey Wheatstraw. I loved the setting and characters in this piece, and also its overlying lighter style of writing.

Curtis C. Chen's "One of Our Angels Is Missing" offering a portrait of Hell as the Bronx part of New York (I'm not American, so I could be wrong) is another lighter piece and a good follow-on story to "The Devil's Ninth Question."

'The Hag' by Darrell Schweitzer is written as heroic fantasy, with a knight getting lost from a hunting party.As well as great description, it offers a traditional image of the Devil - wings cloven hooves etc, but an interesting twist to what fealty Sir Julian is expected to perform.

Imogen Howson's offering of 'Frayed Tapestry' seems to be set in the modern day. The devil isn't writ large in this piece, but it's easy to find the character as the story progresses. I felt the sub-themes of this piece: discovering what you have isn't what you wanted, and surrendering who you are to what others expect you to be were particularly pertinent. I've read other stories by Howson and find her an excellent writer.

My own work, 'Where is Evil?' where a traditional Devil (what can I say? I like wings!) visits a lone young woman left to tend the family farm,is a good follow-on piece to Howson's.

'Unto the Daughters' by Nancy Kress takes us back to where it all began: a garden, a snake - the narrator of the piece - and an apple tree. It ends far in the future, and with a twist. Short and sharp, crisp like an apple and brilliantly written.

Avram Davidson's short story, "The Fisherman...a Tashlich Legend" made me wish I knew more about Jewish culture, but despite my ignorance, I was able to follow it, enjoy it and understand the message of its ending.

Set in Ghetto Nuovo,Venice, 1637, J.M Sidorova;s piece, "The Escape Goat" immediately had my attention from its funny hook preface to its end. Dead bodies, thwarted love and achemy gone wrong. It's a convoluted piece with a twist at the end and a fitting ending to this anthology.

To sum up: Devil's Way reminded me of a gelateria: so many flavors on display, all different, but all good! Kudos to the editors who arranged these stories so that they interlinked so well.

[Rajiv · Rating 4 out of 5]

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I love reading creepy short stories, and this book offers a very nice collection of them! What struck out about this anthology is how different each of the stories are. There is a variety of themes, cultures and folklore mentioned. Moreover, each story stands out in its own manner.

“Of Finest Scarlet Was her Gown” was my favorite story! I loved everything about the story and how Su-Yin goes to the depths of hell just to bring her father back. My second favorite story was “The Hag”. The story has a nice medieval setting, and what the knight experiences in the woods is terrifying. “Frayed Tapestry” was my third favorite story and I loved how Candy tries to find out what is happening to her.

A lot of the other stories were nicely written too. “Fire in his eyes, Blood on his teeth” was very nice and felt like a wonderful Gothic revenge love story. “Unto the Daughter” was an interesting take on Adam and Eve from the devil’s point of view. Also, I liked the quick small tales like “Death and the Lady” and “The Fisherman”.

However, I did not give this book a 5 star rating was because I felt a few of them were too confusing. Even though “Nzembe” is unique in its own way with the African folklore, I didn’t get a clear view of the evil mentioned. Also, I felt like some of the stories were not really scary in any manner. For example, “Where is Evil” is also a nice story that changes our perception of good and evil, but there was no horror element to it.

Overall, “Devil’s Ways Anthology” offers a nice variety of creepy short stories about good vs. evil and our perceptions of them.

[Bandit · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was actually good. Really good. If it sounds like I’m saying it with an element of surprise, it’s merely because I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from an anthology by an unknown publishers featuring only two names I recognized. But a good thematical anthology is tough to find (on Netgalley anyway) and this one was really well done. Ok, to be honest, the first story wasn’t a good introduction, in fact it kind of read like a demented peado nightmare, but the next one was an improvement, then it alternated, one on, one off and then it was all on. The stories improved progressively and geometrically. Each story stuck closely to the main theme, but featured a fascinating multicultured approach from a vary varied bunch of authors. The quality was overall quite excellent, every story irrespective of how much I personally liked them was original and imaginative, so major kudos there. I also really liked that these were mostly a collection of long short stories, meaning each one had enough pages to properly unravel and draw you in, three acts and all. No skimping on plot or character development, just good creative storytelling. So yeah, very good. Genre fans should very much enjoy this collection of short stories. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was such a fun anthology of all the ways that the devil makes an appearance in major world literature. Often, the devil is the most lively or realized character within the story he finds himself, and this anthology is no exception to that rule. A gratifying world tour of the devil's greatest hits, this book will find itself on my shelf for years to come.

[riding_the_pages · Rating 4 out of 5]

First I just have to say that this is not something I would normally pick up in a store. Mostly because it's not my kind of book. Personally anthologies don't really do it for me. However! I was really surprised at my own interest for this. What really peeked it for me was the promise of a look into different cultures and the what they perceive the devil and demons to be.
A few of these stories were down right, different. The first one certainly stuck with me. Leaving me with questions about African culture, folklore and the story itself. The second story and even the fourth got much better. Some were shorter than others. The second, one of the shortest, was probably my favorite. It really struck me how imaginative each story was. The depictions were fascinating! Even the world building was really good. I'm surprised at how much I enjoyed this because I was not expecting for their to be enough pages in the stories to really connect with the worlds, the characters and the theme itself of the overall book.
For those with an affinity for short stories, for culture and legend, I would recommend reading this.

Thank you to the publisher and rockstar book tours for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Full Review at Miss Elizabeth

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the preface for the DEVIL'S WAYS, it states: "There is no light without dark; no highlights without shadows; no good with evil. No God without the Devil." It's a powerful opening to a collection that asks readers to consider: What is evil? Is it balanced by good? What defines who is good and who is evil?

The DEVIL'S WAYS is an interesting anthology of stories of the manifestation of good and evil in global cultures. Yes, the Devil appears but s/he is not always the devil one expects. Power is the constant, as it is the ability of an entity, a person, a creature, or a force of nature to change a circumstance and a situation whether for the better or the worse.

This anthology, like many of its kind is somewhat uneven, as some stories are more compelling than others. The featured writers are talented and there are no outright 'duds' that should be skipped.

Personal highlights:

*Nancy Kress, Unto the Daughters. The Devil asks forgiveness

*Curtis C. Chen, One of Our Angels is Missing. Did you know the Devil has a twin brother named Stanley?

*Imogen Howson, Frayed Tapestry. The matrix has nothing on this modern reimagining of a Greek myth.

Recommended for anthology lovers who enjoy a philosophical question or two.

[bookish_inf · Rating 3 out of 5]

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

The stories were interesting and some of them can linger with you. The different interpretations of the Devil and what he/she/it may be is fascinating. Different cultures have different views. It is not something I would usually read and of the stories in this anthology, I only really liked two of them. Some take a while to figure out and it makes reading it again necessary to better grasp the concept.

[Rt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Various stories of deviltry from various cultures, including two—two!—Jewish variants as well as others drawing on African and Chinese backgrounds. Nancy Kress contributes a small biblical story; Michael Swanwick and Avram Davidson were the other two names I recognized.