Devil House

by John Darnielle

Gage Chandler is descended from kings. That's what his mother always told him.

Now, he is a true crime writer, with one grisly success--and movie adaptation--to his name, along with a series of subsequent lesser efforts that have paid the bills but not much more. But now he is being offered the chance for the big break: To move into the house--what the locals call "The Devil House"--in which a briefly notorious pair of murders occurred, apparently the work of disaffected 1980s teens. He begins his research with diligence and enthusiasm, but soon the story leads him into a puzzle he never expected--back into his own work and what it means, back to the very core of what he does and who he is.

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Audiobook, Crime, Mystery Thriller

Audiobook

First published January 25, 2022

About the author

John Darnielle (/dɑrˈniːl/, born March 16, 1967) is an American musician, best known as the primary (and often solitary) member of the American band the Mountain Goats, for which he is the writer, composer, guitarist, pianist and vocalist.

Source: Wikipedia.

Reviews

[William III · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reading this felt like catching up with an old friend that I never really liked all that much.

[megs_bookrack · Rating 3 out of 5]

**2.5-stars rounded up**

Ahhhh, Devil House, Devil House, Devil House. I put off reviewing this one for a while.

Y'all, I preordered the heck out of this book. From this cover, and even from the synopsis, I was getting The Amityville Horror vibes, mixed with a little Sinister, the 2012-supernatural Horror film starring Mr. Ethan Hawke.



That wasn't what I got at all. I'm not mad about it, but if I said I wasn't disappointed, I'd be lying.

I won't even go about a weak attempt to summarize this story. I honestly don't think that I can.



The book was broken into different parts and to me, each part felt like it's own short story. Because of this, it felt extremely disjointed. There were entire sections where I was unclear as to who the narrator was.

Also, there was one part in particular, part four, I believe, that I have no freaking idea why it was included at all.



Leading up to that point, I was into it. I was finding the different sections enjoyable, but that one...dang. It kicked me out of the entire story and then it was very hard for me to start to care again.

There were glimmers of gold throughout this book, don't get me wrong. I loved what it had to say about story telling, particularly true crime story telling. I also loved the details of Devil House itself; it's sordid history and final chapters.



Overall, this just didn't fit my tastes. I'm not sure if it was just too cerebral for me. I do enjoy when an author has a message, but this one would require way to much time and analysis for me to get the point, I believe.

Darnielle's writing is quite pleasing, however, and obviously he has an incredible imagination. I would definitely be interested in picking up more from him in the future.

Finally, I will be keeping this one my shelves. I may even choose to revisit it one day.

[Misty Marie Harms · Rating 2 out of 5]

I need to have a conversation with the people who decides what books are, "horror". This book is about a true crime writer trying to write a book about 2 murders in a porn store that was dubbed the "Devil House". Then for some reason we are transported back in time to his previous book, he wrote about a crime that happened in his hometown that has nothing to do with the first. We got one small chapter with the actual main characters that are not the main characters. Yeah, I am lost as well, whew.

Oh, don't forget the whole chapter written about the boy in a kingdom, which is a true wtf moment.

If you are looking for horror, move along. There is none to be found here, peasants.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dynamite cover: ✅
Beautiful writing: ✅
Interesting concept: ✅
Immersive storytelling: ✅

So many positives are to be said about this novel. This book reminded me a bit of the recent blockbuster hit Chasing the Boogeyman. I say that because this book blurred the lines between fiction and non-fiction as our MC, Gage, is a true crime writer investigating the mystery surrounding Devil House. A place that was at one time an adult sex shop, that is abandoned by the tenant for continual rent increases, where a teenage employee to that store, Derek, continues to go to read and draw in privacy. The locks haven't been changed and he still knows the alarm code so what's the harm.

He let's his friend, Seth, in on his secret place and as any seventeen year old is he's amazed at the *inventory* that has been left behind. (I should mention that this takes place in the 80's as most teenagers today have porn at their fingertips in the form of cell phones.) Seth, too, is also an artist and they take it upon themselves to make the abandoned shop into a witches lair. Made all the more ominous with the pornographic images blending in with their designs. Something that is sure to scare other people away.

People such as the slum lord landlord and her potential new buyer of the building.

Imagine the horror of this small town community when that landlord and potential buyer are found slain within it's depths. A sword wielded in the most heinous of ways. The Satanic Panic is in full effect.

Devil's House is only a part of this tale. We also have The White Witch of Morro Bay. Gage's first true crime book and most successful book to date. We delve into the details of that case as well and it was absolutely riveting.

Back to my comparison to Chasing the Boogeyman, the reason for this is that so many real life murder cases are sprinkled throughout making it difficult to discern if you are reading fact or fiction. I'm not saying that if you loved that book that you will love this one but it's something to keep on your radar. Though do keep in mind that this doesn't have the memoir feel to it and the details of the case are much more gruesome.

So, yeah, I enjoyed the heck out of this for the most part. However some things did bother me. First, it's being marketed as horror and it is not horror. Second, it has a slow start and took awhile to get it's wheels rolling but once it did I was all in. Third, I didn't understand all the talk of descending from kings and the several chapters in the middle that were about about a king that I knew nothing about and I still don't because I skimmed the entire section. That really bucked the momentum. Fourth, the ending was a bit underwhelming. This was a fairly dense book that took some time and investment to get through and it was building, building, building, only to end like that? I was expecting more. Still, this is a valiant effort that is worth the cost of admission. 4 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux, MCD for my complimentary copy.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m still ruminating over my feelings for “Devil House”. John Darnielle, the author and also a member of the “Mountain Goats” pens this crime fiction story as if it’s a true crime story. I decided to listen to the audio because it also includes music from one of his “Mountain Goats” bandmates. Plus, he narrates his story, and I always feel that when an author narrates his own story, he communicates through his voice the feelings he wants his listeners/readers to hear.

Given that the format is true crime, Darnielle provides the history of a house, which the public started to call “the Devil House”, where grisly murders occurred in the 1980’s. If one recalls, there was a time in the ‘80’s where the public endured the Satanic Panic of the youth. Darnielle based his story on that hysteria.

Darnielle tells the story of two horrific murder events that occurred in that house. I’m not going into those stories. I’ll say that he portrayed the fictitious events realistically in that while listening, you believe you are listening to a true crime podcast. He goes into his research, who he talks to, what primary and secondary sources he has and uses. It’s all very realistic.

What Darnielle includes that one never gets in these true crime podcasts is the personal cost of these stories. In true crime, as in real life, your sources provide the lens in which you tell your story. One person sees things differently than another. Plus, Darnielle shows how horror sells. Showing the other side, or the softer side never gets included. Furthermore, memory is a funny thing.

What I enjoyed most from this audio is that I’ll take a differing view when I watch programs like “Snapped” or ABC’s “20-20”. This story will impact my interpretations of these stories, and I want to think in a good way.

[Jessica Woodbury · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars. I thought this was going to be a horror novel (my FAVORITE) and then it wasn't and yet I am still immensely satisfied with this novel. A big swing from Darnielle, whose previous novels were certainly ambitious in tone and structure, but still compact. This is a 400+ book with a few books inside it, with shifting narrators and stories, playing in true crime and coming-of-age and metafiction.

It took me a little while to get into a rhythm. I was feeling rather slumpy when I started and for the first 100 or so pages I was feeling fine but not really in love. But I love a book that shapeshifts, and I found myself more intrigued as time passed. Of its seven sections (told in ABCDCBA format), there was even one where I was like, "Wait, what is happening?" But in a good way. I couldn't tell where we were going from one section to the next. I couldn't figure out what it was all for, exactly, but I enjoyed the ride more and more.

And then it all came together. In a narrative about narratives there's always room for tricks, because we all know that the creation of narrative is an exercise in choosing what to say and what not to say. It's been explored in all kinds of novels from TRUST EXERCISE to ATONEMENT. It can be tricky to pull off and there are almost always some readers who get annoyed because they prefer a straightforward narrative. So let's be clear: if you would like a straightforward narrative, this is not the book for you. The themes have been laid out quite clearly, the groundwork is all there, and for me that final section had me on absolute tenterhooks, as Darnielle slowly oh so slowly got me to his final destination. After such a long and strange voyage, it was a hell of a finish.

I do not want to dive into the specifics because I want you to have the pleasure of going through this book bit by bit. But at its heart it's about nostalgia, about the stories we hear as children on the playground that become legend, about the Satanic panic (yes that cover is there for a reason), about the hysteria that can thrive around a crime, about the way we subsume the stories of terrible crimes to become our entertainment. So even if not horror, right up my personal alley.

[Marilu · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book... I don't even know.
First of all, like I said before: it's very wrong catalogued. It's not a horror reading.
Second, it's a story (or theme) within a story... within a story. And none of them are understandable.
Third, it is so boring. And the audiobook is terrible!
It's been a while since I read something so bad. I'm so sorry, I don't mean to be mean, but it is.
The only thing I liked was the art on the cover. But this also was a bad thing because it's very misleading. It makes you think you're going to find a horror plot. The horror is the boredom this brought me!
First only one star of the year.

[Alwynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Don’t be fooled by the retro, schlock-horror cover, Darnielle’s not travelling into Amityville Horror territory. Although if anyone does fall for the ruse, the Ivy Compton-Burnett epigraph should be a tip-off that Darnielle’s heading somewhere else entirely. His central character’s a true-crime writer Gage Chandler. Chandler’s version of events that fuelled an urban legend in his hometown, has done so well, it was turned into a movie. Now he’s ready for his next project. Its focus, an unsolved, double murder dating back to 1986 that took place in a sleepy, Californian town: two bodies found carved up, in a building decorated to look like a nightmarish, Satanic workshop. Gage buys the house where the murders took place, moves in and begins to reconstruct events. But Darnielle’s novel’s less a novel, than a series of arguments questioning the foundations of the true crime genre: how it’s written; how it’s interpreted; the ethics and impact of drawing on actual people; the notion of reaching “the truth” of something without bias, embellishment or harm. Through a series of embedded, overlapping, sometimes contradictory narratives, Darnielle throws up a number of concerns about whose story he’s telling and why, and the nature of knowledge itself.

Darnielle shifts from Gage to Gage’s earlier book featuring Diana Crane, the white witch, but the extract provided immediately casts doubt on Gage’s claims about method and objectivity. Then Darnielle inserts passages from Gage’s work-in-progress, Devil House, set in the town of Milpitas. In 1981, Milpitas was the setting of the real-life rape and murder of Marcy Renee Conrad, an infamous crime that spawned a Hollywood retelling River’s Edge: all of which Darnielle expertly weaves into Gage’s discussion of his process. The white witch and devil’s house crimes are convincingly conveyed, both cleverly tied to the "Satanic Panic" of the time – elements reminded me of Berlinger and Sinofsky’s documentation of the West Memphis Three case in Paradise Lost. But at the same time, I found it difficult to fully engage with these stories within stories, Darnielle’s emphasis on the artificiality of storytelling made their constructedness almost too obvious and intrusive.

It’s an ambitious piece and Darnielle’s evidently skilled, I’m just not sure he quite pulls everything off. I thought he was effective at highlighting the ways in which true crime narratives trade in stereotypes – “the good student”, “the disaffected youth” – and clichés, that order and classify according to a society’s priorities and an era’s mythologies. And I was intrigued by Darnielle's addition of more and more layers within layers, some startling, some less so, taking us further into the murky ethical practices of true crime. But, from my perspective, he makes a lot of his key points too early on. Darnielle’s variety of styles’s mostly persuasive, and the result’s inventive and highly readable, but it sometimes felt a little too much like an academic exercise for my taste.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher Scribe

[Jenny Lawson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book was one thing and then it was another and I enjoyed it but I'm not 100% sure I understood it. That cover is a knockout though.

[Faith · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is about the truthiness of true crime fiction. I have no interest in that genre, and this didn’t make me more inclined to read it. It is really kind of a garbled mess. There are 2 crimes investigated by the protagonist, Gage Chandler, a true crime author. One involves the unsolved murder-by-sword of two people in a porn store. The other involves the killing and dismembering of two teenaged burglars. There is also an incomprehensible section about the mythical Gorbonian, written in olde English. It is unbearable. Some people have actually shelved this book as horror. Boy are they wrong. No horror here, just author navel gazing.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

[Blair · Rating 4 out of 5]

A true crime writer comes to a small town in California to start work on a new book. His plan is to move into ‘Devil House’, where a double murder took place in the 1980s, and then investigate and write about the crime. But the project goes in unexpected directions that reach back into our narrator’s past, not only changing the course of the story he chooses to tell but also causing him (and us) to question the very nature of storytelling itself.

The perspective and time period are switched several times. At many points in the story I felt disorientated, as though I was being led around in circles or not quite getting to the meat of the plot... But when I realised this was deliberate, everything clicked into place. Devil House really isn’t doing what you expect it to do; nothing is what it seems; the voices you hear aren’t the ones you think you’re hearing, and your perceptions will continually be challenged. It’s totally addictive – despite a meandering pace, I tore through it – yet incredibly thoughtful too.

The book it reminded me of most, by the end, was Kate Reed Petty’s True Story; I think it will really appeal to people who liked that book, but for my money Devil House is a far more successful version of what it was trying to do. Parts of it also made me think of The Unauthorised Biography of Ezra Maas (for the... meta-ness of it all?) and the Six Stories series (but honestly this is probably just because I haven’t read very much actual true crime).

I received an advance review copy of Devil House from the publisher through Edelweiss.

TinyLetter | Linktree

[Drew · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's a moment at nearly the halfway mark of this book where you recognize the author's voice. It's not to say that the earlier going didn't feel like a John Darnielle joint -- but at some point, as I watched a group of teenage misfits breath life into an art project knowing (I thought) how things would end, I felt the ghost of Trace Italian and the strange VHS tapes from his previous FSG novels. I felt the ghosts of all those Mountain Goats songs. It's a testament to John's writing, that he is such a distinctive storyteller. And he's swinging for the fences here.

The book is complex. Complicated. Confusing, even. It has in its sights the interrogation of big concepts like "truth" and "story" and "history" and it does not shy away from the challenge even when it gets knocked off the horse now and then. The book pivots on a strange slight chapter, a riff on (I think) Aubrey's Brief Lives, that is one of the most astounding interjections into a novel I've read in a long long long time. And the end keeps spiraling open in ways that hurt your heart, because you want answers and because you feel the hollow fragile reality of life and how we... well, you all know the Didion line. But there you go.

This will undoubtedly be the most divisive of his novels thus far. May he continue to experiment and bring us all along, open hearts and all.

[Stephanie (Books in the Freezer) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one really surprised me. I would not go into this thinking this is horror. This is a crime novel that delves into true crime media. Beautifully written. There were parts that had me actually crying. I will say it was a bit slow at times and there was one section I did not connect with at all, but overall fantastic. It humanized the characters and weaved a great story about the nature of telling stories about terrible things that have happened.

[Ashwin Purushottam · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am shocked New York Times recommended this book. The only reason I managed to complete it was due to a sense of duty since I spent $36 getting it to Singapore.

In summary, the author spends the majority of the book explaining how meticulously he researched the events in the plot, only to reveal that the facts and characters were actually too boring to write about as is, and therefore he replaced them with completely fictional, yet palatable alternatives. Nothing is solved, and the writing style doesn’t compensate for a boring and difficult read. Save yourself the time, much better fiction out there and NYT deserves a rap on their knuckles for pushing this one.

[Rachel (TheShadesofOrange) · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 Stars
This novel had so much potential from the synopsis but it failed for me in the execution. There were a few interesting narrative choices, but otherwise I found it to be fragmented… but not in a good way.

[Brendan Monroe · Rating 1 out of 5]

As someone who averages 50+ books a year, I'm classified as a voracious reader. But even then, I likely only have something like 3,000 books left. That I wasted one of those precious slots on this absolutely turns my stomach.

The crime here isn't anything you'll read in this supremely boring book, it's that the plethora of positive reviews convinced me to read it ... and stick with it till the end.

Smack dab in the middle there's an absurd section written in Middle English that's supposedly inspired by Arthurian legend. Now, I love Arthurian legend, but this? Unreadable. Literally. And whatever it had to do with the larger story was beyond me.

And yet I read on.

Fool me once ...

I read this on a flight to L.A., which probably made it the worst flight of my life. The guy next to me stared at the flight tracker the entire five hours and I now realize that would have been a better use of my time.

That this is marketed as horror is also criminal. There is nothing remotely thrilling about this book.

NOTHING.

Does it deserve one star? If it had been marketed right, it'd probably deserve two. If you're the type of person who doesn't know what an ending is supposed to be, you might even give it three. But for the complete lack of respect shown to the reader and their time, I give it a one.

[Bandit · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was really looking forward to reading this book. Yet for some reason it took me a while to get to. And having read it, now I’m thinking maybe I was right in putting it off.
But the initial appeal – the awesome retro style cover, the fact that the author’s previous book was pretty great, the plot summary – was so there. Two days and 416 pages later I wanted my time back. Why? Well…
First and foremost, this book is overwritten. Dramatically indulgently so. It’s the sort of story that makes perfect sense to the author, but the way he takes his readers there is so convoluted, so meandering, so serpentine that by the end of the journey you’re mostly exhausted into indifference. And lamentably, the end of the journey is so underwhelming, that it doesn’t even seem worth the trip at all.
The basic story of a true crime writer moving into the place where crimes occurred to write his next bestseller and becoming obsessed with it, blurring the reality and fiction, it great. But the perspective shifts are tiresome. Also, a good reminder of why I don’t care for true crime as a genre – it’s so sensationalist, so prurient, so loaded with presupposition and speculation. Was this book meant to satirize it? Who knows. For all I know, this book was meant to be a sleeping aid. It’s certainly effective at that.
The sad thing is that Darnielle is such a talented writer. If you just focus on writing in this story. If you can do that somehow. If you can ignore things, like random Arthurian-style legends popping up. If you can ignore how blatantly self-aware Darnielle seems to be of his writing skills and how indulgent he is with it. The endless sentences, the endless paragraphs, the narrative so dense you need a machete to get through. The substance here ends up all but obscured by the padding. The trees take over the forest. It’s a muddle and a slog and a labor to get through.
And so, despite the awesome cover and despite the praises, I definitely wouldn’t recommend it and I definitely didn’t think it was worth the time. It’s the sort of book that ends up a critical darling, especially when a serious source (New York Times or the like) wants to feature a work of speculative fiction, but there is a striking difference between literary and overwritten and this sizable tome lands heavily on the overwritten side of the fence. Overstylized, overdone, messy. Very disappointing. Nowhere as scary as it is marketed. Nowhere as thrilling as it thinks it might be. Slow, slow, slow. Pass. Thanks Netgalley.

This and more at https://advancetheplot.weebly.com/

[Elizabeth (Plant Based Bride) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Devil House by John Darnielle is a novel that diverged significantly from my initial expectations. While it contains horror-adjacent elements, it is more accurately classified as literary fiction, with a strong focus on the ethics of true crime. Although it did not deliver the scare factor I was hoping for, it proved to be an incredibly fascinating read. The narrative is beautifully written, albeit occasionally confusing, especially with sections written in Old English that seemed unrelated to the main story. Despite this, the overall writing style was poetic and thoughtful, adding depth to the reading experience.

The story centers around the ethical implications of true crime, a topic I find deeply intriguing. The protagonist, a true crime writer, navigates the complex moral landscape of profiting from real-life tragedies. This central theme resonates with my own discomfort with the true crime genre, highlighting the ethical dilemmas of representing real people who have experienced profound trauma. The novel delves into the motives behind these representations and their impact on survivors, making it a compelling read for anyone interested in these ethical questions.
Beyond the central theme, the book also explores issues such as homelessness, child abuse, victim blaming, and self-defence. These peripheral conversations enrich the narrative, providing a broader social context. The author skillfully balances multiple timelines and perspectives, keeping the reader engaged without causing confusion. Although the book felt slightly long, it maintained a captivating flow.

While this was not the horror novel I anticipated, it turned out to be a profound and introspective read. This experience has piqued my interest in exploring more works by John Darnielle!


Watch the Halloween reading vlog here: https://youtu.be/0vphkBXq6zs


Trigger/Content Warnings: murder, blood, violence, body horror, vomit, gore, home invasion, homelessness, racism, domestic violence, child abuse


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[elle · Rating 2 out of 5]

i feel like there are people who'd love this. not me, but others.

what's confusing is that it's so well written. but it just felt so...bland to me. it really missed the mark. i couldn't really get into it and it was so long for no good reason. a lot of times i was so confused as to what was even going on. personally, this book just felt like a bulky overloaded sandwich with too many toppings that didn't fit well together. like it had all the ingredients to make a fantastic book but there was too much of each and so it just made the entire sandwich taste bad.

darnielle is an excellent writer, but this book didn't work for me.

(i also feel like the cover is misleading).

⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻

pre-read
begging for this to be the book to get me out of a slump

[Darryl Suite · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG OMG I have so many thoughts and feelings, but I’ll get into the details at a later time. (This book is not what you think it is, it’s better). Wow, this blew my mind. Masterful. How? How?! Darnielle is the real deal. Part 6 was some powerful stuff.

This book better get some awards recognition.

[Constantine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Genre: Crime Fiction

First of all, this is one of those books that truly proves not to judge a book from its cover. The retro horror cover is just awesome but this book is not a horror story. I don’t understand why on Goodreads this is put under the horror genre. Fortunately, where I got my ARC copy from NetGalley it is classified under general fiction, so I knew what I was getting into.

The story is about Gage Chandler, a true-crime writer who gets the chance to move into the “Devil House”. A house where two murders took place back in the 1980s. He will need to investigate these murders and work on his new book around them. This is basically what the synopsis says and it is like the only first 15% of the book. So there are no spoilers there.

This novel is basically stories inside a story or book inside a book thing. The premise itself is very interesting but I feel the structuring of the book and the constant change in narration make the novel a huge disservice. The book is structured in a way that keeps shifting in both the time frame and the narrative style. The chapter headlines are there to guide you but you need first to understand who is talking or who is addressed to have a grasp on the story/stories. It is first about the author and the opportunity he gets told in first-person narration. Then it shifts to another story called “The White Witch” which is told in second-person narration and this is supposed to be the author’s (Gage Chandler) previous novel that was successful. Keep in mind that in this story you are addressed as the reader but the “you” here is actually the witch.

After that comes the “Devil House” story which is about Derrick and Seth and is narrated in third person style. These stories and perspectives keep alternating a few times and in between, we go back to Gage and also to a story about his ancestors. I liked the author’s writing style but to me, this book feels experimental or a work in progress. I can see readers being confused due to the way this is structured. I feel I would have enjoyed it a lot more if the stories were seamlessly narrated. Despite this, there are many aspects of the book that I appreciate. It was truly intriguing to see how the Devil House has changed from a house to a diner and then to an adult store. The stories felt intense at times. My favorite was The White Witch part.

Many thanks to the publisher Farrar, Straus and Giroux, MCD, and NetGalley for providing me with an advance reader copy of this book.

[Peter Boyle · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story is narrated by a true crime author. Gage Chandler has already achieved success with his first book, about a high school teacher who killed two of her students in self-defence. He receives an intriguing offer from his editor - a chance to buy a former porn store in Milpitas, California where an unsolved double murder took place back in 1986. After some thought, Gage goes along with the idea. By living on site, he can immerse himself in the details of the case, and when he's done writing the book about it, he can sell the building and move on. The narrative includes excerpts from Gage's first book and the one he's currently working on, reimagining the lives of the victims in the lead-up to their deaths.

I've seen a review describe this book as 'a riveting metafictional epic', but for me, it was in no way riveting. I found the novel very disjointed and struggled to connect with it. Perhaps it's because the story jumps around a lot between Gage's first book, his current one and his efforts to research it. The metafictional description I would agree with - it's an interesting treatise on the whole true crime genre, in particular the lurid attempts to create entertainment from tragic events. But there isn't enough for me to recommend Devil House, even though I've enjoyed John Darnielle's work in the past, particularly Wolf in White Van. This one never really grabbed me, and I was glad when it was over.

[Imogen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am fucking devastated. Everyone on here who didn't give this book five stars is an asshole. John Darnielle is one of our greatest novelists and the strength of the compassion at the core of this novel is almost unbearable.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

Where do I start? I thought this was gonna be one thing and it turned out to be something different. This book is written in a unique way. Divided in different sections, there were times when I thought what am I reading? Did I miss something?

Gage Chandler a true crime writer is offered the chance to move into the home the locals dubbed ”Devil House”. The scene of a couple of murders committed in the 80’s, Gage cannot wait to begin his work. However, his research leads him down a rabbit hole revealing things about himself he never saw coming.

I think this is one of those books you have to read for yourself. You will either love it or hate it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc.

[Michael -- Justice for Renee · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Devil House" refers to a building where unsolved murders occurred, where twisted pornography and satanic symbols were left behind. It sounds like we are in for a creepy, terrifying read. We are introduced to Gage Chandler, a true crime writer who is out to investigate what really happened. He is meticulous, trying to recreate every aspect at the scene of the crime. He notes that it matters whose air he is breathing.

Early on we get sidetracked by his previous book, "The White Witch of Morro Bay," an interesting story, maybe more interesting than the "Devil House" one. The narrative changes a number of times and the momentum suffers. Just when things slow, we are subjected to "Song of Gorbonian," a whole chapter about some ludicrous medieval knights. I can not say what it had to do with the rest of the book, I forced myself to skim over it just to see if there was anything that would pull me back into the orbit of the plot.

I did like the meat of the book, it was just like an album you enjoy except for the filler. I hate to give it just two stars--I just can not see recommending it to anyone who does not need to read it because of their love for the author. Thank you to Farrar, Straus and Giroux and to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Krystin | TheF*ckingTwist · Rating 1 out of 5]

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This might be the worst thing I’ve read this year. *checks notes* …Okay, second worst.

First of all, this is not horror and it feels like we’re being a bit tricked into thinking it is.

The plot Inceptions itself. It’s a story within a theme within a story. Gage Chandler achieved literary success with his first book – a true-crime account of a murder that took place in his hometown. Now, he’s being offered the opportunity to move into the “Devil House” – a porn store that was the site of satanic sword murders back in the 80s – and write a new book about it.

"Sword murders" is so specific.

So you get a little of the Devil House, but then the narrative switches and you’re brought into the first book Gage wrote - about his hometown murder where a high school teacher killed two of her students. Neither case has anything to do with the other, aside from Chandler investigating both of them, and I found switching between the two to be a mess. Both stories were competing with each other so hard.

There’s even a section in here about a mythical something or other written in old English, so have fun with that.

If you’re going for the audiobook, beware that it’s fucking awful. It’s read by the author and he’s got this Christopher Walken meets William Shatner thing going on in his delivery that was distracting as hell. Considering I could barely get through the narrative as it was, the constant staccato didn’t help. I'm sorry.

I get that this is supposed to be some high-concept metafiction novel for all the intellectuals out there, but fuckkkkk I am definitely not one. It’s a unique approach to true crime and the writers who do it, but the only thing I liked about this was the cover art. It’s overindulgent, overwritten and as slow as a creeper in a porn store browsing the bins of discount porno DVDs in the back.

The vibe for this one:


⭐½ | 1.5 stars rounded down

[Justin Chen · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

An introspective study on authorship and the ripple effect of true crime narrative on its participants, if you're in the mood for fragmented slowburn and cyclical analysis, Devil House will reward you with thought-provoking commentary on the power of storytelling.

First and foremost, Devil House is not a horror novel, no matter how much its devilish title and the eye-catching cover art suggests otherwise; it is firmly rooted in true crime, with a heavy literary fiction flair — make sure you set your expectation accordingly going in.

I was fully engaged by the shifting perspectives put forth in Devil House: from the role of the author, real-life people who lived through the crime (and the media attention surrounding it), as well as glimpses into what truly happened, before being molded into an expected 'true crime narrative'. Telling story is never a fully objective, unbiased act; we pick side to favor, twist truth to heighten drama, even fabricate fact for countless reasons — all these 'fact vs. fiction' concepts are the foundation explored in the novel. While I admire the obsessively detailed writing style, it does stun the overall flow at times; this is a novel more suited for periodic savoring rather than compulsively turning pages. It also could've used one more round of editing; as some of its lengthy tangents come across like white noise rather than additive substance.

Overall, Devil House brings you deep into the mind of a true crime writer, and the experience is overall a memorable one. It would be a cautious recommendation from me, primarily for its drawn-out pacing and unpindownable tone (at times deeply observational, but also kind of fantastical?); worth a try if you're feeling adventurous.

**This ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Much appreciated!**

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

ohhhhhh JD, you massive motherfucker, you've done it again my boy. it's about what we owe each other when there's nothing left but the owing; it's about how much things matter when you are a teenager and how they keep mattering long long after; it's about the absolute suffering and tragedy of friendship; it's about what we remember, and what we forget. also it's about castle doctrine.

ALSO just! the playfulness and sophistication of the form, UGH, that's john for ya. the symmetrical structure! the middle section! the final section! i am smirking and also my wee heart hurts. loved LOVED this.

- I know, that's how it is with everybody, the idea that people might need to be protected from the facts of a case, it runs counter to what we're taught, you know, but I had Jana Perez's letter right there in front of me, like an air raid siren sounding the alarm, it matters which story you tell, it matters whose story you tell, it matters what people think even if it doesn't matter to the people who needed it before the disaster hit. That's the thing, those of us on this side of the disaster, we get so dazzled by the fireworks, by the conflagration I want to say, that we don't see the gigantic expanse over there on the other side of the flames, but, you know. People have to live there.

[Char]

At 40%, I’m throwing in the towel on this audio. Somewhere along the line it lost me and I don’t care enough about it to re-listen right now.
No rating, no review.

[Yasaman · Rating 1 out of 5]

lol I'm so mad about this book. One of the worst things in media is when you finish it and feel like it disrespected your time, and that's how this book made me feel. Having apprehended the general thesis statement of the book re true crime (namely, you can never tell the whole story, there is always something unknowable and the crime is never going to fit neatly in a narrative, you can only construct a narrative around it, and that narrative will inevitably hurt someone) in the first third of the book, and knowing the general scope and ultimate result of the fictional true crimes the novel is about, the rest of it was so much wheel-spinning, absolutely devoid of any tension. This could've still worked, if only fictional true crime writer Gage Chandler, the main narrator, was in any way a compelling character. He was not. As if to add insult to injury, fictional true crime writer Gage Chandler was also a shitty true crime writer, so his fictional true crime just left me going "I don't think you're good at this, you seem to be straight up making a lot of shit up." The "twist", such as it was, only intensified my rage and my feeling of having had my time wasted.

John Darnielle, this could've been a Medium article about your true crime feels or whatever, it was bullshit as fiction. Anyway, that's why this is going under the Buttering Jorts category of the reading challenge: this book was unnecessary. I gained no insight, could summon next to no interest in the actual fake true crimes themselves, and had very little investment in any of the characters involved. The prose was fine, I guess, as were the depictions of California small town suburbia.

The audiobook was also underwhelming. I ended up listening to most of it at 1.4x, it was too damn ponderous otherwise.

[2022 Reading Challenge: BUTTERING JORTS]