In the 90s, heavy metal band Dürt Würk was on the brink of stardom. But after creative differences, their singer Terry Hunt embarked on a solo career that eventually saw him rise to the top of the music world.

Today, Würk’s former ace guitarist Kris works the night shift at a Best Western hotel, and she discovers Terry’s stardom may have come at a price she and her former band mates were never aware of.

What follows is a wild road trip tale full of conspiracies, endless heavy metal references, a dash of occultism, and one satisfying finale centered around an unreleased metal album.

Music fans and musicians will love some of the band situations here, and any horror fan will be happy with Hendrix’s addictive prose. I loved the section with conspiracy nut JD, who steals every scene.

A fun ride worthy of two devil horns up!

Here's a book that I liked so much in spite of certain parts being totally bonkers.
We Sold Our Souls is about survival, friendship, and one woman's quest to know the truth about her life's biggest and ultimate betrayal.
Kris has fought all her life to be a member of a band called Durt Wurk and she is one hell of a guitarist. But an untimely betrayal and a bad decision break the band. While dire consequences are suffered, their lives are never the same. A life that has all its joy sucked in, a life with a huge void.

But Kris wants answers and she won't stop until she gets them.

'We Sold Our Souls' is all about heavy metal and that, heavy metal never dies, and the only way in an album is to move forward. All that is combined with a bit of supernatural, and a lot of other scarier stuff and only strengthens the mystery.
While the supernatural beings didn't convince me much, I liked the concept of selling souls for fame and an entire album based around the same. The problems and the solutions- all revolving around these songs that guide the plot very maturely.

The thrill is certainly well written and I was more than anxious for the climax because a concept like this will never have a regular ending. And boy, did it surprise me?

I thoroughly enjoyed this book even though these are the genres I never read. And I never thought I would like this book so much.

Kris Pulaski used to be the guitarist in a heavy metal band called Dürt Würk. Right before they hit the big time, the band's frontman, Terry Hunt, decided to go solo as Koffin, becoming rich and famous so fast it's as if he sold his soul to the devil.

Twenty years later, Kris works at a Best Western and finds out, via a giant billboard, Koffin is returning for a farewell tour. The information floods Kris with past resentment and anger, fueling her to embark on a journey to confront Terry and find out what really happened on the night the band broke up.

I loved this book! The journey Kris goes through is so epic, it's reminiscent of Lord of the Rings. The plot has lots of twists that I didn't see coming and scenes that shocked me, making me stay up late reading to see what happened next.

Kris was such a kickass heroine. She goes through so much in this book—crawling through tunnels, watching people die in front of her, being held prisoner at a rehab centre, and so much more—and never gives up, she just keeps fighting. All the characters are relatable and I liked all the bandmates Kris reunited with along the way.

You don't have to be a huge heavy metal fan (I'm not) to enjoy We Sold Our Souls. There are probably lots of references to metal music that went over my head, so if you're a fan of metal (or just a horror fan) you need to read this book.

I can honestly say that I enjoyed this book and it kept me entertained while I read it. And yet - I can't give it more than 3 stars. I kept waiting for something else. Yes there was monsters and gore and murder (and a sexual assault that seemed unnecessary to both plot and character development), but it somehow didn't seem to be enough of a horror novel like I was expecting and the ending didn't go anywhere. So I'm torn on this one - I enjoyed it, but I wouldn't recommend it.

We Sold Our Souls by Grady Hendrix is a 2018 Quirk Books publication.
It’s the 90s and heavy metal rules the rock and roll music machine.
Dürt Würk is right on the cusp of fame when suddenly their singer, Terry Hunt, pulls out, goes solo, changes his name and becomes a mega-superstar. He leaves his former bandmates in the dust, taking everything with him, including the rights to their music.

Decades pass, and Dürt Würk’s guitarist, Kris Pulaski, is barely scraping by, working as the night manager at a Best Western motel. Her dreary, miserable days suddenly explode into a fight for her very soul when she makes a shocking discovery about Terry’s meteoric rise to fame. It is imperative she reconnect with her former bandmates and get the band back together.

Meanwhile, Terry, aka, ‘Koffin’, is headlining a massive rock show in Las Vegas with record breaking crowds expected to attend. If Kris doesn’t get there in time, many more souls may be lost.

Full disclosure- I read Grady Hendrix’s ‘Paperbacks from Hell’ and loved it. The book highlighted pulp horror novels from an era I was familiar with, and it was done with humor, and intelligence. So, when I saw this book by Hendrix, I couldn’t resist. The thing is I don’t read horror novels a lot, except around Halloween, and I was never into the type of metal featured in this story, but…



I have a son who was just at the right age to appreciate pure metal and I heard my fair share of it bleeding through his bedroom walls. The 'nu-metal' was also in the house, which is, evidently, according to this novel- frowned upon by purists. Anyway, my point is, I am familiar enough with the culture to recognize the bands and understood most of the references.

At the end of the day, the story is one that has endured for ages- the classic myth of selling one’s soul for fame and fortune, with the devil getting the last laugh. Except in this case, souls were sold without their knowledge, and they are desperate to free themselves from the contract which has sealed their fate. This is a nice twist, and I loved that Kris is a kick-butt female guitarist in an overwhelmingly male dominated environment.

Of course, this is a cautionary tale and there is a moral to the story. I love that about this book. It’s a gory, supernatural, futuristic horror story, featuring hardcore metal music, but there is still message and a lesson to be learned from it. While the legend of ‘selling one’s soul’ conjures up woo-doo, a thing about chickens, and visions of crossroads, and is often taken in the literal sense, I think it’s allegorical and yes, many a musician has fallen into the trap.

There are other points the author zooms in on, that while not entirely original, will still make you think. The one downside was the ending. I was expecting a huge, epic showdown, but it ended up being a whimper instead of a roar. Other than that, this story is an homage to heavy metal, to rock and roll, and horror novels. It’s a little tense, has some gross out gore, but also a healthy dose of humor and satire. It will also give you nightmares about UPS trucks, but overall, this is rip-roaring, spine-tingling tale of horror, but was also a whole lot of fun to read!

Heavy metal meets the devil in this third novel from Grady Hendrix. I LOVED Hendrix’s first two novels, Horrorstör and My Best Friend’s Exorcism, so I was really psyched to get an eARC copy of this new release in time for Halloween. We Sold Our Souls centers around Kris, a woman who played guitar for a popular heavy metal band in the 1990s. The band broke up under mysterious circumstances before they could make it big and now, 30 years later, Kris has to reconnect with her band mates to find out how and why they drifted apart.As much as I love Grady Hendrix and his ironic brand of horror writing, I wasn’t crazy about this one. It was almost too action-packed. There just wasn’t enough downtime in the story to explain what the hell was going on. I finished it last night and I’m still a little confused. I’m also not exactly a heavy metal fan, so I had to Wikipedia a lot of the more obscure band references 😬. But hey, if metal and action-heavy stories with lots of blood and gore are your thing, you should definitely look this one up.

What a fun horror book! I have read Hendrix's previous two novels and devoured them. I stayed up late to finish "We Sold Our Souls". It took me a bit to get into it but once I did I could not put this book down. I also started listening to Dolly Parton again. I love that Hendrix love to tell stories that are campy and amazing.

I’d read, and really enjoyed My Best Friend’s Exorcism so I was really happy to get my hands on We Sold Our Souls.
Kris Pulaski is working a dead end job in a hotel reception. She and her band Durt Wurk had looked destined for stardom until their lead singer abandoned them and reached meteoric status with his new band Koffin. Something about his level of success never seemed to add up, and as Koffin’s farewell tour is announced, Kris decides its time she was paid her dues.
As with NBFE Hendrix creates a really evocative feeling of time and place. The descriptions of the American underbelly feel authentic and he creates characters you really root for. For a male writer, I feel he writes s female perspective and experience really well.
The novel rattles along at a great pace and is thoroughly enjoyable. I deducted one star, from the four I would have given it, because I felt a little disappointed by the ending.

I don’t love books classified as “horror”. I’m the biggest chicken! But there was something more to this book than simply being a horror/thriller that had me totally engrossed from the very first page. This is simply, an incredible story. It was dark and creepy, but I was so invested in the main character, and all the obstacles she had to overcome, I had to see it through. I also thought the ending was perfect.

In the 1990s, Kris Pulaski was the guitarist of a heavy metal band called Dürt Würk, and even though the band gave their best to succeed, Dürt Würk didn't get their big break, so, twenty years later, we see Kris, who is now in her forties and broke, working as a hotel receptionist at a Best Western, where she has to deal with annoying, drunk guests.

The premise of We Sold Our Souls by Grady Hendrix immediately appealed to me because of the heavy metal aspect and, in essence, the novel is a fast-paced, supernatural story that reflects on modern-day consumerism and looks at how far some people would be willing to go in the name of fame and success?

As the story develops, we find out just how close Dürt Würk was to making it big, and how it all came crashing down when their lead singer, Terry Hunt, decided to betray his bandmates and go solo, while continuing to use the band's old material. Terry goes on to achieve phenomenal fame with his metal band Koffin, and the announcement of Koffin's epic farewell tour sparks Kris's determination to reconnect with her old bandmates and confront Terry about the events that lead to the dissolution of Dürt Würk. Along the way, she gets involved in a conspiracy, which suggests that Terry's stardom might have come from some kind of Faustian deal, as suggested by the title of the book. Kris sets out to uncover the truth and races against time to stop an evil force from taking over the world.

The story takes some time to gain momentum and the horror elements really start to appear only around the midpoint of the book, but, overall, We Sold Our Souls is an engrossing and spooky love letter to heavy metal music, and Kris's passion for the genre made me quite nostalgic to revisit some of the bands that are mentioned in the book. As expected, metal music plays a significant part in the narrative and each chapter heading is a fun reference to a song title. The book also makes some strong statements about the meaning and appeal of heavy metal music, and it obviously comes from a place of love for the genre. If you're looking for a fun, spooky Halloween read with a strong female lead, I suggest giving this book a try.

Wow, this book was something else.

As someone who grew up on a steady diet of heavy metal, this book was absolutely written in my language.

It's the story of a failed heavy metal guitarist, Kris, whose former bandmate Terry went on to absolute superstardom following the breakup of their just-about-to-hit-it-big band; Kris finds herself in a dead-end job in a dead-end town, on the eve of a set of sold-out retirement shows by Koffin, Terry's new nu-metal outfit. As Kris seeks to reunite with her old bandmates to find out the truth about their group's breakup, she uncovers a vast and sinister conspiracy that shows the dark machinations leading to Koffin's mega-platinum status, while discovering that an unreleased concept album might hold the key to the survival of the entire world.

Fans of the Faustian horror genre would love this Quixotic tale; for me, this was a five-star effort grounding itself in the language of metal with which I surrounded myself in my teenage years. Those less familiar with darker rock and roll might find themselves a little lost, however.

I thought it was sufficiently creepy-if you are claustrophobic this might not be for you. The beginning was slow to start for me, but it picked up quickly enough. About a third of the way through, I had a hard time following the story. But I felt everything came together in the end. I didnt enjoy this as much as his other books, but I'll keep reading his stuff!

Hendrix Faustian tale based on The Devil and Daniel Webster with a heavy metal slant which is an interesting tale told in its own right. This is a cautionary tale which deals with the age old moral issues of be careful what you wish for.

The book is a well written and totally absorbing tale written in the third person but told from Kris’s point of view. The action of the piece stays with Kris through her many fables and foibles and she is a heroine that is to be admired and adored through her vim and verve. She is a strong female character that really pushes her feminine role that shows a strong independent woman as she works out the mystery behind her lost past.

The other characters are very well drawn and Hendrix is very strong on bringing them out without using cartoonish clichés. Even the most superficial characters are well written and he is able to encompass a three dimensional view of all the characters showing the good and the bad and being able to show the motivations to make them understandable. This is an incredible feat that most authors have difficulty putting together but Hendrix makes this look easy which shows what a remarkable writer he is.

I have read Hendrix’s Paperbacks From Hell which was a testament to the 80’s horror pulp fiction which was well written and deeply researched. It was one of the excellent novels of 2017 and one that if you are a fan of horror, a book that should be included in everyone’s bookshelf. Although I digress, it is to show this is a man who loves his subject matter and genre and knows exactly what to do with this.

The novel looks at the world through a 1980’s lens and although most of the action takes place in the present, it still has that horror pulp feel to it. Saying this, it does lifts its subject matter above these tropes to show a better written novel than some of the pulp fiction that it plays ode to. His use of heavy metal lyrics and looking at the subgenre in rock as a whole is very well done. This is a writer who understands his subject material and this is really highlighted when he compares music of today with the music of yesteryears and the differences. He even ties in corporate America buying out of the music industry that shows that music today is market studied before it is released to feed the population what they think is should be fed. This is a big bravo and one of the many reasons that lifts this well above the norm.

The book has an uneven opening which takes it’s time setting up the premise but after about three chapters, the story picks up speed and never lets go until it’s final conclusion. It is a very involving tale that grips its audience with a knowing smirk that shows the circle of hell within the music industry. The one minor flaw which would be up to the audience who must read this outstanding novel is the ending which is left ambiguous. For myself, I thought it was the perfect ending building up a myth and legend in the world of rock.

Overall, this is an outstanding novel that shows a master at full work creating a world that gives odes to the 80’s against a political backdrop of today. Also shows how the world may be too connected and the changes that have happen for the better or worse. A cautionary tale which true scares and horror mixed in with a deep rooted mystery that keeps the audience involved. This is a gem of the book from the increasingly fascinating talent of Grady Hendrix.

<b>Thanks to Quirk Books for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This is it.</b>

What can I say about this book that hasn’t already been said by all my book blogger friends? <i>We Sold Our Souls</i> is a rocking good time filled with well-developed characters and shocking twists, all told in Grady Hendrix’s assured, witty voice. Hendrix is quickly becoming a superstar in the dark fiction field, and rightfully so.

What is most impressive about this book, to me, is the character. As seen in 2016’s <i>My Best Friend’s Exorcism</i>, Hendrix is one of the best at character development, and this story’s main protagonist, Kris — former lead guitarist for Dürt Würk and all-around badass — has one of the most satisfying arcs I’ve read in some time. She’s an important character for the times in which we live, and she is sure to leave any reader feeling empowered.

Once begun this novel is hard to stop, with thrilling scenes of action and many moments of excellent character reflection. Highly recommended for all you rock ‘n’ rollers (and the pop kids).

I decided to give this title a shot after hearing how awesome My Best Friend's Exorcism was and I'm so glad I did! We Sold Our Souls is a really entertaining read with plenty of terrifying moments to keep those pages turning. I read it in one day and it was such a blast!

Kris is a great protagonist and her journey from loser kid from middle of nowhere Pennsylvania to just shy of heavy metal superstar to washed up nobody living in her mom's house was equal parts inspiring and sad. When she decides to confront her former friend and band member Terry things get crazy and don't slow down until the last page. This book is full of creepy monsters, slick music managers, gory violence, high end rehab facilities, and tons of musical references. You don't have to be a metal head to enjoy this book, but it does help. Hendrix does a great job of getting a character across in a small number of pages and I felt equally invested in characters I only knew for one chapter and the ones I had been following for the whole book.

Overall a really fun read that's highly recommended if you're looking for something fast paced and action packed!

"A girl with a guitar never has to apologize for anything."

If you want to read a book that will give you an authentic feel for the Metal music scene, and really the music business as a whole, wrapped up in an excellent Horror/Psychological Thriller story, grab this book as quick as you can. Oh, and the MC is a woman... a woman Metal guitarist!

The story brought up so many points about the current state of affairs in the music industry that I almost put on pants (trousers for you folks in the UK) at this late hour to hop over to my friend's recording studio for some rousing conversation with whomever happened to be hanging out. In person discussion... there's noting better.

The .5 star deduction came from a few cliche stereotypes which I'm not completely sure weren't thrown in the mix for good reason, but come on, a fat lesbian sound tech? I'd love to interview and pick the brain of this author.

It is a book I will read again and take notes on to do a proper full blog review. I'm going to also promo and mini-review it in a Facebook women's gear group of which I am a member.

Grady Hendrix is basically the new voice of our Gen X generation. The man has given us a haunted Ikea in Horrorstör, then proceeded to take us back to our formative years with both My Best Friend's Exorcism, where he gives us an '80s tale worthy of an upside-down universe-John Hughes flick. Paperbacks from Hell brought me back to my family's bookshelves, with the best memories of those crazy horror paperback novel covers (remember die-cut covers? EVERY. V.C. ANDREWS. NOVEL) lining the walls of my home and my bookworm uncle's living room. So where is Grady taking us next? Welp, we've grown up and moved on - or have we? - so we're kinda sorta stuck between present and past with We Sold Our Souls.

In the 1990s, heavy metal band Dürt Würk was a band on the verge of the breakthrough, and guitarist Kris Pulaski was ready for it. But lead singer Terry Hunt decided to go in a different direction, signing a solo contract and gaining huge success with Koffin, leaving his fellow band members to wallow in obscurity. Twenty years later, Kris is working as the night manager at a Best Western and still wondering what the hell happened that infamous night when everything went to hell. Literally. As Kris travels cross-country to reunite with her band members and find out what really happened on contract night, she starts uncovering the conspiracy to end all conspiracies, tin foil hat and everything. Did Terry sell their souls to get fame, fortune, and unlimited merchandising royalties?

Real talk: This book needs to rocket to the top of your TBR, and that's not just because I will read anything that Grady Hendrix writes. He's aces at creating strong, smart female characters, for starters. Kris is not going down without a fight, and we are right there with her, including an escape scene that fed on every single nerve in my body. My chest was tight, my hands were clenched, and I had a cold sweat just envisioning the scene. That's how Grady Hendrix writes. Every chapter is named for a hard rock/heavy metal album, and the references to bands and songs are liberally sprinkled throughout the book. The main plot surrounds a concept album: Remember when Queensryche hit with Operation: Mindcrime? We were RAISED on concept albums, so this story? We've been preparing for this our whole adult lives.

Let's go beyond the plot to the real horror story: we're living in a society that anesthetizes us. Got a bad feeling? We've got a pill for that. Don't like the news? Don't worry about it, go find something peaceful to watch and take your meds so you don't have to feel bad. We're living in dangerous times, where we're medicating ourselves just so we can cope with the world around us - but Hendrix points out how easy it is to just turn off and ignore everything, and how people with less than stellar intentions can use that against us. The key here: stay vigilant; just because you think they're out to get you doesn't mean they really aren't.

We Sold Our Souls is everything good about horror and the '80s: it's an over-the-top, violent thrill ride where a chick with a guitar is the only thing standing in the way between us and total, soul-sucking destruction. Rent the 1986 flick Trick or Treat, dig into this book, and make yourself the greatest of playlists.

Don't miss Grady Hendrix on tour! He's got a schedule up on his website. And sign up for his Book Reviews of the Damned. You'll thank me later. Check out We Sold Our Souls' starred review from Booklist!

I first heard about this book when Jamie told me about it as I was buying another of Hendrix’s books at YALC this year so when she emailed about a chance to read an ARC of it I was excited!

We Sold Our Souls is about Dürt Würk, heavy metal rock band, who’s souls have been sold yet they don’t remember.

The majority of We Sold Our Souls is from DW former guitarist, Kris Pulaskis’ perpective and I think she was the perfect person to tell this story. Its set years later when Kris is fed up of her life draining hotel desk job cleaning up drunk guys piss.

She knows there is injustice in her current and past heavy metal life simply because she’s a woman and she never used to let that get her downtrodded. She rocked hard, kicked hard, and didn’t give a fuck so long as she had her music.

So now she’s wondering how the fuck she ended up here accepting her dead end job and no metal life.

When she sees the ex lead singer of DW is doing a final tour she decides enough is enough, she deserves answers and to get her life back. Her attitude, strength, and will power were great. I love Kris okay!

But not everything is as it seems.

The pace of the horror throughout this book is amazing, it starts simple and has you questioning what that dude is taking to come up with such wacky ideas, but soon the conspiracy theory starts to unfold. To show Kris that there is more out there and this journey isn’t going to be as straight forward as she had hoped.

We get both gorey horror and supernatural horror. And it all ties in with music which makes me think this would make an amazing movie.

Because of how integral music is to this story I read about two chapters before I went back and started tabbing every song and band mentioned. Then using the most popular songs from each band I put together a playlist! It really is a love letter to heavy metal.

What I loved most is that I’ve been listening to the playlist since finishing the book and there are certain songs and artists that really connected me back to the story and made me think again about what Kris was going through at that time. It really has made a huge impact on me.

Even though this is a horror the ending blew me away because it sends such a positive message to everyone and it really illustrates how you can have an equally positive outcome on other peoples lives.

So once you’re done reading Sawkill Girls from my previous horror recommendation, you better go pick this one up too!

Everybody has been raving about this book. I haven’t read one negative thing and that’s rare in blogland. We like to complain and pick things apart. Or at least I know I do. I probably shouldn’t speak for everyone else. But I think that’s what makes us (or me) so fantastic, haha. Now that I’ve finally read it, (sorry Netgalley, I am late again but you really should know this about me by now) I totally understand why this book is being treated like horror gold. Author Grady Hendrix knows the horror scene and he’s created a modern day classic that gives the old “sold our soul to the devil” trope a fresh new spin. It’s firmly earned its place in a future Paperbacks From Hell volume.

This story is a lovingly written present to all heavy metal loving horror fans. If you grew up in the 80’s or 90’s listening to that stuff you need to buy yourself the beautiful physical copy of this book with the black binding. I’m going to do so as soon as I can. It’s seriously that good.

Kris is having a “what the hell happened to my life” moment. She’s 47 and works the front desk at a Best Western when a customer decides to piss all over the front desk. She was once a guitarist in an almost famous metal band when it all when to shit and she was forced into abandoning her dreams. When she sees a billboard with her nemesis’s face on it that declares he’s going back on tour, she decides to track down her old bandmates in order to stop the man who ruined them all.

Nothing goes as planned. And that’s what I enjoyed so much about this book. It takes turns and twists and I predicted none of them. Not a single one. It is filled with dark and disturbing surprises. I loved that the lead guitarist and main character is a strong, kick-butt kind of woman. I adored this character.

“Kris wasn’t a hugger. She had a body like a bag of knives.”

She’s also very sympathetic and determined.

“Kris wanted to press her fist to the planet and leave a mark.”

And she thinks some very funny thoughts:

“Men never know when to shut up.”

Sorry, guys, but sometimes it’s true (though the same can be said about me, I suppose!).

Music plays an enormous part in the story. It’s not a little set piece or an afterthought. This book would not exist without the music and the end is simply magical. I don’t know what else to say without giving too much away. I’m no good at writing 5 star reviews. I guess I’ll leave you with a drop everything and READ THIS BOOK RIGHT THIS MINUTE! If you hate it, you can always send your copy to me.

In the 1990s, heavy metal band Dürt Würk was poised for breakout success — but then lead singer Terry Hunt embarked on a solo career and rocketed to stardom as Koffin, leaving his fellow bandmates to rot in rural Pennsylvania.

Two decades later, former guitarist Kris Pulaski works as the night manager of a Best Western – she’s tired, broke, and unhappy. Everything changes when she discovers a shocking secret from her heavy metal past: Turns out that Terry’s meteoric rise to success may have come at the price of Kris’s very soul.

This revelation prompts Kris to hit the road, reunite with the rest of her bandmates, and confront the man who ruined her life. It’s a journey that will take her from the Pennsylvania rust belt to a Satanic rehab center and finally to a Las Vegas music festival that’s darker than any Mordor Tolkien could imagine. A furious power ballad about never giving up, even in the face of overwhelming odds, We Sold Our Souls is an epic journey into the heart of a conspiracy-crazed, paranoid country that seems to have lost its very soul…where only a girl with a guitar can save us all.

I’m old enough to remember the media outrage regarding Judas Priest and alleged Satanic messages in their lyrics (if you played their album backwards). Laughable, I know, but it does suggest a cracking premise for a horror story. The idea that dark forces are using metal music to control the masses. Grady Hendrix’s latest novel, We Sold Our Souls, takes that idea and runs with it.

Kris Pulaski is a fascinating character. Having come tantalisingly close to rock stardom only to have it snatched from her grasp has left an indelible mark. She is broken and more than a little bitter. For years she has hidden away from the world, working a dead-end job, denying her history. Underneath it all though, somewhere deep down in the depths of her soul, there is still a tiny spark of rebellion. There is that lone voice in the dark that refuses to ever give in, refuses to quit. When she learns her ex-bandmate is on the road again she realises she needs to confront him. She needs to understand why it all went wrong, how the dream fell apart.

Terry Hunt is the flipside of the same coin. Where Kris has faded into obscurity after the break-up of Dürt Würk, Terry has become a living legend, The Blind King. Koffin is the biggest band on the planet and their enigmatic frontman is viewed as a true megastar. It’s only towards the end of the novel that you discover more about the real Terry, the handful of scenes he appears in do a perfect job of rounding out his character. The ultimate resolution of his thread in the story is particularly well handled.

I think a lot of the horror in We Sold Our Souls can be viewed as psychological in nature. Is Kris imagining it all? Her erratic actions could be viewed as those of someone teetering on the brink of insanity. There are moments where the narrative suggests that all the events could be nothing more than the twisted imaginings of a rock star wannabe. It could be that Kris is projecting her anger onto everyone she thinks wronged her in the past. Or is that what the dark powers want you to think? As Kris continues her road trip, the author ramps up the tension. Each step brings her closer to achieving her goal, but as it does the horror also escalates. There are a handful of moments that manage to be as gory as they are unexpected.

I have come here to chew bubble gum and review books, and I’m all outta bubble gum! This is good news as there is a wonderful John Carpenter-esque quality to We Sold Our Souls. Like the cult classic They Live, the novel explores how faceless entities can use their endless reach to control and manipulate. Hendrix really plays into these topics, and the book reads like a laundry list of 21st century paranoia. Mass market consumerism and social media are the new religion. It makes perfect sense that the ultimate evil would view these as the ideal tools to enslave a generation. Looking at the news from time to time, I reckon this suggestion may actually have some merit. The only thing that can combat this seemingly unstoppable march is the spark of creativity and individualism. Kris is driven by the need to make music. It burns in her, right down to the marrow of her bones. Rock music is angry, it is uncontrollable, and it refuses to back down.

There is something unashamedly rebellious about We Sold Our Souls. I’m of an age where every comment made by our heroine, excuse the pun, struck a chord. If you’re looking for rock and roll horror then look no further.

I’ve gone proper old school with my music recommendation to accompany We Sold Our Souls. It strikes me that Master of Puppets by Metallica has the ideal tone. The tracks Battery, The Thing That Should Not Be or Welcome Home (Sanitarium) could all easily be viewed as Kris’ own personal anthems.

We Sold our Souls in published by Quirk Books and is available now.