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.

I first became aware of Grady Hendrix's work as a non-fiction author for his massively popular hit last year, Paperbacks from Hell: The Twisted History of '70s and '80s Horror Fiction. However, I'm ashamed to say that not only did I have no idea he writes fiction and has published in some very prestigious avenues, but also, he wrote frickin' Horrorstör, which was also a blockbuster success a few years ago (that's downright embarrassing for me).

In any case, my ignorance aside, Hendrix is back at it with his latest novel, We Sold Our Souls, which combines two of my favourite things: horror and heavy metal. One of the first things I admired most about this novel was the refreshing choice to have the point of view of a female member of a metal band and to see her genesis. Her experiences definitely aren't pretty and they get uglier as the book goes on, which is to be expected. 

She was in a band that didn't quite take off as she'd hoped, so she has been stuck in a dead-end job with not much else in the way of other options. Reading this book often felt like watching an intimate and disturbing behind-the-scenes documentary about a metal band. It was like getting an insider's look at how a band was formed written with the closeness from someone who was there. 

The intensity of the more horror-centered parts and scenes was quite vivid and the action leapt off the page. I also thought this was mingled very well with a definite case of "don't believe everything the narrator tells you." Survival and adaptation have never really been pretty, and in this book, it's certainly not an exception. Overall, Hendrix has crafted a cleverly-plotted, nuanced, and action-packed thrill-ride of a novel that should be on everyone's list for Halloween.

Grady Hendrix knocks it outta the park.. again! 
This time we have a middle aged FEMALE badass that shreds the guitar and never says die. With an old metal album filled with mythological lyrics to guide her, Kris takes us on a journey of reclaiming souls and bringing life back to the music (and human) world. I read this book in two days because I just could not put it down. It was a fast, fun, and sometimes gruesome read that I will recommend to anyone looking for a good thriller/horror novel and all the metal heads I know!

The nitty-gritty: Grady Hendrix’s latest hums with frenetic energy, a dark and dangerous, pulse-pounding love letter to the power of music

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

I became a Grady Hendrix fan after reading Horrorstör several years ago, and I enjoyed My Best Friend’s Exorcism (although not quite as much), but I can honestly say that We Sold Our Souls is his best book yet. Hendrix has grown by leaps and bounds as a writer, in my humble opinion, and I was stunned by how good this was in every single way. Word of warning, this story is dark. A lot of bad stuff happens, and it happens to good characters, but there’s also a lot of good in this story. We Sold Our Souls is a heavy metal take on the Faust legend, and just like it says in the title, one of the characters sells his soul in order to become a music legend—except there’s a twist, a big twist.

Kris Pulaski is a washed-up forty-seven year old, with a dead-end job working for Best Western, but she used to be part of a heavy metal band called Dürt Würk, until her best friend and bandmate Terry Hunt stole her music and sold out Terry and the rest of the band for fame and fortune with a new band called Koffin. Terry pressures Kris into signing a contract that gives her a big payout, but she must agree to give up rights to her original songs and never perform again. Devastated by Terry’s betrayal, Kris packs her beloved Gibson Melody Maker away in a closet and resigns herself to a life devoid of her one true love, music. It’s been years since Terry has been on her radar, but all that changes one day with the announcement of an epic music event dubbed Hellstock ‘19, a heavy metal festival with none other than Koffin as the headliner. All the rage she’s suppressed over the years bubbles to the surface, and Kris knows this is her chance to finally confront him.

But first, she must round up the other members of her old band, although that’s going to be tough since no one really likes Kris after the events of “contract night” when Terry sold them out. As Kris makes her inevitable way toward Terry and her final chance at redemption, fate will do everything it can to stop her.

I loved the way this story is constructed. Hendrix intersperses the present story of Kris’s long and tortuous journey to Hellstock ‘19 with snippets of Kris’s past, how she became a musician, met Terry and started Dürt Würk, and the major events that led up to the night when everything fell apart. There’s a lot of information that we don’t know in the beginning—what exactly happened that horrible night and why Kris is living a life of near-poverty—but Hendrix drops hints bit by bit until the full horror of what’s going on is revealed.

There’s also a side character named Melanie who is desperately trying to get out of her going-nowhere-life in a small West Virginian town. Melanie is a huge fan of Koffin and especially of Terry Hunt, and when she hears about Hellstock ‘19 she’s determined to get there no matter what, even if she has to leave her good-for-nothing boyfriend behind. Melanie is young and naive and makes some terrible choices in this story, but I adored her plucky attitude and her positive outlook on life, even when events take a nasty turn in Vegas. At first I couldn’t figure out what her purpose was in the story, but eventually things start to come together when Melanie and Kris meet on the road and help each other on their journey.

Kris bears the brunt of the pain in this story, however, from the moment she decides to track down Scottie, Tuck and Bill—her former Dürt Würk bandmates—and make the trek to the desert to find Terry. This story turns batshit crazy, and there were several scenes that were actually tough to read. Terry knows Kris is coming and he’s got his own private posse who will go to any lengths to stop her, including some assassins dressed up as UPS employees.  I used to love seeing the UPS truck stop outside my house, because it usually meant there was book mail on the way, but I’m telling you, after reading this book I’m going to think twice before I open my door!

And pulsing through every page is the music. I absolutely loved the descriptions of Kris picking up a guitar for the first time, the pain of the strings cutting into her fingers, the sound of a chord when it’s played exactly right. And you don’t have to be a metalhead to love this book. Hendrix’s descriptions could work for any musical genre (and there is an awesome chapter that made me fall in love with Dolly Parton!) Part of the story revolves around Dürt Würk’s lost album Troglodyte. Hendrix has created a mythology around an entity known as Black Iron Mountain that lives in a hole in the center of the world (the devil), and the songs on the album explain that mythology in an epic burst of metal. I loved the way that Kris resurrects Troglodyte in her head as she’s trying to (literally) stay alive, and if you’ve ever had a time in your life where music may have actually saved you (I mean, haven’t we all?), then you’ll probably get goosebumps just like I did.

The final showdown is suitably larger-than-life—I expected nothing less from this author—but I loved the way he ended his story on an emotional note. In fact, I can’t say I’ve ever read a more perfect ending. If you’re already a fan of Grady Hendrix, then reading this book is a no-brainer. And if I’ve tempted you Hendrix virgins to give this author a chance, then you are in for a treat.

Big thanks to the publisher for supplying a review copy.

Grady Hendrix is a unique writer. While he might be classified as horror, I think of it as twisted supernatural. Kris was a member of a heavy metal band that could have made it big, but things didn’t work out and she is working at a Best Western. The lead singer of her old band has gone on to reach acclaim with his new band Koffin and he has a big tour coming up. Kris hits the road to visit some of her old bandmates that were discarded on Terry’s rise to fame only to find a freaky conspiracy at play. Can Kris use the lyrics from their unrealized album to guide her in the right direction? 

At some points my interest waned while reading, but then something would happen to pull me back in. I wish Terry was more villainous. I really liked Melanie as a secondary character and young Koffin fan, she really made the book for me. I loved how empowered Kris felt when she had her guitar in her hands. Rock fans will find tons of great references here.

Note: Quirk Books allowed me access to the ebook via Netgalley. Thank you!

On with the review...

So, first off, We Sold Our Souls officially is the strangest book I have read and will read all year. I liked it, but I didn't love it.  The commentary is somewhat satirical in nature, which I can get behind.  What is largely the story of Kris and her bandmates and how the lead singer of the group they were part of when they were younger screwed them over feels somewhat typical of a sellout scenario.  Then it starts to get weird as conspiracy theories and psychotic breaks happen (or do they?).  Regardless, some bits of the plot are telegraphed rather early so when Hendrix finally drops the bombshell, it's almost a dud.  There's still surprises to be had.  The characterizations and scenarios feel authentic enough to work throughout.  The pervasive atmosphere never lets up, even at the end.  In the end, I kind of cared, but I didn't at the same time.  This was a hard one for me to get through as it never fully grasped me though it tried so hard.  In the right hands, though, the gritty details will be a perk.  The question is, really, what are you willing to sell your soul for?

I loved this book! Everyone needs to read it. The main character, Kris Pulaski, is so kickass! You don't need to love metal music to enjoy this book. Although it did spark an interest in listening to metal music and it inspired me to make my own spotify playlist for the book. I hope this book gets made into a movie.

This is the second Grady Hendrix book I've read, and now I need to read Horrorstor immediately. 

We Sold Our Souls is intense and unsettling. It's dreadful in the truest sense---full of dread. 

Like Kris, we don't know what to think. Everyone else seems to be varying degrees of paranoid and crazy. The events of this book are over the top and it makes no sense. There's no way to describe it so it does.

If you are in the mood for horror (fun, insane, over the top horror), check this out. Highly recommended.

This is the second time this year time this year I’ve looked at a description of a book and thought it was going to be awful or brilliant.  My old CD collection filled with Metallica and Iron Maiden albums wouldn’t let me pass on this one – and I’m so glad it didn’t.  Made an incredibly slow work day just fly by.

We Sold Our Souls is a self-aware, preposterous, fun and thrilling read with the appropriate amount of creepy moments to classify it as a decent horror novel, despite being a superb story in itself.  Underneath the increasingly intensity as the plot strands start to come together there’s an excellent running commentary throughout that doesn’t just apply to the music industry which I couldn’t help but agree with.

The book also wins bonus points for its suitably loathsome villain that I thoroughly enjoyed rooting against from the get-go.

With thanks to Netgalley and Quirk  for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

After reading and loving Grady Hendrix's previous novels Horrorstor and My Best Friend's Exorcism I was really looking forward to picking his new book up. I was not disappointed! The main character Kris is such a real and relatable character, while not without her faults I easily found myself rooting for her. The story is very fast-paced, at times funny, at times dark, with occasional gruesome moments. Kris's journey builds to an emotional climax that might have even made me cry a little bit! Hendrix's observations and attention to detail really enhance the story, making it both authentic and enjoyable. Whether you're a metal fan or not, this is a fun read with a lot of heart and a very timely message.

We Sold Our Souls is a unique type of horror novel that uses heavy metal music as its inspiration. I'm not a heavy metal fan, but I found that this did not affect my ability to relate to the characters or enjoy the story. It's dark, creepy, unsettling, and has a strong message. The main character, Kris, is easy to root for. There are unexpected twists and turns. At times, some of the twists seem pointless, but it all works out by the end. This was an enjoyable horror novel.

‘We Sold Our Souls’ is one HELL of a ride. Grady Hendrix, King of horror at Quirk Books, has written a heavy metal masterpiece with a female lead guitarist, Kris Pulaski, as its star. 
Less classic horror this time (his previous books are ‘Horrorstör’, and ‘My Best Friend’s Exorcism’), Hendrix has laden ‘Souls’ with conspiracy theory and real life horrors.

Kris Pulaski was in a heavy metal band called Dürt Würk two decades ago and they were on the brink of success when the lead singer Terry Hunt ripped the band apart and left to start his solo career. And it seems Terry’s rise to success was at the cost of selling the band’s souls.
That’s right, he sold their souls for rock’n’roll…or in this case, heavy metal.

Kris’ pitiful present day existence is working at the reception of a Best Western, and if you can stomach the ‘Welcome To Hell’ chapter (good horror always comes at the cost of reading things that make your stomach turn), then you can follow Kris on her journey as she gets whisked from Pennsylvania to a Satanic rehab center, and then across the country again to grimy Las Vegas. Years of grueling, crazy, exciting, challenging (to say the least), and often nasty experiences on the road with the band, were nothing compared to this trip, and it seems like all Kris’ heavy metal years were preparation and toughened her up. The journey to Las Vegas is overwhelming, but Kris has a mission she can’t ignore. There’s also a whole host of colorful characters along the way, but I do have to wonder if Hendrix has a thing against UPS (you will see what I mean when you read the book).

The greatest thing about this book is that Hendrix has chosen to write ‘Souls’ with a female protagonist. Not just that: a kickass, middle-aged (even though I hate that word, because that’s what I am now, I suppose), female as its lead. And she plays the guitar like a certain other Hendrix. She doesn’t take any bull from anyone and doesn’t stop fighting back once she starts on her new road trip. 

While it seems as though she has given up with her hotel job, the revelation that she must stop her old bandmate Terry Hunt, lights a fire in Kris, and the book has that vibe of ‘don’t give up, don’t let the system win, don’t let the bullies push you’. That’s highly clear in the messages of conspiracy theory, our paranoia-laden country, and how culture is selling itself (its soul) particularly out to cell phones and shallow marketing. Reading the book will give you a greater sense of the way the conspiracy theory works in ‘Souls’ - I’m kind of at a loss as how to explain the genius behind how it’s woven in - but Hendrix has cleverly used snippets of radio and newspaper to show how ‘news’ travels and information spreads. This has always been the way conspiracy theories spread and this underbelly of the book is fascinating. 

If you don’t know all the music in the book, this may be a little daunting, as there are a lot of heavy metal and music references, but I think if you have even the remote interest in or knowledge of decades old music such as Black Sabbath and Slayer, and remember the days when everyone thought that heavy metal listeners were devil worshipers, you will appreciate what Hendrix is doing here (and no you don’t have to actually like the music). Trigger warnings for sexual assault and creepy crawlies; this is definitely rated R.

Hendrix is an undeniable force in pop culture literature and has written an unforgettable book, one that’s not for everyone, but will be a cult classic, but not like any of the schlock he writes about in his awesome ‘Paperbacks from Hell’. No one writes like this guy; ‘We Sold Our Souls’ is funny, gross, complex, and a wonderful blend of horror, pop culture, conspiracy theory, and is infused with a heavy dose of music history. Only Grady Hendrix could have done that.

We Sold Our Souls is a fun novel that blends heavy metal mania, claustrophobic horror and a trippy road-trip into a “Black Mirror”-esqe mix that is hard to put down. However, the overall quality of the writing makes it hard to rate it more than a two.

My adrenaline starts pumping just from reading this book! Talk about badass-ery. There's a reason whispers of selling one's soul to the devil constantly swirl around the music business. And a lady rocker! This is such a gripping book. I'm buying it for my library! And probably for myself.

We Sold Our Souls is a metal love ballad for horror lovers and music fanatics alike. You certainly don’t have to be a rock-and-roll fan to appreciate Grady Hendrix’s unflinching treatment of band-culture, fan-culture, and (of course) cult-culture.

Before finishing this novel, I didn’t realize the phrase “We Sold Our Souls for Rock and Roll” was associated with the iconic Black Sabbath. Hendrix uses this relation subtly, weaving in clever mentions of classic songs and genre heavy-weights that even I (with little experience with the genre) could appreciate.

Hendrix also succeeded in writing a very unique take on well-tread horror plots. There is a deal with a devil but it isn’t what you might expect; there is a kick-butt, strong, independent female lead but she’s flawed and kinda crazy; there is a band break-up but its filled with genuine emotion and lacking soap-opera-drama.

In the end, this was a very well developed horror novel that I think is nearly biting social commentary. In fact, the only reason this wasn’t a 5-star read for me was that I was hoping Hendrix would deliver more with the social commentary. However, even saying that, Hendrix accomplished a lot with We Sold Our Souls - entertainment with a healthy helping of debauchery

The below 5-star review was posted to Hillbilly Highways, Every Day Should Be Tuesday, Amazon, and Goodreads on 9/18/18:

I am a fan of Grady Hendrix.  His essays on 1980s pulp horror fiction, the resulting book Paperbacks From [H*ck], and his commentary on the Dukes of Hazzard remake DVD special features.  But I had never read any of his fiction.  We Sold Our Souls struck me as a great place to start.  And I was right!  This is a dang good book.

Kris is somewhere in the morass of middle age working at a dead-end job on the overnight shift at the front desk of a dingy hotel.  But her life wasn’t always that way.  There was a time when she was at the top of the world, playing guitar in a metal band at the cusp of breaking out.  And then it all came crashing down.

When she sees a billboard for the retirement tour of her former bandmate, Terry Hunt (also known as The Blind King), and his new band (Koffin), she starts tracking down the other members of her old band, Dürt Würk (a play on a term for grave digging).  Why have their lives been so miserable while Terry hurtled to superstardom?  What happened to their lost album Troglodyte (“the album Terry had destroyed, the one he never wanted released, the one that scared Black Iron Mountain”)?  What or who is Black Iron Mountain?  Why do they fear it?  And what happened on contract night?

Seeking the answers to those questions will eventually lead her to [H*ck]stock ’19:
“The original Woodstock was all about hippies humping in the mud.  Woodstock ’99 was a disaster where everything got set on fire.  [H*ck]stock ’19 promised to combine both those events together in an apocalyptic end-times party.”

If you doubt that Terry is history’s greatest monster, consider that he says things like this:
“Koffin sings about real things, about social change, about actual emotions, about 9/11.  Metal is an act.  Koffin is real.”

We Sold Our Souls is very much a book about metal.  Metal heads are famously pretentious.  We Sold Our Souls works in part because Hendrix loves the music enough to take the piss out of it in service of the story, but he never does it out of meanness.

We Sold Our Souls is also very much a horror story.  It has fantastical elements, to be sure, but they are in service of the horror.  As the name suggests, We Sold Our Souls features both literal and figurative take on the selling of souls.  The latter should be obvious to anyone familiar with the music industry.  The former is maybe too thinly explained to work as a fantasy, but it is more than enough for Hendrix’s horror purposes.

The man knows his business (it must have been reading all of those cheap 1980s paperbacks).  He knows that horror should first and foremost be creepy, disquieting, and unsettling, rather than gross and gory.  I mean, there is some gore.  This is a book in which someone gets their face ripped off, after all.  But Hendrix gives us the former in spades.

We Sold Our Souls is a story about metal, about the working class kids who find meaning in it, about the way the recording industry inevitably works to suck the soul out of any music it comes into contact with, about making bad choices to because they hurt someone else or because we don’t appreciate the price.  It is about the things in dark corners that feed off of us at night, about the violence in the dark corners of our heart.  It is about the indomitable nature of the human spirit, or at least of one woman, even in the face of watching a man get his, er, face ripped off.  It is scary as [h*ck], but uplifting and deep nonetheless.

Disclosure: The publisher provided me with a review copy of We Sold Our Souls via NetGalley.

Kris made a name for herself in the 90s as part of Dürt Würk, a heavy metal band whose cult following had pushed them to the brink of success. But rather than finding fame, the band fell apart and it was lead singer Terry Hunt who ended up with all the glory. 

Twenty years later, Kris is barely squeaking by with a job at a crappy motel, a care that barely runs, and a house she's about to lose. And that's when she sees it - a billboard announcing Terry's return to the stage and an all our rocktastic final tour. It's the push Kris needs to finally do something. To finally confront Terry about what happened all those years ago. 

But Kris soon finds that some things are better left unknown. And some betrayals are far worse than you can ever imagine. 

Heavy metal and horror collide in this latest from Hendrix, a terrifying tale about how far one would go to make their dreams come true.

Grady Hendrix is not only an expert in analyzing the horror genre, he's proven himself an expert at writing it too. And yes, I do mean expert. Three books in and all three have hit my favorites list, that qualifies him in my mind.

I honestly wasn't sure when I dove into this one. Sure, Horrorstör was flat pack paradise of ghosts and My Best Friend's Exorcism thoroughly creeped me out while also appealing to my 80s obsessed nature, but heavy metal is most emphatically NOT my thing, so even I had some reservations in getting started with this latest. But given he hasn't let me down, I was excited none the less. And it was worth it!

Kris is in a dead end job, living in a house that's literally being sold out from under her. She really has no friends, no connections at all, and no direction. And part of that is thanks to the fact that she's been facing the fact that she had it all and was on the brink of a big music career, and lost everything. And the how of that particular storyline is part of the book but it's clear from the time that she sees Terry's billboard that she believes Terry is the cause of her downfall.

And thus begins her dark and horrific adventure!

This was a fabulous horror read, y'all. Super fun and super fast paced. Also, creepy as all get out! An instant favorite for any horror fan!

I’d been meaning to read something by Grady Hendrix for ages, so I jumped at the chance to review We Sold Our Souls. I’d heard so many of my friends rave about his writing in general, but as a metalhead, I was especially sold on the idea of an entire horror story revolving around this washed-up former metal star and her old bandmate’s essential deal with the devil to gain his fame.

"She had nothing. Except her music."

First, let’s talk about Kris Pulaski, our former guitarist protagonist who’s in her forties now, working the night shift at a hotel, miserable, empty, and alone. And let’s talk about how much I freaking love her. Kris is an absolute badass, full of flames and rage and a need for vengeance and justice; she’s tough, a total fighter, and frankly, she’s sick and tired of being held down by the men in her life. She’s incredibly aware of how warped the metal community’s treatment of women can be, much less how society at large treats powerful and self-confident women, but she refuses to let anyone get in her way for even a second. She’s constantly plotting her next move, and she’s just brilliant. If Kris Pulaski were a real person, I’d want to be her best friend.

"Kris had been alive long enough to know it was dangerous when men accused you of being better than them."

Kris isn’t the only enjoyable character, though—even some of the bad guys are pretty likable in their own way, and everyone, good or bad, feels flawed and authentic. I loved cycling through Kris’ former bandmates as she met up with each one, and learning about her memories of them, especially when she would couple in band-specific relations (things like, “like every guitar duo in metal, they were a little bit in love and a little bit in hate all at the same time”). It’s also incredibly fascinating to watch Kris piece together her broken memories as the story slowly reveals what drove apart the members of Dürt Würk, and why Kris has been an outsider ever since.

"She played for the losers."

While We Sold Our Souls absolutely has horror elements and a wonderful plot that kept me engaged from start to finish, what I loved most about it was the fact that, at its core, it reads like a love song to metalheads and music lovers everywhere. So much of what happens revolves around the music scene, the power of metal (and the darker sides of the community, too), and the ways that music can teach us and guide us to the light. There are loads of pop culture references (don’t be offended if a few of your faves get insulted—it happened to me twice, and all I could do was laugh), feminist undertones for days, and a few incredibly creepy (and/or disgusting) mental images that have followed me in the days since finishing this story.

Altogether, I adored every single page of this book, and see it as the kind of story I would happily read over and over again in the future. If you enjoy horror with a touch of weirdness to it, and especially if you’re a fellow metalhead, I can’t urge you strongly enough to pick up a copy of We Sold Our Souls right away. There’s not a single negative thing I have to say about it, and I can’t wait to read everything else Grady Hendrix has to offer.

In the 1990s, heavy metal band Dürt Würk was nearly a breakout success, but the lead singer Terry went solo and became a superstar as Koffin, leaving the rest of the band in the dust. Now, former guitarist Kris is miserable as a night manager at Best Western. Then one day she learns a horrific secret about Terry's meteoric success -it may have come at the price of Kris's soul. With this information, Kris plans to confront the man who ruined her life, but first she's going have to get the rest of Dürt Würk back together again and travel across the country to a monster of a music festival where Koffin is playing his final show.

I was so excited when I realized I had been approved for this ARC via NetGalley because Grady Hendrix has quickly become one of my favorite new horror writers. His brand of horror is right up my alley - I loved Horrorstor and My Best Friend's Excorcism was pretty fantastic. Needless to say, I had really high hopes and was expecting to be thoroughly creeped out by his newest novel. Luckily for me, We Sold Our Souls totally delivers in all the ways that matter. I'm not a guitarist and heavy metal isn't one of my favorite genres, but as a musician I forgot how much I like reading about fellow musicians. I especially like seeing it in genre fiction which doesn't happen often enough, and I love how key Kris's music (and love of music) plays such a central role in this horror story. Kris herself is a fascinating lead character. Even though she's quite flawed, a bit rough around the edges, and doesn't always make the best decisions, I couldn't help but root for her throughout. In fact, all of the characters in this novel are complex and well-drawn. Finally, I just need to mention just how well this novel works as a psychological horror story. I was on the edge of my seat and there are plenty of twists and turns that I didn't see coming. Plus, if you're into conspiracy theories this will probably get you going as well.

Overall, We Sold Our Souls by Grady Hendrix is a thrilling new Lovecraft-esque horror novel that focuses on music and its cast. If you've enjoyed this author's previous works, I have a feeling that you'll love this too. I can't wait to see what he's going to do next. One thing's for sure, though, I will never look at UPS in the same way!