Reviews

Demon Theory by Stephen Graham Jones

scary_carrie's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense fast-paced

4.5

ktxx22's review against another edition

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5.0

#bookreview
#demontheory by #stephengrahamjones
When I tell you I read this book in one day itā€™s because I was so enthralled, entertained, and it felt like I was watching some of my favorite 80s horror movies at home on my couchā€¦. When in reality I was at work busy as hell listening to the audiobook and disassociating from reality. When I tell you my boss said hello to me outside of my peripheral vision and I through the thing I was working on and screamed because I was so engrossed Iā€™m telling you this book sucked me in!

This book is for those of us readers who have the movie reel of a book constantly playing in our minds. When I tell people I donā€™t get down with TV and movies like that, well thatā€™s because my brain is awesome and when I read I am already enjoying a private one person movie. What SGJ did in this book writing wise is a fucking MASTERPIECE. The story and the lore and the ultimate conclusion. While each part/ film in the trilogy (the book is written in 3 parts) has a mind blowing conclusion I kept asking myself thereā€™s no way this can get better and it suffers from that 2nd movie weirdness slump that we all acknowledge and at the same time itā€™s so camp we love it.

When you finally realize whatā€™s happening in this book you will either, like me, jump in gleefully with your popcorn and enjoy the ride or youā€™ll question why or how this is supposed to be entertainingā€¦. You know like when folks watch Friday the 13th and say things like wow this is supposed to be scary. Iā€™m so bored.

The above is further proof of the absolute Genius that is this book. Now I donā€™t want everyone to read this. I think it has a specific readership and I think the audiobook might help get you into the headspace necessary to sit back and enjoy but I suppose if youā€™re a fast reader this wonā€™t be an issue. Iā€™ll be surprised if you can put it down once you start a section or if the only time you come up for air while reading is when it breaks between the various parts. Itā€™s gonna get weird and itā€™s gonna bring up some odd theories but itā€™s a wild fun ride nonetheless. 5 ā­ļø read for sure probably gonna tell everyone about it until theyā€™re tired of hearing me talk about it.

jconfess's review against another edition

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I started this on audio, which was a mistake due to the script-like format. I switched to hard copy and still could not focus. I have heard this compared to House Of Leaves so I want to stay with it. I just need to be in a different headspace to connect with it. Oddly, I think if this was a graphic novel, I would have had no issue. Will try again another time.

alwroteabook's review against another edition

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5.0

In a fit of whimsy, I hereby announce I will give everyone five stars, but the reviews may not reflect it.

I feel like I missed a lot of this by listening to the audio. It is written as a screenplay with footnotes and so forth, but it didn't translate well to narration. What it is is a homage to horror movies and I found much of it to be entertaining. I consider myself an SGJ fan, so maybe I'll do myself a favour by reading the book instead.

chaddah's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

3.75

breadandmushrooms's review

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dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

zekereadshorror's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot

3.0

melsbookshelves03's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced

4.0

Until I read this for a second time, which I will inevitably do, Iā€™m keeping my rating at four stars. This book will not be for everyone, in fact it will not be for most people. If you are looking at a deconstruction of the horror genre or the slasher in particular then look no further. But if you donā€™t want to read over 400 footnotes referring other horror or related stories then this probably isnā€™t for you.

I went into this book with the right expectations and that is key. It is a novelization of a fictional horror film trilogy and so there are scene breaks and abbreviations like a script but it is for the most part written like a novel.

The story lost me a few times and I really spent a ton of time focusing on this so that I caught every single detail but I still think this is impossible to grasp fully after just one read through. I really liked each of the three parts of the novel but I think the second part was my favorite. Each part was confusing in its own way but I decided to just be along for the ride as it was. Stephen Graham Jones continues to blow me away and I canā€™t wait to read everything of his I can get my hands on.

sgraw269's review

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I loved the plot. Just the writing style like a movie script took me out of the story too much.Ā 

markedasread's review

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dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0