Sacrifice

This book pissed me off royally. Sacrifice continues the story Everson began in Covenant (also reviewed). Joe Kieran, now possessed by Malachi, the demon haunting the town of Terrel in the first book, teams up with a young, inexperienced witch to stop the beautiful, deadly Ariana from raising the Curburide, the demons Malachi had originally been summoned to stop decades ago. I refuse to say it finishes the story, however. I don't want to believe John's going to let Kieran's (and Alex') story end with the final chapter of Sacrifice. I guess that's a testament to Everson's skill, really; I want these characters to have happy endings, to score a win that's not bittersweet, and well... I don't want to give the book away, but let's just say the title is apt. Every main character in the book makes a sacrifice of one sort of another. And I'm not pleased about it. The rapport between Joe and Malachi is amusing at times, the borderline-forbidden relationship between Alex and Joe grows in small, tantalizing doses and Ariana... well, I almost wouldn't mind being sacrificed by her. The book moves along at a fast pace and Everson even manages a couple of twists I didn't quite see coming. He just might be my favorite Leisure author. Pick up Sacrifice. Pick up Covenant first, if you haven't already (you could get by without it, but you shouldn't). You won't be sorry you did. I have to say, though, that if Everson doesn't have Part Three in the works already, I hope all his beer goes flat for the rest of his life. 9/10.

I have only read two books by John Everson, Covenant, which was a good, solid horror novel, and Sacrifice, which takes what Everson did in Covenant, and turns it up to 11. More sex, more violence, and frenetic pacing that doesn't let up. Fully developed characters push the horrifying plot forward in a blood drenched, cross country chase that ends...well, I don't want to give anything away.Covenant made me a John Everson fan. Sacrifice made me a fanatic.

Sacrifice was a riveting, involving story about a man confronted with an ancient evil and his own sacrifices he had to make to keep the evil spirit at bay. It made me afraid to visit cliffs ever again! John Everson was not afraid to stretch the boundries on the perverse, livid ways the demons forced people to get off, but he kept it tasteful without resorting to pornography. I would recommend this novel to any horror reader. With so many scary novels being silly, this talented new author has blazed the way for more new writers to stretch the politically correct limits and put out fierce stories that really do frighten, whether it's a comfortable fright or not. Since when is horror cozy?

There is nothing better in horror than a seductively murdering woman that gets painted into your grey matter with vivid pictures that only John Everson can deliver, four-inch stiletto-heeled boots merged seamlessly into a glossy black bodysuit and arm-length vinyl gloves that showed every flow of flesh and muscle beneath. Sacrifice, has terrific characters, well developed, and likable even when they are bringing an axe down on their parents shin bones, with blood spraying, bones cracking and splinters flying, you still like this murdering teenage girl named Alex. Or how about a husband, with his hands buried in his wife's belly and pulling gnarly strands of fist-thick intestine out of her. This is a modern horror of ghosts, demons, sadistic spirits, and one woman's dedication to unleashing the Curburide...they're coming! Thanks John another great read. Norm Applegate Author: Blood Bar, a Vampire tale

Bram Stoker Award Winner John Everson has followed up "Covenant" with a tale that's just as riveting. Everson spins a great story, and it's impossible to escape the whirlwind. Filled to the brim with sex, violence, and - well - sex with violence, "Sacrifice" is a guilty pleasure, the kind of novel we're all afraid our parents will discover we've been reading late at night, under the covers with the flashlight on. Since reporter Joe Kiernan outmaneuvered the sadistic demon Malachi by binding him, the small town of Terrell has been quiet. Freed from a pact Malachi held over the townspeople for centuries, Terrel's Peak has become nothing more than what it is: the ruins of an old lighthouse, and an underground geode full of sparkling - and harmless - crystals. Joe Kienan, however, is hardly the swaggering hero. Chained to a sarcastic - and untrustworthy - demonic servant, Joe is forced to leave loved ones behind in Terrel as he travels to parts unknown to determine his future. All is not well, however. Centuries ago, lighthouse keeper Broderick Terrel made his original pact with Malachi to defeat a race of sadistic and bloodthirsty demons known as the Curburide. The Curburide are back, and this time they have a Caller - a mysterious, sensuous young woman leaving a trail of mutilated bodies in her wake. If she completes her Calling, the Curburide will be granted full access to the world. They will release every degradation known to man - and many more - as they feed off human flesh and spirit. Standing in their way is a reluctant Joe Kienan, who once again finds himself in the midst of a supernatural maelstrom. He's not alone; thanks to Malachi's manipulations, he's joined by a young girl named Alex...but can he trust her? Her parents have been brutally murdered, she's wanted for questioning, and she can see spirits, talk to them...even harness their power. Worse, Joe feels himself drawing near to this vulnerable, attractive girl, reminding him all too well of what he left behind in Terrel...a town the Curburide will be drawn to, once more. Everson is in full form. The action is quick, brutal, and visceral. In many ways, "Sacrifice" is like that "slasher flick" we know we shouldn't enjoy but do anyway. The attraction here, however, is his ability to draw complicated, conflicted characters. Joe Kienan is the epitome of the "weary hero", saddled with a responsibility he neither asked for, nor wants. Alex is a young girl coming to grips with who she really is, trying to recover from years of abuse at the hands of fanatical parents. Even Malachi gets the makeover treatment, so that readers suspect by the novel's end there's more to this demon than it's sadistic whims and brittle sarcasm. Anyway you slice it, "Sacrifice" is a horror novel with hidden depths.