Demonists, The (Book)
Written by Thomas E. Sniegoski
Published by Roc
The Demonists by Thomas E. Sniegoski follows John Fogg, an expert of the paranormal. He and his beloved wife, Theodora, an exceptionally gifted medium, co-host their own ghost hunting reality TV show. One fateful Halloween eve the celebrities and their ghost hunting team become victims of a horrific “accident,” which is broadcast for all to see, live on TV.
Months after the accident, John and Theo, still suffering from injuries sustained during the accident, find themselves in a fight for their lives. In a desperate bid to save his wife, John unwittingly uncovers a plot for world domination that will test all of their limits, in this world and the next.
The book started off great, and I was initially quite interested in where it would go. A violent and mysterious setup sucked me in and kept me flipping the pages. When “The Teacher,” the type of antagonist I love to hate, was introduced, I was sure I had a winner on my hands.
The problems came about halfway through, when I realized things were going nowhere fast. To me it seemed that the spark the author was carefully trying to build into a roaring bonfire just couldn’t grow past the dim flicker of a matchstick. There wasn’t anything particularly bad or wrong about this book, but the further I read, the more I had an overwhelming feeling of “meh.”
That’s not to say that there weren’t interesting parts with great writing. The handful of scenes that involve The Teacher are genuinely creepy, a few of them even heart-rending. I wish the author had spent more time fleshing out this character instead of focusing on John and Theo. The couple’s dynamic was dry, and overall their story arcs leave a lot to be desired.
I found myself wanting to speed through large swaths of writing. Mundane parts about drinking coffee, eating sandwiches, walking hallways, and repetitive parts about possessions and the world beyond the veil all served to chip away at my interest. These parts smacked of being stopgaps between action, and I was reminded of the saying by Elmore Leonard: “Try to leave out all the parts readers skip.”
Perhaps I’ve read too many books and watched too many movies on the paranormal and exorcisms to be easily impressed, but I didn’t feel that Sniegoski brought much to the table when it came to these things. There’s been a glut of novels dealing with this material for quite some time now, and for a paranormal book to impress the reader, it has to bring something new to the table.
Although the story left me underwhelmed, the writing is cinematic. Sniegoski has a gift for describing scenes vividly, so that readers can almost see a scene right before their eyes. Some of the best writing in the novel occurs during action and horror sequences where he’s able to ramp up the drama quickly and hold our attention with wonderful descriptions. It’s a shame the tension went slack the further into the book I got.
Although I found the story to be less than engaging, I think some people will still enjoy this read. It’s not bad; it’s just not great in my opinion. If you’re a diehard exorcism trope fan or a high consumer of paranormal fantasies, this might be in your wheelhouse. It didn’t do it for me, but I can’t completely write it off either. The Demonists is a setup for the next book in a planned trilogy, and Sniegoski has obvious talent. I haven’t been so put off that I’d refuse to read the next one, but it won’t be at the top of my list either.
Overall I’m giving The Demonists by Thomas E. Sniegoski a 3/5 rating. Technically the book is okay, but it’s missing its soul. Hopefully the author can dig one up for the next novel.
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Categorized:Reviews
