Sacrifice (Leisure Books)
Review by G.L. Giles
Publication Date: May 2009
Story by John Everson

Having read and thoroughly enjoyed Everson’s Bram Stoker Award-Winning novel Covenant last year, I was a bit apprehensive about reading its sequel: Sacrifice. I honestly didn’t know if it could possibly be as well-written as the first. Lucky for me, I enjoyed Sacrifice as much, if not more, than Covenant. There’s a lot to be said for sequels where many of the same characters return, for the writer has had more time for them to reveal themselves more deeply in his head and in his writing. This is readily apparent in the return of the protagonist Joe Kieran and the return of the demon Malachai, along with their mutual antagonists, the super- demented-sex demons: the Curburide. Yet, you don’t need to read Covenant first to follow the storyline, for Everson does a great job of catching new readers up on what they missed in Covenant while, at the same time, not boring old readers to tears with rehashed information. That’s not an easy feat to pull off. Nor is fitting in lots of humor in the midst of mega-horror. However, Everson manages to pull that off as well, with lots of witty dialogue. I also enjoyed the addition of the new characters. Primarily, the young witch Alexandra, who is mostly “good,” save when under demonic possession. Secondarily, the character of the sadistic-dominatrix- serial killer Ariana, who is mostly “bad,” save when sometimes feeling sorry for some of her victims. They are great foils to each other. That’s one of the many exemplary talents Everson showcases, for no one in the novel is truly good or truly bad, except for the Curberide demons (they are truly evil). It’s great to read a work in which the lines are blurred, as they oftentimes are in real life, where instead of good versus evil, it’s more like what shade of grey trumps another. For instance, it can be argued that Alexandra’s Bible-thumping, self-righteous and cruel parents are actually more evil, though less powerful, than the not-as-evil-as-most-of-the-Curberide demon Malachai. Furthermore, it’s up to an axe-wielding murderess to try to ultimately save the world from Curberide infestation in this dimension, as the perverted Curberide would, for the most part, screw and then kill all humanity if allowed to cross over. Their power to cross over becomes stronger each time serial killer Ariana offers ritualized human sacrifices (clearly part of why the novel is titled as such) to them. To me, this seemed almost a commentary on it’s probably best not to judge as far as humanity could possibly ultimately owe its existence to a lesser evil, the axe wielding murderess, before it’s all said and done. Although I will be so bold as to pass judgment by saying that I’d be surprised if this novel didn’t win an award or two as well. I give it a 10 out of 10. To learn more, go to www.johneverson.com

G.L. Giles for Infernal Dreams