Synopsis:
A delightfully twisted crime novel with an unreliable narrator, Confessions of an Antichrist tells the tale of the rise and fall of a Norwegian band of wannabe-Satanists embarking on a mission to burn the world down with black metal.
Marta Skaði is on a mission to destroy the world. Rebelling against the perfect, picturesque Norwegian fishing town she was born in, she has formed a black metal band of such disturbing depravity she knows they’re the perfect weapon to corrupt the masses.
When a record deal is dangled before the band after a particularly offensive gig, Marta has to hold the young, wannabe Satanists in her midst together as they reach for their destiny. Not easy when they consist of her ox-brained best friend drummer, a Viking-obsessed bass guitarist, a sex-addicted lead guitarist, and a barely human singer who could well be the Antichrist.
Yet as the record deal seems within reach, everything falls apart. And so begins the spiralling descent into madness of Marta and her strange, sordid group as they corrupt Christians on crosses and battle fascists with dildos, while coming to realise that one of them may be more evil than they realised…
Set in the grungy heavy metal scene of 2010’s Norway, Marta chronicles her descent into chaos and murder, fuelled by thinly veiled lust described as love. From burning down churches to satanic orgies, Confessions of an Antichrist is a fast paced and hair raising story, detailing the gruesome fulfilment of teenage dreams and nightmares.
Review:
Thank you Datura for sending me a review copy.
This book is an absolute riot. It starts with a gig that descends into madness and it never really lets up from there. The backdrop for the story is a Black Metal band trying to make their fame and fortune, and it soon turns into a story of love, loss, madness and chaos. The biggest draw for me was the potential Anti-Christ lead vocalists and it left me with more questions than answers (which I’m perfectly fine with).
Every character in the story is touched by madness in some way, some for more obvious reasons than others. Within the story you’ll find sex, love, death, blood and everything you could really want from a good horror book. This is a horror story set firmly in our world, and while you might not find any paranormal elements or monsters the actions of some of the characters will leave you horrified.
I flew through Confessions of an Antichrist. The plot flows so seamlessly with reveals happening in just the right amount of time, and enough mystery to keep you guessing. Marta is a pretty unlikeable narrator, but at no point did that hinder my enjoyment. It’s important that she makes awful decisions and does terrible things with no remorse. She’s really the leader of the band and she’s the one calling the shots for them.
The majority of the story happens in only a few settings. It works perfectly because really you’re focussing on the band and their actions in places that become familiar fairly quickly. I could easily picture their underground store and I really enjoyed that that was kind of ‘their space’ as a band.
Honestly I feel a little like Confessions could have gone even darker with the story. But I also like that it’s firmly rooted in our world and it’s somewhat more horrifying that these people could be real.
I’d say pick this up for a quick horror read that’ll throw all kinds of madness at you.
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