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Review: When the Devil by Emma E. Murray

April 13, 2024 by C. J. Daley (CJDsCurrentRead) Leave a Comment

Rating: 8/10

Synopsis

“This sapphic, Southern tale of love, murder and liberation [is] addictive, satisfying, and an all-around must-read.” -George Dunn, FanFiAddict

In When the Devil, Libby finds salvation in a new sapphic partner, homebrewed poison, and facing a God she no longer believes in.

“In When the Devil, Murray’s lips curl back to reveal fangs. With sharp and southern prose, this story of awakening beats with the bloody empowered tang of reclamation.” -Scott J. Moses, author of Our Own Unique Affliction

Review

A huge thanks to Shortwave for the physical ARC! Such a good cover too, I’m so glad I own one. 

This novelette is short, a little sweet, and kind of a lotta dark. A tale of abuse, both from a husband and grandfather, this story showcases some of the horror stories women face daily. Yet it’s also mixed with a bit of hope and sapphic desire. 

Now, you may know from some other reviews of mine that I really struggle with any form of cheating/adultery, but this is more so about having the ability, the autonomy, to want and decide for yourself. When all you’re shown is abuse, that ability to decide, to feel, to want, is part of that ability to claw yourself back from it. And that’s what this felt like. 

Then there is of course, the more horrific elements. Deceit, deception, avoidance, perhaps a little murder? But isn’t all of that just another angle at being free, at fighting against the structured injustice being showcased in this rural community?

My favorite thing though, perhaps, is how Libby goes from one kind of prison to another. And as the bodies start to pile up, June’s hold over her is just another type of chokehold.

And feel free to check out the other reviews from the FanFiFam for something a bit more articulate. From Josh and George, here and here

Filed Under: Fear For All, LGBTQ+, Psychological, Religious Horror, Reviews, Serial Killers Tagged With: #EmmaEMurray, #Novelette, #Sapphic, #ShortwaveMedia, #Shortwavepublishing, #WhentheDevil

About C. J. Daley (CJDsCurrentRead)

I was an avid player of Who Wants to be a Millionaire: Lord of the Rings Edition. When the millions turned out to be fake, and answering that ‘Athelas’ was another name for ‘Kingsfoil‘ grew tiresome, I retired. Now I'm a horror author and an avid reader of all things sci-fi/fantasy/horror/mystery.

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