WIth Grady Hendrix's newest release, "How to Sell a Haunted House," many of his earlier releases are getting more attention, especially the classic rock and roll epic, "We Sold Our Souls." Hendrix has a way of balancing terrifying horror moments with humor that has become his cornerstone, but what also sometimes gets overshadowed is Hendrix's attention to history and detail. Each one of his books comes with a lineage of references and research that only a true fan would know. When you read Hendrix, you feel smarter, whether it is about Swedish furniture stores, puppets, or the blues, Hendrix knows how to package fun with a lesson.

While overall I would say this is not my favorite of Hendrix, I do appreciate the detailed information about metal and music. It's impossible to ignore the research work that goes into writing a novel of this form, but I also feel that sometimes Hendrix gets swept up in details and history and it can grind the plot down to a stop. Overall, a nice addition for Hendrix completionists, but I'm not sure I would recommend it to a new fan.

My feedback is late, so I hope my enthusiasm makes up for it! I loved this book, and just wish I had read it sooner. Fabulous rock vibe, terrific horror scenarios, and an amazing lead character!

After causing us to drain our wallets all year trying to scoop up as many horror paperbacks as we could get our hands on thanks to Paperbacks From Hell, his hilarious and insightful look at the genre fiction boom, Grady Hendrix returns to the fiction world with We Sold Our Souls, a fast-moving occult thriller that updates the Robert Johnson and the Devil story for the heavy metal generation.

Kris Pulaski was once the guitarist for the perfectly named metal band Dürt Würk, who eventually disbanded and faded into obscurity as the band’s singer Terry Hunt struck out on his own, forming the wildly successful nü-metal outfit Koffin. As Kris begins to learn that Terry’s success might have a diabolical connection, she embarks on a dangerous road trip to confront her former friend and band member at a giant outdoor festival in Las Vegas, putting her life, sanity, and very soul on the line.

Hendrix does a great job of putting us in Kris’ mind as she struggles to come to terms with what her life has become, and the voluntary (and involuntary) choices she made over the years that led her from a semi-successful metal band to working cleaning up vomit in a decrepit motel. Apart from a solid character study, this is also a great road trip novel, filled with a cast of strange side characters and old bandmates that Kris meets up with along the way to her eventual confrontation with Terry. What really makes We Sold Our Souls shine is Hendrix’s attention to detail, from the sort of insider jokes that help keep a band sane on the endless drives between gigs to the fully orchestrated Dürt Würk concept album he creates (complete with lyrics!) in order to tell this moving and eerie tale of greed, friendship, and the sometimes uncanny power of music.

We Sold Our Souls by Grady Hendrix, although published in 2018, feels fitting for the dumpster fire of 2020. After all, based on the title alone, it is not difficult to imagine an entire cadre of government officials who sold their souls a long time ago. And I'm sure we can all call up the names of so-called celebrities who have done nothing to deserve their fame and fortune.

In true Hendrix fashion though, We Sold Our Souls puts a unique twist on the whole selling your soul gig. In his world, you can sell the souls of others to obtain your desires, which, when you wrap your head around it, leads to all sorts of ramifications. Does it seem like you can never catch a break? Blame someone else for selling your soul.

To make things more interesting, selling your soul does not actually mean communing with the devil and signing your name in blood. In the Hendrix world, all it takes is something as simple as signing up for a new phone plan that comes with the best and latest phone. When you wish for something material and end up obtaining that object, chances are you sold your soul to get it. It is a fascinating approach to Faustian deals.

This is all information she discovers as she tries to reconcile her lack of success in anything versus that of her former bandmate. But the horror doesn't stop there. In fact, Kris uncovers an entire demonic dimension in which we are just the cogs in a wheel. As she takes steps to bring that wheel to a halt, she discovers that is easier said than done. What follows is a brutal, gory, and a bit too on-the-nose race to stop certain powers from taking over the world.

We Sold Our Souls is exactly what you hope a Grady Hendrix novel will be. Not only is it intense and gory, befitting a good horror story, but it also shifts your perception of the world just enough so that his explanations of what is wrong with it seem plausible. I wouldn't rank We Sold Our Souls as among his best, but it certainly fits the mood of 2020, with just enough hope at the end to lead us into 2021.

I gave this a four out five stars. This was a really fun read, this is my first book I have read by the author Grady Hendrix but I plan on reading more.

A really interesting novel, and as imaginative as one should expect from Hendrix. Populated by interesting characters, and pretty well paced, I enjoyed it. It's a story of music, success, friendship, and a splash of horror to keep things spicy and interesting.

As a metalhead myself, and one whose interest in the genre spans the full range of the story (I started listening in the 1990s, when Dürt Würk were supposedly "famous" and successful), I enjoyed the rock 'n' roll details and context.

A strange, beautiful book filled with the grief of a life that turned out not quite as expected. It's been years since I've read it, but I remember most is a sense of regret, of exhaustion, of looking back from the vantage point of middle age and wondering where it went wrong.

I had a lot of fun while reading this book. Music is universal, no matter what genre you listen to. There's a part in this book where two people bond over Dolly Parton, and I loved that so much! How can you not bond over Dolly?!
But that just speaks to the universality of music. Everyone loves music, and a story about an aging female rocker who has to save the world with music speaks directly to my soul. This is a story about a girl with a guitar who rises to her potential and rocks out while capturing the reader's heart. Hendrix knocked it out of the park again with this one - 5 stars!

OOOoooohhh this is a fun one! I have never read anything else by Grady Hendrix but I will be after this. A scrappy female lead singer? Selling souls? Metal bands? Hell, yes. I am all in. Loved this one.

In the 1990's the band Dürt Würk, a heavy metal band, looked like it was going to sky-rocket to success until the lead singer, Terry Hunt, left the band for a solo career, where he achieved tremendous success as Koffin. His bandmates have had nothing but misery and rotten luck since he left, despite their talent and drive.

Some twenty years later and Kris Pulaski, one of Dürt Würk's original band members, currently working as a night manager at a Best Western, learns that Terry's success may have come at a price - if what she's heard is true, Terry sold not just his soul to the devil, but he sold all the band members' souls in exchange for his success.

At one of the largest metal music festivals in the world, Hellstock, Kris wants to confront Terry and get her soul back. But getting to Terry isn't going to be easy. On the other hand, what more could Kris have to lose?

Gary Hendrix is one helluva terrific writer!

I requested a copy of this book based on my enjoyment of Hendrix's <em>My Best Friend's Exorcism</em>, which took me by surprise and which I truly enjoyed. This book is also a really fantastic read.

Aside from building a dark, horrific story with careful precision, letting each moment sucker-punch us and then moving on, Hendrix gives us some characters we kind of like, despite being dirty and grungy and part of something that's foreign to us (how many of us have been in a metal band?), we can identify with these people.

Horror is difficult to sustain in novel length, though Hendrix doe it very well and I think a large part of that is on the strength of the characters. There's a solid story here - there's a goal, there are obstacles, and the journey is fraught with peril, but because we bond with these characters - and I can't help but find it strange that we do, and yet ... we <em>do</em> ... the journey becomes something that we invest in.

It is such a strength of Hendrix's that he can take subjects that I would have sworn I would have no interest in reading about (here we have heavy metal music, and in <em>My Best Friend's Exorcism</em> we had teen girl bff's) and gets me interested and involved. That is powerful writing.

Looking for a good book? If you thought you didn't like horror fiction, you need to try Gary Hendrix. If you already love horror fiction, you'll want to read <em>We Sold Our Souls</em>.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Reviewed this book/interviewed Grady Hendrix on my podcast:

https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/book-squad-goals/booksquadgoals/e/55960600

Excellent book! I love Grady Hendrix and this one was no exception to his greatness. Great for horror and music fans. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

Another cracking Hendrix novel, but would leave this for reading at home rather than stocking in a school library

If Grady writes it, I am reading it. The smart storytelling and plots he brings to life on the page are just amazing. I am never disappointed and We Sold Our Souls was no different. Keep it up.

Hendrix is an absolute delight and the comedic take he has on horror is incredibly refreshing. I highly recommend his works to anyone both horror fanatics and horror newbies alike.

"In the 1990s, heavy metal band Dürt Würk was poised for breakout success -- but then lead singer Terry Hunt embarked on a solo career and rocketed to stardom as Koffin, leaving his fellow bandmates to rot in rural Pennsylvania.

Heavy metal music AND horror?! Sign me up! Narrative as well written and very fast paced! Book totally rocked...get it? If you're looking for something a tad different this is the book for you!

OH MY GOD, THIS BOOK IS SUCH AN AWESOME MIX OF MUSIC AND HORROR!

Kris Pulaski is a 40-something washed up guitarist of a long dead band. My favorite thing about her is just how angry she is at the world for taking her big moment away when she was so close to it so when she finally hits the rock bottom that she's been hurtling toward ever since, that's when her desire for vengeance overshoots and starts her on this engrossing as fuck journey that's full of actual terrors, men who want to shut her up in any way possible and a whole lot of hurt.

The Illuminati-esque mythology/conspiracy theory about selling one's soul for fame and fortune is so well-done and I really liked how it's woven into the story and is gradually revealed as we meet Kris's band members and get to know about their history together as a band. The ending is so fitting, I loved the lyrics and the fact that it's basically about music at its core.

The random snippets at the start of each chapter add a little something to the story and the chapter titles themselves contains pop culture references which I loved. Moreover, We Sold Our Souls really nails all its gory and gross scenes and I just love how terrifyingly they're written. I didn't ever think I was claustrophobic but reading that cave scene, I really felt like I was. KRIS PULASKI IS MY NEW HERO.

Really, We Sold Our Souls is very close to being a favorite and probably could be on a reread.

This is the book that Queen of the Damned should have been. We Sold Our Souls is engaging, exciting, bloody, romantic and musical all at once. I absolutely loved it and cannot wait for my husband (a big music fan and horror buff) to read it as I think he will also adore this story. For sure I will be purchasing a paperback copy to add to our library and strategically leave on his side table to read.
The only 'problem' I could really find with Grady Hendrix's story is that I want the fictional band(s) to exist so bad!

Music
It's rare that someone can write a story in which you can hear the music they are describing. I don't know if it's because the lyrics are prevalent throughout the story, or that our characters describe the feeling of being lost in the heavy metal music so well; either way it's like We Sold Our Souls is belting out a metal lyric from its static pages. I could see musical geniuses like Corey Taylor (Slipknot, Stone Sour), Jonathan Davis (Korn) or Tobias Forge (Ghost) being perfect to write the music to go with the lyrics. It would also be ironic as both Taylor and Davis are in bands that are mocked in the book as not being 'metal enough'.

Music Snobbery
Which brings me to the one thing that might bug some readers, music snobbery. If you are not a big music fan you might not really understand the elitist attitude that our (primary) lead gal has (a member of the main fictional band). In the music industry, especially in metal and punk, there are things you just don't do or compromise on (generally with a record label). These are what will get you labelled a 'sell-out'. That said, as someone who knows a fair bit about the music industry, the reality is that generally well known and successful bands in these genres are mocked because everyone is jealous of their massive success. Like it or not when we are being snobby it's usually because we desire something someone else has that we wish we did or are trying to justify why we haven't made it big. I believe that is exactly what is happening to our lead gal here. So take the snobbery with a grain of salt and you'll coast past this issue.

Genre all it's own
If there was a genre that encompassed music, horror and fantasy all together then We Sold Our Souls would be at the forefront of it. It's so hard to say where this book should sit in a library or bookstore. It has magic, bloody killings, musical influence (including as many fictional bands as real ones mentioned) and an overall atmosphere that bleeds dread. It could be called a thriller. I could even see some calling it an inspirational story about doing what you know is right. Seriously it just has so much rolled into it.

Premise Seems Silly?
When you read the blurb to Hendrix's novel you might think to yourself that it sounds cheesy. It's true that at times it comes off that way. But I dare anyone not to get sucked into the reality presented in We Sold Our Souls. Once you accept things for what they are; I guarantee you will be unable to put this book down. It's one of the fastest reads I have had this year to date; and yet I wanted it to never end.

Characters, Plot, Symbolism, etc.
I could probably write a whole term paper or thesis about all the meanings and symbolism in We Sold Our Souls. It's got a depth you just wouldn't expect from a horror story about musicians. I love how the lyrics of the songs are intertwined with the events of the book and feelings of our characters. At times, especially in the lyrics of the songs, Hendrix really spoke to my Pagan soul. (side note: it amuses me that the author's last name is Hendrix and they wrote a book with a musician lead. I wish one of the characters was named Jimi, even if only a minor one, lol).

Overall
If you love metal music, read this. If you love horror, read this. If you love reading the personal journey of a character to 'find themselves', read this. Like a lot of music is, this is a look into the soul of selfish, snobby musicians and the ultimate price they (seemingly inevitably pay) to be successful.
But seriously, can someone please make this into a movie and create the fictional band's music?

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

How much does music influence our lives? Is it our love, our religion, our very soul? Kris, a former member of a metal band that almost made it, has forcibly denied her musical side for years. Now, she wants answers.

How did one member of the band ascend to superstardom? Why can’t she remember what happened on the most pivotal night of her life? And how did her life become such a bleak, terrible mess?

Hendrix weaves a story about the importance of music, the power of mob mentality, and how far some people are willing to go to achieve their dreams. Along the way, he tosses in some gruesome gore, an interesting mythology, and a few supernatural encounters. All of it is fascinating, but the true highlight of the book is Kris and her journey. In fact, she rises far above the answers she seeks in what culminates into one of the best fictionally written metal performances of all time.

We Sold Our Souls was very entertaining. I can’t believe it took me so long to get around to it.

Kris Pulaski used to be a hardcore metal guitarist; now she cleans up urine at The Best Western in a dead end town. Neither she or her bandmates can remember the fateful night they signed contracts to convert their band into Koffin, to front man Terry's wishes. Now, Terry is rich, Kris is broke, Scottie is insane, Tuck hates everyone, and Bill is in a wheelchair. When Kris starts to realize something is not quite right with Koffin's farewell tour, the darkness is much more severe than a leather jacket and a mean guitar lick. Can Kris get her former bandmates to help her literally save the world from darkness, or is she on her own with guidance from an album she was forced to abandon?

We Sold Our Souls is so much pulpy horror fun, especially if you grew up listening to anything even slightly related to Metal or Alternative Rock. Keep in mind, this book is most definitely a horror novel and at times the descriptions can get pretty gruesome. Kris Pulaski is even more fascinating as a character because she is older and no one wants to seem to listen to her. I love Grady Hendrix's style and the way he tells a story, almost as if we are getting bits and pieces picked up by following a local radio station. We Sold Our Souls is dark, but once the pace picks up its impossible to put this one down.

We Sold Our Souls is available now from from Quirk Books.