3.5 stars (rounded up)
The Soul Stealer is the latest standalone by author, Graham Masterton. I’ve read all of Masterton’s Katie Maguire and thoroughly loved them, but this was my first standalone horror novel of his. If you’re looking for a creepy, disturbing horror novel which will leave you gasping out loud, then this one is for you. This book will require you to suspend belief and look beyond the somewhat two dimensional characters, but it will deliver an experience unlike anything you have read before. I like that Masterton doesn’t shy away from detail in his stories but it might be a little much for some people. Trigger warning: sexual assault. If you’re looking for fun, escapism and a little something different, I’d consider picking this one up.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for an advance e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

First off, I feel the need to point out that the synopsis is not entirely accurate. Trinity is a total stranger to Nemo, not his housecleaner, and the dead woman she discovers is actually a friend she was going to meet.

With that out of the way, this was a really creepy story. I loved the Native American folklore and the sacrifice rituals. The demon, Weywot, was terrifying. Just as horrifying to me were the human characters- the celebrities who were exploiting and torturing these young women for their own gain.

This one is really graphic. I wouldn't recommend to sensitive readers. There are a lot of triggers to be aware of, one of which is a really gruesome killing of a cat. I wanted to mention this one specifically because I know that is a deal-breaker for a lot of people.

If you like Native American mythology, demons, or cult-like sacrificial rituals be sure to pick this up! This released yesterday!

Thank you to #netgalley and Polly at Head of Zeus for my gifted copy!

Well, how an earth do you explain this! I LOVED this from the get go. How have I missed this authors previous work!

This is dark, so so dark, but it’s well worth a read! I know there aresome hardcore bookstagrammers who wouldn’t even batter an eyelid at it, I didn’t 😂 I don’t think I will look at a scorpion again without thinking of that!

I really liked how the story build, especially Trinity’s relationship with her brother and sister, I also liked seeing Zuzana POV. Well liked is the wrong word 🤔, but you will understand once you read the book.

Thank you so much to Polly at @headofzeus for inviting me to be a part of the blog tour and my #gifted copy.

The Soul Steal by Graham Masterton is unfortunately a slow read. I found myself drifting to other places whilst reading and found it hard to focus on the book. At times it was a hard read with exploitation of the women featured. Altogether is wasn’t a bad read just ultimately too slow for me.

Huge thanks to Polly at @headofzeus for my #gifted copy of the book and my invite to join the tour!

⚠️Trigger Warnings - Death by Fire, Rape, Sodomy, Drugging, Alcoholism, Racism, Domestic Abuse, Graphic Violence ⚠️

This book was hard to read in some places (hence the trigger warnings) but was necessary to show the exploitation the old rich white men of Hollywood inflict on the young and beautiful women aspiring to make a name for themselves. Culminating in great sacrifice by those women for the gains of the men.

When Trinitiy’s friend calls her in a panic, asking her to meet her within the hour, Trinity wonders what could have happened to make Margo so frightened. When she gets to their meeting point however, Trinity finds Margo alight with blue flames in a bathroom stall.

The police rule it a suicide but ex-cop Nemo believes Trinity when she says that Margo definitely did not commit suicide. The pair then embark on proving this which inadvertently puts them in danger.

I loved the Native American mythology surrounding this story and the empowerment of women thread.

This is the first I’ve read of a Graham Masterson but I don’t think it will be the last.

Interesting story, but I share a lot of the same sentiments as other reviewers—the way the women are written and handled is...ehhhh. It's the same opinion I share with a lot of mainstream horror movies—is it just torture porn?

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC!

DNF at 41%

I was really intrigued by the premise for this book, and I've been trying to read more widely outside my comfort zone so this felt like the perfect opportunity to try something new while being challenged. Unfortunately, this book did not meet my expectations at all.

I went into this knowing it was a horror, so I was ready to be uncomfortable and even scared by where the story went, and the first couple of chapters were even intriguing. Very soon, however, I was made extremely uncomfortable by the level of misogyny and the graphic scenes of sexual and physical violence. I don't normally have an issue with some problematic content in a book, as long as it's dealt with in a tactful manner and serves a purpose within the story. I didn't get the sense that either of those things happened here, and the level of detail the author provided in these scenes made it impossible for me to keep reading. I pushed myself forward in the hope that it would improve, but it just seemed to keep getting worse, with the plot and dialogue following suit.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity, but this one just wasn't for me.

It's a book that kept on the edge and it can be really terrifying at times.
It's a bit slow at the beginning, the characters seem a bit flat but then it takes speed and the characters become more rounded and interested.
It's a mix of thriller, folk horror. It's not for fainted of heart and I had a lot of fun.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Thank you NetGalley and Head of Zeus for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. The Soul Stealer is a well-written horror book that will take you outside of your comfort zone. I was hooked from the first chapter and I wanted to know the reasons behind everything that was happening. Mr. Masterton is excellent at pulling the reader into the story and universe that he creates and he achieves it again with The Soul Stealer. I liked that it is not non-stop action. The slower pace in parts of the book creates tension and allows the story to build. The characters are far from perfect, but it gives an edge to the story. I thought it did help the story as it gave it unexpected twists and made it more enjoyable, in my humble opinion. I absolutely loved the aspects of Native American folklore and magic, it makes The Soul Stealer stand out in terms of creativity and uniqueness. While I am a "veteran" horror reader and did not flinch at all while reading this book, some parts may be difficult to read for more sensitive readers. But then again, a good horror book should take you by surprise and make you uncomfortable at times. The Soul Stealer achieves it perfectly.

Trinity Fox is 23, living at home in LA with her alcoholic father, her 14-yr old plump sister Rosie and her overweight 10-yr old little brother Buddy. When Trinity finds her Hollywood actress friend Margo brutally murdered, on fire, in a bathroom stall she decides to solve the mystery, involving an over-the-top ring of deranged movie executives, Chumash and Tongva tribe ghosts exacting bloody revenge on the white man, tons of gratuitous violence, extremely graphic abuse of animals and humans, porn-grade misogyny, and just an overwhelmingly unhealthy level of disrespect for virtually everybody. Everything about this book made me cringe; from the way everybody in it talks like nobody in contemporary LA ever did: "fancy a donut?" "blared his klaxon", "done and dusted", to how inappropriately these characters act, and how disgustingly TMI everything is.

The whole time I was reading this, I wondered who could have possibly written it. A 76-yr old Scot, appointed executive editor of Penthouse magazine at the age of 24, who today is a regular contributor to Cosmopolitan, Men's Health, Woman, Woman's Own and other mass-market self-improvement magazines, who lives in a Gothic Victorian mansion in Ireland?? Why, yes! That's exactly who did write The Soul Stealer!

This book is very slow. There is quite a lot that could have been removed from the book so the pace was better. The conversations weren't the easiest to follow because the author puts them as quotes back to back with basically only the first quote marking who is speaking. The character development could have been better. I thought it was okay. I liked it. You may love it.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher (Head of Zeus) for the ARC!

I think maybe I've just been having bad luck with ARCs lately. <i>The Soul Stealer</i> is fine, but it's definitley not good. I can't believe Stephen King blurbed it. It's written like Masterton watched Grand Theft Auto and then wrote some fan fiction for it.
Hobestly I'd rather read abiography of Masterton himself, his life seems pretty nuts.

Unfortunately this book wasn't for me. I felt that the style of writing didn't suit me and I found myself struggling to continue after each chapter.

I didn't feel gripped by the story. I did like the characters however and found myself feeling sorry for Trinity and her siblings. I know only too well what it feels like having a dad abusing alcohol and neglecting his children. This I could relate to. And I'm sure many others probably will too.

I was pretty disappointed with this novel. The description sounded really intriguing, but the story did not live up to it in any way. Also, the dialogue was very unusual - dated terms, stilted/unnatural, very hard to read and actually imagine anyone saying many of the phrases.

Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for the advance copy to read and review. All opinions are my own.

I didn't finish the book. Besides not catching my interest, I was annoyed because this must be a very left wing author. Just read 20 pages.. There was a character named Jesus who is a pervert and also already anti Trump remarks.

I was excited to be able to read the e-ARC for The Soul Stealer because I typically enjoy Graham Masterton’s books. The concept is great . . . Native American folklore complete with a demon and the evil misdeeds of the Hollywood elite. Unfortunately, my excitement faded as I delved into this book. The basic concept of the book deals with how Weywot was an evil being in Tongva mythology who discovered how to steal females inner power for himself. A Hollywood creeper has found a way to use Weywot’s ability to steal this power to pass the power to others in Hollywood so they can be more successful. Essentially less valuable lives are sacrificed so that the important people can flourish. Along the way, an innocent maid named Trinity Fox is pulled into this scene because one of her friends supposedly committed suicide, but she thinks she is murdered. She meets an ex-cop named Nemo Frisby and begins investigating what really happened. Some goons find out about this informal investigation and target them. The duo receive aid from a couple of Native Americans who teach them how to use Native American magic. The pair instantly are able to use the magic and can disguise themselves as other people, have dream friends, and can kill people simple by saying three words. This required no training and works the first time. There is also multiple passages portraying graphic descriptions of rape and torture. At one point the main character has sex and it was like a teenage boy fantasy. There are plot holes and there are also phrases and terminology written throughout that Americans do not say. I have no problem with British terminology (for example referring to athletic shoes as trainers), but if the setting is in California, please write dialogue that people would use in the US. I wish this would have focused more on the folk horror aspect of this story. I would have loved to know more about the mythology. There was a passage talking about a possible movie idea where the Hollywood people discussed reverse manifest destiny. I would love to read that book, but this just didn’t work for me. Graham Masterton is still on my list of great British horror authors, but this story just didn’t work for me at all.

ⓇⒺⓋⒾⒺⓌ

Graham Masterton - The Soul Stealer

Have you ever felt duped by an author?

I’m really hoping this isn’t the case with Mr Graham Masterton.

The Children God Forgot was my first from the author and was one of my favourite reads of 2021.
Of course, being the book buying addict I am I went on to purchase a few from his back catalog and one of his more recent novels, The Shadow People, all of which have sat on my TBR shelves.

When I saw his March 2022 release, The Soul Stealer available as an ARC I jumped at the chance to read it, in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, The Soul Stealer isn’t a scratch on my previous Masterton reading experience.

The Soul Stealer, is slowwww. There seemed to be a lot of filler that didn’t benefit the story, the characters were underwhelming with little character development.

The Native American folklore elements were intriguing and there were moments that showed promise, but sadly fell short of my expectations.

This is more suspense/murder mystery than horror. I didn’t hate it, I didn’t love it. It’s really quite forgettable.

In this new book a young woman tries to investigate the gruesome death and potential murder of her friend, aided by a former police officer. Someone in Hollywood is ensnaring beautiful women with promises of fame and fortune, only to use them in ancient rituals for his own benefit and that of Hollywood's elite (i.e.men).

Some of the subject matter in this book is a little challenging to say the least but it is horror after all so,...reader beware.

I have read quite a few Graham Masterton books and really enjoyed them all, but this one felt different. Still the signature disturbing, (very) messed up horror but not one of my favourites. 3.5 stars

The Soul Stealer was a painful read and not in any way that was good. I was intrigued with the first half of the synopsis, and a bit leery of the second. Any chance this book had at being good was quickly thrown away. The plot wondered all over the place and like drunk person with their eyes closed. There was no linear path, plot holes at every turn and reading it was like dragging myself over hot coals.

When Trinity and Nemo talk with Margo’s family, just days after her supposed suicide, there is little to no emotion in the exchange. It’s like she just went to say ‘hey, how have you been'. I should have felt some emotion, hell, the character should have.

It was also bit of a stretch that Nemo and Trinity ran from her home to hide out, without being seen. On top of that, Nemo claimed they could get killed, but there was no concern she left her father behind in the house. And, claiming if they hide out for a day their pursuers to give up. Not believable, if finding her was so imperative.

Then we have Zuzana being repeatedly raped and tortured. It was unnecessarily graphic and uncomfortable. Old men forcing themselves on a high school girl isn’t horror, it's torture porn. And the author was repeatedly name dropping Hollywood actors and locations, to what end I don't know.

I wasn’t sure if this was a mystery, a horror story or torture porn. But, one thing I know is that half way through the book I had lost all interest. I no longer cared what happened to Zuzana, Trinity or the other characters. They were one dimensional and I never connected with them. I wouldn't recommend The Soul Stealer for anyone's TBR list.

I liked this book, but I didn’t love it as I was expecting I would. I found the characters a wee bit flat and one dimensional, their conversations stilted.
I did enjoy the American Indian aspects of the book and their folklore.
Graham Masterson takes the ick-iness of horror to a whole new level. Be prepared to be disgusted!!
Thank you to NetGalley and Head of Zeus for the ARC.