Every morning, Kris Pulaski wakes up in hell. In the 1990s she was lead guitarist of Dürt Würk, a heavy-metal band on the brink of breakout success until lead singer Terry Hunt embarked on a solo career and rocketed to stardom, leaving his bandmates to rot in obscurity.
Now Kris works as the night manager of a Best Western; she’s tired, broke, and unhappy. Then one day everything changes—a shocking act of violence turns her life upside down, and she begins to suspect that Terry sabotaged more than just the band. Kris hits the road, hoping to reunite Dürt Würk and confront the man who ruined her life. Her journey will take her from the Pennsylvania Rust Belt to a celebrity rehab center to a satanic music festival. A furious power ballad about never giving up, We Sold Our Souls is an epic journey into the heart of a conspiracy-crazed, pill-popping, paranoid country that seems to have lost its very soul.
Books Review Blog: We Sold Our Souls Book Review
Author Grady Hendrix first blipped on my radar when I happened across the paperback novel My Best Friend’s Exorcism. It was an immediate blind buy for the cover art alone. I was content displaying the book for others to marvel at when entering my “library.” Eventually, I read the book, and I was enamored by Hendrixs’ writing style and storytelling. I then moved on to his Paperbacks From Hell, a look into nostalgic horror paperbacks from the 70s and 80s. It contained an array of unforgettable and quite imaginative covers, most of whose art was portrayed had nothing to do with the story. Still, it reeled people in. And then there was Horrorstore, which I have yet to finish. We Sold Our Souls, however, sat on my bookshelf and received little to no love. I own two versions of this novel, the trade paperback, and the hardcover edition. There is just something about the cover art that Hendrix seems to get right, evidence that his research while writing Paperbacks From Hell paid off. The cover art of those books that were enticing enough to make the layman (me) purchase said books on the allure of its artwork alone, hence, my purchase.
Kris Pulaski dreamed of mastering the guitar and being a famous rock star. She meets Terry Hunt, who hears her strumming to the Black Sabbath tune and offers her a few pointers. The two hit it off and eventually formed the band, Durt Wurk. They get a taste of performing to large crowds, and hitting the road for gigs, and Durt Wurk was on the verge of making it big – all they needed to do was sign on the dotted line. When Kris, feeling that something is amiss, ditches Terry who was the proprietor of arranging the band in signing said contracts. She drags the other band members, except for Terri, with her, and they resent her for it having seen Terri’s career soar with his career going by Koffin.
We Sold Our Souls is exactly what the name implies and, being a sucker for a good ol’ fashion tale of the dark ones from down under, I knew that I was in for one hell of a ride. While I went expecting a cookie-cutter story with familiar tropes, to boot, I was surprised when I was not met with many. Sure, it is a story that has been told in one form or the other, but with Hendrix, you can always expect his unique spin on things. Is this a good thing? Yes and no. Thoughts and images of the “satanic panic” of the 1980s were immediately conjured. Much to my surprise, Hendrix did not go down this path and, instead, he took me slightly down the beaten path, which was a welcomed take on heavy metal and the dark forces (see 1986’s Trick or Treat).
“it is possible to be crazy and paranoid and totally insane and still be right.”
― Grady Hendrix, We Sold Our Souls
While I was reeled into the story, it was certainly nothing that I expected, and a few things caught me off guard in the what the hell is going here kind of way. Again, this was good because it was not expected, and I immediately knew that Hendrix was treating us with his crafty use of storytelling that he is so well at producing. There is more to the story of Kris and Durt Wurk at play. In my opinion, Hendrix is personifying that we here in the real world are continually relinquishing our freedoms. Do we always read the fine print or the terms of service? Or do we just hit the OK button and trust that we are in good hands and that corporations have our best interests in mind? I am guilty of this myself.
We become slaves to the establishment as they (the powers that be) pander their agendas onto us until submission.
This is what came across to me as I read We Sold Our Souls. Heavy metal and horror are always a win in my book. I could not help but think of 80s films such as Black Roses and Rocktober, if only because of the theme of metal and Satan. I would not say that there were many scares in this one, and the horror contained in this is minimal at best, but there is a certain air of tension throughout. There were, in some instances, some things that I would feel, dare I say it, silly, but Hendrix has a way about his writing that puts me right on board with what is happening. Did he put a spell on me? Did I sell my soul to Hendrix by purchasing his novel? We Sold Our Souls, while not a masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination, was a fun and great read. I often found myself trying to put a rhythm to the lyrics written in the book. Not being a musician or well-versed in metal, I failed miserably, but, nonetheless, I had a blast with this one.