This is the most heartbreakingly beautiful book. At parts I struggled to continue from the heaviness of the subject matter, just feeling the despair of the narrator struggling through both life circumstances and the knowledge of his own mistakes. I think any parent has shortcomings they would like a chance to remedy or apologize for, but what do you do when it's too late?

The biracial narrator of DEVIL IS FINE is reeling from a sudden tragedy when he receives a letter from an attorney: he has inherited a piece of land from his estranged white grandfather. While he is trying to hold himself together and process the events, he learns that the land formerly owned by his ancestor was home to a plantation where unspeakable treatment and brutal crimes against humanity occurred.

Lines begin to blur between reality and nightmarish imagination; it becomes difficult to tell if the narrator is dreaming, hallucinating, or outright haunted by spirits of those gone too soon. I felt torn between utter sympathy and pleading with him to make better choices, knowing he was under impossible pain and stress.

The writing in this is stunning. It's also desperately heavy and dark, so while I highly recommend it I would say pick this one up when you are in a good place to do so.

Thank you so much to Celdadon and Netgalley for this ARC to review.

Wow. If you want a book that blends catastrophic loss with generational trauma with insightful, biting commentary on both academia and the publishing industry, book friends, this is that book.

"If I got to choose between your God and the devil, then the devil is fine."

The book is every bit as heavy and dark and gripping as that sounds, with glimpses of ironic humor to further highlight social failings.

Vercher tells a story of a man haunted by multiple ghosts while simultaneously struggling with a publishing world that apparently no longer has interest in the stories he wants to write. Through a blend of stream of consciousness writing, elements of magical realism, and changes in timelines, Devil is Fine is a haunting novel that made me reflect deeply on how we, in clumsy attempts to help, may contribute to increased pain. I cannot recommend this novel enough.

If you have read this book, I need to chat with you. So many things I want to check in with others on. I'm still not sure what I read, but I know a talented writer when I read one. And Vercher is a master at weaving understated, devastating themes into a compelling, important story. Think Toni Morrison level. I know. Crazy praise. but her books kept coming to mind.

The new novel from John Vercher focuses on a father who is grieving for the loss of his son. This protagonist, who is also an author, has inherited a piece of land that was supposed to go to his son, and with his death, has now gone to him, and he’s not quite sure what to do with that.

Where it gets most interesting is in the newspaper clippings that the author has put in the book such as one from the Delmarva Daily, from August 4 of 2023 (fictitious) and the title is “Silas Lavery Owned Slaves but was He also Misunderstood?” which is the kind of article I want to set on fire every time I see a white journalist or author or whoever it is trying to defend a clear enslaver who owned other human beings, particularly in the cases of the descendents of those enslavers whose families ill-gotten gains continue to this day and who have profited tremendously from translatlantic slavery, but would rather pretend it doesn’t exist. In this article, the writer claims that Vercher’s protagonist is unfairly malgining someone who owned enslaved people. A body has been found buried on-site, and my question was … I am pretty sure there would be more bodies.

There were 8 bodies found, five of European descent, and three West African, all males, “two adults and one adolescent.” So you don’t have to be a genius to figure out that this means with the exception of one infant in the group of whites found buried on the former plantation, the adults were more than likely enslavers or part of the main enslaver’s family, possibly an overseer, and the Black bodies found belonged to the enslaved people of African descent who this white family owned. The fictitious article goes on to state that Silas owned the Lavery plantation hundreds of years ago. He had a wife, two sons and a daughter. The writer of the article hilariously provides evidence that the Lavery senior and his sons were ‘good, strong men’ while positing that the adult enslaved people did not work as hard… and I just pretty much wanted to set fire even though it’s a fictional article.

The misinformation in the article and conjecture are just… madenning.

And when the protagonist receives an email signed Jacob Remus, but in this case, maybe a white man so desperately to play the role of Uncle Remus in the most racist Disney film of all time, Song of the South, he has actually named his company Song of the South Wedding ‘Solutions’ and that made me want to smash things. This man wants to use the plantation that the protagonist has inherited and turn it into a side to have plantation weddings and … turn it into a bed and breakfast and i just… the fact that so many people are doing this in real life, with the story of the man who until a few years ago was renting out a plantation property to tourists and visitors as an Airbnb, and the VERY real continuing trend of white people and… in some cases, I actually saw evidence of an interracial couple where the woman was white and the groom was Black and how…. how they got this man to re-enact a cosplay situation where she was dressed as the bride but as the mistress of the Big House of a plantation and how he was her faithful and loyal slave, is something that makes me want to VOMIT. When I visited the Magnolia Plantation in Charleston, SC, I was struck at the juxtaposition of “ooh! Come and see our beautiful gardens and feel zen” with “Oh by the way, we also have some slave cabins over there and if you want to learn about them you have to go on a tour” and learning that so many people still have plantation weddings there is DISGUSTING and WRONG.

It’s a very heavy ending, but it’s also a worthwhile read.

What a beautifully written story. To be honest, this book took me a couple chapters to get into, but once I did I was so intrigued. This is a book that I think is best going into semi-blind, so I’ll be vague here.

The magical realism elements thread throughout the story in such a delicate way, that I often didn’t really know what was real and what wasn’t; given the MC’s situation, I’d say this was the point. There were also a couple points where things got kinda spooky, and I loved the psychological push & pull that I was taken on. Race plays a big part in the plot in a multitude of ways, and I think the commentary there was nuanced and thought-provoking. The past timelines with the narrator and his son were emotional and complicated, and I enjoyed getting this other side of the story. This is a book to take your time with.

A love story between a man and his son, who died too soon, this story is narrated by the unnamed father who talks to his son throughout the novel alternating between coping with Malcolm’s death, remembrances of times past with Malcolm, memories from the narrator’s own childhood, and interactions with the everyday.

Throughout you see the father try to come to terms with his new reality and gradually learning from his son a different way of looking at the world. After inheriting land from his white grandfather, which was meant for Malcolm, the novel takes an unexpected turn as bodies are discovered on the land that was once a plantation.

There were parts of this book that made me tear up, parts that made me upset, that made me shake my head, and still others that brought laughter. But that’s the way it is with grief. It brings on all the feels at any given moment and the more we push against those feelings, the harder it is to accept. Ultimately a story of healing and coming to terms with one’s past and how we can move forward despite this, “Devil is Fine” is a deeply evocative literary novel.

There are some bizarre occurrences in this novel that I’ll attribute to mixing medications and alcohol (I felt these were surreal though as the novel wraps up connections and some explanations are made), and a ghost component which reveals itself in (in)opportune times providing the narrator and reader with moving insight into the plantation itself.

I alternated between the ebook and audiobook. There were some passages that lent themselves better to reading the words on the page rather than listening so I could better absorb them (pretty sure this was a me being distracted thing), though I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed Dion Gram as audio book narrator and will definitely look for more titles he has narrated.

#bookstagram #bookstagrammer #booknerd #bookgeek #johnvercher #devilisfine #literaryfiction #familylife #magicalrealism #grief #booksaboutgrief #booksthatheal

The narrator, whose name you never actually catch, is going through a lot at the moment. His son has passed away and also the strained relationship between him and his son’s mother. Not only is he dealing with all of that, but he also receives a letter that he has inherited a plantation from his grandfather. This land was supposed to go to the narrator’s son, but since his son has passed away, it now goes to him.

Throughout this book, you learn about the narrator’s past and the significance of the jellyfish and their tentacles. You also learn as to why this plantation is causing a lot of chaos as the narrator is biracial, but the plantation was own by his mother’s side, who is white.

What will happen to the narrator? What about the plantation? How did his son pass away and will the narrator & his son’s mother ever heal?

This book was a good read, but the first 100 pages were on the slower side. I think this book is a great book that dives into really deep issues. It did bother me a bit that I never found out what the narrator’s name was. (If it was mentioned, then it went over my head.) After the first 100 pages, I really started to get invested in this book and its characters.

** spoiler alert ** This book had a really engaging writing style, but unfortunately, it ultimately didn't work for me. I'll try to keep this brief, but I think I had 2 big issues here. Firstly, I felt that the more abstract aspects of the story really detracted from the book, at least for me. The possibility of ghosts, the bizarre appearance of tentacles, and especially the ambiguous ending left me feeling uncertain if the main character was having a mental break, or whether everything was symbolism I was supposed to understand (mostly I didn't). My second issue with this book is pretty straightforward, and probably will not be well received. The focus on race, the character's blackness, the trauma he displays when confronted with the plantation, and the stereotypes presented of "allies" and supposedly well-meaning white people felt so incredibly trite to me, and rang extremely redundant and hollow. I'm sure there are many people in the world, especially in the US, who genuinely feel like this. However, I disagree about the cause and about the cure. I feel like this kind of attitude fosters only more division between races. Again, the writing style was beautiful. This was a hard book to put down, and I was invested in the characters and what was happening to them. Ultimately, though, this ended up not being the right book for me.

“I don’t know how to weigh loss
But I do know how heavy it is.”

“You don’t stop being afraid of things when you become a parent. You stop showing your fear the way you used to is all.”

2.5 stars rounded up! I don’t know what I think about this book and that rarely ever happens to me. Usually I know my star rating from almost the beginning. But this one was…a bit weird. I almost dnf’d it at 50% and then again at about 70% and the only thing that kept me going was that I wanted to know how Malcom died.

The writing is absolutely beautiful and the style is a bit different and fresh. But the story itself dragged for me and had some elements where my lack of ability to suspend disbelief really tripped me up. But overall it’s a very powerful story with a beautiful message.

Thank you to Netgalley, Celadon Books, and the author for the ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Captivating and fast-paced "Devil is Fine" follows the story of a biracial man who inherits a plantation after tragedy strikes. It paints a picture of what it means when you feel like you don't belong.

There were moments of this novel that were absolutely devastating. Especially as our unnamed narrator begins the story at his son's funeral. Throughout the novel, you're given breadcrumbs of what happened until the whole story unfolds.

There are also really haunting moments (literally!) when the narrator goes to the land he's been given. The ghosts of the land take him back in time to witness unspeakable events. This happens as archeologists are digging up the land, trying the preserve what's buried in the earth.

I really loved the ending of the story, how it all ties back to an event the narrator went through when he was younger. Something that has stuck with him forever. There are parts that make you question reality with dizzying effects. It's one of those books that will stick with you forever.

Beautifully written, profound, humbling and itself humble, heartbreaking but in the end hopeful.

This novel is highly literary, but not high-brow. I loved the format of the narrator speaking to his son throughout the novel and the little asides directed towards his son. I appreciated the commentary regarding racism and colonialism, and even regarding inclusion and making assumptions.

There is a slight bend toward magical realism/paranormal in that the main character experiences some hallucinations, haints (ghosts), first person flashback to the plantation owner’s body/life, and the jellyfish (you’ll see). Though it didn’t feel corny or out of place in this book, but would definitely be difficult to believe if your friend was telling you about it, as the narrator did in the book. I will say this…I foresee thinking about this book anytime I see a jellyfish now.

I would’ve liked to have more background on the plantation, its lineage through the family, why the grandfather wanted Malcolm to inherit the land, etc. I thought there would be more information on this storyline, and while I understand it not being the main focus given the story’s intent, it still feels incomplete not knowing some of this info.

I can see how this book would be polarizing. I happened to love it, and I’m sure many others will too.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you Celadon and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was an intriguing read; much of the time, I was utterly confused, though I suppose that puts me on the same page as the unfortunate protagonist and narrator of this book. Here we have the strange tale of a haunted author/professor coping with the recent death of his son. He's just found out he's the sole inheritor of an undesirable property. He's also plagued by nightmares, and he may, um, yeah . . . be turning into a jellyfish.

One thing I love about Vercher's work is that even in the saddest of stories, he still manages to toss in laugh out loud quips like this one: a bar customer, upon overhearing that the narrator is a writer asks, "Do you know James Patterson?"

Snort!

With this one, his third fine book, Vercher has made the list of my favorite authors. I'm looking forward to whatever he dreams up next.

DEVIL IS FINE by John Vercher and narrated by Dion Graham is one of the best books I have read this year.

I feel profoundly inept to express why this is such an incredible story.

The biracial narrator begins this journey at a funeral, speaking to the one who died. He does this throughout the novel as he processes this grief, all while going to and claiming a plantation left by sorts to him through the death of his white grandfather. We slip back through memories to understand how we got here, and at times slip elsewhere, but that is telling too much.

There are deeply moving meditations on being biracial, a father, a writer of Color, legacy, responsibility, & transformation. It encompassed all emotions, whipping from heartbreak to hilarity, and from heavy realism to a very blurred sense of surreal. I loved it all. This was an incredible feat of storytelling with gorgeously written prose.

I was so grateful to receive both the digital ARC from @celadonbooks & the audio from @macmillan.audio through @netgalley and the combination was superb. I may even go get a hard copy of this one as it will definitely be a favorite. This does publish on June 18th, and a pre-order would be worth it.

All of the emotional outpouring of this man came through in a way that made me feel it. I was wrecked, I was scared, I was searching, and I was transforming with him.

Such a beautiful novel.
After losing his son, a biracial author inherits land from his white grandfather. It is told as he is speaking to his dead son while dealing with grief, the past and fatherhood. They discover gruesome details on the property which was a plantation.
This book blends literary fiction, mystery, paranormal and magical realism. There are heavy topics and it’s beautiful and heartbreaking but I will be thinking of this novel for a long time. Especially when I see a jellyfish.

loved this - the horror/fantasy part of this was a surprise to me, and I didn't hate it but it's definitely not my typical thing. beautiful story of grief and trauma.

4.5 stars rounded up

I loved this. It was moving and heartbreaking, funny and disorienting, unpredictable and beautifully written. I read this in a single day because it was so easy to get taken in by the writing. At no point did I ever know what was coming next in the story and it had me needing and wanting to know what was going to happen next immediately. I’d go from sadness to shock to laughing all within a few pages and I enjoyed the ride.

We see our main character go through transformations–both real and imaginary. Through his own transformation, the people around him transform as well, in the sense that he can see them all so much more clearly for what they are. There are a couple of moments where he’s realizing this that were absolutely delicious to witness.

He makes a number of mistakes and he isn’t perfect, but I still rooted for him the entire way. I found myself easily able to connect to this man that I had little, if anything, in common with.

I need to give a specific shoutout to chapter 20 because wow–that one hurt. It was beautiful.

I really loved the ending and I highlighted numerous sections throughout the book, including the last paragraph, that I know I’m going to go back to and reread over and over.

If I haven’t made it clear enough yet, you should read this. This was a very unique look at someone experiencing grief while also trying to recognize and come to terms with the person in the mirror and figure out how to move forward with their life. I’ll be thinking about this one for some time to come.

The Devil is fine is a book that’s hard to describe but one I truly liked. The narrator is a middle-aged, biracial professor and author who is grieving the sudden loss of his teen-aged son. His relationship with the mother of his son is strained. The professor inherits a piece of land from his grandfather only to find out it was a plantation with slaves. The professor converses with his dead son throughout the novel and is haunted by their troubled relationship and discoveries of buried bodies found on the plantation land. The book is brilliantly written with humor and witty conversations. The reader is left to determine if the professor is losing his grip on reality or truly connecting with dead souls. The book addresses religion, racial issues, father-son relationship challenges, as well as pressures in academia and the publishing world. Wile the professor is a self-admitted flawed character, as a reader I liked him immediately as well as the other interesting characters in the book.

This one was odd. But it was also interesting and moving. With the journey through grief and then finding out something about your past you never expected, made this a very intriguing read. I binged it in one day and the audio definitely made that possible. There were some LONG chapters. But I enjoyed the structure since this was written almost like a letter to the MMCs recently deceased son. This book did discuss some heavy topics such as racism and slavery but when it is mixed with a little magic realism, it made for a really good read.

An unusual tale- a man telling his story to his recently deceased son in a stream of consciousness about his past and his. well, magical realism aspects, And then he inherits a plantation, Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. It's different, it won't be for everyone, but it's a worthy read for fans of literary fiction.

This book was strange in the best way possible. I thoroughly enjoyed how Vercher Blended historical elements with mystery/fantasy. The book was heartbreaking and written so beautifully. Discussing difficult topics such as slavery and racism was done in a way that made my soul hurt.

Devil is Fine constantly kept me on my toes and made me feel so many different emotions. I will definitely be recommending this one.

The Run-Down: Devil Is Fine is an ambitious and intriguing literary endeavor that rests on an uneven foundation.

Review:
Devil Is Fine by John Vercher feels like it was written by an English professor. Vercher eschews traditional narrative constraints in favor of a metatextual, genre-defying, and highly unique novel about fatherhood, grief, slavery, and identity. The first forty percent of the book focuses on the protagonist’s grief over his teenage son, who died unexpectedly. His grief is fraught with the knowledge that he, in many ways, failed to be the father his son needed as he grew up. After a brief flirtation with the campus novel, Devil Is Fine takes a turn into surrealism and horror when the biracial narrator discovers he has inherited a plantation that contains the remains of several West African slaves. Steering through this horror and magical realism, the story bends time to return to the narrator’s grief and family life before entering satirical territory. The story ends with appropriate ambiguity and symbolism one would expect for such a novel.

Undergirding the diverse generic territories this novel traverses is the author’s deep understanding of the novel’s main character, a flawed man who is struggling to fit into a world that seems to have no place for him in it. Vercher’s grasp of his main character’s psychology and past is what allows this book to work as well as it does. Particularly poignant is his portrayal of the narrator’s tumultuous relationship with his son, his son’s mother, and alcohol. This stellar character work, however, is not enough on its own to support the novel’s ambition. The interactions between the characters frequently feel unrealistic and forced, especially when the book makes sudden shifts between the genuine and the satirical. There are also several major plot developments (not including the ambiguous supernatural happenings) that make little sense upon closer examination, and they appear shoehorned in for effect rather than organic components of the story. As a result, Devil Is Fine is an ambitious and intriguing literary endeavor that rests on an uneven foundation. I encourage readers to pick it up to form their own thoughts about this unique text.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.