One long story & several shorts, this was a satisfying collective of 80’s horror-esque elements. Very well written & detailed as well as beautifully written prose. Quick fun horror read for sure

I really enjoyed this dark fantasy element and enjoyed the overall feel of the world. The characters were everything that I was looking for and enjoyed the overall feel of this. It uses that blend of suspense and dark mythology that worked with everything that I was hoping for. I'm excited to read more in this world and enjoyed the way Christian Francis wrote this. Christian Francis has a great writing style and thought it was well done in this genre.

An enthralling fast-paced page turner for all horror enthusiasts indeed!
'The Devil And The Deep and other tales' by Christian Francis published by Echo Publishing is a horror anthology consisting of five nail gripping tales namely 'The Devil And The Deep','The Thing In The Bay','The Ghosts of Powick Bridge','E and The Night Before Christmas' and lastly 'Eleven Twisted Christmas Songs.'
All tales shake readers to the core however the titular tale, 'The Devil And The Deep' takes the gong.
The titular tale opens with a botched exorcism of a young girl, Petra in an 'Old Chapel' in Port Gaynor. The ordained priest,Father Michael Nadasdy is at his wits end as he finds himself cornered by a powerful dark entity that had spiritually consumed Petra's whole being and every other human life form in the chapel. This occurrence causes the priest to panick and runs out of the chapel,only to do the unthinkable by massaccaring the possessed beings by gunning them all down with his pistol.
Seventeen years later,the town seems to have forgotten all,but the remnants of the events still linger in the priests conscious although he has assumed a new title from 'Father Michael Nadasdy to 'Mike the drunk',with alcohol being his new abode.

My main concern is the stylistic warning at the beginning of the anthology,of which I must say, is quite commendable. However the many grammatic errors throughout the ARC seems to be betraying the author

I rate this book a three out of five stars and I recommend it to all readers!
thank you NetGalley,Thank you Echo Publishing and lots of love to the author

The waves, with a serene calm, wrapped around her figure, like serpentine tendrils eager to embrace their new malevolent guest.

I started reading this book on March 16 and just finished. The reason it took me that long is not that the book was big, 150 pages for the main story and 60 pages for the short stories, or that it was slow-pace, but the fact that I was freaked out.

As a person who would never ever WATCH horor, I enjoy reading it all because, well, I like to scare myself. And even though I have read a number of great horror books, the only writer who managed to scare me was Stephen King. Until this book.



The Devil in the Deep is an homage to the 80s style of horror stories. The writing technique is even the same, that is to say, the alteration of POVs in the same chapter and the cinematic description of events. While this style may not be the cup of tea for many, it personally resonates with me, evoking the experience of 'reading a film' through its descriptive prowess.

The author manages to bring forth a conflict as old as time itself - Evil and Religion - with a blend of both Western and Middle Eastern references. Ancient gods like the Syrian Dagan and Canaanites Baal and names like Petra.

In the once tranquil town of Port Gaynor, the echoes of a chilling exorcism still haunt the present. The deceptive calm masks a lurking malevolence, as if the very air breathes malice, threatening to fracture the cover of peace. The townsfolk, caught in a web of escalating terror, confront a reality where nightmares walk the streets, and the line between the real and the unreal becomes indistinguishably dangerous. An ominous being is risen ensnaring the innocent and the wary alike in a twisted tale of demonic forces, secretive cults, and forgotten gods, all vying for control of a town that has become a cradle of the supernatural.

I did find the ending a bit anticlimactic and to be honest, wanted more struggle, but it was satisfying promising the rise of an anti-god.

Also, and I am not one to use this for lowering the rating especially since I know this is an indie book, but this does need heavy editing.
For example, one page used the linking word "as" 7 times, and one paragraph alone had it 5 times

Other than that, I enjoyed the story that scared the shit out of me and made me reconsider living in a seaside town.

Possessions, exorcism, that 80s vibe I like… I enjoyed this book!
Didn’t quite get the need to have extra short stories as I don’t particularly like short story in anthologies but overall a good book!!

Initially I thought that this main story would have some interesting contributions to add to the intended 80s and 90s horror it takes inspiration, and whilst some aspects of the text were interesting it eventually became a bit too absurd and underdeveloped for me. Whilst it was a short read there was a lot being tackled with little to no development. I appreciate the literary experimentation the author tells us is present in the text, but it didn’t feel purposeful or used as a device to develop the plot or narrative devices. The additional stories felt very similar, however, The Thing of the Bay stood out as a clever interpretation of astrology and integrating it into horror which proved to be interesting and original.

A really gripping read, I thought the characters were intriguing and I'm going to look out for more by this author.

What an absolutel joy of a book to read! I found myself looking forward to reading this book whenever I wasn't reading this book. I welcomed insomnia, so that I could read a few more pages.

The story unfolds with a botched exorcism on a small, possessed girl many years before. Fast forward to the present day and a sleepy seaside town as all hell, literally, breaks loose. Our unlikley protaganist, the priest (now a drunk) has to step up as the demon returns, as do others and demon infighting and zombified villagers and all manner of shenanigans unfold - escalating to a behemoth of untold size rising from the deep as the military get involved.

And absolute roller coaster ghost train ride of sheer fun and thrills and surprises throughout. I wish every horror book was this good.

Five stars and I wish I could give more. Thank you Christian Francis and thank you NetGalley!

DNF @ 50%

This short story collection is prefaced with a "Stylistic Warning" that cautions: "Your grammar experience may differ from that of the author. The use of head-hopping (multiple POVs) is a stylistic choice, and will happen more as the plot’s pace increases. This is wholly intentional, and not a mistake. Dialogue tags are used freely, and without constraint. Commas can, and will be used as a breath within sentences." I think that is a fair and accurate self-assessment by the author of his own work. Unfortunately, this writing style did not work for me.

The Devil and The Deep - DNF
The Thing in the Bay - 4 stars
The Ghosts of Powick Bridge - 3 stars
E and the Night Before Christmas - DNF
Eleven Twisted Christmas Songs - 3 stars

The book starts with a priest, Michael, being called to perform an exorcism on a little girl. For some reason the exorcism fails, and Michael ends up killing the girl.

Nearly 20 years later, locals now know Michael as Mike the drunk. We find out that he has hallucinations of the girl, and the only thing that keeps the hallucinations at bay the is alcohol.

Unfortunately this is around where the book loses me. The plot takes quite an unexpected turn, from the eerie Exorcist-like plot in a small town to zombie-like creatures and sea monsters/gods. It felt like two different stories to me, and I struggled to see where they connected. I kept reading, hoping that the end would be worth it, but to me it wasn’t too far off from an “and then they woke up” type of ending. Everything felt a bit meaningless, like there was an easy solution all along.

Other than that, I thought that certain aspects of the story needed more explanation, while some things were over-explained. For example, we never got any answers about the entity that possessed the girl, what the mist was, why some people weren’t affected, why the god chose this place and these people etc.

All in all I did enjoy the beginning of the book, but wasn’t fully prepared for where the story went. A sub plot I really enjoyed was the chapter about how they kept possessed people in an underground bunker in the Vatican, running tests on them and what not. That could’ve been a main plot on its own, it adds another layer of eeriness to the average possession-storyline and would be a great plot in a paranormal horror.


Thank you to the author and BooksGoSocial for this ARC!

A creepy, tense story that makes you look over your shoulder a few times while you're reading it! With demonic possession, a town with a bloodthirsty past, and a drunken ex-priest who has a debt to pay, this is a quick, entertaining, scary read. If you like good old-fashioned horror and gore, you'll love this. Recommended.

The pacing of this was great, it really achieved the 80s pulp horror vibe. I really enjoyed the meshing of religious horror with lovecraftian lore, it worked so well! Some of the punctuation and grammar wasn't particularly sophisticated; I appreciate the author note at the start to explain writing style choices, but I think there were aspects that perhaps just lacked polishing rather than being stylistic. But, overall, really enjoyed this for a compelling horror read!

Reminiscent of horror stories from the 70s and 80s, The Devil and the Deep has all the ingredients for a creepy good time. There are demons, undead, possessions, cults, plus plenty of mystery, and I will take all of that, please and thank you.

The story starts with a prologue. It’s 1975 in the small coastal town of Port Gaynor and Father Michael is attempting to perform what should be a run-of-the-mill exorcism. Except it’s not, because of course it isn’t. This exorcism off the walls bonkers and it’s probably the most awesome opening to any book I’ve read in recent memory. The story continues 17 years later, the exorcism long forgotten by all except for one person, when an ancient evil reawakens and every citizen of Port Gaynor unwittingly becomes a part of a grand plan beyond their wildest imagination.

I found the characters very easy to connect with and I even found myself sympathizing and connecting with someone I absolutely didn’t expect and that was really fun. I love when a book surprises me and this one was full of surprises. Sometimes when I’m reading a book I have to stop and wonder how the hell the author came up with the thing I just read. I did this multiple times while reading The Devil and the Deep and it was extremely satisfying. Something else I found satisfying was that every time I had a question, I had some time to develop my own theory, but then it was answered. Sometimes I like when books leave a lot to the imagination but this wasn’t one I wanted that from and I’m glad that it delivered what I wanted.

The Devil and the Deep takes up about 75% of the book and then there are a few extra short stories. The Thing in the Bay is a heartbreaking story that follows one woman as humanity is driven to madness by an unknown force. The Ghosts of Powick Bridge is a moving and poetic tale of the ghost of a man who died in a war and is haunted by a song. E and the Night Before Christmas is the story of a cloaked figure with a scythe who brings chaos and horrifying creatures to a small town on Christmas Eve. This one was my favorite, it had a really great twist. The last is Eleven Twisted Christmas Songs: horror parodies of familiar songs you’ll easily recognize and want to sing along to in your head. The short stories weren’t really necessary but they did add to the overall theme of madness and they were fun bonus reads.

The book opens with a stylistic warning: Christian Francis believes in the use of creative voice in fiction. There are ‘rules’ that are often forced opon writers and Francis doesn’t subscribe to them. He does things his own way. He uses commas to signify a breath within sentences, for example. This warning basically says that if you’re bothered by his lack of rule-following, this book isn’t for you. I knew I wouldn’t have a problem so I read on! I did notice that Francis didn’t follow the typical ‘rules,’ but there wasn’t anything that stood out too much and it wasn’t out of control or distracting, so even if you’re a person who cares about that stuff, I honestly don’t think you’d be put off.

2.5 stars rounded to 3, though I should have rounded it down. The main story (there are some uninteresting short stories included as well) has a lot of potential, but the writing is a mess. I had no trouble with the author's grammatical preferences (I'm still not sure why he had to stress the issue so hard, perhaps I'm missing something); my problem lies with the writing: no sense of pacing, innumerable flashbacks that should have been placed linearly in the story, and a plot that in the end made no sense to me. The "pulp" atmosphere and the B-movie vibes are quite strong, though they cannot redeem the writing faults. What made me round the stars up is the premise: I hadn't seen before anyone trying to combine demonic possession with Lovecraftian cosmic horror, reducing the first to the second. Unfortunately, the story went more towards a creature feature than genuine cosmic horror, but the originality of the premise should not be ignored.

This story is about a priest who performed an exorcism and failed. After that night he leaves the priesthood and dives head first into alcoholism and depression.
Now it’s 17 years later and many do not know or remember who Michael was. Unfortunately for him the ghost of the girl he couldn’t save is torturing him and infecting everyone he comes into contact with him. Not a physical infection but an infection of the mind.
This ghost is just the beginning as other evil spirits set back in motion what was started 17 years before.

I was hooked after the first sentence of this novella. I loved every bit of this spooky, eerie story. The build up was perfect and the ending was completely unexpected but it worked for me. The only reason it is four stars is because I wasn’t that fond of the four short stories also attached this book.

The short stories:
The Thing in the Bay: This was about some kind of invasion, not really sure how or what. We are following a character as she reacts to this unknown invasion. It was okay.

The Ghosts of Powick Bridge: We are following a man relive the final moments before he died. Fighting for a fight he didn’t understand. I didn’t like this one. It just made me feel sad.

E and the Night Before Christmas: I believe this story connects to another story the author wrote. I have not read the other story but I don’t think it took away from this story. This man is in his house and just saw the grim reaper kill Santa and his reindeer. I did like this story and the ending.

Eleven Twisted Christmas Songs: The title speaks for itself. It’s classic Christmas songs replaced with horror tales. It was okay.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced arc copy in exchange for an honest review.

Many years have passed since a harrowing exorcism in the coastal town of Port Gaynor. Yet still, the shadows of evil linger, ready to shatter that now peaceful haven. As the town's serenity unravels, the boundary between sanity and madness blurs, unleashing a blood-curdling prophecy, and residents soon find themselves ensnared in a sinister saga of demons, cults, and ancient deities.

Christian Francis masterfully guides you through a maelstrom of terror, where each page promises a heart-pounding, eerie, and wildly unpredictable adventure.

A great mix of SFF and horror. There needs to be more books that mix fantasy and horror as well as this one. If your into scary nautical tales, or any type of creature feature, then I guarantee you will have a blast with this book as I have:)

A single-author collection, THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP includes a novella, three short stories, and a set of Christmas song-poetry. Somewhat Lovecraftian [Dagon] and somewhat Early Middle Eastern Mythology [Baal], also mixed in are the Vatican, a devoted Catholic priest, and an ecumenical open-minded priest, in a coastal town on the Pacific. A failed exorcism incites the near-return of an old god [Dagon].
The author demonstrates an individually creative approach to punctuation which proved a little disconcerting.

I don't think I've ever read something in the realm of demons and exorcism-gone-wrong, but I really did enjoy the beginning and the initial climax. I was genuinely getting pretty spooked out reading this last night, which is a first for me when reading horror/thriller! I rate this 4 stars due to the ending falling short for me. The little girl Petra throwing a tantrum because she wasn't Baal just felt very comical in my opinion, and didn't meet up with how creepy the book was in the beginning and middle. Also not understanding why Emmett wasn't affected by anything that happened in the past that reoccurred didn't make sense to me either, but that could just be me.

All in all, I'd definitely recommend this book to other horror/thriller lovers, but I know that the ending would fall flat for them as well.