Title: Demon by Matt Wesolowski

Date Published: 20th December 2021

Publisher: Orenda Books

Genre: Thriller

Description:

Scott King's podcast investigates the 1995 cold case of a demon possession in a rural Yorkshire village, where a 12-year-old boy was murdered in cold blood by two children. Book six in the chilling, award-winning Six Stories series.

In 1995, the picture-perfect village of Ussalthwaite was the site of one of the most heinous crimes imaginable, in a case that shocked the world. Twelve-year-old Sidney Parsons was savagely murdered by two boys his own age. No reason was ever given for this terrible crime, and the 'Demonic Duo' who killed him were imprisoned until their release in 2002, when they were given new identities and lifetime anonymity.

Elusive online journalist Scott King investigates the lead-up and aftermath of the killing, uncovering dark and fanciful stories of demonic possession, and encountering a village torn apart by this unspeakable act.

And, as episodes of his Six Stories podcast begin to air, King himself becomes a target, with dreadful secrets from his own past dredged up and threats escalating to a terrifying level. It becomes clear that whatever drove those two boys to kill is still there, lurking, and the campaign of horror has just begun…

Review:

I want to thank the TBC Reviewer Group and Orenda Book for providing me with a copy of Demon in exchange for an honest review.

The previous book in the Six Stories series Deity was one of my top reads of last year, so I jumped at the chance to read Demon.

If you don't know this series, each book is told like a true crime podcast from six different viewpoints, through a mix of interviews, news articles and letters/emails. This case concerns the death of a 12-year-old boy, Sidney Parsons, by two other boys his own age, nicknamed the demonic duo. 

Yet again I have another book hangover thanks to Matt Wesolowski. I'm not complaining though!

Demon is a masterful mix of mystery, horror, and suspense that pulls you in from the very beginning and doesn't let go.

With every episode in the six stories series, nothing is as straightforward as it first seems. Each interview reveals some new shock or revelation that makes you wonder what will happen next.

As always, there's a supernatural element to the story. This time its demons, witches and possible demonic possession. I love the way it's so cleverly entwined into the story to make it seem so believable.

The town of Ussalthwaite was almost a character in itself. A former mining village, it's plagued by folklore, strange happenings and tragedy. The question hovers over you as you read, is the place cursed or is it just people's imaginations running away with them?

I felt this episode, for me anyway, felt a lot heavier emotionally than the previous books I've read. It reminded me of the James Bulger case back in the 1990s, which happened in the town I grew up in. I was only a kid, but I remember vividly the media frenzy at what had happened and how it happened. Demon also reminded me of the fear and, in many ways, shame that hovered over Bootle for years afterwards.

Demon is clever, captivating, and, at times downright chilling. Fingers crossed, we won't have to wait too long for more!

About The Author:

Matt Wesolowski is an author from Newcastle-Upon-Tyne in the UK. He is an English tutor for young people in care.

'Six Stories' was published by Orenda Books in the spring of 2016 with follow-up 'Hydra' published in the winter of 2017, 'Changeling' in 2018, 'Beast' in 2019 and 'Deity in 2020

'Six Stories' has been optioned by a major Hollywood studio; 'Changeling' was longlisted for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year, 2019 Amazon Publishing Readers' Award for Best Thriller and Best Independent Voice.

'Beast' won the Amazon Publishing Readers' Award for Best Independent Voice in 2020