If a novel’s first chapter involves a cult, sacrifice of children, and a “priest” named Father Jacob of Lord’s Church of Holy Voices talks about the return to the Old Ways, you might be reading a horror novel. In this case, that’s how Todd Keisling’s Devil’s Creek starts. That scene takes place in 1983 in Stauford, Kentucky, but after that first chapter, Keisling brings the narrative forward to the present, roughly 30 years later. Six children, known as the Stauford Six, survived that horrific event in 1983. They were extricated by the children’s grandparents the night of a mass suicide. Jack Tremly, one of the Stauford Six, returns to the area of Stauford returns to settle his family’s affairs after his grandmother Imogen passes away, which sets the novel in motion.
About fifteen miles west of Stauford, Kentucky lies Devil’s Creek. According to local legend, there used to be a church out there, home to the Lord’s Church of Holy Voices—a death cult where Jacob Masters preached the gospel of a nameless god.
And like most legends, there’s truth buried among the roots and bones.
In 1983, the church burned to the ground following a mass suicide. Among the survivors were Jacob’s six children and their grandparents, who banded together to defy their former minister. Dubbed the “Stauford Six,” these children grew up amid scrutiny and ridicule, but their infamy has faded over the last thirty years.
Now their ordeal is all but forgotten, and Jacob Masters is nothing more than a scary story told around campfires.
For Jack Tremly, one of the Six, memories of that fateful night have fueled a successful art career—and a lifetime of nightmares. When his grandmother Imogene dies, Jack returns to Stauford to settle her estate. What he finds waiting for him are secrets Imogene kept in his youth, secrets about his father and the church. Secrets that can no longer stay buried.
The roots of Jacob’s buried god run deep, and within the heart of Devil’s Creek, something is beginning to stir…
Jack reunites with some of his siblings, all of whom share Jacob as their father. One of his siblings, Stephanie, is a DJ at the local radio. Keisling also features Jack’s nephew, who is initially not fully aware of his family’s legacy. There are more characters and Keisling does a wonderful job introducing them, revealing who they are, and giving them life. I felt for these characters, especially Jack and his nephew Riley. This empathy allowed their plight to be believable and the horrors they would experience all the more harrowing because I was invested in these people.
As we get in vested in the characters, there are only hints of what Jacob’s cult actually is. Smartly, Keisling allows the reader to discover the horrors of this “religion” as the characters do. Again, a fantastic method of building up empathy and investment in the characters, putting the reader “right there with” the characters. As we learn more, as the characters learn more, this church and story evolves from something that could be considered small town horror into a more cosmic, wide ranging horror story. That transition/transformation unfolds quite nicely.
Devil’s Creek is a big, meaty book that held me in its horrific embrace from the opening page to the final words. Keisling doles out comforting scenes between some of the characters, as well as extremely horrific scenes both sexual and violent in nature. Not once did any of it feel exploitative, though. Gruesome, certainly. Gratuitous, not at all.
Religions/Evil Cults are a fairly common element in horror stories, but Keisling’s novel is all but common. It was a refreshing take on the story trope/element. There are some truly, mouth-wide-open horrific and chilling scenes and elements in the novel.
The novel / book itself has a rather storied life. Originally published by Silver Shamrock Publishing and nominated for a 2020 Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a Novel, it nearly disappeared when Silver Shamrock folded. Fortunately for both Todd Keisling and horror readers, the great Cemetery Dance snatched up the book and repackaged it in 2023. I can’t compare the two volumes, but I can say the physical object that is the Cemetery Dance version is gorgeous. A haunting, evocative cover draws you into the pages. The pages themselves have shadow designs, lending gravitas to the text and pages themselves. As it turns out, Todd Keisling is a graphic designer by day, he created the cover and interior design of Devil’s Creek. His attention to detail, care, and skill are evident in every facet of this book / novel.
I picked this up at the Dark Ink event in August 2024 at the Doylestown Bookshop and was fortunate enough to have Todd sign the book.
Although not published in 2024, Devil’s Creek will easily grab a spot as one of my favorite reads of the year.
Highly recommended
© 2024 Rob H. Bedford
Trade Paperback | January 2023
https://www.toddkeisling.com/
https://www.toddkeisling.com/works/devils-creek
Review copy purchased
