Dead Souls: A Novel Paperback – September 20, 2016

Dead Souls by J. Lincoln Fenn is an almost light-hearted look at a deadly serious subject: the existence or non-existence of the soul. Fiona is a non-believer in just about everything. That includes the idea that she has a soul. So if someone wants to buy it, why not? In exchange for the thing she wants most in the world she must pay with a FAVOR. The favor is unspecified. When she will have to perform the favor is unspecified. No matter what the favor is, she must fulfill the requirements and do what is asked. Only then will she be permitted to die. True, going to hell is a negative but in return, she will get exactly what she asked for, no more, no less.Fiona met Scratch in a bar while trying to deal with her feelings about the discovery of her latest boyfriend’s infidelity. Of course Scratch was only a nickname, one she readily agreed to use after he told her his real name with an utterance that was linguistically impossible for a human to reproduce. At least it sounded impossible but that might have been due to the great amount of alcohol she had consumed prior to meeting Scratch. Post-Scratch alcohol consumption partially explained why she woke up the following morning in her own bed nude but alone. Alt least he had left a card with her abandoned clothes. Why were the card and clothes outside the apartment? Thank goodness for the kind and somewhat understanding neighbor who delivered them to her.In her drunken stupor, Fiona made a deal with the devil. She was not the only one to have done so. She met others who had done the same; they all had a dark aura surrounding them. They were an association of dead souls. Each of them was waiting for the call to do the favor, after which they could die and comfortably retire to hell. They had led a life in which a substantial part of it had seen their fondest wish come true. Favors done in return were well publicized. They might be terrorist attacks, massacres such as school shootings, or grizzly crimes blamed on psychotics. Many in the world would comment that there was no reason for such acts of barbaric cruelty. Fenn’s novel offers us a reason even if it resides in the world of fiction.In a novel that offers so many graphic descriptions of violent death, I expected there to be some offensive language related to sex and violence. There isn’t offensive language, the novel is almost asexual, but the depictions of some of the horrible death scenes can be unsettling.For those who read a lot, expectations can set in after the first couple of chapters. Reading in a favorite genre too much can build a big rut where reading can be boring. A novel like this will jerk the reader out of a rut with a violence that will dislocate body parts. Perspectives are fresh, humor is very understated, and many readers may walk away feeling disturbed that they are considered a part of a great mass of people waiting (and wanting) to be manipulated.Fiona, as well as all characters who intentionally or inadvertently made a deal with the Devil, eventually tire of the benefits of the deal. They would like to renegotiate, to make a “double deal” that will at least get them out of going to hell while preserving some of the benefits already received. The only way to do that appeared similar to a pyramid selling scheme. Fiona had to find a way to guarantee the Devil could get thousands or tens of thousands of souls in exchange for her own soul’s return. She didn’t see this as much of a problem. She was a marketing executive used to creating consumer desire for products of little value. If Fiona could sell her scheme to the Devil, she would once again be free. But there were other dead souls, especially the devious Alejandro, that also wanted to make a double deal. The one who could offer the greatest number of souls would win. And there is a finite number of souls on the planet.Other than horror and humor, readers will like Fenn’s presentation on marketing strategy and consumer naivete. There is an interesting look at the “terms and conditions” or “terms of service” statements that almost no one reads before checking the box to get on with the purchase. After reading this novel, I want to go back and read all those statements I didn’t read. But I won’t. I will just trust that to date I haven’t made any devilish purchases.

I think this book is a great horror novel. Five stars. I'm just not that into horror, so I can't honestly say "I love it". It's very, you know, _memorable_.I found the characters realistically drawn and occasionally amusing. The main character sprinkles tidbits of her life in marketing pretty frequently, and many of them are kind of funny and yet also kind of tragic, like the way and degree in which we're marketed to.The story was quite thought provoking. What would *you* sell your soul for?Oh, you don't believe in souls? You don't believe in the devil? That's okay, he'll still give you real stuff for this thing that you don't believe in.And that's one of the weird things about this story, to me. The fundamental rule of reality is, Just because you believe in something, doesn't make it true. But the corollary is, Just because you don't believe in something, doesn't make it false. So somebody offers you real, concrete stuff in exchange for something you don't believe in ... maybe you should re-evaluate your stance?So that's an interesting dynamic.(Of course, the devil in the book tends to approach people that are in bars or in crisis, and so either way their defenses are down.)So anyway, the main character's descent into desperation and horror and then with an all but audible POP into complete dissociation was really well done, and quite, well, horrifying.If you like horror stories, I think you'll like this book. If you don't, probably better to keep looking.

Full disclosure, I really liked "Poe". It was a much better novel than "Dead Souls". I did find this book to be missing some of the wry humor of "Poe". As dark as the book was, it could have used some levity. There were definitely spots for it. Overall, a good story, that for the price, you'll be happy you invested the time and money.

I had actually order the wrong “Dead Souls” the first time but got it right the second time and the book was a hit with my husband! He loved it!

This book grabbed me from the get-go! Somehow made the very far flung premise seem scary real and all the ensuing action and introspection super visceral and took me on a ride that was wickedly disturbing and shockingly well done! 4.5 stars if I could!

J Lincoln Fenn mesmerizes as her heroine leads you on a journey of the soul pushing at the very definition of evil. How far would you go for a loved one? What would you do when pressed to do the unthinkable? Her secondary characters are fascinating and spin this tale out into a terrifying final tableau. This is a page turner that made for some late nights as I burned through it to its satisfying ending.

Loved the Big Idea spotlight at Scalzi's Whatever blog & bought it even though it's way out of my genre / violence tolerance realm. A page turner in spite of my personal squick on the underlying theme / violence.

I loved the sassy heroine, although I thought the devil had to be somewhat fair and not grab drunken, vulnerable souls. In any event, he did and Fiona tries to break the contract for her soul. The book carries on with some interesting bits, but overall, it ended up rather trite. Still worth the read - you may disagree.

I'm a sucker for books with devils and demons. But even if you're not, this book has an absorbing plot and compelling characters. It's a new twist on deals with the devil and the way they work. (In the devil's favour, obviously.) I didn't know what direction the book would go or what the ending would be until I got there.