The Devil Takes You Home

I thought I would like this book especially with that opening premise but this just started to feel very... gore galore. Iglesias critiques religious fanaticism, especially how radical believers push aside their human morality for the sake of a “miracle” from God. The very rotten core of the humans in this book is their selfishness, driven by a perverse desire to serve their own needs and pleasure, whether that be exacting revenge against an enemy, killing for monetary gain, or to fulfill some sort of ridiculous religious belief. Iglesias does well in portraying how dark and twisted a human's soul can become, as well as the conflict between individual choice and systemic (racial and economic) structures.

However, I was not the biggest fan of the supernatural elements in this book. The supernatural monsters and gorey violence overshadowed the “raw” actions and feelings - devastation, instability, loss, hopelessness, despair, and anger - found in human nature. There was no real reason why the supernatural elements even existed beyond pure shock value. It felt like Iglesias kept asking himself, “How can I make the protagonist face an EVEN MORE horrific, sadistic, and repulsive situation, but without explaining how this world works?” There is so much shrouded in secrecy and the characters often ask for explanations for what is going on, but they never get direct answers. They are instead met with hostile and vague responses, such as “Shut up or I'll make (read: kill) you (slowly and painfully)”. It's not a a very productive way of storytelling and instead felt like an excuse to write about gun fights and graphic mutilation.