A yearly haunted carnival, a doll that comes to life, and murders?
Dates read: 13/11/24 to 15/12/24
Star rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Word to describe: Perception-breaking
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Smutty Fiction, Sensual Fiction
Trigger Warnings: Murder, Graphic Violence, Suggested Sexual Assault/Rape, Domestic Violence, Child Abuse, Cult, Religion-related Trauma, Psychotic Disorders, Child Sexual Abuse, Teen Pregnancy. Plus many more not listed - This book is not for the faint hearted and all possible triggers should be researched before reading this book.
Every year Satan's Affair travels around the US leaving strings of missing people and a large following of excited spook fans eager to see what haunted house will visit them next. This year the theme is Doll House and hiding inside the walls of one of the attractions in young woman Sibyl, known as Sibby to her henchmen. Sibby is an erratic character with child-like tantrums and an insatiable appetite for blood, gore, and sex. We are introduced to Sibby in true H D Carlton fashion with her slicing a man to pieces, bathing in his blood and then having one giant orgy with all four of her henchmen. (This is not a light-hearted read I will warn you of that).
Sibby is a fantastically maniacal character. Despite her jarring personality and faux-innocence she is so difficult to hate. Her character is brilliantly wrote with many traits and quirks that make her undeniably enticing to read about. Her past and her present meld together to create a Frankenstein worthy of adoration (and fear).
At Satan's Affair Sibby has made herself invisible from the crowds, only coming out at night when the fair is open and only to stalk her prey. She targets them by scent categorising the innocent from the vile based on whether or not they smell like putrid rotten flesh and burning souls. Once Sibby has found her victim she lures them into her Dollhouse seducing them with her child-like frame and the eyes of a lost soul. All of her victims are men who have committed great crimes and Sibby adores the Grim Reaper to unburden the world of them.
I really enjoyed the mania of this prequel to the Haunting Adeline/Hunting Adeline duology. I was told to read this series by a friend at work who (none-stop) praised H D Carlton for her ability to write the most deranged topics and characters and make it so readers can not look away. Ultimately I agree. H D Carlton brough alive Sibby and her henchmen in a way I have never read before, covers topics in a way I have never experienced, and created a book so ungodly that I could not stop reading no matter how evil it got.
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