Devil Woman

A Folk Horror Thriller Novel

By: Samuel Brower

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

Some towns keep their secrets buried. This one kills to protect them.

Summer, 1991. Claire Conrad, a water analyst for the Charleston Sanitary Board, is sent to the backwoods town of Palestine, West Virginia. She expects bad drinking water. What she finds is a sickness spreading through the town—something far darker than any chemical contaminant.

The people of Palestine don’t want help. Led by Mary Ellen Bishop, the iron-fisted wife of a snake-handling preacher, they call the illness God’s punishment. To them, Claire’s science is blasphemy.

At first it’s glares and locked doors. Then come threats, sabotage, and “accidents” that aren’t accidents at all. The deeper Claire digs, the clearer it becomes: the sickness isn’t the only thing poisoning this town. And whatever’s behind it doesn’t want her to leave alive.

Trapped, hunted, and branded an enemy, Claire must rely on her wits, her science, and a desperate will to survive. Because in Palestine, God may forgive… but the Devil Woman does not.

Devil Woman is a gripping folk horror thriller of religious paranoia, small-town secrecy, and survival against impossible odds.

Perfect for fans of:

• Paul Tremblay

• Ania Ahlborn

• Stories where science and superstition collide—with deadly consequences

She came looking for poisoned water. What she found was far more terrifying.

Decent psychological horror

(3.5 Stars)

This book annoyed me.. But it was because if the actions of the MC. So, when an author can have me invested enough in a story (especially a short story) to dislike a character but still care what happens, that is the sign of a good author (IMHO).

This is a horror-ish story. The characters are good, the plot is mostly plausible, and the environment is a familiar trope so you are instantly engaged. I will definitely continue reading works by this author.

I don't want this review to be about the media and not the book, so you can stop now if all you want is a book review. If you want to know about my experience/feeling about the audio portion please continue.

I read the Audible "Virtual Voice" version of this book. It is the third book I've read this way, and while I am still not loving it, I still think it beats not being able to enjoy audiobooks. Not only was this my 3rd Virtual Voice book, it is the 3rd different voice I've experienced, and by far the most lifelike. It does have a lot of problems with heteronyms and I'm not sure if there are spelling errors in the original text but sometimes it mispronounces a commonplace word that it has pronounced correctly previously.

Awesome folk horror!

Loved the story. Ever since Wicker Man and Midsommar, I have enjoyed folk horror. It is “read” by Alexa so the narrator is very flat. Still a great choice for a road trip.