The dark, psychological, modern day fairy tale and horror ‘Demonica’ by Will Davis  is released today by Hashtag Books!

Already a renowned author, Will Davis is already published by Bloomsbury and a prize winning author for his debut novel ‘My Side of The Story’.

Check out the blurb for new novel ‘Demonica’ below followed by our review! SCROLL DOWN FOR A CHANCE TO WIN A FREE E-COPY OF DEMONICA!!!

When spoilt eighteen year old Miranda suffers a terrible accident she survives, but her face is hideously scarred.

Unable to bear what has happened to her, she locks herself away. Her only companions are Veronica, her cruel and beautiful mother, and Nelly, the sympathetic housekeeper.

As time passes Veronica inflicts cruelty after cruelty on her disfigured daughter. Lonely and filled with despair, Miranda is astonished when Bernard, Veronica’s handsome younger boyfriend, takes an interest in her circumstances.

For Bernard believes there is an operation that can restore Miranda’s face. But it will involve committing an unspeakable crime. A decision that will haunt her for the rest of her life…

In the tradition of Angela Carter and Daphne du Maurier, Demonica is a terrifying modern fairy tale.

Caroline’s review:-

Will Davis’ Demonica has disturbed me like no other book! This sickening, twisted, dark psychological horror will certainly overhang your mind for weeks, if not months to come. It is a brilliant read for those that enjoy reading an uncertain trail of events as the storyline for the main character, Miranda, goes from bad to worse. It sure is a dark, dark read but I love the unpredictability and how stories like this feed my morbid curiosities.

The reader does not necessarily like or sympathise with Miranda initially as she is quite mean and cruel. She is the type of girl that uses her beauty to get what she wants and being left to her own devices she regularly finds herself in some sort of mischief. However, the reader is aware of the lack of attention paid to her by her parents and can begin to understand why Miranda is the way she is.

Will Davis wastes no time in reaching the beginning of the terror with the accident that is to change Miranda’s life forever. The description and account of the accident is a very powerful, dramatic and horrifying piece of writing which is a little bit too real at times, as well as being surreal. I think this is what makes it so chilling – that it is so realistic at times!

“I landed several metres away, my body twisting terribly as I hit the earth for a second time. Then the noise and light was joined by pain. Bright red was streaking out around my eyes and this time it wasn’t my hair. It was because my head was on fire. I couldn’t move to do anything about it. I couldn’t feel my legs. All I could feel was the white hot sensation of the flames.”

After the accident Miranda’s face is left severely scarred. This is extremely difficult for her to come to terms with and so she locks herself away at home. She not only has to deal with her physical and mental scars of the accident, but she has to suffer emotional abuse from her mother, Veronica, leaving her more than completely ruined. The reader is appalled at Veronica’s reaction to her daughter. Veronica truly is cruel, making her own daughter call her Veronica and indulging in beauty treatments and men right before Miranda’s eyes.

Hatred is probably the feeling the reader has for Veronica. Just like the feelings a little girl has for all of those step-mothers of princesses in traditional fairytales. Within the actual story, Demonica has been likened to Beauty and the Beast and Cinderella. We’ve all come to learn the traditional fairytales where the role of the step-mother is to be jealous of their step-daughters and cause or plan to harm them. However, in this instance it is Miranda’s birth mother – which makes it even more bewildering for the reader to believe and this creates very dark, passionate feelings of hate towards Veronica. The reader feels Miranda’s pain and can easily sympathise with her at this point.

Miranda received her care and attention from their housekeeper, Nelly. I absolutely adored the character, Nelly. Nelly saw sense and was aware of the relationship that Miranda had with Veronica. Nelly, although always kind and caring, was also very matter-of-fact, and tried to encourage Miranda to make the most of what she had. Nelly was always very accepting of Miranda and made everything sound so practical. These moments lightened the mood a little and the reader is grateful for Nelly’s input as she is someone who sees sense and can hopefully give Miranda a nudge in the right direction.

However, to make matters worse still, Miranda begins to fall for one of Veronica’s male friends, Bernard. Apart from Nelly, he is the only one to take notice of her and not be horrified of her looks but accept her for who she is. Bernard provides hope for Miranda that one day she will look beautiful again with the help of a surgeon he is familiar with. To go ahead would mean that Miranda would have to carry out a twisted, immoral crime for her own selfish reasons. But will it work out? Will it be worth it?

Demonica surely provides the reader with many emotions, which are constantly changing from one extreme to another. Morals are certainly questioned and I found myself trying to empathise with Miranda’s situation. However, I’m sure many readers would agree that Miranda made a sickening choice, despite what she had been through prior to her decision, to go along with Bernard’s hint of a suggestion. This selfish decision surely did haunt Miranda forever and readers will question Miranda’s integrity!

I found it fascinating that there was not a true hero/heroine in Demonica. Nelly would be my heroine of the whole story even though she is more of a supporting character. I think, for me, that this is what makes Demonica quite realistic as many of the characters are flawed, just as many people are. It is not the fact that there are good and bad but the fact that we are all both. Only in Demonica, the bad is really bad, downright cruel and completely unforgiveable. As a reader, you’re mind will be scarred after experiencing Demonica. Be warned!

An Advanced Reader’s Copy was provided by Tim O’Rourke of Hashtag Books for the purpose of an honest and fair review.

Will Davis’ Demonica is now available on Amazon UK and Amazon US. For more information please check out Hashtag Books.

FOR A CHANCE TO WIN A FREE E-COPY OF DEMONICA PLEASE ADD YOUR NAME IN THE COMMENTS BELOW! THE CLOSING DATE WILL BE FRIDAY 13TH DECEMBER 2013!

The lucky winners will be randomly selected on this date! Good luck everyone!!!

Reviewed by Caroline Barker