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Devil Let Me Go
Containing thirteen stories of intrigue and fear, Devil Let Me Go is the first short story collection from emerging new horror talent, Nathan Robinson, author of the acclaimed Starers, published by Severed Press.
The world has ended, but an old man discovers he’s not so alone in ‘The House that Creak’d.’
A wronged gangster finds himself beaten, battered and bruised and in the deepest of trouble, can he find his way off ‘Top of the Heap?’
A lonely widow is given a reason for being after a horrific natural disaster, but this gift is not all its ‘Crack’d’ up to be.
Two men meet on a dark and rainy night; one sane, one insane and together on a lonely road that leads to a battle beyond life for love in a destination that is ‘Not That Way Home.’
If you love your child how far would you go to protect them? When their life is in the balance would it matter if they’re ‘In One Form or Another?’
Lupo is the most despicable of villains, but what would you do ‘If you ever meet a girl named Maisie Mae?’
What would a girl do to keep her man? Beth asks, what is love? She knows how far she’d go, so ‘Eat your Heart out Lorena.’
It’s time to pack up for the last time, don’t leave anything behind; you’ll need plenty of ‘Banana Boxes’ to help you on your way.
He’s waiting, he wants something you cherish and he can’t leave without it. Meet a strange stranger that calls himself ‘Brian of the Night.’ He’s the last person you’d want to meet.
Three lifelong friends on a holiday of a lifetime stumble upon a body, soon they’ll discover why he waited so long in ‘The Skeleton Tree.’
A deadly army rises up during the night shift; all ‘The Chicken in Black’ wants to do is get to the other side.
It might be the time for giving, but it’s still ‘Colder than Hell up here.’
Everybody will believe, the world has been turned upside down. Something has ‘Fallen.’
Each tale takes the reader into the dark heart of humanity and beyond.
Includes artwork not included in the Kindle edition.
The world has ended, but an old man discovers he’s not so alone in ‘The House that Creak’d.’
A wronged gangster finds himself beaten, battered and bruised and in the deepest of trouble, can he find his way off ‘Top of the Heap?’
A lonely widow is given a reason for being after a horrific natural disaster, but this gift is not all its ‘Crack’d’ up to be.
Two men meet on a dark and rainy night; one sane, one insane and together on a lonely road that leads to a battle beyond life for love in a destination that is ‘Not That Way Home.’
If you love your child how far would you go to protect them? When their life is in the balance would it matter if they’re ‘In One Form or Another?’
Lupo is the most despicable of villains, but what would you do ‘If you ever meet a girl named Maisie Mae?’
What would a girl do to keep her man? Beth asks, what is love? She knows how far she’d go, so ‘Eat your Heart out Lorena.’
It’s time to pack up for the last time, don’t leave anything behind; you’ll need plenty of ‘Banana Boxes’ to help you on your way.
He’s waiting, he wants something you cherish and he can’t leave without it. Meet a strange stranger that calls himself ‘Brian of the Night.’ He’s the last person you’d want to meet.
Three lifelong friends on a holiday of a lifetime stumble upon a body, soon they’ll discover why he waited so long in ‘The Skeleton Tree.’
A deadly army rises up during the night shift; all ‘The Chicken in Black’ wants to do is get to the other side.
It might be the time for giving, but it’s still ‘Colder than Hell up here.’
Everybody will believe, the world has been turned upside down. Something has ‘Fallen.’
Each tale takes the reader into the dark heart of humanity and beyond.
Includes artwork not included in the Kindle edition.
202 pages, Paperback
First published July 24, 2013
10 people are currently reading
869 people want to read
About the author
Nathan Robinson
54 books71 followersNathan Robinson started writing fiction at an early age, however it took untill he was 26 to finally submit something.
His first acceptence was for THE CHICKEN IN BLACK which won first prize on www.spinetinglers.co.uk, If you ever meet a girl named Maisie Mae came next, quickly followed by Hatch, Banana Boxes, Brian of the Night and The Spare. Maisie Mae was included in Panic Press's Soup of Souls anthology. His Mexican Gangster thriller Top of the Heap was released as a podcast in April 2011 from www.pseudopod.org and is due for release by The Dark Fiction Spotlight in their best of Anthology
So far he’s had numerous short stories published bywww.spinetinglers.co.uk, Rainstorm Press, Knight Watch Press, Pseudopod, The Horror Zine, The Sinister Horror Company, Static Movement, Splatterpunk Zine and many more.
He writes best in the dead of night or travelling at 77mph.
He is a regular reviewer for www.snakebitehorror.co.uk and Splatterpunk Zine, which he loves because he gets free books. He likes free books.
His first novel “Starers” was released by Severed Press to rave reviews. This was followed by his short story collection “Devil Let Me Go”, and the novellas “Ketchup with Everything” and “Midway” and the novel, “Caldera.”
He is currently working on his next novels, “Death-Con 4” and a sequel to “Starers.”
Follow news, reviews and the author blues at www.facebook.com/NathanRobinsonWrites or twitter @natthewriter
His first acceptence was for THE CHICKEN IN BLACK which won first prize on www.spinetinglers.co.uk, If you ever meet a girl named Maisie Mae came next, quickly followed by Hatch, Banana Boxes, Brian of the Night and The Spare. Maisie Mae was included in Panic Press's Soup of Souls anthology. His Mexican Gangster thriller Top of the Heap was released as a podcast in April 2011 from www.pseudopod.org and is due for release by The Dark Fiction Spotlight in their best of Anthology
So far he’s had numerous short stories published bywww.spinetinglers.co.uk, Rainstorm Press, Knight Watch Press, Pseudopod, The Horror Zine, The Sinister Horror Company, Static Movement, Splatterpunk Zine and many more.
He writes best in the dead of night or travelling at 77mph.
He is a regular reviewer for www.snakebitehorror.co.uk and Splatterpunk Zine, which he loves because he gets free books. He likes free books.
His first novel “Starers” was released by Severed Press to rave reviews. This was followed by his short story collection “Devil Let Me Go”, and the novellas “Ketchup with Everything” and “Midway” and the novel, “Caldera.”
He is currently working on his next novels, “Death-Con 4” and a sequel to “Starers.”
Follow news, reviews and the author blues at www.facebook.com/NathanRobinsonWrites or twitter @natthewriter
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
June 20, 2014
The absolutely best part of eReading is the ease of discovering new authors. I don't know if I would have come across this author's writing otherwise, but his debut novel Starers had an irresistible cover and pretty great innards as well. I liked it a lot. This...his short story collection, this I loved. Absolutely excellent stories, varied in length, always original, from high brow literary horror to flat out grotesque obscenities, written with gusto, talent, humor and always, always heart. Aside from inventive plot lines, I really enjoyed the way the author creates a reality such as a regular marriage for example and then slowly or bandaid style brutally fast peels off the layers to reveal the dark reality below. Excellent very enjoyable reading experience. Highly recommended.
September 24, 2013
The Devil Let Me Go is a well written collection of shorts by Nathan Robinson, who I found to be a very talented aspiring satirical writer. Robinson has a flair for wild, raunchy dialogue and for creating rich, atmospheric, eerie settings. The prose is absolutely excellent; written so vividly that the settings pop out of the page and the character's can be felt breathing on them. You can expect to find a wide variety of different types of horror in this collection, from psychologically mysterious "House that Creaked" to the jealously fueled madness featured in "Eat your heart out Lorena"
I wish I could rate each story individually, because I liked some stories more than others. Also, If you don't have a sense of humor, stay away from this one! Otherwise, worth a read during the Autumn/Halloween season, so shut off your lights, but do not read alone!
I wish I could rate each story individually, because I liked some stories more than others. Also, If you don't have a sense of humor, stay away from this one! Otherwise, worth a read during the Autumn/Halloween season, so shut off your lights, but do not read alone!
December 11, 2016
I won this book in the Goodreads Giveaways!
I quite enjoyed the book and the stories, weird and disturbing as they might be.
It was an easy read, because the book consists of short stories.
The images were a nice touch.
However, and I find myself repeating this in a lot of reviews, there were a lot of typos, grammar and other mistakes still present in the book. To me, this is very tiring and annoying when I'm reading. I just don't understand how these mistakes can still be in there when the book has been published in 2013.
As a Master in Translation and Revision, I find it hard to ignore these things and it influences how I feel about the book and whether or not I would recommend it to others.
Therefore, I gave it three stars instead of the four stars I'd given it if there weren't so many mistakes.
The stories were very entertaining, though.
I quite enjoyed the book and the stories, weird and disturbing as they might be.
It was an easy read, because the book consists of short stories.
The images were a nice touch.
However, and I find myself repeating this in a lot of reviews, there were a lot of typos, grammar and other mistakes still present in the book. To me, this is very tiring and annoying when I'm reading. I just don't understand how these mistakes can still be in there when the book has been published in 2013.
As a Master in Translation and Revision, I find it hard to ignore these things and it influences how I feel about the book and whether or not I would recommend it to others.
Therefore, I gave it three stars instead of the four stars I'd given it if there weren't so many mistakes.
The stories were very entertaining, though.
December 10, 2013
A copy of this book was offered to me by the author in exchange for an honest review.
I'm sorry it took me so long to finally get to this book, I hope Nathan doesn't hate me for taking my time, but when I started reading this I really wasn't in the mood for a dark-end-of-the-world-psychological story. I am now, so here we go! :)
1.The House that Creak'd - This was a haunting story, beautiful and creepy. At first I really thought he was slowly going mad, crushed by loneliness and despair. The end could have been a flicker of his drug induced imagination, his way to justify it all. He was not the only living creature who survived the plague, the plants also survived. Anyway, very interesting concept and flawless execution.
Oh, I don't want to look fault-finding, but wind also spreads pollen. ;)
2.Top of the Heap - I liked this one better than the first one. It was very fast paced, short, so fast to read as well. The thrilling never actually leaves you while you read the story. But, prepared to be horrified, not by the writing, that remains amazing, but by the quantity of gore this short story contains. Really, it reminded me a lot of Ilsa J. Bick's Ashes trilogy. I'm still finding the courage to read the final book. Anyway, despite all that, the ending was amazing.
3.Crack'd - This was a twist tale about the sacrifices a human mother is willing to do for her child. I liked the idea of the story a lot, but the execution was not as good as for the previous 2 stories. A lot of weird formulated phrases and some were also grammatically incorrect: "holding it close to her chest as carried back towards the house", "Her lifetime of prayers had being answered", She wouldn't have seen it had it been stood motionless" (just to name a few). There is nothing more distracting when you read a story than this type of errors.
4.Not That Way Home - this felt like watching a car chase in a very good movie.I could barely stand the tension and just wanted to know so badly how things will turn out. I felt anxious for most of "the ride". The ending was so unexpected, but so great as well. Not sure if I like this more than "Top of the Heap", but it will definitely be one of my favorite stories from this book. :)
5.In One Form or Another - despite the fact that this is probably the longest story in the collection it is the most predictable and boring one so far. It's also full of mistakes. After passing number 5 in less than 5 pages I decided I'm not going to point them all out, but they are quite a lot. This one was a little disappointing.
6.If you ever meet a girl named Maisie Mae... - glad I managed to finish the previous story and get to this one. It was a little too short, but very exciting. The first thing that came to mind after finishing it was the movie Grudge. :)
7.Eat your heart out Lorena - this was disturbing and disgusting (well, similar with the previous ones), but in a bad way. It was also not that interesting and kind of unoriginal. It reminded me of that story:
8.Banana Boxes - haha, this was a fun read. I kind of expected that ending, but I also loved the presentation. A spider running for his life.
9.Brian of the Night - short and unsatisfying; plus it had quite a few awkward formed phrases.
10.The Skeleton Tree - this is probably my favorite story from this collection along with "Top of the Heap". Less haunting and more predictable it still held an amazing idea. At the beginning of the story I was sure they were going to get haunted by the skeleton or something. Anyway, it just shows that camping near a skeleton is never a good idea XD.
11.The Chicken in the Black - this story is probably my least favorite from the bunch. Not only do I not find zombie chickens scary, but the entire atmosphere surounding our characters is not creepy at all. Also, I understand that Thomas doesn't know english, but what excuse does Aves have? There were a lot of mistakes in this story that contributed to the all 'not very enjoyable' part.
12.Colder than Hell up here... - no, no, no... just no. I didn't like the idea and the story itself was rather uneventful.
13.Fallen - this was a sweet short story, more on the sentimental part than on the supernatural/horror one.
After reading all these short stories I reached a conclusion. Nathan is a good horror writer, but less so when it comes to the psychological part of the story. Sometimes he develops his characters and their torments/tormentors well and sometimes the amount of description just lets you feel bored and uninterested. I'm not sure the order in which these stories were written, but some of them are really good.
A clear idea you can get from all of them is that the author is a convinced familist. A surprising thing to notice in a bunch of horror stories, but yes, it was there. I find it sweet. :)
All in all, this book is definitely worth reading; for some stories more than others.
I'm sorry it took me so long to finally get to this book, I hope Nathan doesn't hate me for taking my time, but when I started reading this I really wasn't in the mood for a dark-end-of-the-world-psychological story. I am now, so here we go! :)
1.The House that Creak'd - This was a haunting story, beautiful and creepy. At first I really thought he was slowly going mad, crushed by loneliness and despair. The end could have been a flicker of his drug induced imagination, his way to justify it all. He was not the only living creature who survived the plague, the plants also survived. Anyway, very interesting concept and flawless execution.
Oh, I don't want to look fault-finding, but wind also spreads pollen. ;)
2.Top of the Heap - I liked this one better than the first one. It was very fast paced, short, so fast to read as well. The thrilling never actually leaves you while you read the story. But, prepared to be horrified, not by the writing, that remains amazing, but by the quantity of gore this short story contains. Really, it reminded me a lot of Ilsa J. Bick's Ashes trilogy. I'm still finding the courage to read the final book. Anyway, despite all that, the ending was amazing.
3.Crack'd - This was a twist tale about the sacrifices a human mother is willing to do for her child. I liked the idea of the story a lot, but the execution was not as good as for the previous 2 stories. A lot of weird formulated phrases and some were also grammatically incorrect: "holding it close to her chest as carried back towards the house", "Her lifetime of prayers had being answered", She wouldn't have seen it had it been stood motionless" (just to name a few). There is nothing more distracting when you read a story than this type of errors.
4.Not That Way Home - this felt like watching a car chase in a very good movie.I could barely stand the tension and just wanted to know so badly how things will turn out. I felt anxious for most of "the ride". The ending was so unexpected, but so great as well. Not sure if I like this more than "Top of the Heap", but it will definitely be one of my favorite stories from this book. :)
5.In One Form or Another - despite the fact that this is probably the longest story in the collection it is the most predictable and boring one so far. It's also full of mistakes. After passing number 5 in less than 5 pages I decided I'm not going to point them all out, but they are quite a lot. This one was a little disappointing.
6.If you ever meet a girl named Maisie Mae... - glad I managed to finish the previous story and get to this one. It was a little too short, but very exciting. The first thing that came to mind after finishing it was the movie Grudge. :)
7.Eat your heart out Lorena - this was disturbing and disgusting (well, similar with the previous ones), but in a bad way. It was also not that interesting and kind of unoriginal. It reminded me of that story:
8.Banana Boxes - haha, this was a fun read. I kind of expected that ending, but I also loved the presentation. A spider running for his life.
9.Brian of the Night - short and unsatisfying; plus it had quite a few awkward formed phrases.
10.The Skeleton Tree - this is probably my favorite story from this collection along with "Top of the Heap". Less haunting and more predictable it still held an amazing idea. At the beginning of the story I was sure they were going to get haunted by the skeleton or something. Anyway, it just shows that camping near a skeleton is never a good idea XD.
11.The Chicken in the Black - this story is probably my least favorite from the bunch. Not only do I not find zombie chickens scary, but the entire atmosphere surounding our characters is not creepy at all. Also, I understand that Thomas doesn't know english, but what excuse does Aves have? There were a lot of mistakes in this story that contributed to the all 'not very enjoyable' part.
12.Colder than Hell up here... - no, no, no... just no. I didn't like the idea and the story itself was rather uneventful.
13.Fallen - this was a sweet short story, more on the sentimental part than on the supernatural/horror one.
After reading all these short stories I reached a conclusion. Nathan is a good horror writer, but less so when it comes to the psychological part of the story. Sometimes he develops his characters and their torments/tormentors well and sometimes the amount of description just lets you feel bored and uninterested. I'm not sure the order in which these stories were written, but some of them are really good.
A clear idea you can get from all of them is that the author is a convinced familist. A surprising thing to notice in a bunch of horror stories, but yes, it was there. I find it sweet. :)
All in all, this book is definitely worth reading; for some stories more than others.
August 17, 2013
Reviewed by Lee Ashford for Readers' Favorites.
“Devil Let Me Go” by Nathan Robinson is an exceptionally good collection of previously published short stories. Many of these fall into the “Horror” genre, but not all. The final story, for example, would more closely associate with Paranormal Romance, although not at all typical of that genre, either. This collection includes a dozen very well written stories. My personal favorite is called “In One Form or Another” and is fraught with terror and nail-biting suspense. However, it was not easy selecting just one “favorite” story.
Nathan Robinson brings considerable legitimate credentials to the table. He has been, and continues to be, engaged in the publishing business, with a long background of writing, editing and proof reading. The stories included in “Devil Let Me Go” demonstrate his talent quite concisely. In fact, the stories in this book exhibit not only his talent, but his versatility as well. No two stories in “Devil Let Me Go” are at all similar. This is a collection showcasing Robinson’s genius in a multitude of themes.
“Devil Let Me Go” was actually a very pleasant surprise, if I may call “horror” pleasant! The title had me expecting something very much different from what I got, and I most definitely was not disappointed. Even the choice of words used in his stories display Robinson’s high level of intelligence, which in turn is illustrated by his ability to create some very moving and poignant tales.
If you enjoy Horror, Paranormal, Supernatural, spooky old houses, strange poisonous spiders, dead bodies raining down from on high, and so on, you will search long and hard before you find a more suitable selection than this collection by Nathan Robinson. I enthusiastically recommend “Devil Let Me Go”.
“Devil Let Me Go” by Nathan Robinson is an exceptionally good collection of previously published short stories. Many of these fall into the “Horror” genre, but not all. The final story, for example, would more closely associate with Paranormal Romance, although not at all typical of that genre, either. This collection includes a dozen very well written stories. My personal favorite is called “In One Form or Another” and is fraught with terror and nail-biting suspense. However, it was not easy selecting just one “favorite” story.
Nathan Robinson brings considerable legitimate credentials to the table. He has been, and continues to be, engaged in the publishing business, with a long background of writing, editing and proof reading. The stories included in “Devil Let Me Go” demonstrate his talent quite concisely. In fact, the stories in this book exhibit not only his talent, but his versatility as well. No two stories in “Devil Let Me Go” are at all similar. This is a collection showcasing Robinson’s genius in a multitude of themes.
“Devil Let Me Go” was actually a very pleasant surprise, if I may call “horror” pleasant! The title had me expecting something very much different from what I got, and I most definitely was not disappointed. Even the choice of words used in his stories display Robinson’s high level of intelligence, which in turn is illustrated by his ability to create some very moving and poignant tales.
If you enjoy Horror, Paranormal, Supernatural, spooky old houses, strange poisonous spiders, dead bodies raining down from on high, and so on, you will search long and hard before you find a more suitable selection than this collection by Nathan Robinson. I enthusiastically recommend “Devil Let Me Go”.
August 8, 2013
I enjoyed this book of short horror stories, it was good to have them all together in on book. I've read some of them on the spinetingler web site, but most I read here for the first time. The first in the book, The House that Creak'd started things of great. It had plague and the end of the world and ghosties, lots of them. The only guy left was being haunted and things didn't go ok for him or didn't seem that way at first. Ghosts scare me so I had to read this in the day, but it really was creepy. The rest of the book was just as good, very well written with characters that you liked.
Another really good one was If You Ever meet a girl named Maisie Mae, don't pick on seemingly young girls. Chicken in Black was a stand out story as well. Set in a chicken factory were an accident with some additives goes horribly wrong. A case of the chickens getting some payback on the factory workers.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a bit of a scare, with lots of different things from ghosts to spiders and monsters.
Another really good one was If You Ever meet a girl named Maisie Mae, don't pick on seemingly young girls. Chicken in Black was a stand out story as well. Set in a chicken factory were an accident with some additives goes horribly wrong. A case of the chickens getting some payback on the factory workers.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a bit of a scare, with lots of different things from ghosts to spiders and monsters.
August 19, 2013
This set of 13 tales of terror is just the thing to showcase the talent of Nathan Robinson. There is variety a plenty from The House That Creak'd (Charles Broome is the last man alive on Earth but someone or something is haunting him), through Top of the Heap (don't cross the boss), If You Ever Meet A Girl Named Maisie Mae (Creepy but very relevent to this day and age) to Eat Your Heart Out Lorena (This set my teeth on edge and brought tears to my eyes) and eight other tales that take you to Fallen (is there such a thing as "feel good horror").
Really, not a bad tale among them
Really, not a bad tale among them
March 4, 2015
Dear Nathan,
I have to apologize for reeeally taking my time to write the review.
It turned out, believe it or not, that I'm not into horror stories after all)))
Despite that fact I did read yours and found them goosebumpy enough to recommend to those who truly enjoy this genre! :)
Best of luck with your writing and thank you for the endearing correspondence!
I have to apologize for reeeally taking my time to write the review.
It turned out, believe it or not, that I'm not into horror stories after all)))
Despite that fact I did read yours and found them goosebumpy enough to recommend to those who truly enjoy this genre! :)
Best of luck with your writing and thank you for the endearing correspondence!
February 12, 2018
Excellent collection of short stories from a brilliant writer. I read a review once from someone on amazon, who described the author as someone not struggling to find their voice, but someone who has it established already. I couldn't agree more; his pages ooze with definitive authorship, with drippings of dark humour along with the blood! Love this book!
November 18, 2016
A must read
Defiantly recommend this book to anyone reading Nathan Robinson for the first time . I was hooked more and more with each story I read. After reading this I knew I had to read more of his books. What an amazing and talented writer a thrill to read.
Defiantly recommend this book to anyone reading Nathan Robinson for the first time . I was hooked more and more with each story I read. After reading this I knew I had to read more of his books. What an amazing and talented writer a thrill to read.
December 4, 2013
3.5 stars.
Fun, fast short story collection. Lots of beasties and mayhem, sprinkled with some humor. My only criticism would be the lack of a common theme with the collection.
Fun, fast short story collection. Lots of beasties and mayhem, sprinkled with some humor. My only criticism would be the lack of a common theme with the collection.
November 25, 2013
I liked it. I liked it very much.
September 3, 2022
Like his first full-length novel, Devil Let Me Go is a collection of tales that is both unsettling and entertaining. Nathan Robinson dabbles all around the horror genre here, playing with a few different tropes, but making his mark on each of them. The stories are all based on simple scenarios, but defined by the clever way in which he uses his characters to exploit them. There were a few stories that didn't resonate with me as strongly as the others, but they all had their moments of 'magic' (so to speak).
The House that Creak’d opens things with post-apocalyptic tale that seems like madness for the longest time, before slowly revealing itself in a fantastic ending. Crack’d is another tale of disaster, but one that is defined by the madness of motherhood, as opposed to that of solitude.
Not That Way Home offers a major change of pace, with a remarkably tense tale that careens to an unexpected climax. Eat your Heart out Lorena is the darkest, most disturbing tale of the lot, and even if it's a bit predictable, I liked the execution. Banana Boxes was one of my favourites, an exceptionally well-narrated story with a great twist.
The Skeleton Tree is a great tale, one that takes a chilling image, confronts it, challenges it, and then runs away with the consequences. I didn't expect to like Colder than Hell up here, but it really grew on me. As for Fallen, it's the perfect tale on which to end things, the least chilling but the most emotional of all the stories here, and a solid slip sideways to flirt with the paranormal romance genre.
All-in-all, a solid collection. Not as much fun as Starers, but it's nice to see that Robinson isn't a one-trick novelty act. If you're looking for an introduction to his work, it's a great place to start, and if you're already a fan, then you'll find plenty here to enjoy.
Originally reviewed at Beauty in Ruins
The House that Creak’d opens things with post-apocalyptic tale that seems like madness for the longest time, before slowly revealing itself in a fantastic ending. Crack’d is another tale of disaster, but one that is defined by the madness of motherhood, as opposed to that of solitude.
Not That Way Home offers a major change of pace, with a remarkably tense tale that careens to an unexpected climax. Eat your Heart out Lorena is the darkest, most disturbing tale of the lot, and even if it's a bit predictable, I liked the execution. Banana Boxes was one of my favourites, an exceptionally well-narrated story with a great twist.
The Skeleton Tree is a great tale, one that takes a chilling image, confronts it, challenges it, and then runs away with the consequences. I didn't expect to like Colder than Hell up here, but it really grew on me. As for Fallen, it's the perfect tale on which to end things, the least chilling but the most emotional of all the stories here, and a solid slip sideways to flirt with the paranormal romance genre.
All-in-all, a solid collection. Not as much fun as Starers, but it's nice to see that Robinson isn't a one-trick novelty act. If you're looking for an introduction to his work, it's a great place to start, and if you're already a fan, then you'll find plenty here to enjoy.
Originally reviewed at Beauty in Ruins
March 14, 2022
2.5/3 can't decide!
I got a signed copy of this back when I met Nathan in 2016 and only just got around to reading it.
The imagination behind these stories was great but I felt like some bits were overwritten and there were some grammatical/ spelling mistakes too. There were a lot of gross comments about women too which I didn't like.
The stories that stood out to me were: the house that creaked, top of the heap, crack'd, not that way home, in one form or another, and fallen.
I got a signed copy of this back when I met Nathan in 2016 and only just got around to reading it.
The imagination behind these stories was great but I felt like some bits were overwritten and there were some grammatical/ spelling mistakes too. There were a lot of gross comments about women too which I didn't like.
The stories that stood out to me were: the house that creaked, top of the heap, crack'd, not that way home, in one form or another, and fallen.
January 28, 2023
Not good at all. Short stories and not 1 made sense!!!
January 14, 2021
I have read this book multiple times since I first purchased it years ago - even choosing one of the stories to be a reflection piece for my English Language coursework at A-Level. It is a sweet anthology - using many affordances and conventions of the horror genre to truly engage and entice you as you read.
My largest critics of the book would primarily be the sometimes predictable story elements used, with some of the 'twists' being more expected than perhaps sometimes is intended. However, most of the characters are believable, interesting and engaging - and I found myself enjoying each story. I'm merely giving it 4 stars because I am someone who's the main genre of interest is horror, so my perceptions of horror may differ at times to mainstream or occasional-horror fans.
However, it is still worth a read, for even a well-read horror aficionado. I haven't read any other of Robinson's books as of yet, but I intend to when I have finished my current long list of books I have bought to read at Christmas time. He is clearly a talented writer and one that shouldn't be looked down upon in the horror-sphere.
My largest critics of the book would primarily be the sometimes predictable story elements used, with some of the 'twists' being more expected than perhaps sometimes is intended. However, most of the characters are believable, interesting and engaging - and I found myself enjoying each story. I'm merely giving it 4 stars because I am someone who's the main genre of interest is horror, so my perceptions of horror may differ at times to mainstream or occasional-horror fans.
However, it is still worth a read, for even a well-read horror aficionado. I haven't read any other of Robinson's books as of yet, but I intend to when I have finished my current long list of books I have bought to read at Christmas time. He is clearly a talented writer and one that shouldn't be looked down upon in the horror-sphere.
July 29, 2014
I tend to believe that any anthology of works from a single author should make a point of attempting to capture a wide range of styles, atmospheres and subject matter. This provides the reader with a large spread of the author’s capabilities for them to enjoy. Nathan Robinson has crafted a genuinely impressive showcase of his work in the highly polished anthology “”Devil Let Me Go”
The variety of stories he includes for our consideration here is impressive, rarely settling on any one primary strength of his abilities. We are instead served a particularly gruesome platter, all of which are linked with the pertinent theme of exploring just how far the depths of human nature will drive us when we are pushed past our comfort zones.
Every reader will find a different story that will grip them as being the most impressive and most enthralling for them. Personally I believe that the highest points in this collection are (almost ironically) “”Top of the Heap”, which is a powerful psychological chiller which throws a particularly troubled, mentally scarred character into the very bottom of a pit – both in a literal and figurative sense – and demands that he claw his way towards redemption. Another of my personal choices in this collection is the deceptively simple-titled “Not That Way Home” and “The Skeleton Tree”, both of which manage to capture a sense of realism and style that draws the reader in and convinces us of their sincerity. Especially for “The Skeleton Tree”, which feels very much like a particularly memorable urban legend. The book concludes with the strongly stylistic “Fallen”, which is a tale so memorable in its closing lines that it is as sure to linger in your mind with all the strength of the taste of dirt and sweat from “Top of the Heap”.
Of course, these four are simply my own personal favourites, and each reader is bound to find something utterly unique and personal to themselves. In terms of production, Robinson delivers his work with a real flair, capturing both an innate understanding of pacing to keep the stories charging along at break-neck speed, and a careful eye to picking just the right words to bring the emotion he wants to life. When Robinson infuses a story with comedy, it is always to the twistedly grotesque, bringing to mind the classic “League of Gentlemen” sketches.
If you are looking for a strong and vibrant collection of highly varied and powerful tales, I cannot recommend “Devil Let Me Go” highly enough.
The variety of stories he includes for our consideration here is impressive, rarely settling on any one primary strength of his abilities. We are instead served a particularly gruesome platter, all of which are linked with the pertinent theme of exploring just how far the depths of human nature will drive us when we are pushed past our comfort zones.
Every reader will find a different story that will grip them as being the most impressive and most enthralling for them. Personally I believe that the highest points in this collection are (almost ironically) “”Top of the Heap”, which is a powerful psychological chiller which throws a particularly troubled, mentally scarred character into the very bottom of a pit – both in a literal and figurative sense – and demands that he claw his way towards redemption. Another of my personal choices in this collection is the deceptively simple-titled “Not That Way Home” and “The Skeleton Tree”, both of which manage to capture a sense of realism and style that draws the reader in and convinces us of their sincerity. Especially for “The Skeleton Tree”, which feels very much like a particularly memorable urban legend. The book concludes with the strongly stylistic “Fallen”, which is a tale so memorable in its closing lines that it is as sure to linger in your mind with all the strength of the taste of dirt and sweat from “Top of the Heap”.
Of course, these four are simply my own personal favourites, and each reader is bound to find something utterly unique and personal to themselves. In terms of production, Robinson delivers his work with a real flair, capturing both an innate understanding of pacing to keep the stories charging along at break-neck speed, and a careful eye to picking just the right words to bring the emotion he wants to life. When Robinson infuses a story with comedy, it is always to the twistedly grotesque, bringing to mind the classic “League of Gentlemen” sketches.
If you are looking for a strong and vibrant collection of highly varied and powerful tales, I cannot recommend “Devil Let Me Go” highly enough.
November 16, 2015
I don't usually read short stories, I must admit, but due to time constraints I found this book great to grab and read when I had a spare 10 minutes here and there. I have to say I really enjoyed it.
Without going back to look through the book, I forget the names of some of the stories off the top of my head. The one with the man who had recently retired from a well paid job and moved into a new house with his wife and son...that one really gripped me. What happens that night with their son is dark and tragic, and the events of the next few days is both depressing and gory all rolled into one.
Another one that really stayed with me was the Mexican crime-boss-lackey one. The ending hit me right in the stomach.
Thoroughly enjoyed the Maisie-Mae one. Karma biting back, and all that.
Obviously you'd have to read them to know what I'm referring to, and I'm not going to give the plots away, but I do thoroughly recommend it. I liked some more than others, but all are worth a read. From looking at the comments of other reviewers, it seems that people have differing opinions on their favourites. That's pretty much the thing with this book - all the stories are good, it's all a matter of personal preference as to which you like the best.
If you enjoy reading horror, or even if you don't normally go for that sort of thing but fancy a change, buy it, read it, you won't be disappointed.
Without going back to look through the book, I forget the names of some of the stories off the top of my head. The one with the man who had recently retired from a well paid job and moved into a new house with his wife and son...that one really gripped me. What happens that night with their son is dark and tragic, and the events of the next few days is both depressing and gory all rolled into one.
Another one that really stayed with me was the Mexican crime-boss-lackey one. The ending hit me right in the stomach.
Thoroughly enjoyed the Maisie-Mae one. Karma biting back, and all that.
Obviously you'd have to read them to know what I'm referring to, and I'm not going to give the plots away, but I do thoroughly recommend it. I liked some more than others, but all are worth a read. From looking at the comments of other reviewers, it seems that people have differing opinions on their favourites. That's pretty much the thing with this book - all the stories are good, it's all a matter of personal preference as to which you like the best.
If you enjoy reading horror, or even if you don't normally go for that sort of thing but fancy a change, buy it, read it, you won't be disappointed.
September 2, 2013
I liked the stories included in this collection, they are all fine selections. Quite a showcase of imagination.
But there's a lot of speed bumps, grammatical errors and stumble speak which take the reader out of the story. For example, In One Form or Another: "She didn't felt like she couldn't cry anymore." Yeah, see, one reads a line like that and it's all over, the bubble has been popped. The ether has cooled, and it feels like something has been missed.
But there's a lot of speed bumps, grammatical errors and stumble speak which take the reader out of the story. For example, In One Form or Another: "She didn't felt like she couldn't cry anymore." Yeah, see, one reads a line like that and it's all over, the bubble has been popped. The ether has cooled, and it feels like something has been missed.
October 29, 2013
I HEAR THIS BOOK HAS POTENTIAL, I'LL MAKE MY REVIEW AS SOON AS I READ IT. I'M CURIOUS TO FIND OUT HOW THIS IS INTERPRETED. MOST PEOPLE LIKE MYSELF USE REAL LIFE SITUATIONS. FOR \EXAMPLE MY NIGHTMARES WERE SO HORRIFIC, I COULD STILL SMELL HELL AND FEEL THE ICE/HEAT FROM BELOW, THE STENCH IS SOMETHING UNFORGETTABLE. LET'S SEE HOW REAL THIS BOOK FEELS.
December 21, 2015
A collection of short stories that are as varied as they are twisted.
April 4, 2014
Great imagination. Terrible writing.
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