With his new chilling novel Deity, Matt Wesolowski continues to skilfully stake his place in the crime fiction genre. Weaving his compelling trademark of mythical folklore with his unique podcast style (which I love) alongside the power of celebrity and the #MeToo movement, Deity captured my imagination in an eerie way. It is a sinister read full of subtle twists that had me guessing all the way through.
Already released as an ebook and published in paperback on 18 February, Deity is the latest novel in the topical horror series Six Stories. It’s also a captivating story that if you wanted to, you could race through in a day.
Deity is the story of Zach Crystal, the biggest pop star on earth. With sinister rumours of sexual abuse surrounding him, Zach has become a polarising celebrity figure; and since his recent death in a mysterious fire, the bitter divide between his accusers and his fans has surged.
In life Zach was an enigmatic figure who many adored, not only for his music but also for his endless charity work and his own personal ‘rags to riches’ story. Yet others viewed him as predator, preying on young, vulnerable teenage girls. Since his death, his enigmatic status has just grown and grown.
That’s when online journalist Scott King decides to investigate the accusations and mystery surrounding the megastar as part of his ‘Six Stories’ podcast which has become an internet sensation.
Like the previous novels in the unique crime series, Deity is structured as six podcast episodes involving separate stories, interviews and recordings all linked to Zach and the dark mystery surrounding him. As Scott digs deeper and unearths more disturbing questions, he states in his podcast:
we’ve been sifting through the remains of the enigma that was Zach Crystal – his bizarre life, his suspicious death and the allegations of abuse. This has been, so far, the most trying case I’ve ever covered.
With chilling stories seeped in ancient highland folklore including whispering woods, a ‘dead eyed’ creature called a Frithghast and rumours of cannibalism, Deity is a very unsettling but gripping read.
Deity is the fifth book in the Six Stories bestselling series. I have read the others and have also reviewed and loved Changeling and Beast, the previous two books in the series. However I really believe Deity also works well as a standalone novel if you have not read the others yet.
Thank you Anne Cater from Random Things Tours for inviting me to be part of the Deity blog tour, another gripping read from Matt Wesolowski. To follow the book reviews from my fellow bloggers also on the tour, please see below.
My rating:
Huge thanks for the blog tour support Kirsty x