The Devil in Silver
A Novel
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3.7 • 75 Ratings
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- $5.99
Publisher Description
SOON TO BE AN AMC+ LIMITED SERIES • New Hyde Hospital’s psychiatric ward has a new resident. It also has a very, very old one.
“A dizzying high-wire act.”—The Washington Post
“Fantastical, hellish, and hilarious.”—Los Angeles Times
“By turns horrifying, suspenseful, and comic.”—The Boston Globe
ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, Publishers Weekly
Pepper is the surprised inmate of a mental institution in Queens, New York. In the darkness of his room, on his first night, a terrifying creature with the body of an old man and the head of a bison nearly kills him before being hustled away by the hospital staff. It’s no delusion: The other patients confirm that a devil roams the hallways when the sun goes down. Pepper rallies three other inmates in a plot to kill the monster that’s stalking them. But can the Devil die?
The Devil in Silver is a thrillingly suspenseful literary work about friendship, love, and the courage to slay our own demons.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
This searing novel presents a distinctive take on the trials of mental health patients in the United States. After an altercation with the cops, boisterous but good-natured Pepper is brought into a psychiatric ward for holding, where he (like all the other patients) is routinely drugged into a stupor that saps his will to leave. Author Victor LaValle, who told Apple Books about his real-life experiences visiting family members in psych wards, paints a disturbing and realistic portrait of our mental healthcare system—it’s not that the staff is evil, but that corporate profit margins don’t allow for adequate funding. Of course, this being LaValle, he also weaves in fantastical elements, building on the myth of the Minotaur. We loved his characters as well, especially Pepper’s OCD-troubled roommate and friend, Coffee. This heartfelt, sometimes-brutal story will keep you hanging on every word.
Customer Reviews
Modern Horror in a Psychiatric Ward
Victor LaValle spins a tale of horror that may or may not have supernatural components. Pepper is a big guy that accidentally gets in a tussle with three cops. This mistake lands him in the New Hyde Psychiatric Ward for evaluation. The days turn into weeks and months.
While he is a guest of this institution, he becomes familiar with a colorful cast of characters who are also patients or staff. These people are scary, silly, or tragic enough, but New Hyde has a darker secret. There is a Devil that stalks its halls at night. This monster harms or kills patients when no one is around to help them. Pepper and the other patients will either live in fear of this Devil, or face their fears and confront this monster.
Victor LaValle is known for his other works of horror, including the Lovecraftian novella “Ballad of Black Tom.” “The Devil in Silver” is an gripping story, which puts the reader into an all too believable situation that could be set in nearly any mental hospital in America.
Page Turner!
I couldn't put the book down from the moment I read the 1st page. It had a lot of great moments which lead me to reflect on my own life. It's a must read!