The Demon's Lexicon

It took me from May to November to read this book. And not because it was such a long book–it’s one of the shorter books I have on my shelf. And yet, I kept putting it down because I got distracted by bright and shiny books. I even considered marking this as DNF a few times.

But here’s the thing: The Demon’s Lexicon is not a bad book, and it’s not boring. It’s just not compelling, by which I mean while I was reading, I enjoyed the story. But there was nothing driving me to continue on, nothing driving me to stay loyal to this book and see it through to the end. I did, eventually, as evidence by this review, but I think that lack of drive is worth noting.

As stated, I actually did quite enjoy the plot of The Demon’s Lexicon. Two brothers trying to save the older one, who has been marked by a magician for death, as well as trying to save another set of siblings from the same fate. There’s plenty of supernatural creatures, magicians, and weird things happening in this book. There’s quite a bit of mystery too. We get the feeling that Alan is hiding secrets, that the magicians have ulterior motives, and that something’s up with the demons(of course, right?) All things I loved.

It’s interesting that Nick is the central character. The book is in third person, but it’s definitely Nick’s story. We see exclusively inside his head alone, and it’s a weird and dark place there. He’s utterly unlikable, tends to think like a psychopath, and had me shaking my head often. Yet, his story is the one thing I found compelling from the beginning. His interactions with others, especially Alan, show so much that Nick himself seems unaware of, and it was quite a ride to go on the journey through the supernatural world with him.

I also thought the twist and reveal at the end was such a shock. If you’ve been around my blog for awhile, you know that I generally guess twist endings, and if I don’t get the ending right, that’s a rare occurrence and worth celebrating. HOORAY for twists I didn’t see! I really enjoyed the way it wrapped up too–I could see everything pushing forward towards that moment and it made me appreciate the rest of the book more.

One of my biggest issues with The Demon’s Lexicon was the writing. I found it clunky and jarring at times. And it may have been because most of the insights we get is inside Nick’s head, but I didn’t think that was quite a good enough reasons for some pretty chopping sentences that didn’t fit in with the tone of the rest of the book. It sounds like a minor complaint, but it was actually one of the reasons I kept putting this book down, so it drops quite a bit in my overall impression.

Final Impression: At times, I thought The Demon’s Lexicon was boring and clumsy. However, during certain parts it felt like the most exciting book I’ve ever read. I can’t say I loved it, but overall, did I enjoy it? You know, I really think I did, despite everything. Would I recommend it? Not necessarily. But I thought it was an entertaining enough story, despite some clumsy writing. I’ve heard the sequels are much better and I already own one, so I’ll be picking those up.

Reader reviewed by stephanie

The beginning half of the book was all exposition - setting up the plot, the characters, and getting used to Sarah's writing style. Unfortunately though, I thought it was a tad boring so I was happy when by the halfway point, I slowly started to see the whole story clearer and managed to get drawn in.

What I enjoyed reading about The Demon's Lexicon was the characters. Nick and his brother Alan were brothers who, personality-wise, were completely different. Alan was a kind, heartwarming dude who cared about others and put others before himself. And it was obvious how much he cared for Nick. Nick, on the other hand, was a ruthless and cold-blooded killer. He cared only for his brother and no one else. Not even his mother. And the reason he stuck with his mother, protecting her, was because of Alan. Both characters, though, didn't acquire any depth in their personalities until the second half of the plot was executed.

The plot was very intricate. Full of details, twists and turns, it can really leave a reader either breathless or confused. I loved the mystery of the whole thing and loved how I couldn't predict what was happening because I enjoy surprises. The ending was a complete shock to me. I never expected it and just thinking back on it, I never could've seen it coming.

Sarah's writing style was very unique. A master storyteller. She managed to lay out the intricate details, the imperfection of the characters, the mysterious plot into something that had life.

Overall, The Demon's Lexicon was surprising, a tad confusing, breathtaking with a hint of cruel and vicious humor.