Thanks to NetGalley and Caledon Books for this read. It was very well wittten and I really enjoyed the read. I posted my review late but I did really like this book.

3.5 stars rounded up.

Devil is Fine is a book about a biracial professor and author who is experiencing an identity crisis. He is divorced, grieving the loss of his teenage son, and has written a book that is getting tepid feedback from publishing houses, which is jeopardizing his teaching job. When he learns that he has inherited a piece of southern property from a family member, he goes on a road trip to visit it, later discovering the land was a slave plantation.

The writing style was challenging for me as it was a stream of consciousness prose in which the MC was talking to his deceased son as he processed the events in his current life. Despite this, I appreciated the author broaching and highlighting difficult and important topics such as grief, alcohol abuse/addiction, racial identity, and the nation's sordid past with regard to slavery.

A beautifully written story about grief, racial identity and tentacles.
I loved this one! The dialog between the unnamed and his dead son is poignant and relatable. The prose throughout the book is imaginative and almost poetic. The added humor brings a little levity to what I consider to be a sobering read.
I highly recommend this one!

This one is out of my normal range of reads (fantasy, romance), but I’m glad I read it. After the sudden death of his son, our narrator learns that he has inherited a plot of land that was supposed to go to his son, handed down from his grandpa. Our narrator is biracial, and this inheritance comes from the white side of the family and the land happens to be a former plantation.
This brings to light racial issues, given one— it’s a plantation, 2– he is a biracial man that now owns land where slaves once were and 3– issues that arise once they find out what is hidden on the land. The narrator is also a writer and the whole biracial man inheriting a plantation puts him in a spotlight, when really he just wants to work through his grief and sell the land (initially). There was also a paranormal element that was kind of hard to understand, with the ghost and the jellyfish, but I think it was intentionally not meant to be clear as the narrator didn’t quite understand himself what was happening.
Overall, it’s a great read and definitely worth veering from your normal path if this is out your normal lane too.

Thank you Celadon for the copy!

Happy to include this title in “Dive In,” a recent round-up highlighting a variety of summer reads, in the Books section of Canadian national culture and lifestyle magazine Zoomer. (see column and mini-review at link)

This book was so much more amazing than I ever could have expected! It's all narrated by the biracial narrator, I'm not sure we learn his name, and he's talking the whole time to his son. Narrating his own life, to his son, who has recently passed. We learn about their history and his son's death as the book goes on. Our narrator is a professor and author at a predominantly white college. He has some drama to deal with there, but he takes a break for the death of his son. During that time, he inherits land, that was supposed to go to his son, from his white grandfather. He travels there, and it's just a huge piece of vacant land, which he decides to sell. He stops at his short-term rental place, which is over a little bar. The bar owner, happens to be a realtor and agrees to help him sell his land. Well, there is an issue that they discover and it derails everything. This book deals with so many things, grief, racism, discrimination, alcoholism, everything we deal with every day. There's even some magic and ghosts thrown in. It's really a great read!

Thank you Netgalley and Celadon Books for the ARC!

This book is doing a lot! A lot of it is done well and the prose is impressive, but some elements feel underdeveloped.

The premise of this novel is what intrigued me. After the narrator’s son tragically passes away, the narrator inherits a plot of land from his grandfather that was initially left for his son. It is discovered that the plot of land is a former plantation, and the biracial narrator must grapple with the consequences of descending from slave-owners while also being a black man. This plot supports the narrator’s reckoning with his race, christianity, fatherhood, grief, relationships, career, and a lot more. The book is incredibly introspective and attempts to dissect competing identities that alter each person’s reality.
What I hadn’t expected was the various instances of magical realism. This was a really interesting part of the book, and it helped to emphasize the absurdity of the narrator’s life and his inability to process the present. While the magical realism is important to develop a sense of distortion, at some points it felt excessive and unnecessary to the plot.

I had trouble sympathizing with the narrator at points because he was a terrible father and never truly takes responsibility for his actions. In the end he realizes he used Christianity as a crutch and lacked a sense of genuine faith, which was interesting, but lacked acknowledgement of his parental defects. I do not read a book to agree with or like a narrator, however, for a book that is so reflective, I expected a more thorough examination of character.

Overall, this is a good book. It is complex and challenges the reader to think deeply about what it means to be a descendant and the responsibility we bear from our ancestors. Also, I did read the acknowledgment and thank you for the reviewer and bookstagrammer shoutout!

I really enjoyed Devil is Fine, though I don't quite know how to describe it - something I'll have to figure out for the shelf talker! At a high level it's an exploration of grief, identity, and generational trauma, but it's not at all straightforward ... and it's somehow devastating and hopeful at the same time. It reminded me of Julia Armfield's Our Wives Under the Sea in that it used magical realism to tackle grief, and it also made me think of Percival Everett's Erasure, particularly the narrator-as-conflicted-writer element.

I appreciated the magical elements - they were eerie, but totally fit the story - and I enjoyed Vercher's poetic and maximalist writing style, even though sometimes the alliteration felt overwrought. I also liked the dark humor - I didn't expect to find this book funny!

I've ordered Devil is Fine for the store and look forward to discussing it with customers. Thanks to NetGalley and Celadon Books for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

A book that opens with heartbreak isn't always easy to continue but this story takes your hand and does not let go. I could not put down this story of a father dealing with the loss of his son, his identity, his own shortcomings, and some disturbing history from his newly Inherited plantation.. Will definitely recommend because I can't wait to talk about this story!

I just finished Devil is Fine by John Vercher and here are my thoughts.


No father should ever have to bury their child. Not being able to process that death can be hard on anyone but when he received a letter from an attorney stating his grandfather had left a plot of land to the child he had just buried, the land now transferred ownership to him. Being a biracial man and estranged from his mothers white family, he is floored to find that the land used to be a plantation and the irony isn’t lost on anyone.

Firstly, I thought this was a horror. I did not read the synopsis and the title didn’t give much away. Not only is this not a horror but a magical realism book, it might be the most beautifully compelling read I have ever read. The book has no problems hitting you with as many complex issues as it could fit into one book but the author handled them with such gravitas that you will be left feeling like you went through a wood chipper but are so glad you did.

The book touches on things like addiction, grief and loss, it also brings up mental health struggles with not being able to fit in. The narrator is so unreliable but you come to understand that he isn’t reliable because he doesn’t trust himself which reflects back out to us in a very clever way.

I don’t read a lot of literary fiction because I always feel like the plot isn’t a priority but the characters are the focal point. This book didn’t do that. You can see clearly what the book is about, what it wants you to grasp and delivers you out the other end with a new perspective. I was blown away. I have never read a book like it. I found myself chuckling and breaking a little inside all the way through.

I definitely think you should give this book a go. You won’t be sorry.

4.5 stars.

Thank you to @celadonbooks and @netgalley for my gifted copy

This was a really interesting take on grief and generational trauma in terms of race and the effects it has on current and future generations. A man walks us through his journey of grief after losing his son, and the trauma he's feeling from the past.

This was funny, and real, and raw, and while it's not my main genre, I enjoyed the storytelling aspect of it. Race is still a huge issue in most of the country, and the lens through which this book is written gives a keen look into a generational trauma many of us never experience.

This was a beautiful and heartbreaking story! After the death of his son, the bi-racial narrator inherits land from the white side of his family. When bodies are found buried on his land, he learns that it was a plantation. Throughout the story, the narrator deals with his grief, his faith, and his identity as a black man and father. This book had many twists and turns, and the dual timeline added a lot of insight into his relationship with his son. This book was nothing like what I expected, but I really enjoyed it.

Thank you to John Vercher and Celadon for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 3.5 ⭐️ (rounded up to 4 stars)

Looking for a book that will snatch your beating heart right out of your chest and punt it the whole way across town? Devil is Fine is your book. It brought out all the emotions in me, I could feel our main character’s grief deep inside and kept hoping for a reprieve from his pain for him but I also found myself laughing at the dark humor intricately tucked in amongst the grief. The story is beautifully told and covers some incredibly tough subjects without trying to dance over them, and has imperfect, complex characters that feel so real and relatable which I appreciated. It will stay with me forever, I don’t think I’ll ever forget this story.

If you enjoyed Tiffany McDaniel’s Betty and Tananarive Due’s The Reformatory, Devil is Fine isn’t exactly like these, but definitely evokes all the emotions that those two novels did for me. Many, many thanks to Celadon for my eARC. Devil is Fine published earlier this month and I can’t express enough how much it will stick with me. 😭🖤

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the opportunity to read this book early. It was a very interesting story and I also received a physical copy that I will pass along.

Have you ever read a book that is just nothing like anything you’ve ever read before? That is what Devil is Fine was for me. This genre defying novel explores heavy topics through an unreliable narrator and insane magic realism. The prose is pure poetry, I stopped to re read several paragraphs because of how poignant they were.

If you are looking for a psychological horror that highlights racial disparities and mental health this is the book for you. For fans of Tiffany Jackson and Jordan Peele’s Get Out and Us.

I never stopped wondering what the hell was going on in this story and still loved every weird moment of it. Hands down one of my favorite books of the year, I will definitely be checking out John Vercher’s backlist and hope to see amazing things from him in the future.

"Devil Is Fine" by John Vercher is a Blend of Family and Literary Fiction with Touches of Magical Realism!

Our unnamed narrator is a biracial American author who leads us through this story speaking in his head to his recently deceased teenage son, Malcolm. He is ravaged with grief, resulting in debilitating panic attacks.

Days after the funeral, he receives a letter from an attorney concerning beachfront property Malcolm inherited from his estranged white maternal grandfather, Malcolm's great-grandfather. As his son's next of kin, this property now falls to him.

What begins as a quick trip south to view and sell the property, ends with unexpected news from an on-site inspection. Our unnamed narrator feels himself spinning in the aftermath of the tragic death of his only child and the shock of what is on this inherited land...

"Devil is Fine" is the first book I've read by this author and there is much to love about Vercher's beautiful writing, choice of sensitive topics, and flawed characters. This is one of the best books I've read this year and, at less than 300 pages and 9 hours, it's a perfect choice as an immersion read. The audiobook, magnificently narrated by Dion Graham and one of the best narrations I've experienced, was my preference, but either format will deliver a memorable read.

I felt compassion for our unnamed narrator who struggles with his biracial identity, his intense grief, and the bridges he's burned in his relationships. His spiral was hard to witness as he continued making poor choices, yet, I was mesmerized by the author's use of Magical Realism which left me questioning what was real, imagined, or mystical, and feeling much like the unnamed narrator felt.

If you enjoy a blend of Family and Literary Fiction with touches of Magical Realism that leave you wondering, "Devil is Fine" is a satisfying option I highly recommend!

5⭐

Thank you to Celadon Books, Macmillan Audio, and John Vercher for a DRC and an ALC of this book through NetGalley. It has been a pleasure to give my honest and voluntary review.

Devil is Fine is narrated by a biracial author and professor who is coming to terms with the death of his son. Soon he receives a letter from an attorney informing him that he has inherited a plot of land from his white grandfather, a place that he later learns was a plantation.

This book was so intricate and complex, with truly some of the best prose I've ever read. The story is all told through a one sided conversation the narrator is having with his late son, so it feels very intimate. It also alternates between past and present, giving you just enough of the back story that you can start to understand how complicated their relationship was when Malcolm as alive.

Throughout the book, the narrator starts to experience visions that might be completely in his head, or they could be ghosts. It's all very up to interpretation and I found myself wondering "wait, is this really happening?" a lot as I read.

This book is definitely heavy, but it has a lot of really great, dark humor sprinkled in.

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon for the ARC!

Okay this one really makes you think. I liked the gray, undecided take on reality that the narrator has. This book was emotionally touching and eye opening. Loved how it alternated between the past and the present. I felt like it dragged a little in the middle so I will take a star off. Otherwise, I liked reading this book!

Incredibly imaginative, heartfelt, weird and at times, darkly humorous. Meditations on grief and loss, fatherhood, race and identity. The magical realism pieces are wonderfully executed and the prose is beautiful. By the end, I wished for a deeper exploration on the plantation’s generational history and its relation to our narrator but overall, a remarkably compelling story.

The premise of the book was really interesting: the book opens with our biracial narrator burying his son and throughout the book we are flashing between present day and when his son was alive where we learn more about their relationship and how he died.

In present day, the father receives a letter telling him that he has inherited a plot of land from his grandfather on the white side of his family. He goes to the town where this land is and finds out that it was actually a former plantation. The narrator has very strange situations happening to him while he is in this town, he is dealing with some addiction issues and the narrative does some bobbing and weaving where sometimes as a reader you aren’t really sure what is real or not (and he doesn’t either). It can get a little trippy and there were moments where I found myself chuckling.

We do deal with some complex themes (grief, loss, mental health, addiction, faith), so I did find myself being sad and mad at times. The ending is definitely a thinker - I’m still not sure what happened.

If you like stream of consciousness type of writing, you would like the writing style of this book. There are really really long run-on sentences throughout the book that I’m only to assume are done on purpose to reflect some of the chaoticness of the narrator and would reflect how someone might talk to themselves in real life. Personally… while the writing was well done, I realize that this style is not my favorite style - I think I am naturally anxious and when I don’t get enough punctuation in paragraphs, I guess I get more anxious which is probably more of a me problem than the book.

Final star rating: 3.5 (rounded up to 4 since we can only do full stars on this platform).