Books › My Soul to Keep
My Soul to Keep
First published 1997 · 346 pages
A masterclass in creeping dread that transforms the ultimate romantic promise into a claustrophobic nightmare.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like sitting in a warm, sunlit room while the temperature slowly, imperceptibly drops until you can see your own breath. It masterfully blends the intimate, grounded textures of a contemporary marriage with the sweeping, blood-soaked weight of ancient mythology. The narrative pulls you in with the allure of a perfect romance, only to tighten the screws of suspense as domestic bliss curdles into claustrophobic terror. The prose is deeply empathetic, making the creeping paranoia and ultimate desperation feel viscerally real. It is a propulsive, dread-soaked experience that asks horrifying questions about the cost of eternal life and the monstrous lengths to which love will go. This is a must-read for anyone who loves their supernatural horror rooted in devastating emotional stakes.
- Mood
- dread-soaked
- claustrophobic
- uncanny
- tense
- Tone
- foreboding
- intimate
- chilling
- urgent
- Pace
- propulsive
- Themes
- monstrous love · domestic betrayal · the burden of immortality · gaslighting and control · grief and mortality
- The writing
- Grounded and deeply empathetic, anchoring supernatural terror in the recognizable rhythms of everyday domestic life.
- The arc
- Begins in the warm safety of a perfect marriage and slowly unravels into a frantic, terrifying fight for survival and sanity.
- Who it's for
- Fans of domestic thrillers and supernatural horror who crave rich mythology paired with the creeping dread of realizing you don't know the person sleeping next to you.
Content notes
- murder
- child endangerment
- gaslighting
- grief
- violence
About the book
When Jessica marries David, he is everything she wants in a family man: brilliant, attentive, ever youthful. Yet she still feels something about him is just out of reach. Soon, as people close to Jessica begin to meet violent, mysterious deaths, David makes an unimaginable confession: More than 400 years ago, he and other members of an Ethiopian sect traded their humanity so they would never die, a secret he must protect at any cost. Now, his immortal brethren have decided David must return and leave his family in Miami. Instead, David vows to invoke a forbidden ritual to keep Jessica and his daughter with him forever.
Harrowing, engrossing and skillfully rendered, My Soul to Keep traps Jessica between the desperation of immortals who want to rob her of her life and a husband who wants to rob her of her soul. With deft plotting and an unforgettable climax, this tour de force reminiscent of early Anne Rice will win Due a new legion of fans.
Description from Open Library.
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