Southern Gods [Paperback]

John Hornor Jacobs (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 26, 2011

Nominated for the Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a First Novel

Recent World War II veteran Bull Ingram is working as muscle when a Memphis DJ hires him to find Ramblin' John Hastur. The mysterious blues man's dark, driving music - broadcast at ever-shifting frequencies by a phantom radio station - is said to make living men insane and dead men rise. Disturbed and enraged by the bootleg recording the DJ plays for him, Ingram follows Hastur's trail into the strange, uncivilized backwoods of Arkansas, where he hears rumors the musician has sold his soul to the Devil. But as Ingram closes in on Hastur and those who have crossed his path, he'll learn there are forces much more malevolent than the Devil and reckonings more painful than Hell... In a masterful debut of Lovecraftian horror and Southern gothic menace, John Hornor Jacobs reveals the fragility of free will, the dangerous power of sacrifice, and the insidious strength of blood.

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"A sumptuous Southern Gothic thriller steeped in the distinct American mythologies of Cthulhu and the blues . . . Southern Gods beautifully probes the eerie, horror-infested underbelly of the South." - The Onion AV on Southern Gods

"A brilliant, smartly-written horror-noir novel, and one of those ideas that every writer worth their salt will say 'Damn! Why didn't I think to do that first?'" - Brian Keene, Bram Stoker Award winning author of The Rising and City of the Dead

"A bit of HP Lovecraft, a touch of William Hjortsberg, Southern Gods is an effective combination of cosmic horror and southern Gothic traditions. John Hornor Jacobs will turn heads with this debut."
--Laird Barron, Shirley Jackson Award-winning author of The Imago Sequence and Occultation

"In SOUTHERN GODS, John Hornor Jacobs turns the classic blues horror story of the devil at the crossroads into a true Lovecraftian nightmare. Steeped in Southern Gothic - and not for the faint of heart! - this is a bold and mighty debut written with breathtaking assurance. Powerful, horrific and beautiful, Southern Gods is a revelation and Jacobs is an author to shout about. Both deserve to go very far indeed." -- Adam Christopher, author of Empire State (Angry Robot, January 2012)

"John Hornor Jacobs' fantastic debut novel, SOUTHERN GODS, is both terrifying and beautiful.  His eye for detail and compelling characters makes this one you'll remember long after you've finished it." - Stephen Blackmoore, author City of the Lost (DAW Books 2012)

"Compulsively readable and definitely memorable, Southern Gods will ensure that you'll never hear radio interference quite the same way again."  -- 5-time Bram Stoker Award-winner Gary A. Braunbeck, author of Coffin County and Far Dark Fields

"Great Yuggoth, what a great debut novel! With a sure hand for intriguing characters and deft plotting, John Hornor Jacobs establishes himself as an author to heed. The prologue to this exceptional novel is one of the most terrifying things I have ever shivered through. It will kiss your paltry soul with fear. With superbly handled echoes of Chambers and Lovecraft, we encounter the mystery of that Tattered Man, Ramblin' John Hastur, who escorts us to the arcane secrets beyond the sun, beyond the stars, beyond that long black veil!" -W. H. Pugmire, author of The Tangled Muse

"John Hornor Jacobs.  Remember the name, because if there's any justice in the universe, he's going to be a big deal one day soon.  John's prose is by turns lyrical and tough-as-nails.  He effortlessly conjures an eerie southern landscape that will surely haunt the dreams of anyone who reads Southern Gods." --Bryan Smith, Author of Darkened and House of Blood

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

John Hornor Jacobs has worked in advertising for the last fifteen years, played in bands, and pursued art in various forms. He is the cofounder of Needle: A Magazine of Noir. He is also, in his copious spare time, a novelist, represented by Stacia Decker of the Donald Maass Literary Agency. His first novel, SOUTHERN GODS, was published by Night Shade Books and released nationally in August, 2011. THIS DARK EARTH will be published in July 2012 by Gallery/Simon & Schuster. The INCARCERADO TRILOGY, comprised of THE TWELVE FINGERED BOY, INCARCERADO, and THE END OF ALL THINGS will be published by Carolrhoda Labs in 2013, 2014, 2015 respectively.

Product Details

• Paperback: 300 pages
• Publisher: Night Shade Books (July 26, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1597802859
• ISBN-13: 978-1597802857
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.9 x 8.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (69 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #341,366 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

John Hornor Jacobs is the author of SOUTHERN GODS, was published by Night Shade Books and shortlisted for the Bram Stoker Award. His second novel, THIS DARK EARTH, was published in July, 2012, by Gallery/Pocket Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. His young adult series, comprised of THE TWELVE-FINGERED BOY, THE SHIBBOLETH, and THE CONFORMITY, will be published by Carolrhoda Lab, an imprint of Lerner Publishing.

His first fantasy series, beginning with THE INCORRUPTIBLES, will be published in Spring 2014 by Gollancz in the UK.

John is the co-founder of Needle: A Magazine of Noir and was the active creative director until fall 2012. He has a quartet of horror stories, FIERCE AS THE GRAVE, available through Amazon.com. He lives with his family in Arkansas, where he is also a musician and graphic artist. Visit him at www.johnhornorjacobs.com.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 34 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Go Down to the Crossroads with this outstanding debut novel July 27, 2011

By Kent Gowran

Format:Paperback

I'll tell you something: When I pick up a first novel, no matter who the author is, I expect to encounter a fair share of hiccups throughout the book. It's a first novel, there a bound to be some rough spots. And that's a fine and natural thing. But here, with SOUTHERN GODS, the fist thing I took note of was that John Hornor Jacobs writes with an assured and compelling voice throughout.

The prologue of this novel is as fine a piece of horror literature as any I've had the pleasure of reading. And when Jacobs moves us into the Arkansas of 1951, you know he's got it down cold. Ramblin' John Hastur is an engrossing character, Bull Ingram is a likable guy, all the characters are rich and alive in the pages, and I'll take odds that once you start turning the pages of this novel you won't want to stop. There are some nods to H.P. Lovecraft, but it's all filtered through a solid Southern Gothic lens and reads like nothing else I've read before.

Even if horror isn't your thing, you pick up this book, you'll be hooked, because Jacobs can flat out write. A true pleasure to read, this a book that has earned itself a permanent place on my shelf.

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Terrific Debut Novel! July 21, 2011

By Ed Kurtz

Format:Paperback

First things first: SOUTHERN GODS is a terrific novel. It is Southern Gothic, noir crime thriller and intense Lovecraftian terror rolled into one marvelous story of bad blood, demons both personal and real, and hard-earned redemption. And Jacobs writes with such a sure hand you'd swear he'd sold his soul to the devil just like the folks in 1951 rural Arkansas whisper about Ramblin' John Hastur in the novel. Of course, Ramblin' John's story is a great deal more complex--and more sinister--than that, but I have no intention of ruining the ride you have ahead of you. I'll just say this: if William Faulkner, Jim Thompson and H.P. Lovecraft had an orgiastic blood sacrifice ritual to honor the Old Ones in the Delta Swampland at the height of the muggy Deep South summer at midnight, Southern Gods would probably be the result. Yeah, it's that good.

I don't see writing this tight too often, and the mounting tension is so expertly paced that I found myself breathlessly turning the pages. The denouement smashed me in the face with breakneck madness and terror that included a rare element lacking in a lot of horror fiction--heart. Jacobs' characters are extremely rich, and their journey to the incredible close of Southern Gods all but left me gasping for air. This is the sort of book you just silently hold in your hands for a while after finishing it, thinking it over and basking in its masterfulness. That's what I did, anyway.

Highly recommended.

15 of 18 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Now I Get It August 8, 2011

By Steve Weddle

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Alright, I don't know Cthulu from Gesundheit so all of this "Lovecraft-infused Faulkner" talk about this novel just breezed right by me.

After the ghost/horror story prologue, the book moves like a well crafted PI novel -- the search for the missing person. Of course, like all good PI search books before it, the searcher ends up unraveling more than he'd bargained for and turns to a new search.

What's magnificent about this particular novel is the way it stays true to this form, then expands and deepens the narrative, bringing in a creation narrative that feels both fresh and ancient.

As World War II veteran Bull Ingram searches for the mysterious Ramblin' John Hastur, he's pulled into a world of southern gothic horrors stretching back generations, weaving in characters' narratives like threads in an heirloom quilt.

This is a book you'll recommend immediately and then remember on dark nights for the rest of your life.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars A Promising Debut January 3, 2012

By eShu

Format:Paperback

"Southern Gods" is an intriguing take on the Lovecraft Mythos. Here, author John Hornor Jacobs takes those Eldrich horrors from 1920's New England and transplants them to the blues soaked South of the '50s.

In his debut, Jacobs does a fairly good job creating that typical "Lovecraftian" sense of dread that he skillfully enables the readers to experience along side his characters. The premise has promise; music from an enigmatic Bluesman named "Ramblin' John Hastur" (a name that should be familiar to all Lovecraft devotees) randomly turns up on the airwaves and leaves nothing but chaos and terror in its wake.

The central mystery of just who...or what Ramblin' John is kept me hungrily devouring this novel. However, the Big Reveal left me gagging.

I'm not going to give it away, but I felt an opportunity was missed here. This was a chance to marry the Cthulhu Myth to the Crossroads Myth and take a truly American horror legend to the next level.

Instead, the sense of dread gives way to a sense of Deja Vu as Jacobs falls back on a lazy resolution. This was disappointing since he initially introduces some very fresh characters and concepts. By the end though, you're left with weak dialogue and cliche characters (the wizened master who knows more than he should, the life long loner who suddenly finds his compassion at the last minute, etc...)

I don't know if Jacobs simply lost direction or if he was forced to "rework" the ending at the urging of his publisher. But the last quarter of the book almost seemed (as noted by another reviewer) as if it had been written by a different author.

Still, the story was entertaining and the writing (aside from some circular and clunky phrasing) shows tremendous potential.