Review: Dreamin' of My Demon
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 15, 2012
I have never been one for horror---especially not the slash-and-gore type. This is probably because I get squeamish at the sight of blood, and also if human limbs are lying strewn all over the place. (Not exactly the final glorious flourish to my dinner!)Yet, I do enjoy psychological horror---"Rosemary's Baby"; "The Omen"; "The Blair Witch Project"; "The Sixth Sense"---you get the picture. These type of movies tend to remain burned into my brain long after I have seen them. The books are even more effective. I remember reading the late Jay Anson's "The Amityville Horror" many years ago when I was a teenager. To this day, I categorically refuse to read it ever again---simply because Anson's writing style scared the bejeezus out of me, and was so incredibly vivid in its description of the numerous paranormal happenings that occurred within the foreboding Dutch Colonial from December 1975 to January 1976. (Of course, it probably didn't help that I chose to read the book at one in the morning.)One of the common denominators among the psychological horror films and books that I have read are the omnipresence of demons. A demon is nothing more than an evil spirit that ostensibly does the Devil's bidding. (In the interest of full disclosure, I do not believe that ethereal entities exist, like devils, demons, angels, gods, poltergeists, etc.) Unlike an imp or a gremlin, who are more mischievous than malevolent, a demon seeks to do serious psychological and emotional (and even physical) damage to its victim(s). Sandra Ross exploits these evil tendencies to the maximum in "Demon Sex: The Tale of a Demon Sex Slave."I will admit to involuntarily laughing out loud when I read the title of Ross's book. I imagine I did so only because, to me, the entire premise of demons having wild, uninhibited sex with innocent, beautiful women was a bit much for this inherently skeptical guy. Immediate visions of some goat-horned being complete with lobster-red skin, fanged teeth, cloven hoofs, pointed tail and holding a pitchfork while laughing in a maniacal, hollow style came to mind, along with visions of a chained harem of beautiful demon maidens lying in various seductive poses at the demon's feet.Then I remembered the movie "Rosemary's Baby" and I realized right away that, perhaps, such a literary concept isn't so unusual after all. In the movie, the character of Rosemary (played by Mia Farrow) eventually discovers that she has been raped and impregnated by Satan. In "Demon Sex," the plot closely parallels the 1968 movie. Ross introduces her readers to Elise, a young woman who has recently moved to a large city to attend college and discovers that she enjoys living an urban lifestyle. She frequents the downtown clubs at night with several newly-made friends, usually partying to excess and ending up highly intoxicated and frequently blacking out.Yet whenever she awakens the next morning, she finds herself back in her apartment, none the worse for wear except for some bruising and swelling, and her clothes being disheveled. About the only thing Elise can clearly recall is dancing with a tall, sad-eyed, mysterious man, and these recollections intensify each time she awakens from her drunken stupor.Elise eventually realizes that there is something sinister with not only her friends, but the environment in which she finds herself---there is a growing sense of foreboding that Ross creates, which draws her readers into a very fast-paced tale."Demon Sex" may just give you your own nightmares. You may not be able to put it down!