Book Review: FIEND by Alma Katsu

FIEND by Alma Katsu (G. Putnam Sons, September 16, 2025) Hardcover, 243 pages. ISBN # 9780593714348  

Synopsis on the Goodreads website . . . . .

Historical horror maven Alma Katsu turns her talents to the modern world for the first time, in this terrifying tale about an all-powerful family with an ancient evil under its thumb.

Imagine if the Sackler family had a demon at their beck and call.

The Berisha family runs one of the largest import-export companies in the world, and they’ve always been lucky. Their rivals suffer strokes. Inconvenient buildings catch on fire. Earthquakes swallow up manufacturing plants, destroying harmful evidence. Things always seem to work out for the Berishas. They’re blessed.

At least that is what Zef, the patriarch, has always told his three children. And each of them knows their place in the family—Dardan, as the only male heir, must prepare to take over as keeper of the Berisha secrets, Maris’s most powerful contribution, much to her dismay, will be to marry strategically, and Nora’s job, as the youngest, is to just stay out of the way. But when things stop going as planned, and the family blessing starts looking more like a curse, the Berishas begin to splinter, each hatching their own secret scheme. They didn’t get to be one of the richest families in the world without spilling a little blood, but this time, it might be their own.

 

My Four-Star Review on the Goodreads website . . . . 

I found this story so mesmerizing that I finished reading in less than two days. Any time I had a spare moment, I would read a chapter or more. FIEND is fascinating, disturbing, and very topical (just substitute your least favored family in high power in the real world). 

While the hit HBO series SUCESSION detailed the power struggle within the wealthy and dysfunctional family running a media empire, FIEND takes it one step further. Author Grady Hendrix's blurb on the cover says it best: "If you liked SUCESSION but think it would have been a lot more fun with a thousand-year old demon, then FIEND has got you covered."

I've heard enough about author Alma Katsu to have bookmarked several of her novels as ones to investigate further. It's funny that based on her reputation for historical fiction with a horror element that the first book I choose to read by her takes place in modern times. This was a complete impulse read that I snatched off the library shelves (but not snatch for real - I checked it out with my library card).

The Berisha family at the center of this story is absolutely fascinating, wealthy from their import-export business, privileged and entitled, and very dysfunctional. Their business practices are always under scrutiny but they seem to be "blessed" and always manage to avoid paying for the consequences. In short, they are all mean people.

But there's a price to pay for their prominent position and other Albanian immigrants say they have been cursed due to a long-ago tragedy that they were responsible for. The family patriarch, Zef, will eventually pass on the mantle to one of his three children - - and they all have their own ideas about the future direction of the company and what their role might be.

Darden is the only male heir, destined to take over but weak and unsure of himself. Maris is the middle daughter, smartest of the group, but never given enough credit because of her gender. Nora, the youngest, is the most rebellious and careless - - too busy taking drugs, alcohol and partying. But that doesn't mean none of them aren't scheming. 

It's not easy to like any of these characters, but Katsu does an admirable job of conveying their point of view. Darden was the easiest to empathize with, but I would not want to be his friend. Maris seemed to be the most deserving of the three to become the new leader, but I didn't want her to get there because of the underlying threat.

That threat is a supernatural one, and enough of a ruthless presence that father Zef would live in a separate residence, and aside from business meetings would only see his family members for a group dinner on Sundays. 

Katsu foreshadows the demonic presence in early chapters and through flashback scenes. The horrific scenes/incidents are detailed after-the-fact so there is no in-your-face action passages. This serves to build a sense of dread that only grows larger as the book progresses. By revealing less specific details of the demon other than some superficial elements - our imaginations take over and the danger becomes even more horrific and powerful.