I received this book for free from the Author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
My Ex, The Antichrist by Craig DiLouie Published by Run For It on July 1 2025
Genres: Adult, Horror
Pages: 416
Format: ARC
Source: Author
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The nitty-gritty: Craig DiLouie uses music as a framework in this dangerous, outrageous good vs. evil headbanger of a story.
“Whatever he turned out to be, you have to admit he had star power. Even if his playing drove people mad. Even though people died.
The man could goddamn perform.” – Ramona Perez, drummer, the Shivers
Craig DiLouie never writes the same story twice, which is why I always look forward to every new book of his. In My Ex, the Antichrist, he tackles the end of the world, religion and the power of music in some unique and surprising ways, and I ended up loving the hell out of this book. This is the story of a charismatic man named Drake who turns out to be the antichrist, how he started a pop-punk band called the Shivers, and the Shivers’ eventual rise to fame and fortune. Despite quite a bit of blood and gore, I was surprised at the overall lighter tone of the story, which has some of the funniest lines I’ve ever read. There’s also some religious philosophy mixed in, but don’t let that scare you away, since the religion is more mythological than preachy. Mostly this is the story of a little band called the Shivers and the crazy events that happened to them over a six month period.
Lily Lawless lives a sheltered life with her strict Catholic parents in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, reluctantly studies accounting in college, and loves music. Until one day, she meets a mysterious man named Drake who tells her “Follow me and live free.” Lily does just that, unable to tear herself away from his commanding presence. When Lily tells Drake her greatest desire is to be in a rock band that “changes the world,” Drake gives Lily a guitar and gathers together a bass player, a drummer and a keyboard player, and the Shivers is born. Under Drake’s guidance, the band begins to play in small venues, but something strange is happening. People in the audience are going crazy, especially when Drake plays his discordant guitar solos. Fights break out, people pass out, and usually the night ends in violence.
Drake’s goal is for the Shivers to be one of twelve bands chosen for the ultimate battle of the bands, a local competition called Armageddon. But Drake is also spouting weird proclamations about the end of the world, and each new performance is stranger and more bloody than the last. Who is Drake, really? And why is he so obsessed with Lily? Lily and her band mates Ramona, Eric and Malcolm are about to find out—the hard way.
My Ex, the Antichrist is told entirely in the format of a journalistic interview, conducted a decade or so after the horrific events that unfolded at Armageddon, and I thought it was the perfect way to tell this story. The unnamed interviewer brings together snippets of interviews from Lily, Ramona, Eric and Malcolm, as well as others who were in their orbit at the time: DJs, band managers, A&E executives, even a professor of religion who injects commentary on the biblical versions of the antichrist, God and the end times. The story kicks off in 2010, when Lily quits the band and confesses to murder, and then jumps back to 1998 to show how everything started. DiLouie labels each chapter with the date as well as the concert venue of that time, creating an easy to follow timeline of events.
Some readers might have trouble with the format, which is a bit choppy, as it jumps from character to character, sometimes in only quick bursts of dialog or commentary, but I thought it added a nice edge to this frenetic story about music that literally makes people crazy. Despite the simplicity of the main idea—the antichrist is going to bring about the end of the world through his music—this is actually a complex story that’s been carefully constructed and plotted. There are so many layers—the complicated relationship between Lily and Drake, the business of being in a band, the power of music, not to mention a faction that is trying to stop Drake—and I thought the author handled it brilliantly. I loved the way the tension builds as well. With each concert leading up to Armageddon, the weirdness and violence escalate until the reader is almost afraid of what will happen during the battle of the bands.
DiLouie brings his characters to life and shows why music is so important to each one. Most of the story revolves around Drake and the other four members of the band, although Lily is really the main attraction. She finds herself in an unusual situation, in love with a dangerous man who she later finds out is the antichrist, how she deals with that and ultimately rises above it to become a star. Each of the other band members is given a full backstory as well, and I loved the way each one has a special relationship with music.
And speaking of music, DiLouie sets his story in such an interesting time in musical history, and for me this was a walk down memory lane, as I listened to many of the bands he mentions. I loved watching the Shivers come together as well and experience both the highs and lows of their career: the hours of practice, the euphoria of performing in front of a live audience, and the ins and outs of writing a song and figuring out how to mesh all the parts together. If you’ve ever loved music to its core, or listened to a song that made you cry, you’ll appreciate the way DiLouie infuses his story with those relatable emotions. And the fact that he sets the final event—the Armageddon concert—in December of 1999 was no accident (Y2K anyone?)
About halfway through, an interesting twist changes the direction of the story, and this is where things turn even more bizarre. Although Lily and the others have set the record straight on what happened, there’s a sense of unease at the end that gave me a chill, which is the perfect way to end a horror story. This is a fun one, folks, don’t miss it!
Big thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy.
The full 5 stars, glad to hear you enjoyed this so much, it does unique. I think what appeals most is the way it’s written as a journalistic interview with all the little additions from people around at the time.
I can see it being made into a movie too. It has a lot of energy!
Ahhhhh I had a feeling this would be such a good read and I’m so glad my feeling turned out to be right. Now I need to buy this book as soon as it comes out. The fact that it’s written in the format of a journalistic interview makes me want to read this book even more. I’m really excited for it now. Thanks for sharing!
I hope you love it too! The format really makes the book, in my opinion.
This actually sounds great! The title made me curious, but I guess I never read the synopsis. I bet this is great in audio format!
I think audio would be fantastic! Especially if there’s a full cast doing it.
There is!! Might be fun to pick up this fall!
This sounds amazing! I was actually going to skip this one, even though I’ve loved every book of his that I’ve read. It does sound a bit similar to We Sold Our Souls… but I’m going to trust your five stars and go track down a copy!!
It definitely has some of the vibes of We Sold Our Souls, but it was lighter in tone. It’s very funny in places, which surprised me:-)
I love books that are told in that journalistic format/epistolary kind of way! That alone makes me want to check this one out. 😀
Yes, the format was perfect!
The title is very eye-catching, but great to hear the book lives up to it!
It’s a great title, right?
OMG you make me want to bump this one up. I love music and I think this formatting is really going to work for me. So glad you loved this one so much. I can’t wait to read it now!
I hope you love it!
I wasn’t convinced that this one was for me based on its premise but your review has left me really intrigued. I’ll admit the interview format is part of what’s swaying me but it sounds like it has some fantastic characters and I’m curious about the twist too. Definitely sounds like a unique read and I’m glad it was such a hit.
It was unique, and it’s very music centric. The format was perfect for the story!
Not my kinda thing, but I’m glad you… loved it? Wow, I’m a bit surprised after reading the blurb then seeing your review!
The blurb doesn’t do the story justice, in my opinion:-)
It might seem weird, but I enjoy when stories are told that way, through articles, and other methods. Glad you enjoyed this one, it sounds like a good story! Great review!
https://lisalovesliterature.bookblog.io/2025/06/16/e-galley-review-look-before-you-leap-miss-prentices-protegees-2-by-virginia-heath/
I loved the format, it’s one of my favorite ways to tell a story:-)
I seem to recall you rating several of his books very highly. Always a good sign and an indication I should give him a try. Just entered a giveaway for this one.
He’s an underrated author for sure, and each book is so different from the last.
Great review! I can’t wait to try it!
Thank you!
I’m SO happy to see that you loved this! I adored Episode 13, but then wasn’t a fan of Horror Movie, and with those being the only two books of his that I’d read so far, I was a little nervous to pick up this one. I’m feeling a lot more optimistic now! 😀
I’m so curious to see what you think! I hope you get the chance to read it.
Oooh I was interested in this one but was a little unsure, but now I am definitely going to need to get to it- one of these days when I catch up heh. Glad you loved it!
I hope you get the chance to check it out!
I so enjoyed the “Battle of the Bands” culture in this book, it was just as interesting to read than the end of the world stuff 😀
Kicking myself for not nabbing a copy of this – I was trying to be good and just didn’t think I’d be able to get to everything. Boo to behaving!
Lynn 😀