The Demon Catchers of Milan (review)

Sitting down to finish up her algebra homework one night, sixteen-year-old Mia is suddenly possessed by a violent demon; four days later, she gains consciousness again after an exorcism performed by a distant relative expels the spirit from her body. The relative, an elderly cousin Mia has never met, and his grandson, a stunningly handsome boy, whisk Mia off with them to Milan, where they can offer her the protection of their house, fortified against such spiritual invasions, and train her in the longstanding family tradition of fighting demons. The possession that takes place in the opening pages makes it immediately clear that the demons here are no campy, Buffy-styled hellions but rather the old-school type of Luciferean offspring that turned poor Linda Blair's head a full 360 degrees and spawned Rosemary's baby. Although Mia is under the demon's control for only few pages, her actions during that time and her subsequent visions lend her narration a small but titillating bit of unreliability, making the reader question both her motivations and her interpretation of reality. For all of its supernatural premise, however, the story is also a love letter to Milan, celebrating the Italian city's food, art, and fashion, while incorporating some of its more sordid history into a chilling tale of spirits gone bad. Viewers of SyFy's Ghosthunters International will find this creepy travelogue delightfully up their alley, and readers may never look at their math homework the same way again.