Speak of the Devil

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Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the DRC of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. The ending will give you whiplash and is a lil abrupt. There were also no breadcrumbs so thumbs down to that. I like my twists foreshadowed, but at least this wasn't totally implausible. All in all, an entertaining lil read but if you skip it, you won't be missing out on much. What about Olive? A still grieving widow who has been running from her past, she had long thought she knew exactly what occurred all those years ago, but what if she’s been wrong all along? Wilding delves into a lot of dark, difficult subjects in Speak of the Devil, including infidelity, rape, suicide, homophobia and transphobia, police discrimination, narcissistic manipulation and gaslighting, and physical and emotional abuse. It's heavy, and it's a lot -- but somehow it all works, and adds depth and texture that you don't always find in contemporary mysteries.

The story begins on New Year’s Eve,1999 with seven women in a hotel room sitting in a semicircle with a severed head in their midst. The head belongs to Jamie Spellman a man who is no stranger to any of them. Each of these women has been wronged by him in some way and they have been plotting to get their revenge but decapitating him wasn’t quite what they had planned. None of them is aware of who amongst them is responsible for the same but each of them harbors suspicions of who it might be. However, they are not interested in outing the culprit and focus on covering up the crime and protecting one another. Very localized writing - as a Canadian I was a bit confused with some of the lingo, but I enjoyed trying to figure it out! Lots of characters to keep you interested and I was determined to figure out who the killer was - but nope! I always have time for a whodunit, and I also love the cover so much - the gorgeous blue with the seven birds - love it. This is Wilding’s debut novel, and I’ll be watching for her in the future! It would, personally, have worked better if the only POV we had was the detective’s, if we didn’t know anything about any of the other characters or their movements. Then, perhaps, there would have been some tension in it all. Because they all have motives, that’s kind of the point. But a more conventional framing of seven suspects and they’re all lying would have probably been a lot more thrilling. A group of some of the women he has humiliated arrange a meeting to discuss how they could put a stop to his activities. They meet in the shabby upstairs room of a local pub and, on entry, are faced with the horror of the decapitated head of Jamie on the floor. They know the killer is likely to be one of them, as they are all his victims, so they begin the search, alongside Detective Inspector Nova Stokoe.

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Seven women stand in a hotel room, the severed head of a man they all knew (and hated) lies between them. Every one of the women had a reason to kill him- his wife, the teenager he had an affair with, the journalist he raped, the woman who raised him, his best friend and business partner who got screwed over and his ex-lover, and until the truth comes out, the women must band together to protect the unknown murderer. The story opens with the discovery of the decapitated head of Jamie by a group of seven women with ties to the victim on New Year’s Eve 1999. We learn about Jamie’s connection to each of the women and the history that they share throughout the book. We do also see the police detective’s perspective as we work our way through the story. It was quite a few characters to juggle but each of them had such unique personalities that I had no trouble keeping things straight. It was obvious that all of the women had the motive but I wasn’t sure who the murderer was until it was revealed in the story. We’d argue, however, that the main character is the book’s setting – the streets of Newcastle. ‘I love the North East. I think it’s such a brilliant and beautiful place and it has so much of its own character,’ says Rose. ‘I knew with these seven women that some of them would need to coincidentally know each other and Newcastle is such a good place for that. Plus, Newcastle is so often overlooked. In my head when I was writing it was always Newcastle but I was never really naming anywhere to begin with. Jeannette said if I was going to set it here, then I needed to give the setting its own character. I didn’t know how to do that but it all came together, and when my editor first read it she said “it’s a love letter to Newcastle”, and I was so glad it had worked.’

Or, perhaps, Sadia? A brand-spanking-new widow who had a picture perfect marriage. At least, that is, from the outside looking in. Seven women PLUS a detective can be a lot of POVs to juggle, but somehow this worked. It's written all third person POV, which I personally enjoy. It's come to my attention that people really don't fk with 3rd person? Tbh I can't stand first person most of the time because inner monologues oftentimes make me hate the characters when you're clearly not supposed to. Judgemental? Me?? Pffshawww!!! stars Thank you to St Martins Publishing Group Influencer Program and Minotaur Books for the free gifted book. This ARC publishes June 13, 2023. Rose Wilding weaves an interesting mystery around these women and their involvement with the victim, Jamie Spellman, in her character-driven debut novel. She keeps the reader guessing right to the end. Who hated Jamie THAT much? Wilding is a talented new mystery writer and I'll look forward to reading more of her work. My other question is why did the author choose to set this between 1964-2000? Other than briefly alluding to Magdalene Laundries and the use of landlines there were no important events of this time period mentioned in the book, soooo ??? This could've been a modern day mystery tbh. I would've liked more historical significance given the time period.If Speak of the Devil is supposed to be a thriller, it failed for me in one crucial aspect: it was not the least bit thrilling. In fact, it was pretty bland, all told. It’s a good thing I’ve turned over a new leaf (briefly) and am reviewing this within hours of having read it. Although, how much help that will be is… questionable. A dark and nuanced portrait of love, loyalty, and manipulation, Speak of the Devil explores the roles in which women are cast in the lives of terrible men… and the fallout when they refuse to stay silent for one moment longer.

PDF / EPUB File Name: Speak_of_the_devil_-_Rose_Wilding.pdf, Speak_of_the_devil_-_Rose_Wilding.epub I listened to the audiobook and thought that Colleen Prendergast did a fantastic job with the story. I thought that she had a very pleasant voice and I had no problem listening to this book for hours at a stretch. I thought that the dialog between the characters flowed nicely and I liked that she was able to add just the right amount of emotion to her reading. I thought her narration added to my enjoyment of this book.Like I said, if you've watched Bad Sisters, this is a similar premise, but without as much humor and heart. The series is infinitely better, so if you haven't watched it you're missing out. I would recommend this one to Readers who enjoy a lot of deep character work and social commentary in their Crime Fiction. Additionally, I would recommend the audiobook. I enjoyed the narration style quite a bit. Wilding is from Newcastle upon Tyne, works as a tutor, and has an MA in creative writing from The University of Manchester, where her tutors included Jeanette Winterson, who recommended her writing to Evans at PFD. This book started out with a bang, with 7 women gathering around the severed head of a man they all knew. After that, though, I felt there were too many characters and too little detail to get to really get to know them. The rest of the store gives you glimpses into each of the women and their reasons for hating Jamie while the reader, along with the detective, tries to figure out what happened.

A decapitated head, a diverse group of women, an odious man - it’s a mystery who killed him, but there’s no doubt that someone did. But who? Seven women had more than enough reason to commit murder, but who finally caved? And who brought them all together? Nova is a detective who, despite knowing more than a couple of the suspects, is determined to put past failures behind her and solve this murder - but is she willing to do it at any cost? A dark and twisted commentary on the treatment of women that asks the question, are women truly to blame when they take charge of abusive situations after the world refuses to listen to them? Although there is a plethora of characters, Wilding manages to make each woman easy to differentiate, developing their own personalities so that they are distinct from their counterparts and it is not difficult to tell each one from the other. Finally, there’s Kaysha, the journalist who brought this group together from day one. But what is her place in the fold? Was she merely trying to root out a truly bad man? Or is her involvement actually much deeper than that? Overall, "Speak of the Devil" is a thought-provoking and disturbing novel that sheds light on the hardships endured by women. Despite some minor issues with character clarity, the book captivates readers with its raw storytelling and unflinching exploration of dark themes. Recommended.The way he treated these women. His narcissism, abusive, violent and derogatory behaviors landed him in the spot he ultimately found himself in, headless. How about the oldest? After all, Maureen’s known Jamie the longest as she quite literally raised him from his very first breath. Was it their shared past that sent them hurtling down this road?