The Devil’s Due, by Arliss Adams, is a follow-up story of the book, Devil’s Dance. The story reveals what happens to Jen Conner after her horrible experiences in book one. It is filled with visions of a haunting past, and embarks on a future filled with a mixture of horror and delight. Such a wide gamut of emotions and experiences fill this book. I found it interesting and couldn’t wait to find out the conclusion to Jen’s story, but was somewhat distracted by the story changing points of view with so many different characters. I’m not saying it wasn’t a captivating story, just that the POV changes took the reader away (a little) from becoming fully engrossed in Jen’s perspective.
Although the conclusion was not what I’d expected or secretly hoped for, it was like viewing a gruesome scene in a movie—you cover your eyes, not wanting to watch, but you’re compelled to peek through your fingers at the horrific sight.
I found each character easy to relate to. One of the shining stars, in my mind anyway, was Nadya Vaganova, Jen’s dancing coach when she was a child, and who has become a dedicated and beloved confidant. The dialogue used to convey her Russian accent was spot on, and her actions and reactions to events were strong and believable.
The Devil’s Due is a clever and fitting title. I enjoyed the first book more than this one, but getting closure (although shocking) was needed to give Jen’s story a full, rounded feeling. All loose-ends were tied up in the Epilogue—a nice addition.
I sometimes find that the first book is always better. I only recall a few series that had the latter books stronger than the first.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this review...makes me want to read the first book too. I know what you mean about POV switches. That drives me crazy. At least I know to expect it in this book.
ReplyDelete