Devil's Due

Lucia and Jazz have finally succeeded in getting Ben, Jazz’s old partner, out of jail where he has been wrongfully imprisoned and his life threatened for years. It’s a difficult time to celebrate though, as the death threat still looms over Jazz, confining her to the office.

But the battle between the two psychic organisations – the Cross Society and the Eidolon Corporation – is heating up and getting ever more deadly, even their office is no safe haven. And, as can be expected from organisations that can see the future, their plotting is convoluted, long term, confusing and very complex; and nearly impossible to protect against

It also seems that their pasts were more affected by these organisations than they ever imagined – show more and that their supposed allies are much more ruthless and much more callous than they previously thought, begging the question whether they’re truly on the good guy’s side here. Or if there are any good guys at all


The last book made me turn on my brain and pay attention as the late appearing mystical elements of the story added a whole new level of complexity – the duelling psychics constantly trying to shift tiny events to have a massive effect on major events, the whole concept of different people having massive different influences on the time line. Then there were our two main character’s attempt to negotiate this and do what’s best with forces determined to play “end justifies the means” long term planning that may sacrifice many people in the name of the greater good.

This book not only continues that but plunges us in ever deeper with a much stronger challenge of the ethics of the whole seeing the future. Lucia and Jazz are increasingly trying to distance themselves from or at least question the actions of the Cross Society and Eidolon both as they’re struggling over the idea of who to trust. There’s a lot of moral quandary here, a lot of struggling to figure out exactly what would be the best thing to do all more complicated by the two men in their lives – Ben and James – having very strong and very rigid opinions of the Cross society as well. I like how the disagreement is handled in a mature fashion, there’s no big dramatic ultimatums, no screaming matches, just a mutual wish to work it out coupled with a firm insistence that none of them cross their red lines they’ve set up.

So, in many ways this continues the fascination of the first book - it has a fascinating world, an excellent concept and a well paced story with lots of really well done action, sensible behaviour and interesting mystery as Lucia tries to navigate her way round the complications of the Cross society’s planning, Eidolon’s plotting and several mine fields from her past.


And I do love the characters – because they all behave like reasonable adults. They take risks, but they’re reasonable ones. They are intelligent and capable without being super powered, they have excellent inter-personal interactions, they have some great banter, they have worries and fears and can be a bit lost, but they generally hold up well throughout the story. I like them and think they work extremely well together. I also really like that Lucia, the protagonist, is not only Latina but she’s Latina with a sense of culture and language, rather than it being a passing label to be ignored. I will say, though, that at times we have vast swathes of the book go by without a hint and then a sudden remembrance of her Spanish which is a tad inconsistent, but only a tad.

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*I got a free ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review*

This and other reviews can also be found on my blog (un)Conventional Bookviews.

This was so fast paced I'm actually out of breath now! The writing is excellent, I love most of the main characters, and I think the mystery and suspense parts were so expertly done I could have never guessed any of what happened... Then again, my name isn't Simms ;)

Devil’s Due is even better than Devil’s Bargain, with not only one, but two strong female protagonists! I also loved where the story went, both with the mystery of the psychics and with the way Jazz and Lucia interacted with each other and the other characters.

As McCarthy is liberated from prison, only Lucia is there show more to greet him, because James and Lucia made sure Jazz was far away from the courthouse during the hearing. To keep her safe – or so they convinced themselves. When Jazz realizes that McCarthy is no longer in prison, the first thing she wants to do is to find him, to let him know how happy she is that he was finally cleared of murder. She quickly understands that something is going on between her ex-partner and her current partner, her keen sense of observation never slowing down. show less

Having raced through Devil’s Bargain, the first book in Rachel Caine’s Red Letter Days series (or more properly duology), I was eager to read Devil’s Due.

Devil’s Bargain introduced Jazz Callender, and Lucía Garcia, once strangers, whose new private detective agency was funded by an anonymous organisation, with a few strings attached. By the end of the novel, Jazz and Lucia had identified The Cross Society as their mysterious benefactor and learnt of its counterpoint, the Eidolon Corporation. Unraveling the motives of both organisations reveals a dangerous game is being played, and Jazz and Lucia are trapped in the middle of it all.

While Jazz is the focus of Devil’s Bargain, Lucia takes the lead in Devil’s Due. Caine barely show more gives Lucia time to breathe as she is confronted by a series of crisis, including being exposed to Anthrax, stalked by a corrupt cop, abducted, and shot. I like Lucia, she is the calmer and more calculating member of the partnership, drawing on her extensive experience as an operative with a number of shadow organisations, but her vulnerabilities are also explored when she loses a friend, and falls in love with Ben McCarthy.

Devil’s Due is a frantic thrill ride, with several shocking twists, as Lucia and Jazz race to free themselves, their friends, and the world, from the interventions of The Cross Society and Eidolon Corporation. I was very happy that the story arc was satisfyingly finalised offering an appropriately explosive ending to the duology.

The Red Letter Days is an entertaining duology, and I enjoyed it’s fast paced combination of mystery, thriller, paranormal and romance. show less

I feel dirty, I finally own a Mills and Boon book and I like it.

OK, it's not your typical Mills and Boon bodice ripper, or at least not as I imagine one - the heroines are feisty, strong women - an ex-spy and an an ex-cop, the men aren't simpering idiots (although one is relatively simpering, he's a lawyer rather than an assassin or similar, but he has a go for his lover's life). The story isn't really a love story, although there is a degree of attraction that develops and is consummated after overcoming various obstacles. But... when the obstacles include breaking into the headquarters of an organisation that is trying to manipulate the world through the predictions of their psychics with an EMP device you might forgive me if I find show more the rest of the story, well far-fetched, to be pretty important too. show less

Devil's Due by Rachel Caine is a fast paced thrill ride of a read. I kept wondering when the heroine would get a chance to catch her breath. Devil's Due takes place right after Devil's Bargain. It follows along from Lucia's point of view. Jazz and Lucia still are involved with the Cross Society and growing more disenchanted with it as time goes on. Jazz's old partner, Ben, is now out of prison being exonerated of the murder charge, and is working with their firm. Ben and Lucia are undoubtedly attracted to each other as they continue to try and fight the good fight.

I'm not sure what genre these books fall into. I wouldn't necessarily classify them as Urban Fantasy. The only supernatural element seems to be a psychic character. The rest show more follows along more as a spy thriller. Ms. Caine imbues her characters with complex emotions and hints at deep back stories without bogging down the action. I found it easier to connect with the cool and controled Lucia than to the loose canon that is Jazz. I think that is why I enjoyed this book more than the first in the series. show less

A shadowy group send letters to Lucia and her partner, letters she has to pay attention to, it's the cost of her detective agency. The cost is beginning to chafe and she's not sure if they have her best interests at heart.

Interesting, the romance takes a very secondary place to the adventure, I've read this in the wrong order and will have to read book 1 now to read. The various groups are very much on edge and quite believable, even if credulity is occasionally stretched.

Continuation of the story started with Devil's Bargain staring the same cast of characters (less those killed off earlier) and new lethal characters added as needed to further the story. This episode starts with the startling disclosure of photos of photo's with date stamps that prove McCarthy couldn't have been the killer for the crimes that he was imprisoned for. A judge sets him loose and Lucia meets him as her is released. The story evolves with the warring forces, Cross Society and Eidolon with their respective lead psychics, Max Simms and Kavanaugh leading their separate teams to promote their individual visions of how the future should evolve by taking direct actions or deliberately avoiding actions that could cause different show more results. Jazz and Lucia and their individual support characters agreed to stop acting on the red letters and not support the would be puppet masters by following their directions. This action made them targets of both organizations. Rather than wait like acters, Jazz and Lucia resolved to take the action to the Cross Society and Eidolon, vowing to eliminate these two social manipulators, bringing random choice back to the people. The remaining action including the ensuing pairing of extremely talented couples and the support of the detectives associates and friends leads to routing of the bad guys. There are some strange twisted corners and characters taking strange paths to the end of this story. An enjoyable, twisted, entertaining fast read! show less