Speak of the Devil

Product Information

They took their usual seats around a makeshift alter in the center of the room, where under a pillowcase was the severed head of a man they all knew. 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.

The narrative keeps alternating between the seven women, and in addition to their name being listed at the start of a chapter-it would have been VERY HELPFUL to list their connection to Jamie as well. Examples: Kaysha, the journalist, Ana, the colleague, etc. Brilliant, fast-paced . . . loved the connection of all the women, the strength in their united pain' READER REVIEW As the story weaves on, we eventually learn that the women are all connected in some way through the male character these women all have in common. His name is Jamie and he is a douche canoe. I did figure out the ending before it was revealed but not much before so I still got my aha moment. This was a pretty strong debut and I look forward to reading what this author comes up with next.

This is a book filled with female pain and anger. It's about women taking agency in abusive situations when society seems to do everything it can to keep them there. It's gritty, dark, difficult to read at times but ultimately compelling and addictive.

Seven women gather in a hotel room to find a man's severed head. Each of them had a reason to want him dead, but they all deny involvement.Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the DRC of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. I do recommend reading this book, as it held my interest and was very interesting. I could relate to that of Jamie Spellman (because unfortunately we all know some nasty people). I could also relate to each of the women as their stories felt so real and emotional. To all my GR friends that are worried that this book might be too much for them, it is labeled as General Fiction- and rightfully so (maybe with a hint of suspense). Each of the women - the wife, the teenager, the ex, the journalist, the colleague, the friend, and the woman who raised him - has a very good reason to have killed Jamie Spellman, but each one denies doing it. Wilding takes an axe to toxic masculinity...maneuvering her vivid characters around like a virtuoso puppeteer. It’s a powerful, accomplished and important debut from a writer who has not only found her own voice but given one to others who have previously been silenced.” – Trevor Wood, author of Dead End Street