This is the book version of a one room movie. It could have been intriguing but it’s just not.

I was intrigued enough to read on but started to skim pages and flipping to the end. There are just to many women, too many similar stories and it just feels like a rehash to me. Maybe I’m genred out but it was a slog at some points.

I kind of recommend it. The story structure didn’t work for me but I know others will appreciate it.

There are a whole lot of suspects in this mystery about a man that turns up without his body in a local hotel. A group of women are planning to meet and discover his head upon arrival. Each of the women has a very reason to have killed him. And their ringleader has an in with the detective investigating the case. I will leave you with that as I think you should discover the rest on your own, as the author intended.

I would recommend this one for anyone that enjoys a good mystery or likes to see a bad man receive what's coming to him. There's a distinct girl power element to this that I quite enjoyed.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
The premise of the book drew me in but once I started reading it, I just couldn’t get into it at all.
I wish the author, publisher and all those promoting the book much success and connections with the right readers.

3.5 stars

Speak of the Devil by Rose Wilding is a psychological thriller.

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher St. Martin’s Press and in particular Victoria Cordoso for sending me a widget, and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.


My Synopsis:    (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)
On New Year's Eve, seven women are gathered in a hotel room, staring at the head of a dead man.  All of them had a motive to kill Jamie Spellman, but no one admits to the murder.  

Included are: Jamie's wife Sadia , his co-worker Ana, an old acquaintance from university Kaysha, his ex-girlfriend Sarah,  his aunt Maureen,  an old friend Olive,  and young Josie. This is not the first time this group has met in this hotel room, but it is the first time that Jamie was with them (well, part of him).

Jamie was not a good person.  Among his less than admirable traits, he was a black-mailer, a cheat, a thief, a rapist, a manipulator, and a murderer. Only one of the seven believe he was good.

Three days later, DI Nova Stokoe is called to the scene of the  crime.  A head is found, perched on top of hotel bibles.  The  body is missing, but the bible verse hints of revenge.  The air smells of bleach.  A coiled snake, surrounded by other symbols was painted on the wall behind the head.  That symbol is from a cult case that Nova has been working on for weeks, but Nova knows it is a replica, meant to mis-direct this investigation.


My Opinions:
This was a rather dark book with topics ranging from rape, sexual discrimination, and domestic violence, to murder...and almost everything in between. Most topics were covered quite well.

Basically, the book was about an emotionally and physically abusive man, and the women he hurt.  A lot of the book dealt with reasons the women justified his abusive nature, and their eventual reactions to him.

Be warned that there are a large number of characters, but because they were diverse in age and demographics, I found it fairly easy to keep them straight.  I had more of a problem with the constant back and forth in time-lines for each character, which is how their associations with Jamie were told (ie their back-stories).  As well, at points the book was overly descriptive, and therefore dragged.

On the other hand, the plot was quite good, the characters interesting, and I loved the ending.  It was a compelling and thought-provoking book.  It was also disturbing.

I will definitely be watching this new author!

One dead man seven women who could all be suspects rose wilding has created a well plotted mystery with an OMG wow conclusion. This is one of the five books I couldn’t wait to read and I must say the author definitely delivers. The women all seem to come from different walks of life and have served a different purpose for Jamie Spellman. What they all had in common was a reason for killing him and although the reasons may be different which one became deadly. It will be up to detective nova to figure out. They had way too many people to many reasons but the ending is so worth it! I really enjoyed this book and think it is one of the better books I have read this summer it is definitely a five-star read in a book I highly recommend. so many of the characters or likable, The story is interesting in the short chapters moves it along quickly this is truly a book you should read if you love good deathly plotted mysteries. I received this book from NetGalley and the publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

“𝑰𝒕’𝒔 𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒂 𝒈𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒍𝒚 𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂 𝒘𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆’𝒔 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒊𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒔 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆… 𝑰 𝒅𝒖𝒏𝒏𝒐, 𝒂 𝒘𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒑𝒖𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐𝒐 𝒇𝒂𝒓.”

The cover and tagline of this book had me intrigued right away: “New Year’s Eve 1999 - Seven angry women. One dead man.”

Right away, I thought of François Ozon’s 2002 film Huit Femmes, as both the film and this book highlight a group of women with motives for killing one terrible men. The parallels end there though, as Speak of the Devil opens with a gripping opening chapter where you meet the women surrounded a severed head of said man. Each woman has a reason to want Jamie dead, and I worried at first that keeping track of so many points of view would be tricky (and sometimes that was true). Although it took me a bit to get into, I found myself furious at the way Jamie treated each woman, gaslighting them and tricking them for his own selfish gain. I was especially angered at the sexual assault of one woman, who wasn’t believed at the police station about the rape. I later learned that Rose Wilding drew from her own experience of dating someone who isolated her and gaslit her into thinking both she was unworthy of him and yet couldn’t live without him, which shows in the honest way she wrote. I really liked the unraveling layers that reveal the connections Jamie had with each woman, along with seeing how they are connected to each other. The downside to so many points of view is that it was hard to fully connect to each character, and the ending feels a bit abrupt.

Speak of the Devil is a story of retribution, loneliness, control, and taking back power. It is a dark read that, although lacking some tension, shows that Wilding’s writing has a lot of promise. Thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the ARC!

Seven women stand in shock in a seedy hotel room; a man's severed head sits in the centre of the floor. 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 done it, yet each swears she did not. In order to protect each other, they must figure out who is responsible, all while staying one step ahead of the police.

Against the ticking clock of a murder investigation, each woman's secret is brought to light as the connections between them converge to reveal a killer.


This one took me a bit to get into. Diverse characters, but I found with so many characters it was hard to keep track of them all. For me, no one really had a story that kept me interested. Jamie was AWFUL, but it was hard to REALLY hate him when I felt like I didn’t know half the women in the story.

Speak of the Devil really was about the devil. Jamie is a horrible human being and 7 women know it. But who was mad enough to kill him? Each chapter tell them story of how he mistreated a woman with alternate chapters showing the police investigation into his death. While I was intrigued by the story it proceeded a little slow and I got all the women confused. It still kept me going!

This book was a little too easy to pick apart for me. I figured out who did it just over half way through, which always will lower a rating for me. I was intrigued by the premise after the prologue though.

There were definitely too many characters to keep up with and it led to being a little too confusing. Each woman had a reason that they could have killed Jamie and honestly he seemed like a terrible person. Yuck. But each new thing that was revealed about him made me angrier and more enraged for each of the women who interacted with him. Props to the author for creating such an unlikeable victim.

Overall, there was a lot going on in this story, but if you need a good murder mystery book, this could be the one for you!

🤍 Thank you so much to the publisher @minotaur_books & @stmartinspress & @netgalley for this advanced reader copy!

⚠️TW: murder, rape, gaslighting, suicide, alcoholism, child abuse, toxic relationship, stalking

3.5 Speak of the Devil is Rose Wilding's debut novel.

New Years Ave 1999. Seven women are gathered in a hotel room - along with the remains of a man. A man that all seven women have a connection to. Who killed him? Each women says they didn't. Does it matter? Will they be found out? Why are they all together? Why has he been killed?

It's this last question that brings us to know the seven and their connection to Jamie. Jamie - well, he's not a very nice man. Wasn't.

I found it a bit difficult in the beginning chapters to get a handle on and remember who was who. The eighth person is the female detective on the case. As the book progresses we slowly see learn about each of their relationships to Jamie - and each other. The women are all of different ages, so the book goes back and forth from 1964 to 2000, depending on who is 'speaking'. I think it's a big undertaking to have so many viewpoints. I found it to be very busy and in the end, I hadn't bonded with any of them.

I think Wilding did a good job with constructing her antagonist. He was perfectly awful. I wasn't totally sold on the women and their situations though. Although they have been wounded, I was angry with more than one of them. I won't say why as I don't want to provide spoilers. But, no man is worth some of the choices made.

The answer to the questions above are answered by the last pages, but the ending was anticlimactic for me.

It's a good debut, but it isn't a standout for me.

Gentle readers, there are many triggers and this may not be the book for you.

Chilling, but so good. Five women connected by one man and a terrible murder. What he did to each of them is unthinkable and motive to murder him. But who did it, or were they all involved somehow?! Fast paced, told in different viewpoints and different times. This book draws you in and hooks you until the very end. Trigger warnings of rape and physical abuse.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you NetGalley and Rose Wilding for hearing my honest I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you NetGalley Jenny Blackhurst and Minotaur Books for hearing my honest review. Looking forward to reading more with you
#partner

Speak of the Devil by Rose Wilding

This group of diverse women of various ages and backgrounds had been mysteriously invited to a room in a rundown hotel. They were of different ages and different situations in life. There were seven of them in the group. A man's severed head was revealed in the room's centre, and each of the women had been wronged, manipulated, cheated, or deceived by the dead man in the past. All had some connection with the murder victim, and some of the women had a connection with each other. It was apparent that none were sorry he was dead. The majority opinion was to cover up the crime to protect the unknown perpetrator rather than calling the police. The female detective had reasons to avoid a thorough investigation.

On the table, covered up, is the decapitated head of a man that they know all too well Jamie. In fact, he is the reason that all of these women know each other in the first place, he's done wrong by all of them in myriad ways. But who ultimately killed him? No one is confessing.

This was an intriguing story and a good premise, but somethings fell apart for me. I haven't put my finger on it yet. Narrated by Colleen Prendergast who brings life to this complex story with the many POV's and does good giving voice to everyone. I still recommend this book it is worth the read.

Thank you to NetGalley, MacMillan Audio and St. Martin's Press for a free copy of Speak of the Devil for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.

This book reminded me of a twisted thriller version of John Tucker Must Die or The Other Woman, but instead of simply being a cheater, the man the women all had in common was a psychopath, and one of them killed him. I loved the way this story was told. After revealing Jamie's decapitated head in the middle of the meeting of the women he harmed, the story is told from each character's perspective as they cover up for the murder, reveal their very genuine reasons for wanting him dead, and try to figure out which one of them killed him. It was dark and depressing but so intriguing. The reveal (which I loved) was a little too close to the end of the story, so it ended fairly abruptly, but it was a great and addictive read!

Thank you to Minotaur Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Dark slow burn that kept me guessing. 7 pov was insane but all in all a very enticing murder suspense. The guy had it coming.

Dark, intricate, and engrossing!

Speak of the Devil is a layered, unsettling tale that sweeps you away to Newcastle, England and into the life of DI Nova Stokoe, a young police inspector who suddenly finds herself embroiled in a complex murder investigation involving the decapitated head of an esteemed scientist and a suspect list that includes seven local women all who at some time were a victim of his manipulation, deviance, gaslighting, betrayal, violence, or cruelty, and thus all with a motive for his murder.

The writing is brisk and tight. The characters are secretive, cunning, and vulnerable. And the plot, told from multiple perspectives, builds quickly creating intensity and suspense as it unravels all the personalities, motivations, relationships, deception, and devious behaviours within it.

Overall, Speak of the Devil is, ultimately, a story of lies, revelations, secrets, deception, betrayal, manipulation, mayhem, depravity, hatred, vengeance, violence, and murder. It’s a clever, sinister, solid debut by Wilding that certainly kept me thoroughly engrossed from start to finish.

Overall, I enjoyed this book a lot! A great change of pace for me, with some murder and suspense.

Jamie Spellman has lived his entire life being the wolf in sheep’s clothing. When a group of scorned and traumatized women from his life band together to stop him, someone beats them to the punch: he's dead and no one in the group is fessing up. Will they act in self preservation and turn against each other? Or will the bond of shared experiences have them protecting each other?

This novel showcases how we each play a role in the lives of the people around us and how those roles can be important. Maureen, Jamie’s aunt, had lots of internal growth while evaluating her actions towards him when he was growing up. Ana, who so forcefully was on Jamie’s side and his best friend for much of their adult life, realized that people show you what they want you to see.

I LOVE that the chapters are written from a variety of narrators. You get such a complete view of the universe they’re living in. For this style of book, the “whodunnit”, you’re able to build your own theories based on the internal monologue of all the suspects. In no shocking turn if events I was wrong with ALL my guesses! The ending wasn’t as satisfying as it could have been, but made sense for the storyline and tied up loose ends.

This was a super interesting book and I had no clue who the guilty part was the entire time. Although there is a large cast of characters, each is fully formed and unique. It’s a dark and disturbing read but also discusses real world topics. If you read this one I would suggest skipping the audiobook just because it’s easier to keep track of the characters that way. I will say I did find the narrator great!

Really enjoyed this more than I thought I would! First of all, SEVEN main characters and POV's! WHEW! At first there was just so much going on with all the current stories and backstories to keep straight that I almost abandoned it. But I kept going and quickly realized I was totally into the story. Jamie is a horrible character! That would explain why his severed head is in the middle of a room surrounded by the seven women who all had reason to want him dead. WHO, though? That's what we find out in a pretty masterfully woven together ending. All the different POV's that originally seemed liked so much ended up working out well and it all made sense! Each character had a distinct voice and I ended up loving Jamie. Well, it was actually hate, but that's the mark of good writing to me! I was able to feel each woman's pain and fury so well. He was a great villain! The only thing I felt was lacking, was I would have liked an epilogue. Necessary? No. I just like them. I looked up the author to read more from her and this is apparently a debut! Well done! Look forward to more!

Thank you to #NetGalley, Rose Wilding and St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books for this ARC. All opinions are my own.
I will publish my review to Amazon, Instagram, Twitter and other retail and social media sites upon publication.

I really enjoyed Speak of the Devil. I think it was a really unique way to tell a story. It starts out with a man’s severed head and 7 women who would want him dead. It was interesting to read each chapter and to discover why each women hated Jamie so much. He was an AWFUL human being and each story just reveals that even more and more. I honestly had no idea who did it and this book kept me guessing! I can’t wait to read more from this author!

Many thanks to NetGalley, Minotaur Press, St Martin's Press and Macmillan Audio for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of this intriguing novel by Rose Wilding and wonderfully narrated by Colleen Prendergast - 4 stars!

Seven women sit in a hotel room around the severed head of Jamie Spellman. All of the women had reason to want him dead, but who did it and why? The police are investigating and lives are at stake.

This book starts off with a gruesome premise of a severed head, and in the beginning there are so many characters and timeframes to keep track of. But it's worth it to stick it out - it's a good mystery with seven obvious suspects and one nasty dead man. As the book progresses, we learn why each woman has a particular reason to hate Jamie. It's also a statement of how society treats and values women and how some men can exploit that. This one may not be for everyone but it was a good read and I didn't guess the ending!