I was really excited to start this one and it started quite strong but too many characters became tough to keep track of and I constantly had to stop and think who was who.

Somewhat slow and confusing in the beginning, this story grew on me. I think some of my confusion was so many characters right off the bat. A good read with a few good twists.

Seven women all brought together by their combined hatred for one man; discovering that he has been not only killed but beheaded. It feels perfect, their dreams have come true hes out of their lives for good but which one of them did it?

I really liked the premise of this book but by 40% of the way through I was still so confused on which character was which and almost gave up. I was unsure who the culprit was until it was revealed but I think that’s because I was still figuring out the characters right up until the end. Could have been a great nail biting read if it was more engaging.

This book started out strong then just fell short for me.

Seven women gathered around a severed head. All the women have some kind of history with him and apparently it is not that great. Then it starts jumping around and it's not so good. Or at least it wasn't for me. It did have great promise but I have to say it is a DNF for me.

Thank you NetGalley and St Martin's for this ARC. I'm sorry but I just didn't like this one.

Hell have no fury like a woman scorned times seven. Picture it, seven women and a severed head. Intriguing and mysterious sum up this original thriller. The pacing kept me interested, although I still wanted more answers even after the abrupt conclusion. The premise sparked my interest and the mystery kept me engaged. Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books for my copy.

I wasn't too sure about this book when I started reading it but it slowly grew on me. It covers topics from murder, rape, abuse, suicide just to name a few but I think they were executed very well. There were a lot of characters to keep up with which at times was an issue but after a while I was able to follow along towards the connection point. Overall this was a good read.

Started strong and I loved the idea for the book. The jumping around was confusing at times but I still enjoyed the idea and I'm grateful for the free copy.

The story begins with a group of 7 women gathered in a room New Years Eve 1999. I thought cool a mystery at the new millennium! What I read was this group of women ends up gathered around a severed head. I’m not squeaking about that type of thing so I was intrigued. Unfortunately, that was the most intrigued I became with this one. Each woman had a connection to that severed head, but I didn’t feel the connection to the storyline. I am wondering if it was because of the translation. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This was interesting. It starts with a bang - a man’s severed head in the middle of a room surrounded by a bunch of women who have a history with him. None of those histories are good. The rest of the book jumps around in time and among characters, letting us in to why all of them had a reason to kill him.

I did enjoy the character driven aspect of this and learning how he had harmed each of them. All the jumping around in time and between characters was a little confusing. What I liked the least was the very abrupt ending which left a lot of questions unanswered and plot threads dangling.

Still, I would definitely read more of Wilding’s books and would recommend if you like character driven thrillers.

It takes a little bit of time to get the feel of Speak of the Devil There are a lot of characters to keep track of and a lot of pieces to the story, but, once it's all sorted out, what a story it is. It's the story of wronged women who find not only each other, but their own power. Sometimes revenge stories can be too over the top, too unbelievable, but Speak of the Devil was perfect, and I found myself cheering for each one of Jamie's victims as they find not only each other, but themselves.

Seven women…one man…….all connected. The reader knows that immediately from the opening scene but it takes a while to find out how and why.
    We meet the seven ladies on New Years Eve in a discreet, out of the way room where there’s a table with a cloth over it. When it’s removed, they discover the head of the man they all know and who they were there to discuss.
   Then begins the rollout of the individual stories of how this man affected their lives, never in a good way, but none of them are coming forth to say they were the one to do this! They were all above reproach but as you learn about them you realize it could have been anyone of them who could justifiably have committed this murder.
   There was more flipping back and forth than I, as a reader enjoy, both between characters and their time with him.  Adding to the mix is a relationship between the police investigating the crime and one of the women.
   It’s an interesting thriller with contemporary issues which are the reasons the victim was so despised.

This just didn't work for me on audio. Not sure if this would have worked better in physical format, but I was bored for the most part. Also, a lot of characters, and that always throws me off. Yes, the subject matter was heavy and dark, and the end kind of made up for it. But I could not remember most of the plot after a month, or two.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and the publisher for my review copy.

This is one you need to stick with it. There were a lot of characters introduced right away and it was a bit confusion and unclear what was going on. The backstories of the characters were really good in explaining what was going on in the present tense. Things got very interesting around the half way mark. The end was anticlimactic for me though. It was just sort of presented and then ended. It wasn't very much of a surprise or twist. A 3 star read for me.

This is a revenge story with a lot of characters, so the suspense is high. I loved the way it starts out with just the head of a person being discovered. It slowly builds and you get backstory for each person having a reason for wanting the murdered person dead.

when seven seemingly random women sit in a circle with a severed head in front of them, well, my first thought is “alright what’d he do?” 🧐

I immediately opened my notes app so I could keep track of these characters 😅 thankfully each chapter rotates between each POV so I was able to jot down details about them. I thought they each brought something interesting to the story, and I really liked reading how they were all connected to each other. I felt the story itself had a nice flow to it, and while I didn’t ~love~ how it ended, I still feel like it wraps up and gives the reader closure.

I didn’t love that the characters went in and out of their accents? it was very sporadic and kind of confusing. not sure if it was intentional, but I didn’t get it and I didn’t like it. 🤣 other than that, a unique premise and a fun ride! thank you St. Martin’s Press and Minotaur Books for inviting me to read this debut!

This was honestly a brilliant revenge story. I devoured this book in a day. Once I started reading about the severed head in a seedy hotel room I was hooked! I wanted to...no...I NEEDED to know these womens stories.

I have never been so captivated and yet appalled in my life! Seven women all have the misfortune of being tied to the same horrible, abusive and manipulative man. All of them have more than enough reason for wanting him dead. Do you think you can solve the crime?

As always thanks to the publisher and netgalley for providing me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

While this was a super suspenseful story, I kept getting lost in all the characters and the possible "who done its." I'm proud I stuck it out through the entire book ( I did think about quitting) but overall, not one of my favorites.

A dark suspense, murder-mystery with a prologue that immediately grabs the readers attention. Unfortunately, the storyline does get a bit weighed down and overly complex as the author attempts to familiarize the reader with all seven protagonists. Would recommend this book for readers who like high level of detail and intricacy in their murder mysteries. Getting through the slow-burn first half does have its rewards as the second half picks up and proves to have a climatic ending.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC of #SpeakofTheDevil

Super suspenseful story. I was trying to guess whodunit all the way to the end! It was a little confusing with multiple perspectives. At times I found myself a little lost. I'm glad I was able to stick with it.
Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for my arc

Very dark and engaging whodunnit. I really enjoyed this book. We start with what appears to be a ritual and suddenly, turns into a murder investigation. I thought the character development was great for most of the characters, telling their backstory, showing us their current situation and wondering if they could have been the one to kill Jamie. He’s a really awful person and sympathy for him dissolves quickly as the story unfolds. Loved this book and will be adding the author to my watch list.