Speak of the Devil

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Or what about the youngest? Still just a child, Josie finds herself in an unrecognizable reality after following her teenage hormones towards a forbidden crush. Could she possibly be behind this gruesome crime? Join New Writing North and The Bound to celebrate the launch of one of the most anticipated crime debuts of 2023 The women’s] stories converge in a way that will appeal to Kate Atkinson’s readers…This debut author is one to watch.” – FirstCLUE

A decapitated head, a diverse group of women, an odious man - it’s a mystery who killed him, but there’s no doubt that someone did. But who? Seven women had more than enough reason to commit murder, but who finally caved? And who brought them all together? Nova is a detective who, despite knowing more than a couple of the suspects, is determined to put past failures behind her and solve this murder - but is she willing to do it at any cost?

An addictive feminist thriller about love, loyalty, and manipulation, Speak of the Devil explores the roles in which women are cast in the lives of terrible men . . . and the fallout when they refuse to stay silent for one moment longer. This captivating debut literary thriller entwines the searing stories of several women who suffered at the hands of the same man. This cautionary tale satisfies in its culmination of long-overdue justice for spurned women.” – Library Journal (starred) The blurb reads: “In a seedy Newcastle room on New Year’s Eve, 1999, seven women are gathered around a man’s severed head. Each has a very good reason to have done it, each swears she did not. As we follow the women – the wife, the teenager, the ex, the journalist, the colleague, the friend, and the woman who raised him and the detective trying to solve the case – we discover how they came to know, love and ultimately despise the man who has wound up dead. But who killed Jamie Spellman?” With this being said, I found the individual perspectives compelling. As you read how each of the women are connected to the murdered man, Jamie, and you come to understand the different experiences that they each had with him, the true portrait of who Jamie was becomes clear. Was it the ex, Sarah? A woman who is falling further and further into her bottles of wine, just praying her current love doesn’t leave her for another?

In fact, this story does begin with a severed head in a dingy hotel room. Seven women, all very different, but all somehow connected to the man to whom the head once belonged, are gathered around it.At the same time, however, this was anything but a mystery/thriller and more along the lines of women’s lit or general fiction. After all, there was nary a twist and very little suspense. I mean, I surmised the perpetrator nearly from the get-go and not a single red herring even made me second guess that for a second. And, while there was something that possibly could have been considered a climax, it was anything but pulse pounding or steeped in tension, instead offering more of a “here’s what happened” vibe.

What about Olive? A still grieving widow who has been running from her past, she had long thought she knew exactly what occurred all those years ago, but what if she’s been wrong all along? With beautiful, gripping writing and depth, Speak of the Devil is a mesmerising, moving story that is impossible to look away from. Superb!’ – Gytha Lodge, bestselling author of Little Sister The mystery was sound and everyone had a valid motive. The thing I struggled with the most was that, while we saw all the awful things Jamie did, I didn’t think the author gave us enough of a glimpse into what actually made these ladies LIKE him so much. Obviously there were some reason everyone fell in love with him but I couldn’t figure out what it was. Overall, I wish I could’ve gotten to know all the characters better, but the sheer number of them and the constant jumps between timeframes made it somewhat hard for me to fully engage. That being said, the 2nd half of the book gelled for me better than the first half. I liked the ending- it was abrupt but it worked. This was a really dark and gritty read, it started with such a bang, I don’t read many first scenes involving a decapitated head! And the story flowed effortlessly from there. Detective Inspector Nova Stokoe is heading the murder investigation but she has connections of her own with some of these women, all of which are gradually revealed. The victim, Jamie Spellman, is a hideous person. It’s impossible to feel one shred of sympathy for him, his acts are all despicable. But while I didn’t care that he was dead, I was intrigued as to who had actually murdered him and done so in such a dramatic way. I listened to the audiobook and it was well done. The narrator does a good job of distinguishing between the characters. I nearly threw in the towel up until about 50% into the book because it was quite a slog to care about who offed the slimeball, but once I started getting into the story the second half seemed to flow more easily.A group of some of the women he has humiliated arrange a meeting to discuss how they could put a stop to his activities. They meet in the shabby upstairs room of a local pub and, on entry, are faced with the horror of the decapitated head of Jamie on the floor. They know the killer is likely to be one of them, as they are all his victims, so they begin the search, alongside Detective Inspector Nova Stokoe. This detective is sharp and clever and works closely with the women as she watches for any slip they may make to point to the truth. She is horrified by the things which are coming to light regarding the deceased man but the search for the killer is slow. The women are a heady mixture with various sexual proclivities which err on the side of fun, and all are horrified when Spellman’s real personality is exposed. “Unusual slant”

If that isn't a strong hook, I don't know what is, and it drew me in immediately. With a narrative that switches perspectives among the seven women and the police detective investigating the murder, Speak of the Devil has an ambitious structure, and it really worked for me. The mystery plays out slowly, giving Rose Wilding lots of time to develop her characters, making this novel just as much a character study as it is a mystery. The women are diverse and complex, and it didn't take me long to get into the flow of the story and differentiate between them. The narrator of the audio version ( Colleen Prendergast) did a fantastic job of giving each of the women a distinct voice. Seven women are in a small hotel room where they have been summoned via a mysterious phone number. 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. The story opens with the discovery of the decapitated head of Jamie by a group of seven women with ties to the victim on New Year’s Eve 1999. We learn about Jamie’s connection to each of the women and the history that they share throughout the book. We do also see the police detective’s perspective as we work our way through the story. It was quite a few characters to juggle but each of them had such unique personalities that I had no trouble keeping things straight. It was obvious that all of the women had the motive but I wasn’t sure who the murderer was until it was revealed in the story. First off, I found this extremely interesting, the content and topics explored. However, I also found the construction of the story to be a bit jarring. There are a lot of characters and you get all of their perspectives. The narrative jumps around a lot, not only via perspective, but also in time.

Featured Reviews

Harrowing and haunting, Rose Wilding’s assured debut is full of nuanced, complex, beautifully flawed characters...completely compelling.” —Sara Nisha Adams, author of The Reading List