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marilynw's review
4.0
The Devil You Know by P.J. Tracy
(Detective Margaret Nolan #3)
I listened to the first two books in this series and read this third offering. There are so many characters in this story and we get deep into the head of not just the regulars but characters that we'll probably (or for sure) just see in this book. Even little used side characters can be given some character development, which I like, but it can add a lot of information to wrap one's mind around. Detective Nolan is the person this series is named after but she shares the starring role with a wounded veteran, Sam, who Margaret befriended in an earlier book.
The Hollywood movers and shakers are a pretentious, snooty, snotty, conniving, stab you in the back, spit on your grave, best caviar and champagne for breakfast bunch. A few of them can have their endearing moments and a couple are deadly vipers with the venom they spew without much provocation. I could barely get through the overly wordy thoughts of some of these people. They make my thoughts seem like a first grade primer but I think I'm happier than this lot. I connect much better with the working class law enforcement types, especially since a few of them can be pretty simple and funny, such as Margaret's partner, Detective Crawford.
The story starts with a body and then more bodies pile up. This is a tangled tale and the farther the detectives go in their investigations the more the same names seem to appear in the trails that are left behind. How many more people are going to be snuffed out almost under the detectives' noses? There are a lot of people that I suspect until some of them are "eliminated" from my suspect list in a very permanent way. The story starts very slowly for me since there is almost too much wordy building of character for the Hollywood types. But once Margaret gets on the job of solving crime, I think the story gets good. You might want to take notes if you want to keep this tangled web from scrambling your brain.
Publication: January 17, 2023
Thank you to St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books and NetGalley for this ARC.
(Detective Margaret Nolan #3)
I listened to the first two books in this series and read this third offering. There are so many characters in this story and we get deep into the head of not just the regulars but characters that we'll probably (or for sure) just see in this book. Even little used side characters can be given some character development, which I like, but it can add a lot of information to wrap one's mind around. Detective Nolan is the person this series is named after but she shares the starring role with a wounded veteran, Sam, who Margaret befriended in an earlier book.
The Hollywood movers and shakers are a pretentious, snooty, snotty, conniving, stab you in the back, spit on your grave, best caviar and champagne for breakfast bunch. A few of them can have their endearing moments and a couple are deadly vipers with the venom they spew without much provocation. I could barely get through the overly wordy thoughts of some of these people. They make my thoughts seem like a first grade primer but I think I'm happier than this lot. I connect much better with the working class law enforcement types, especially since a few of them can be pretty simple and funny, such as Margaret's partner, Detective Crawford.
The story starts with a body and then more bodies pile up. This is a tangled tale and the farther the detectives go in their investigations the more the same names seem to appear in the trails that are left behind. How many more people are going to be snuffed out almost under the detectives' noses? There are a lot of people that I suspect until some of them are "eliminated" from my suspect list in a very permanent way. The story starts very slowly for me since there is almost too much wordy building of character for the Hollywood types. But once Margaret gets on the job of solving crime, I think the story gets good. You might want to take notes if you want to keep this tangled web from scrambling your brain.
Publication: January 17, 2023
Thank you to St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books and NetGalley for this ARC.
donasbooks's review against another edition
3.0
Thank you to the author P.J. Tracy, publisher Dreamscape Media LLC, and as always NetGalley, for an advance audio copy of THE DEVIL YOU KNOW.
I have to hand it to Abby Craden, the narrator for the audiobook, because she kept me entertained enough to get me through this one. Also, I'm so impressed she was able to voice such an enormous cast of characters, though that ended up being kind of part of the problem also. She simply didn't have the vocal range to give each of them the distinction they needed. We have to forgive her though, she's only one human. How many different ways can she express her voice?
Which brings me to my main point, which is that I couldn't follow this audiobook. I couldn't keep the characters straight because there were too many of them and they all behaved similarly to each other. So even if I had read the book rather than listened, I think character distinction would still have been a problem.
I couldn't follow anything that happened because I never really understood who was speaking or their stakes. And I couldn't invest because I never understood what was at stake! By the time I reached the end, I was so confused, I didn't even realize I had just been fed the climax.
But I did notice the lack of denouement.
I've read from other reviewers that THE DEVIL YOU KNOW reads better if you've read the other books in the series. Unfortunately, I didn't even know this book was part of a series when I requested it from NetGalley. I still think single books should be able to stand on their own, however, especially mysteries.
So take this review with a grain of salt. I'm giving it 3 stars because I could tell that the writing is excellent. I'm going to try this writer again!
Rating:
I have to hand it to Abby Craden, the narrator for the audiobook, because she kept me entertained enough to get me through this one. Also, I'm so impressed she was able to voice such an enormous cast of characters, though that ended up being kind of part of the problem also. She simply didn't have the vocal range to give each of them the distinction they needed. We have to forgive her though, she's only one human. How many different ways can she express her voice?
Which brings me to my main point, which is that I couldn't follow this audiobook. I couldn't keep the characters straight because there were too many of them and they all behaved similarly to each other. So even if I had read the book rather than listened, I think character distinction would still have been a problem.
I couldn't follow anything that happened because I never really understood who was speaking or their stakes. And I couldn't invest because I never understood what was at stake! By the time I reached the end, I was so confused, I didn't even realize I had just been fed the climax.
But I did notice the lack of denouement.
I've read from other reviewers that THE DEVIL YOU KNOW reads better if you've read the other books in the series. Unfortunately, I didn't even know this book was part of a series when I requested it from NetGalley. I still think single books should be able to stand on their own, however, especially mysteries.
So take this review with a grain of salt. I'm giving it 3 stars because I could tell that the writing is excellent. I'm going to try this writer again!
Rating:
undertheradar's review
2.0
Review to come!
Check out my blog for updates!
https://undertheradarbooks.com
Check out my blog for updates!
https://undertheradarbooks.com
lost_in_tome's review
3.0
Very entertaining murder mystery with some equally surprising plot twists! There were a few moments where I got so turned around with the characters, I had to back track some of the story. This may have been part of the magic from the writer though. Constantly keeping the reader on their toes. I would definitely pick up another read by this author
farfallo4ka's review
4.0
Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the e-ARC of the book.
The Devil You Know is a part of The Detective Nolan Series which takes places in Los Angeles. Famous actor Evan Hobbes was found dead soon after a fake video destroyed his career. As LA detectives try to figure out whether it was a suicide or homicide, more and more details come to surface.
At the beginning this story was confusing with the reader assuming many POVs, found it challenging to track how is everyone related. But it wasn't long before I got really invested in figuring out what is going on and solving the case.
The Devil You Know is a part of The Detective Nolan Series which takes places in Los Angeles. Famous actor Evan Hobbes was found dead soon after a fake video destroyed his career. As LA detectives try to figure out whether it was a suicide or homicide, more and more details come to surface.
At the beginning this story was confusing with the reader assuming many POVs, found it challenging to track how is everyone related. But it wasn't long before I got really invested in figuring out what is going on and solving the case.
simoneclark's review
3.0
2.5 stars rounded up to 3
Thank you, Netgalley and the publisher, for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion! I'm leaving this review voluntarily!
This is a book you can definitely not read out of order since there are many references to characters and events in previous books. But that wasn't why the book didn't quite work for me. The book didn't draw me in at all! I caught myself wondering off and then realizing I may have missed something. So I went back and reread only to find out that there was nothing important I missed. While the writing was good, I didn't care about the characters. I wanted to love this book, but I couldn't! This was my first book by this author. Since I liked the writing, I will give the other books by the author a chance.
Thank you, Netgalley and the publisher, for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion! I'm leaving this review voluntarily!
This is a book you can definitely not read out of order since there are many references to characters and events in previous books. But that wasn't why the book didn't quite work for me. The book didn't draw me in at all! I caught myself wondering off and then realizing I may have missed something. So I went back and reread only to find out that there was nothing important I missed. While the writing was good, I didn't care about the characters. I wanted to love this book, but I couldn't! This was my first book by this author. Since I liked the writing, I will give the other books by the author a chance.
lisanussd's review
4.0
This book is number three in the detective Margaret Nolan series. This was not my favorite of this series but I really like her writing and how fast paced it is! I have read the entire Monkeewrench series that was written under the pseudonym of PJ Tracy which was written by 2 authors: Mom and daughter. The Detective Nolan series is written by the daughter only and is a little darker.
This story didn't highlight Sam as much as in the first 2 books, and I missed him. The smart dialog and procedural story didn't disappoint.
This story didn't highlight Sam as much as in the first 2 books, and I missed him. The smart dialog and procedural story didn't disappoint.
luckycharmedlovesbooks's review
3.0
The Devil You Know is an interesting police procedural following LAPD Detective Margaret Nolan. I have not read the other books in this series, but I do feel as though you could read this as a stand alone and not be confused or lost. I liked the premise of the story, and the way all of the characters were interconnected. While the writing makes the story flow together, I did feel as though for the first third of the book each chapter introduced a new character abruptly. Once I got through each chapter I saw how that character fit, but it was a little out of place to me. Overall, the story was interesting enough to keep my attention but I don’t know that I would read any others in the series.
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest opinion.
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest opinion.