The city of Chandler, Massachusetts is plunged into terror when the bodies of three local teenagers wash ashore. While homicide detective Sam Harper hunts down the guilty, a sinister plot emerges overseas. From the Vatican to the jungles of South America, a cursed black pearl ring, the demonic prophecy it represents, and the men who pursue its powers find their unfortunate way onto Harper’s turf. Enthralled by the ring’s story and a front-page spread, newspaper reporter Jennifer Blake agrees to pick up the ring at a local pawnshop for her former college professor. When she does, unforeseen events shoot Blake to the top of Harper’s prime suspect list. Soon, the seemingly unrelated cases converge and the heat is on for Harper to expose the truth behind a Vatican secret and stop the self-righteous man who does the unthinkable in the name of God.
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Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
Format:Paperback
I was impressed by Marta Stephens' first novel Silenced Cry, and was looking forward to her next book. I was not disappointed, finding The Devil Can Wait even more enjoyable. Again, as with her first book, I was drawn in by the realistic character interplay, especially the portrayal of the often frustrating work of a homicide detective.
The book begins in the middle of a messy crime spree, with the discovery of the latest teenage body in a string of possibly related murders. Short-handed and overworked, Sam Harper and his partner have no leads and a workload of aggravation. Throw in several more strange murders, a homicidal Colombian, a cursed ring that could bring the apocalypse, an attractive, vibrant reporter slated to become a damsel in distress, and Sam Harper is up against the clock to save lives by solving the case.
Marta Stephens does an admirable job of blending a solid crime mystery with an exotic supernatural touch and the undertone of religious beliefs. She never veers into the outrageous or unbelievable, but still manages to keep that small air of "what if", integrating it all into a fabulous whole.
I am fast becoming a rabid fan of Ms Stephens, appreciating her reliable plot work and her memorable characters. Her superb protagonist, Sam Harper, is a genuine, somewhat imperfect, thoroughly human personality. From his dedication to the job to his rather messy personal life, it is this character that breathes vivid life into the pages of her books.
A definite recommend for all fans of crime/mystery fiction.
The book begins in the middle of a messy crime spree, with the discovery of the latest teenage body in a string of possibly related murders. Short-handed and overworked, Sam Harper and his partner have no leads and a workload of aggravation. Throw in several more strange murders, a homicidal Colombian, a cursed ring that could bring the apocalypse, an attractive, vibrant reporter slated to become a damsel in distress, and Sam Harper is up against the clock to save lives by solving the case.
Marta Stephens does an admirable job of blending a solid crime mystery with an exotic supernatural touch and the undertone of religious beliefs. She never veers into the outrageous or unbelievable, but still manages to keep that small air of "what if", integrating it all into a fabulous whole.
I am fast becoming a rabid fan of Ms Stephens, appreciating her reliable plot work and her memorable characters. Her superb protagonist, Sam Harper, is a genuine, somewhat imperfect, thoroughly human personality. From his dedication to the job to his rather messy personal life, it is this character that breathes vivid life into the pages of her books.
A definite recommend for all fans of crime/mystery fiction.
By Pat Brown
Format:Paperback
The Devil Can Wait by Marta Stephens is a much anticipated sequel to Silenced Cry, the first Sam Harper mystery. This sophomore book one is even better than her debut novel. I love Sam Harper, cynical cop aware he's losing his idealism but not knowing how to get it back. He is faced with a string of gruesome murders and must figure out if they are linked or are the work of more than one killer.
Meanwhile, in Columbia a man seeks revenge for the death of his mother and the recovery of a strange artifact, a black pearl ring, with a mysterious history. Are there powers associated with the ring? A curse?
Stephens kept me guessing throughout who the bad guys were, a hard feat when you write similar stories. But she did it with a host of complex characters and a dynamite plot. Bodies pile up and the mystery deepens. Two mysteries in fact, one began in Columbia the other in Massachusetts. When they converge in Chandler, Massachusetts things really start to get interesting. Not to mention dangerous for all concerned.
Meanwhile, in Columbia a man seeks revenge for the death of his mother and the recovery of a strange artifact, a black pearl ring, with a mysterious history. Are there powers associated with the ring? A curse?
Stephens kept me guessing throughout who the bad guys were, a hard feat when you write similar stories. But she did it with a host of complex characters and a dynamite plot. Bodies pile up and the mystery deepens. Two mysteries in fact, one began in Columbia the other in Massachusetts. When they converge in Chandler, Massachusetts things really start to get interesting. Not to mention dangerous for all concerned.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.9 out of 5 stars
10 reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Unthinking Godly Curse!
Nov 2 2008
By Viviane Crystal
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
Three young teenager bodies wash up on the shores of Chandler, Massachusetts in eighteen days. If they all decayed at the same rate, it means someone is killing one teen every week and probably will continue at the same rate. Sam Harper knows that solving these murders has to be quickly accomplished but he doesn't have a single clue connecting the whys and wherefores to reach a credible, evidence-based conclusion.
A small village Mitu in southeastern Colombia, South America is home for a woman branded as a witch by her neighbors and a son who wants the ring she wears, a wide silver band encasing a black pearl with an inner inscription. For he knows that he will possess the powers of the ring's curse, power that can only pass to a natural heir of its present owner. Alejandro desperately needs this power to cement the security and revenge against a threatening drug dealer. From there anything's possible and more.
Jennifer Blake, a Chandler journalist, receives a mysterious call from a pawnshop owner. He wants her to deliver something to an anthropologist and knows she can accomplish it because she clearly has no belief in superstition and curses. That link somehow connects her in Sam Harper's mind to the unsolved murders and he's determined to ferret out the truth of the connection.
Marta Stephens has developed her crime mystery plotting and scheming to a remarkable degree! The Devil Can Wait is a tautly plotted, driven tale interweaving local revenge with an exotic tale about the twisted consequences of Vatican meddling and demonic prophecy sure to engage every true lover of superb mystery thrillers and making them want more, more, more.
Marta Stephens is a writer who deserves wider public recognition and high praise!
Reviewed by Viviane Crystal on November 3, 2008
A small village Mitu in southeastern Colombia, South America is home for a woman branded as a witch by her neighbors and a son who wants the ring she wears, a wide silver band encasing a black pearl with an inner inscription. For he knows that he will possess the powers of the ring's curse, power that can only pass to a natural heir of its present owner. Alejandro desperately needs this power to cement the security and revenge against a threatening drug dealer. From there anything's possible and more.
Jennifer Blake, a Chandler journalist, receives a mysterious call from a pawnshop owner. He wants her to deliver something to an anthropologist and knows she can accomplish it because she clearly has no belief in superstition and curses. That link somehow connects her in Sam Harper's mind to the unsolved murders and he's determined to ferret out the truth of the connection.
Marta Stephens has developed her crime mystery plotting and scheming to a remarkable degree! The Devil Can Wait is a tautly plotted, driven tale interweaving local revenge with an exotic tale about the twisted consequences of Vatican meddling and demonic prophecy sure to engage every true lover of superb mystery thrillers and making them want more, more, more.
Marta Stephens is a writer who deserves wider public recognition and high praise!
Reviewed by Viviane Crystal on November 3, 2008
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not a crime/mystery reader, but the writing and sincerity of the author's voice won me over
Jan 24 2009
By Kathryn Magendie
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
Book Review: The Devil Can Wait by Marta Stephens
The Devil Can Wait: A Sam Harper Crime Mystery
by Marta Stephens
BeWrite Books, November 2008
Reviewed by Kathryn Magendie
When the bodies of three teenagers wash ashore, each killed in a unique and ritualistic way, detective Sam Harper steps on the job. As he plunges into the mystery surrounding these murders, things aren't always as they first appear. Then, there is another murder, but this one seems to be a copycat--or is it?, for while evidence can lead astray, a "dead body never lies." There are strange goings-on in the city of Chandler, and the bodies will multiply if Harper doesn't find answers. Add to the mix lack of sleep, pressure from community leaders and colleagues, a snarl in witnesses and the evidence, and Harper's frustration deepens.
While Harper works to solve the murders, there is evil and intrigue emerging in South America. A black pearl ring, traced back to the Vatican (and perhaps even fashioned by Satan himself?) becomes another "character." When the black pearl ring's mistress is murdered and the ring is stolen from her lifeless fingers, its purported successor is enraged, and he wants the ring back at any human cost. The ring will find its way to America via shady dealings, greed--and perhaps even by prophecy and the supernatural?
Enter reporter Jennifer Blake, who is not the clichéd crime drama blonde, blue eyed, and leggy, but a real Human Woman who Stephens fashioned strong and independent (but not invincible!). When she comes in possession of the ring as a favor to her old college professor, she not only puts herself in danger from a malevolent stranger, but when the pawnshop dealer she retrieves the ring from is murdered, she is considered a suspect by Sam Harper.
What forces are really behind the ring's legacy?
As Harper and Blake search for answers, the ring, the evil stranger, the Catholic Church, the innocent and the seemingly innocent will converge. As the plot unravels, danger comes not only from the expected, but from the unexpected. And, to make matters more intense, homicide detective Harper is cautioned he must hurry, for the alignment of the planets will occur on Christmas Eve, and what evil may come from the uniting of events that this mysterious ring portends?
I was swept away by intrigue and plot twists, for The Devil Can Wait is a true page-turner. Marta Stephens does an excellent job with scene setting, snappy, quick-paced dialogue, and well-written narrative. As well, since I read from an advanced review copy (the book went on sale November 3), I was impressed with the editorial mechanics of the novel.
Stephens writes with a firm, confident hand, and each chapter, even when changing points of view, glides smoothly to the next. The Devil Can Wait gives the reader plenty of twists and turns and, though she could easily have, Stephens does not rely on gratuitous violence but instead lets her good writing and a good crime story shine.
There were a couple of things I felt were left hanging that I wanted "cleaned up," but to tell them here would give away too much. That said, those things didn't take away from my appreciation of The Devil Can Wait. Also, I wanted more chapters in Harper's point of view. It is obvious from Stephen's crafting of character that Harper isn't some one-dimensional gumshoe, so more of his voice would have made me happier. However, there is enough about him to entice me to read more Sam Harper crime mysteries, for I found Harper to be tough, intelligent, a little hard-headed, but with a vulnerable side (who loves eating dinners with his dad) that made him human and likeable--I may have even fallen in love with him, just a little bit.
I look for more quick-paced, well-written novels from Marta Stephens. After many years of leaving this genre sitting on the shelves, Stephens has brought me back to the crime-mystery novel.
(review first on The Roses & THorns)
The Devil Can Wait: A Sam Harper Crime Mystery
by Marta Stephens
BeWrite Books, November 2008
Reviewed by Kathryn Magendie
When the bodies of three teenagers wash ashore, each killed in a unique and ritualistic way, detective Sam Harper steps on the job. As he plunges into the mystery surrounding these murders, things aren't always as they first appear. Then, there is another murder, but this one seems to be a copycat--or is it?, for while evidence can lead astray, a "dead body never lies." There are strange goings-on in the city of Chandler, and the bodies will multiply if Harper doesn't find answers. Add to the mix lack of sleep, pressure from community leaders and colleagues, a snarl in witnesses and the evidence, and Harper's frustration deepens.
While Harper works to solve the murders, there is evil and intrigue emerging in South America. A black pearl ring, traced back to the Vatican (and perhaps even fashioned by Satan himself?) becomes another "character." When the black pearl ring's mistress is murdered and the ring is stolen from her lifeless fingers, its purported successor is enraged, and he wants the ring back at any human cost. The ring will find its way to America via shady dealings, greed--and perhaps even by prophecy and the supernatural?
Enter reporter Jennifer Blake, who is not the clichéd crime drama blonde, blue eyed, and leggy, but a real Human Woman who Stephens fashioned strong and independent (but not invincible!). When she comes in possession of the ring as a favor to her old college professor, she not only puts herself in danger from a malevolent stranger, but when the pawnshop dealer she retrieves the ring from is murdered, she is considered a suspect by Sam Harper.
What forces are really behind the ring's legacy?
As Harper and Blake search for answers, the ring, the evil stranger, the Catholic Church, the innocent and the seemingly innocent will converge. As the plot unravels, danger comes not only from the expected, but from the unexpected. And, to make matters more intense, homicide detective Harper is cautioned he must hurry, for the alignment of the planets will occur on Christmas Eve, and what evil may come from the uniting of events that this mysterious ring portends?
I was swept away by intrigue and plot twists, for The Devil Can Wait is a true page-turner. Marta Stephens does an excellent job with scene setting, snappy, quick-paced dialogue, and well-written narrative. As well, since I read from an advanced review copy (the book went on sale November 3), I was impressed with the editorial mechanics of the novel.
Stephens writes with a firm, confident hand, and each chapter, even when changing points of view, glides smoothly to the next. The Devil Can Wait gives the reader plenty of twists and turns and, though she could easily have, Stephens does not rely on gratuitous violence but instead lets her good writing and a good crime story shine.
There were a couple of things I felt were left hanging that I wanted "cleaned up," but to tell them here would give away too much. That said, those things didn't take away from my appreciation of The Devil Can Wait. Also, I wanted more chapters in Harper's point of view. It is obvious from Stephen's crafting of character that Harper isn't some one-dimensional gumshoe, so more of his voice would have made me happier. However, there is enough about him to entice me to read more Sam Harper crime mysteries, for I found Harper to be tough, intelligent, a little hard-headed, but with a vulnerable side (who loves eating dinners with his dad) that made him human and likeable--I may have even fallen in love with him, just a little bit.
I look for more quick-paced, well-written novels from Marta Stephens. After many years of leaving this genre sitting on the shelves, Stephens has brought me back to the crime-mystery novel.
(review first on The Roses & THorns)
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Devil
Dec 15 2008
By Susan Whitfield
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
The Devil Can Wait, but I can't! Once I started reading this one, I had to keep going until the end. I've read both novels by Stephens and think this one is even better than the first, Silenced Cry. Highly recommended
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Go to Amazon.com to see all 10 reviews
4.9 out of 5 stars
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