Title: The Devil Can Wait
Author: Marta Stephens
ISBN 978-1-905202-86-7
Publisher: BeWrite Books
A flu outbreak leaves Detective Sam Harper short handed and over extended as he searches for a serial killer. The Devil Can Wait by Marta Stephens grabs you from the first chapter when a man and his dog discover the body of a young man washed up from the bay, the third victim of a serial killer and not a single clue. The local press and a pesky female reporter from the Chandler Times complicates his life further when she withholds evidence to get a story.
Stephens feeds threads of evidence throughout a multi-dimensional and intricate plot that spans two continents and leads to conclusions that increase the urgency to find a suspect before another young boy is murdered. This fast-paced thriller masterfully weaves mystery into the lives of believable characters and a well-crafted setting. Can the murder of a woman in a small Columbian pueblo, and the theft of her black pearl ring be related to the murder of the boys found in
The Devil Can Wait interlaces a complex plot that grabs the reader and doesn't let go. This book will appeal to readers with varied interests as it has everything: tension, conflict, murder, mystery, romance and the ability to keep the reader turning the page as Sam Harper is thrust into a world that leads to a cursed papal ring tied to biblical prophecies in the book of Daniel. Sam's not a religious man, but it raises the question of whether a series of unrelated murders are the result of a sick mind or are they actually connected to the beasts in Daniel chapter 7? Harper's investigation leads him on an unpredictable trail making him more of a believer with each turn. This one is a must read.
* * *Reviewed by author and full-time freelance writer, Donna Sundblad, who resides in