Devil’s Right Hand
Devil’s Right Hand, by Lilith Saintcrow, is the third in the Dante Valentine series.
Necromancer and bounty hunter, Dante Valentine is back. And the Devil wants to make another deal. In exchange for Dante hunting down rogue demons, Dante will become the Devil’s new Right Hand. And his former, Japhrimel, will be getting his powers back. But Japh has been holding back information from Dante. And tempers will get explosive.
While parts of the story were enjoyable, the repetitiveness of Dante’s thoughts got to be a bit irritating. Saintcrow is certainly skilled at creating beautiful and descriptive imagery. But at times, it seemed to slow the story down. The intensity from the previous books didn’t seem to continue in this installment.
Old friends (and enemies) resurface. And more of Dante’s past is revealed. And even though Japh is protective of her, Dante continues to kick tale. She’s a tough woman who doesn’t like being pushed around. Not by the Devil, and certainly not by her “boyfriend.”
Stories about strong, independent women who save the day are, of course, very popular right now. And though Dante may seem tough-as-nails, she feels deeply and is affected by everything that happens to her and those around her. She is definitely a more realistic character than some other alpha female stereotypes in stories today.
August 29th, 2007 at 3:36 am
Good review. And yeah, the wise-cracking, super-heroine is kind of being done-to-death right now. Some are great, but a lot are formulaic, unfortunately. At least this one offers something beyond the standard fare of vampires and werewolves.
August 29th, 2007 at 9:13 am
It’s definitely not as predictable as the usual vampire/werewolf romance. I wouldn’t even classify this series as romance, though it does have the angst.
August 29th, 2007 at 11:51 am
I should check out one or two of this author’s books. You know, in my copious spare time.
Hope you’re enjoying Crystal Rain—Ragamuffin is quite good too!
August 29th, 2007 at 2:35 pm
Dante Valentine looks a strong character.
August 29th, 2007 at 4:04 pm
I loved the first two books, and I can’t wait for this one. I’ve got it in my Amazon cart for whenever I decide to bite the bullet and pay all that shipping.
August 29th, 2007 at 4:14 pm
Great. Just what I need. ANOTHER series to start reading! I do agree with the fact that there are more and more books coming out with kick-ass female heroines. But I kind of like that.
August 31st, 2007 at 3:04 pm
I picked up the first book a few days ago and I’m hoping I can start it this weekend. I’ll have to save my comments until I know what I’m talking about
August 31st, 2007 at 4:46 pm
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!
September 7th, 2007 at 1:38 pm
I enjoyed this book. It isn’t my favorite in the series but it was alright. She really got on my nerves with her whining. She even acknowledges that she’s whining a lot. I’m hoping for less whining in the next book.
September 12th, 2007 at 1:51 pm
Well I’ve just past the point where Japh held her up against the wall. and boy does she whine. you were right about that. I still really like him and I think in a lot of ways she’s bringing his actions around through hers. I guess I should keep my comments to myself until I finish…
September 12th, 2007 at 2:05 pm
Repetitive whining. That was my major complaint. And now, Japh’s trying to be all alpha male all of the sudden. Well.. I’ll wait till you’ve finished.
September 14th, 2007 at 12:42 am
I have to say, I wasn’t put off by what some others have called whining. It’s those inner thoughts and mental headslap moments that make Danny a believable character for me. Sure, we’d want to reach through the pages and yell, “knock it off!” at times. However, all of that served to remind me of this character’s traumatic past, the overstressed situations, and the conflict between her desires and her lifelong habits. It was the screaming, babbling voice inside your head while you present a calm, strong front to the world. The confusion, the self-sabotage, the pettiness, and the prickliness made the difference between a fully developed character and a SuperChick with all the credibility of a cardboard sign.