Full Review on NetGalley
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Having raced through Devil’s Bargain, the first book in Rachel Caine’s Red Letter Days series (or more properly duology), I was eager to read Devil’s Due.

Devil’s Bargain introduced Jazz Callender, and Lucía Garcia, once strangers, whose new private detective agency was funded by an anonymous organisation, with a few strings attached. By the end of the novel, Jazz and Lucia had identified The Cross Society as their mysterious benefactor and learnt of its counterpoint, the Eidolon Corporation. Unraveling the motives of both organisations reveals a dangerous game is being played, and Jazz and Lucia are trapped in the middle of it all.

While Jazz is the focus of Devil’s Bargain, Lucia takes the lead in Devil’s Due. Caine barely gives Lucia time to breathe as she is confronted by a series of crisis, including being exposed to Anthrax, stalked by a corrupt cop, abducted, and shot. I like Lucia, she is the calmer and more calculating member of the partnership, drawing on her extensive experience as an operative with a number of shadow organisations, but her vulnerabilities are also explored when she loses a friend, and falls in love with Ben McCarthy.

Devil’s Due is a frantic thrill ride, with several shocking twists, as Lucia and Jazz race to free themselves, their friends, and the world, from the interventions of The Cross Society and Eidolon Corporation. I was very happy that the story arc was satisfyingly finalised offering an appropriately explosive ending to the duology.

The Red Letter Days is an entertaining duology, and I enjoyed it’s fast paced combination of mystery, thriller, paranormal and romance. ( )

A bit better than the first book, Devil's Bargain. See my complete review at puretextuality.com

4.25 Stars ( )

Lucia and Jazz have finally succeeded in getting Ben, Jazz’s old partner, out of jail where he has been wrongfully imprisoned and his life threatened for years. It’s a difficult time to celebrate though, as the death threat still looms over Jazz, confining her to the office.

But the battle between the two psychic organisations – the Cross Society and the Eidolon Corporation – is heating up and getting ever more deadly, even their office is no safe haven. And, as can be expected from organisations that can see the future, their plotting is convoluted, long term, confusing and very complex; and nearly impossible to protect against

It also seems that their pasts were more affected by these organisations than they ever imagined – and that their supposed allies are much more ruthless and much more callous than they previously thought, begging the question whether they’re truly on the good guy’s side here. Or if there are any good guys at all


The last book made me turn on my brain and pay attention as the late appearing mystical elements of the story added a whole new level of complexity – the duelling psychics constantly trying to shift tiny events to have a massive effect on major events, the whole concept of different people having massive different influences on the time line. Then there were our two main character’s attempt to negotiate this and do what’s best with forces determined to play “end justifies the means” long term planning that may sacrifice many people in the name of the greater good.

This book not only continues that but plunges us in ever deeper with a much stronger challenge of the ethics of the whole seeing the future. Lucia and Jazz are increasingly trying to distance themselves from or at least question the actions of the Cross Society and Eidolon both as they’re struggling over the idea of who to trust. There’s a lot of moral quandary here, a lot of struggling to figure out exactly what would be the best thing to do all more complicated by the two men in their lives – Ben and James – having very strong and very rigid opinions of the Cross society as well. I like how the disagreement is handled in a mature fashion, there’s no big dramatic ultimatums, no screaming matches, just a mutual wish to work it out coupled with a firm insistence that none of them cross their red lines they’ve set up.

So, in many ways this continues the fascination of the first book - it has a fascinating world, an excellent concept and a well paced story with lots of really well done action, sensible behaviour and interesting mystery as Lucia tries to navigate her way round the complications of the Cross society’s planning, Eidolon’s plotting and several mine fields from her past.


And I do love the characters – because they all behave like reasonable adults. They take risks, but they’re reasonable ones. They are intelligent and capable without being super powered, they have excellent inter-personal interactions, they have some great banter, they have worries and fears and can be a bit lost, but they generally hold up well throughout the story. I like them and think they work extremely well together. I also really like that Lucia, the protagonist, is not only Latina but she’s Latina with a sense of culture and language, rather than it being a passing label to be ignored. I will say, though, that at times we have vast swathes of the book go by without a hint and then a sudden remembrance of her Spanish which is a tad inconsistent, but only a tad.

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*I got a free ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review*

This and other reviews can also be found on my blog (un)Conventional Bookviews.

This was so fast paced I'm actually out of breath now! The writing is excellent, I love most of the main characters, and I think the mystery and suspense parts were so expertly done I could have never guessed any of what happened... Then again, my name isn't Simms ;)

Devil’s Due is even better than Devil’s Bargain, with not only one, but two strong female protagonists! I also loved where the story went, both with the mystery of the psychics and with the way Jazz and Lucia interacted with each other and the other characters.

As McCarthy is liberated from prison, only Lucia is there to greet him, because James and Lucia made sure Jazz was far away from the courthouse during the hearing. To keep her safe – or so they convinced themselves. When Jazz realizes that McCarthy is no longer in prison, the first thing she wants to do is to find him, to let him know how happy she is that he was finally cleared of murder. She quickly understands that something is going on between her ex-partner and her current partner, her keen sense of observation never slowing down.



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