Review: Excellent follow-up to the original!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 30, 2012
The second part of a series, even a popular one, doesn't always turn out the way we would want it. For every The Empire Strikes Back or Iron Man 2, there are dozens of Highlander 2: The Quickening or Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. The Devil is a Gentleman, however, harks back to the former, as this is a very satisfying book.For the uninitiated, Niki Slobodian is an Abnormal. In the dystopic world she loves, that is a bad thing. This book opens with Niki having the man responsible for it being a bad thing dropping by for a chat. The result of that little talk is the springboard for the entire novel, which is one of the more action-packed paranormal novels that I've read this year. I hate to draw fictional comparisons, but imagine Hellblazer (John Constantine) combined with Buffy the Vampire Slayer or the Dresden Files, with just a touch of Raymond Chandler and Dante Alighieri. There's a good level of characterization and plot combined with a noir feel, or at least as noir-ish as you can get with ghosts and demons running around. This is what a good pulpy horror/paranormal novel SHOULD be. And, on top of it all, it was very well-written. I was a beta reader for this book and enjoyed the experience immensely.I would definitely recommend The Devil is a Gentleman. I would also suggest you pick up Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea, the first Niki Slobodian novel as well. You don't need to read that one to fully enjoy this book, as you'll get a good introduction to the world she lives in through immersion in this book. They are both great reads!