Review by amahstone -- Devil Among Us by Jack Winnick

[amahstone]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Devil Among Us" by Jack Winnick.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Devil Among Us by Jack Winnick is an engaging thriller. It is the second installment of his Lara and Uri series. The story follows two protagonists with a complicated history. FBI Special Agent Lara Edmond is called onto the scene following a devastating attack on a synagogue, which leaves over 150 people dead. With her is Uri Levin, a Mossad agent from Israel tasked with helping her. Both of them are racing against time to prevent another terrorist attack. The story also tackles their previous romance, which is explored more in the first book of the series.

While this is part of a book series, I did not have any trouble jumping into this book without reading any of his other books. While much of the relationship between Lara and Uri was explored in the first book of the series, the second installment does not require you to have read the first to understand what is happening. The story is self-contained and does not focus on information from the previous novel much.

I really enjoyed the interactions between Lara and Uri. Despite their previous history, they have a very good rapport, and their dialogue feels natural and is fun to read. Both characters feel like people you could meet in real life. One aspect of the book that I did not like was the usage of many unfamiliar religious terms and references to many different battles. The last half of the novel in particular seems to get bogged down with many unfamiliar terms which make it hard to focus on the story. Trying to keep track of all the different terms was difficult and made the plot somewhat convoluted.

This book would definitely appeal to someone who already has some degree of familiarity with politics in the Middle East and its history. However, although I would not consider myself someone who is interested in the political affairs of the Middle East, the novel was still very engaging for the most part. The first few chapters in particular were very interesting and kept me hooked.

I would rate this book a 3 out of 4. It is a very compelling novel, but I took off one star because there are several typos and punctuation errors. I think the book would benefit from a thorough editing and proofreading. I would recommend this book to mature readers. There are minor sexual references. Also, there are several instances of profanity and violence, as well as implied sexual abuse toward a minor child.

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Devil Among Us
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