"Monty was like a pot that was about to boil over, but he couldn't help it. He wouldn't share her with anyone, and if she didn't know how to treat him, then maybe it was time that he taught it to her, he thought to himself, as he waved the bartender over to his table."
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The Devil Incarnate by Becky Roach Trafford Publishing
book review by Maggie Harding
Becky Roach could easily have named this book, "The Trouble with Monty." From the very earliest years of his life, when he was victimized by his bully cousin, Monty Hallmen began to develop ways to mete out retribution to anyone who made the mistake of crossing him. The rage that was inherent in both his nature and his nurture would always remain well hidden until his victim realized what was happening; then it was too late.
The story opens with Monty in jail, serving a forty year sentence for murder. But incarceration hasn't changed his deviant behavior. Currently he is grooming his next victim, Sheila Hardesty, a fairly plain young woman who befriended him when she began doing ministry work in the prison. His dashing good looks, impeccable manners and charming ways hooked her immediately... like the many that had gone before her.
The author uses the technique of flashbacks to reveal the years and women who fell victim to Monty Hallmen's manipulations and finally to his incarceration. The technique helps move the story more effectively than a straight time-line would in this complex tale. Becky Roach has successfully created a purely evil anti-hero, one that the reader will be hoping comes to a deservedly horrible end. And, according to her notices, she is already working on the next book in the series, The Devil's Mansion, that is planned for release in the spring of 2012.