Customer Reviews

Devil in the Mist: A Biological Thriller

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Devil In The Mist is a tantalizing delight. It offers a blend of intrigue, mystery, and excitement with a touch of sexual tension. The main character "Zack Monstar" is very sexy,with a gritty backbone that will stop at nothing to solve his case. This book will take you on a rollercoaster ride that you will not want to put down!

Zack Monstar is a detective assigned to what appears to be just a murder case, in the heart of Atlanta. Yet, upon closer inspection, the bodies are damaged so badly it's impossible to identify them and one has symptoms of a virus that is circulating in Africa, killing thousands of people. After numerous events, which close off all leads, Zack begins to believe some type of conspiracy is taking place. Witnesses begin disappearing and everything leads back to World Health Systems (WHS), a company known for its biological work locally and abroad. Dead end after dead end, Zack continues working the case, with the assistance of Regina Miller, an employee at WHS. Neither of them are sure what's going on or who is behind the murders, mayhem, and mystery of the deadly virus, but they do know their lives are at stake.

Diane Dorce, in her debut adult fiction book, introduces a fascinating and sexy image of good guy Zack Monstar, whom I look forward to seeing in future books. Readers will immediately love him, become interested in his background, and want to know more about his life as a detective. Additionally, Dorce does a great job of keeping the reader immersed in the happenings of the story, the development of the various characters, and the outcome, to find out who is behind the original murders. It is suspenseful, a bit horrifying, and has a touch of romance that will appeal to readers across various genres. The one thing, however, that would make the book better is a round of proofreading to catch the typographical errors as they were a bit distracting and slowed down the story. Fortunately, DEVIL IN THE MIST is intriguing enough the reader will want to continue. It is a realistic portrayal of what big companies have the power to do to an unknowing world.

Reviewed by Tee C. Royal
of The RAWSISTAZ™ Reviewers

Follow detective Zack Monstar on a race to find the killer(s) in a series of mysterious murders / deaths. The case takes place in Atlanta however, the details of the deaths resemble a deadly virus spreading through small villages in Africa. The focus of the investigation constantly shifts to World Health Systems. Zack meets and partners with a cast of unlikely heroes and possible villains, one of which he will begin a romantic relationship. This is very well written all the way through the climactic ending. Conspiracy, corporate cover up, love & suspense will keep you turning the pages. Excellent read!

Devil in the Mist by Diane Dorce is a biological and psychological thriller based in Atlanta, GA and details the movements of Zack, the ultra-smooth, ultra-debonaire detective in a mystery that will surely keep the reader on his/her toes.

I must say that Diane's writing and style and this storyline can go toe to toe with the big dogs in the literary industry. Oh well, I guess it is who you know not how well you write.

SHe is a writer who should be on many bestsellers list.

I enjoyed this story, the fast pace, the growing and intriguing plot.

She is one of the best of our time right now.

THis is an EXCELLENT read, hands down.

Is a movie in the making?

Diane Dorce, Devil in the Mist (Door of Kush Books, 2005)

First off: while there is not, technically, a limit on the number of times one can list the genre of a book on that book's cover (save, of course, the surface area of said cover), it's entirely possible that there should be. And if there were, Devil in the Mist would have violated it. But, to be fair, you will not come away from a quick look at the cover without knowing that the book is (and I promise, this is the sole time I will use this term in the entire review) a biological thriller.

At least, it wants to be. I'm not entirely sure it succeeds, but it does give it the good ol' college try, and I have to give it credit for that. The basics: there's a new disease that's wiping out huge numbers of people in Africa, and Atlanta detective Zack Monstar has a hunch that the disease is not, in fact, a natural occurrence. The problem is that every time he gets closer to the truth, people wind up dead. With the help of Sashay, the sister of one of the first murder victims, and Regina, who works for the company Zack feels is responsible for all this, he keeps trying to get to the truth without anyone else getting killed.

It's a good plot, certainly a timely one, and when Dorce stays on it, the book's got legs. They stumble sometimes thanks to the usual lack of proofreading and editing given micropress books, but that's to be expected. The book, though, has two more fundamental flaws. The first is that none of the characters has a really different voice; any character could be speaking any line, given the proper knowledge. They're entirely interchangeable. This, understandably, leads to confusion if you're not paying complete attention, which leads to having to go back and re-read large sections sometimes to figure out who person X is and how they fit into it all. The second is that, as I intimated above, Dorce doesn't always stick to what she's got. There is, of course, a romantic subplot (how can there not be, with handsome, chiseled detective and two gorgeous assistants?), but the "sub" aspect of that drops off a little too often. Romantic suspense is all well and good, but if you're (aggressively) advertising your book as a straight thriller, perhaps it's worth paring a little of the fat from the romance subplot, no?

Still, for all that, it's a page-turner. I can't wholeheartedly recommend it, but I might have given another couple of passes of the editorial machine. **

I thought the book was highly entertaining - I finished it in 4 days. It reminded me of my favorite show "24" with its fast pace and constantly changing aspects (scenes). One downfall was the many typographical errors, mispelling of words, and the unnecessary characters (the skulls, devils, etc) that were displayed throughout the book. Note to publisher: please use spellcheck and proof readers. Other than these, which I got over, I look forward to reading more about Mr. Monstar, Paulina and Sashay!