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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Superbly Satisfying for Young Women, June 27, 2005
This review is from: The Devil You Know: A Novel (Mass Market Paperback)
I love this book for many reasons, the main one being that it portrayed three young women who, by their own will, determination, and intelligence, and (okay, okay), beauty made it to the top of their fields. I really have seen very few novels in the market today who portray females as such vibrant young women who have dreams and are willing to work to fulfill them. Louise Bagshawe does an absolutely superb job of forming three intensely rich characters that are incredibly realistic. Each of the women, though portrayed as independent and strong, still have their own insecurities--Bagshawe really blends the two sides well together and as a result crafted beautiful characters to read about.
The novel itself is pretty much (for most of the book) split into three perspectives (one for each of the girls) and at the end, the three become one--and that's where my only complaint lies. I don't want to give anything away, so I'll just say this: I thought the ending was a slight letdown, and unfortunately, I was afraid it was going to be. As you read on about each character's life, you know that they will eventually meet, and once they do, well, the uniqueness of each girl is just slightly lost, and from that point on, the plot is very predictable, and the book just isn't as fun to read.
Nonetheless, I enjoyed every bit of this book (until it began to wind down) and I really would suggest it to anyone--male and female, though I would want my daughter to read it (if I had one) simply because it shines a positive light on young independent women. :-)
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Same As Before, But Never Boring, January 11, 2004
By A Customer
First, I have to say that I really admire and respect Ms. Bagshawe for having obtained so much success at such a young age. I wish I had the amount of ambition and intelligence Ms Bagshawe has. Second, although "The Devil You Know" has the same formula as all of Ms. Bagshawe's books- beautiful, ambitious women
+ sexist as well as sexy, rich men- she never fails to suck the reader in with her juicy plots until she or he almost physically cannot put the book down and has devoured every deliciously naughty detail. Lastly, I would definitely recommend "The Devil You Know" and all of Ms. Bagshawe's books to any one who wants a vacation from his or her-mostly her-drab little life and wants to explore the world of some of the sexiest and most ambitious characters ever in print.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Fun, Well-written, and Substantial, February 16, 2005
Louise Bagshawe is a very good writer who manages to deliver romantic payoff without indulging in too many standard cliches. At the same time, she develops her female characters so they feel complex and real. You'll likely enjoy this book if you're a fan of chick lit or if you enjoy women's fiction that promises a happy ending.
This book intertwines the stories of three women who end up connected by the close of the story. Each is ambitious and gunshy when it comes to relationships with men. Most of the book deals with their developing careers, and the ups and downs they experience as they strive to be as powerful and successful as they can be. They also each have a significant romantic relationship that challenges them emotionally.
If you normally devour romance novels, you might find yourself wishing for a little less focus on the women's careers and more on romance. Also, Bagshawe doesn't develop her male characters as well as she does her female. Finally, if you've read other books by this author, you might grow tired of the fact that everything always takes place in the world of the big city rich, there's a lot of designer label name-dropping, and all the women are incredibly beautiful, even if they don't know it.
But this is one of Bagshawe's most satisfying reads, and she blends the three different strands of the story very well.
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