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The Devil Laughed
In this Moriah Dru/Richard Lake mystery series entry‚ Dru discovers the stern of a boat protruding from a deep-water cove. It's the sailboat Scuppernong‚ missing nearly four years.
Two couples -- Laurant and Janet‚ and Johnny and Candice -- partied on the boat the night they and the sailboat disappeared. Johnny's body was discovered with his head bashed in at the marina. The other three and the boat disappeared without a trace.
Investigators find no bodies and theories abound. Popular among them is adulterers Laurant and Candice skipped to Rio‚ a country they visited.
In a reverse of her child finder role‚ Dru is hired to find Candice by thirteen-year-old Evangeline‚ a precocious girl who has unshakeable faith that her mother is alive.
Two couples -- Laurant and Janet‚ and Johnny and Candice -- partied on the boat the night they and the sailboat disappeared. Johnny's body was discovered with his head bashed in at the marina. The other three and the boat disappeared without a trace.
Investigators find no bodies and theories abound. Popular among them is adulterers Laurant and Candice skipped to Rio‚ a country they visited.
In a reverse of her child finder role‚ Dru is hired to find Candice by thirteen-year-old Evangeline‚ a precocious girl who has unshakeable faith that her mother is alive.
300 pages, Hardcover
First published September 11, 2013
486 people want to read
About the author
Gerrie Ferris Finger
23 books99 followersFormer journalist and novelist, Gerrie, won the St. Martin's Minotaur award for the Best First Traditional Novel of 2009 THE END GAME.
THE GHOST SHIP and WHISPERING were released in late 2011.
MERCILESS, a novella, 2012.
HEARTLESS, a novella, 2012.
Read all three books in the Laura Kate Plantation Series: LOOK AWAY FROM EVIL, WHEN SERPENTS DIE, HONORED DAUGHTERS, WAGON DOGS.
THE LAST TEMPTATION sequel to THE END GAME released 2012
THE DEVIL LAUGHED, August 2013
A GLORIOUS CURSE, May 2013
MURMURS OF INSANITY 2014
RUNNING WITH WILD BLOOD 2015
AMERICAN NIGHTS 2016
WOLF'S CLOTHING 2018
COLORS OF BLOOD 2019
THE GHOST SHIP and WHISPERING were released in late 2011.
MERCILESS, a novella, 2012.
HEARTLESS, a novella, 2012.
Read all three books in the Laura Kate Plantation Series: LOOK AWAY FROM EVIL, WHEN SERPENTS DIE, HONORED DAUGHTERS, WAGON DOGS.
THE LAST TEMPTATION sequel to THE END GAME released 2012
THE DEVIL LAUGHED, August 2013
A GLORIOUS CURSE, May 2013
MURMURS OF INSANITY 2014
RUNNING WITH WILD BLOOD 2015
AMERICAN NIGHTS 2016
WOLF'S CLOTHING 2018
COLORS OF BLOOD 2019
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
October 21, 2013
I am not usually a murder mystery fan but this one is a bit different. The main character of Moriah Dru is delightful and the interaction with Lake is priceless.
Most of my favorite parts of this book had to do with the third "main" character in this novel Judge Portia Devon who has made dry humor and Southern charm her own property, Her constantly referring to a overactive and talkative child as "that precocious horror" always brought a smile to my face.
The main story here is a whodunnit about 3 people that are supposed to be dead .... or not since their boat sank and there were never any bodies found. the search through the backwood towns in Georgia is done well if possibly a bit long winded, the descriptions are on target and give the reader a good mental picture of the setting and characters.
This will be a treat for readers who enjoy good detective work with a bit of almost psychic intuition from Dru. It makes the books less dry and add to the depth of the novel.
I have it 4 Stars (maybe a bit more if you really like detailed mysteries) since while I was enjoying the story I was having to back up and double check who the characters were since there are about a dozen secondary characters that have to be kept up with but otherwise this was excellent reading.and any shortcomings may have been my memory .
Most of my favorite parts of this book had to do with the third "main" character in this novel Judge Portia Devon who has made dry humor and Southern charm her own property, Her constantly referring to a overactive and talkative child as "that precocious horror" always brought a smile to my face.
The main story here is a whodunnit about 3 people that are supposed to be dead .... or not since their boat sank and there were never any bodies found. the search through the backwood towns in Georgia is done well if possibly a bit long winded, the descriptions are on target and give the reader a good mental picture of the setting and characters.
This will be a treat for readers who enjoy good detective work with a bit of almost psychic intuition from Dru. It makes the books less dry and add to the depth of the novel.
I have it 4 Stars (maybe a bit more if you really like detailed mysteries) since while I was enjoying the story I was having to back up and double check who the characters were since there are about a dozen secondary characters that have to be kept up with but otherwise this was excellent reading.and any shortcomings may have been my memory .
March 8, 2017
enjoyed it. the kid Evangeline is a hoot.
February 7, 2014
Portia Devon, Judge of the Georgia Supreme Court, has invited Dru Moriah and Richard Lake and Lake's daughter Susanna to Lake Lanier, about 45 minutes from Atlanta, to celebrate the 4th of July. Moriah is the owner of Child Trace, an agency that locates missing children. Richard is an Atlanta police lieutenant.
There has been a drought and the water in the lake is low. Moriah suddenly notices something in the water that appears to be the backside of a boat or as Portia makes clear - the stern. The group believe that the boat is the Scuppernong, a boat that mysteriously disappeared. Two couples were on the boat, Johnny and Candice Browne and Laurant and Janet Cocineau. Johnny's body was discovered with his head bashed in near the marina but there was no sign of the boat until now.
As word got around everyone wanted to see what had been found including Candice Browne's daughter Evangeline Bonnet Broussard. Evangeline is thirteen years old and has an unshakeable belief that her mother is still alive. Evangeline flies from Southport, North Carolina to meet with Judge Devon in hopes of talking the Judge into investigating the disappearance of her mother. Judge Devon calls in Dru and after some persuasion Dru agrees to take the case.
Dru soon finds out that she not only has to put up with Evangeline and her many demands, she also has to deal with her uncle Baron Bonnett. Evangeline said that her legal guardian, Lorraine Bonnett, agreed that Evangeline could hire an investigator as long as Evangeline's Uncle Baron went along with her. Uncle Baron Bonnett turned out to be a Rhett Butler look alike.
There were many theories as to what happened to the occupants of boat and Dru had to sort all the information into fact and fiction. The book is full of interesting characters and Evangeline keeps cracking the whip until Dru finds the answers and solves the mystery. The mystery of the occupants of the boat is multi-layered and keeps the reader guessing.
Gerrie Ferris Finger is a retired journalist for The Atlanta-Journal Constitution, in 2009; Gerrie won The Malice Domestic/St. Martin's Minotaur Best First Traditional Novel Competition for THE END GAME, released by St. Martin's Minotaur in 2010. She grew up in Missouri, then headed further south to join the staff of the The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. There, she researched and edited the columns of humorist Lewis Grizzard and co-wrote a news column with another reporter for three years.
October 17, 2015
This is the third Moriah Dru/Richard Lake mystery, though it is the first one I’ve read. Now that I’m finished, I’m anxious to go back and see what I’ve missed. THE DEVIL LAUGHED, however, is perfectly self-sufficient. Finger manages to fill in whatever background is needed transparently, so there is never the sense that the reader is being brought up to speed.
The book opens with the discovery of a submerged sailboat that had gone missing along with three of its passengers some four years ago. The fact that Lake Lanier, in northern Georgia and close to North Carolina, is surrounded by several counties had resulted in various law enforcement agencies either stepping on each other’s toes or passing responsibility off to the other agencies involved when the boat originally disappeared. Unsurprisingly, this led to a lack of resolution.
Now, in the midst of a drought, Moriah Dru who is a private investigator with a specialty in finding lost children happens upon the boat submerged in a deep water cove while she is visiting her friend, a judge, at her lake house. In a twist on her usual jobs, she is hired by a child (and her well-connected minder) to find one of the missing passengers from the boat (the young girl’s mother). As Dru searches through the wine country of North Carolina, the reader is introduced to the wine country in the area as well as the generations-old rivalries existing in both the wealthy land barons and the backwoods country folk. Wine, the growing of the grapes and the making of the drink, plays a significant role in the plot.
The plot is linear, which implies a simplicity that would not be an accurate description of the book. The characters are very well developed, as are the locations. The descriptions of both events and landscapes bring them to life with exacting language that is sometimes beautiful. At the same time, there is a lightness and humor to the book. And there is real complexity in the relationships that lead to the final solution of the mystery of what happened to that boat and those people.
THE DEVIL LAUGHED was a fast and engaging read. I’ll be looking for the first in the series, THE END GAME, which won the Malice Domestic Best First Traditional Mystery prize.
The book opens with the discovery of a submerged sailboat that had gone missing along with three of its passengers some four years ago. The fact that Lake Lanier, in northern Georgia and close to North Carolina, is surrounded by several counties had resulted in various law enforcement agencies either stepping on each other’s toes or passing responsibility off to the other agencies involved when the boat originally disappeared. Unsurprisingly, this led to a lack of resolution.
Now, in the midst of a drought, Moriah Dru who is a private investigator with a specialty in finding lost children happens upon the boat submerged in a deep water cove while she is visiting her friend, a judge, at her lake house. In a twist on her usual jobs, she is hired by a child (and her well-connected minder) to find one of the missing passengers from the boat (the young girl’s mother). As Dru searches through the wine country of North Carolina, the reader is introduced to the wine country in the area as well as the generations-old rivalries existing in both the wealthy land barons and the backwoods country folk. Wine, the growing of the grapes and the making of the drink, plays a significant role in the plot.
The plot is linear, which implies a simplicity that would not be an accurate description of the book. The characters are very well developed, as are the locations. The descriptions of both events and landscapes bring them to life with exacting language that is sometimes beautiful. At the same time, there is a lightness and humor to the book. And there is real complexity in the relationships that lead to the final solution of the mystery of what happened to that boat and those people.
THE DEVIL LAUGHED was a fast and engaging read. I’ll be looking for the first in the series, THE END GAME, which won the Malice Domestic Best First Traditional Mystery prize.
July 14, 2017
A good mystery with all types of witnesses, victims & suspects - everything from humor to jealousy - betrayal - and greed - A client that is a mature 12 year old is a different twist...a "Moriah Dru/Richard Lake" mystery....
August 30, 2013
The newest entry of the Moriah Dru/Richard Lake mystery series finds the pair summoned from Atlanta, Georgia to the mountains of North Georgia for the 4th of July holiday by their friend, Superior Court Judge Portia Devon. Of course, things swiftly turn from laid-back to professional for both of them - - Dru, 6’ tall ex-cop, now private detective and owner of Child Trace, and Lake, an Atlanta Police lieutenant - - when a sailboat that had mysteriously disappeared four years earlier emerges from the waters near Portia’s property. The dead body of one of the four occupants of the boat had been found, apparently murdered, with no trace of the other three.
In a reversal of her normal professional duties, Moriah is hired by the thirteen-year-old daughter of one of those three to find her mother, who she is convinced is still alive. The precocious child possesses a hefty inheritance and pays Moriah handsomely, and she decides that “with a bona fide client I could delve into the tragedy to satisfy my curiosity - - to say nothing of solving the case, always an overriding goal.” The unfolding tale uncovers a rather complex mystery, which takes Dru and Lake to other areas in Georgia (including to a place actually, we are told, called No More, Georgia) into the Café Fear, North Carolina wine country, a place so insular as to be nearly, if not actually, incestuous, with nearly all of the characters closely related.
The writing perfectly exemplifies, and captures, the Southern charm for which that part of the country is justifiably known. I found the local vernacular, or perhaps regional jargon is a better phrase, a delight, e.g., “cool cucumbers have seeds inside, too;” Moriah’s assistant, intrigued with a task he’s been assigned, telling her the job “thickens my gravy;” Moriah saying “some hinge in my mind wants to open and spill memory;” the angry client at one point looking “as venomous as an asp being prodded by teenage boys,” with the occasional “Lordamighty” thrown in. The timing of the publication of the book was perfect: it was just the thing for an enjoyable beach read, and is recommended.
March 10, 2014
Finger captured my attention from page one. The Devil Laughed is truly a book hard to put down. I had to keep reading to see what would be revealed next. Clearly defined, well-rounded characters (although a few too many that got a little confusing)are true to their personas from beginning to end. Having lived in Atlanta and visited every city in the book, Finger does an excellent job of capturing each setting with just enough in the way of addresses and local color for both newbies to the area and readers like me to enjoy.
The pacing of the book never lags, and there is tension on every page. The repartee between the protagonist and her main man are delightful, and I am totally a fan of the judge and Web. A delightful use of secondary characters keeps the pace moving, the humor high, the relationships real, the sexual tension throbbing, and their ultimate goals admirable.
Obviously, a plot and subplots that were given a lot of thought. Twists and turns and interwoven incestuous-like secrets, polished off with a load of surprises makes the book a good read.
I will definitely follow the series - first I have to read the first book - to see where these characters go.
The pacing of the book never lags, and there is tension on every page. The repartee between the protagonist and her main man are delightful, and I am totally a fan of the judge and Web. A delightful use of secondary characters keeps the pace moving, the humor high, the relationships real, the sexual tension throbbing, and their ultimate goals admirable.
Obviously, a plot and subplots that were given a lot of thought. Twists and turns and interwoven incestuous-like secrets, polished off with a load of surprises makes the book a good read.
I will definitely follow the series - first I have to read the first book - to see where these characters go.
January 14, 2015
Gerrie Finger captured my attention from the opening paragraph of The Devil Laughed, a hard book to put down. Clearly defined, well-rounded characters (although a few too many and got a little confusing at times) are true to their personas from beginning to end. Having lived in Atlanta and visited every city in the book, I thought Finger did an excellent job of capturing each setting with just enough in the way of addresses and local color for both newbies to the area and readers like me to enjoy.
The pacing of the book never lags, tension on every page. The repartee between the protagonist and her main man are delightful, and I am totally a fan of Web and the judge. A delightful use of secondary characters keeps the pace moving, the humor high, the relationships real, the sexual tension throbbing, and their ultimate goals admirable.
Given Finger’s journalistic background, I expected the prose to be tighter, but the twists and turns and interwoven incestuous-like secrets polished the story with loads of surprises.
This review was provided by Mahala Church for her column Barefoot Reviews for the June 2014 issue of The Book Breeze.
The pacing of the book never lags, tension on every page. The repartee between the protagonist and her main man are delightful, and I am totally a fan of Web and the judge. A delightful use of secondary characters keeps the pace moving, the humor high, the relationships real, the sexual tension throbbing, and their ultimate goals admirable.
Given Finger’s journalistic background, I expected the prose to be tighter, but the twists and turns and interwoven incestuous-like secrets polished the story with loads of surprises.
This review was provided by Mahala Church for her column Barefoot Reviews for the June 2014 issue of The Book Breeze.
October 28, 2015
Check out what I thoughts of the book are so far by reading them on my blog http://lysbooklist.blogspot.com/p/the...
April 11, 2014
A tightly written almost Southern Gothic kind of a mystery, this story has many ins and outs cleverly told by an extraordinary amount of dialogue.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews