If you take enough rides with the devil,soon he'll drive. Jake learns this the hard way when the devil gives him a task he thinks he can't finish or can he?
Megan Hart has written in almost every genre of romantic fiction, including historical, contemporary, romantic suspense, romantic comedy, futuristic, fantasy and perhaps most notably, erotic. She also writes non-erotic fantasy and science fiction, as well as continuing to occasionally dabble in horror.
--from the author's website
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
I read this book after I read the first one, Dance with the Devil. So, here's the story. After I read the 2nd book in this two part series, I somehow connected with Ms. Hart. After much running around in my fan girl squee-ing, I tried to calmly respond to Ms. Hart with how much I love her books. *note, it was probably more incoherent gushing than calmly discussing with her* Somehow we ended up on the topic of Dance with the Devil. She then sent me for free, this book. She didn't request a review, just said I might find it interesting.
I confess. I was a coward and I hesitated reading this book. Why? Because I was afraid it would put me over the edge. I did wait and when I read the book, it still put me over the edge. WHY??? WHY DO YOU DO THIS TO ME? Ms. Hart is a sadist. There is no way anyone can convince me otherwise. After reading how painful life was for Kathleen, I find out how it all started.
I watched Jake's love affair with great dread. I already saw the aftermath but I was not sure how it got to be where it started at the beginning of the second book. With each smile and flirtation Jake made with his coffee friend, I became more anxiety stricken. When Jake finally made a decision and bargained again with the Devil, I was broken.
Then Ms. Hart's coup de grace. This is how I felt.
Now with the full circle of both sides of the story, I can only curl into a ball and whimper. I am a masochist to Ms. Hart's sadist. This dark erotica is recommended to those who don't mind being stabbed straight into the heart whilst a lover says, "I'm sorry".
How do you not read a Megan Hart book? Once you've read her, you just have to have one more. Like a cookie, or a potato chip, or heroin. It's definitely an addiction I come back to time and again.
Would you let the devil drive you? Would you give up your soul for someone else? What if you didn't have that choice?
While I always admire the writing style of Megan Hart's books, I connect more with some of her stories than others. Short, clever, well written but it didn't hit the spot for me.
Ride with the Devil is a wonderful short, but mostly because I read and loved the follow up story, Dance with the Devil, which is part of the Dark Secrets anthology. Ride with the Devil tells the story of Jake, a man who's soul belongs to the devil because his mother made a deal with Morningstar in order to save Jake's life. Jake must do what the devil asks, or forfeits his soul. What he didn't expect was to meet the woman of his dreams while fulfilling his latest obligation.
Having read the second story first, I'm biased that everyone should do the same. I honestly don't know if I would have loved Dance with the Devil as much knowing Kathleen and Jake's history. Similarly, I would not have liked Ride with the Devil because of its ending, but knowing what happens next made the story interesting and exciting.
Together, the pair of stories make for an engrossing, dark love story. The theme of free will and making one's own choices is an interesting topic that plays strongly in the books. Ms. Hart weaves a fascinating tale that made me feel and left me thinking. I highly recommend picking up both stories and reading them either in or out of order.
4 stars for plot, less 1/2 a star for the premature ending :/
Even though this story is a walk in a different direction to any other stories I've read by the talented Ms Hart, there is no denying she can pen a good yarn.
I loved the premise, and even for a short the characters and scenery were bought vividly to life.
FOOTNOTE: I personally dislike it when a book ends between the 60-70% mark only to be filled up with excerpts from 'other' authors books.
Give me more Megan - but of 'your' work!
Copy provided by the author. No review was requested but I wrote one anyway.
This is mostly a horror story - the protagonist is under the devil's thumb, and every so often has to do his bidding. I enjoyed the story, though I feel like it could have been better as full length novel.
I liked this short story and would recommend it. It's different from her writings and what I normally read. It's creepy and even a little sad, a strange tale with a great twist ending.