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Greer Sands #2
Speak of the Devil
Greer Sands, who has a unique talent for seeing glimpses of the future and reading auras, has a terrifying premonition at her friend Jenny's baby shower, while Greer's son Joshua tries to help his new friend Simon escape the grasp of a dark figure that is bent on destroying him. Original.
400 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published September 2, 2008
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 14, 2025
I can’t believe this book has so few ratings and reviews! I thoroughly enjoyed book one of this Greer Sands series, titled Eye of the Beholder. I bought a used paperback copy of this second book and had been eager to get around to it as I didn’t realize it’d been as long as it has since I read book one which was in October of 2024!
One wouldn’t necessarily have to read book one to dive into this one but the character development in this one was spectacular and to truly appreciate it you’ll want to read book one first. From seeing how much has changed in the months since the events of book one and the way the three women in the main friend group have continued to bond and grow in their own ways is fantastic to see.
Just like with Eye of the Beholder, Speak of the Devil was incredibly easy to jump into and read. Admittedly, I did fall off the reading wagon for about a week but when I started back up again I couldn’t stop and then managed to read two hundred pages in a day! Shari Shattuck’s writing manages to illicit such a cozy vibe and that’s largely because of the likable characters. Plus, after having enjoyed Eye of the Beholder so much I wanted to support Shari with a rating and review for this book. It deserves loads more attention and like I said I’m shocked it hasn’t received more love on here.
Eye of the Beholder had me unsure of who the antagonist was the entire time. There were so many possibilities that I was in the dark until the big reveal. It was the same this time around in Speak of the Devil in that I didn’t have a clue but I thought there was a stronger focus on the characters this time around and I personally loved that shift because most (hell if not all) of the characters went through some rough times in book one, so to see them changed and continuing to change in this one was perfect. And, thinking about it now, there really were quite a few potential characters that could’ve been the antagonist which ratcheted up the tension in some chapters! That uncertainty of where things may go if this person or that person truly is the cause of mayhem that’s sprouting up around the valley.
That mayhem is what Greer Sands sees in one of her visions at the start of the story. Greer is at the baby shower being put on for one of her best friends, Jenny, who is seven month pregnant. Her two other best friends, Whitney and Leah, are there as well. Leah, in particular, has had some great character growth as she’s now the manager at the local bank! Upon remembering that Greer is psychic the ladies request that she try and get a read on what gender Jenny’s baby will be. While waiting for the others to make their guesses Greer looks at a painting of one of the valleys that’s hanging in the host’s house. Seconds after the bright colors came to life all she sees is a raging fire and feels the heat from it. After recovering, but not well enough as Whitney is able to sense that something is amiss, she feels Jenny’s stomach and sees a heartwarming scene before getting a horrifying vision in which something awful happens to her dear friend.
Greer owns a beauty salon, aptly named Eye of the Beholder, and lives in the community of Shadow Hills in Los Angeles. Her business is in the same retail space as Jenny’s coffee shop and next to Sterling’s architecture office, her new boyfriend who she met and opened up to about her special gifts in book one. Around that time all those months ago her son, Joshua, began experiencing similar but different gifts. Such gifts of sight were thought to only be passed down to the women in Greer’s family but due to Joshua being an only child he got the ability to see spirits linked to individuals in the world of the living.
One day while hiking Joshua comes upon a group of young boys in a juvenile detention center working under the supervision of a senior fireman. He sees a dark, menacing figure over the shoulder of one of the boys and then he sees a dog mutely barking in the aether as well. He was witnessing a true battle of good vs evil over one boy. Joshua wants to forget about it. The one big thing he doesn’t like about this ability is that he feels compelled to help those who seem to be going through something internally, hence the negative spirits. Even with feeling that way he gets to talking with the boy and learns that his name is Simon.
One day when Joshua is driving to a work site to meet Sterling he sees Simon walking on the side of the road after being newly released from the juvenile detention center. Simon’s troublesome gaggle of friends were unable to pick him up so Joshua gives him a ride and Sterling takes him on as an extra set of hands. All the while, Greer is doing all she can to keep Jenny safe without arousing too much suspicion that something may be wrong, at least in the future.
We’re introduced a handful of side characters and more important characters who have more a presence as the story progresses. Rowland and Susan Hughs, the ones behind the Golden Door development that many townspeople are adamantly against as it’s absolutely scraping the mountainsides clean of lush greenery. Emily and Larry, the Caseys, who Joshua befriends after warning them of smoke in the distance beyond their house that is an evident sign of a fire. Weston Oakland, a firefighter who feels most at home in the sky in a helicopter. Sheldon Tucker, a water delivery man for those whose wells are drying up in the oppressive heat, and his grandson, Tyler. And lastly, the menace who is committing arson by purposely starting the fires around the valley fueled by an unquenchable desire to see fire in all its glory doing what it does best.
All of our main characters that we know and love from book one mesh wonderfully with these new characters! I just love how some things mentioned or alluded to with one or two characters comes up again in a later chapter with another character. It’s just great seeing how this tight knit friend group, basically a family at this point, manages to come together every so often and share some important intel with one another regarding all that is going on around town.
Like with any book once I hit the halfway point the rest of the pages just flew by!! That day I read two hundred pages I was reading off and on throughout the day but for about four to five hours in the evening I was reading nonstop, even managing to hit one o’clock in the morning and still having around thirty pages left to enjoy! Funnily enough, that night I dreamt about this series and was thrilled that there were actually five books total, meaning three more that would allow me to see these characters again! Alas, it really was just a dream.
I can totally understand if Shari might’ve saw this as a good stopping point versus continuing on with a book three. But it’d be awfully sad if the poor reception (I’m guessing based on the so few ratings and reviews) and maybe lack of sales put a stop to this series because, like I said, it truly deserves some long overdue love and attention because both installments are fantastic!! Great stories, characters that are really well written, a devious antagonist, and an author who really knows how to breathe life into the pages… two books are proof enough that it’s a winning formula! Thank you, Shari!!!
One wouldn’t necessarily have to read book one to dive into this one but the character development in this one was spectacular and to truly appreciate it you’ll want to read book one first. From seeing how much has changed in the months since the events of book one and the way the three women in the main friend group have continued to bond and grow in their own ways is fantastic to see.
Just like with Eye of the Beholder, Speak of the Devil was incredibly easy to jump into and read. Admittedly, I did fall off the reading wagon for about a week but when I started back up again I couldn’t stop and then managed to read two hundred pages in a day! Shari Shattuck’s writing manages to illicit such a cozy vibe and that’s largely because of the likable characters. Plus, after having enjoyed Eye of the Beholder so much I wanted to support Shari with a rating and review for this book. It deserves loads more attention and like I said I’m shocked it hasn’t received more love on here.
Eye of the Beholder had me unsure of who the antagonist was the entire time. There were so many possibilities that I was in the dark until the big reveal. It was the same this time around in Speak of the Devil in that I didn’t have a clue but I thought there was a stronger focus on the characters this time around and I personally loved that shift because most (hell if not all) of the characters went through some rough times in book one, so to see them changed and continuing to change in this one was perfect. And, thinking about it now, there really were quite a few potential characters that could’ve been the antagonist which ratcheted up the tension in some chapters! That uncertainty of where things may go if this person or that person truly is the cause of mayhem that’s sprouting up around the valley.
That mayhem is what Greer Sands sees in one of her visions at the start of the story. Greer is at the baby shower being put on for one of her best friends, Jenny, who is seven month pregnant. Her two other best friends, Whitney and Leah, are there as well. Leah, in particular, has had some great character growth as she’s now the manager at the local bank! Upon remembering that Greer is psychic the ladies request that she try and get a read on what gender Jenny’s baby will be. While waiting for the others to make their guesses Greer looks at a painting of one of the valleys that’s hanging in the host’s house. Seconds after the bright colors came to life all she sees is a raging fire and feels the heat from it. After recovering, but not well enough as Whitney is able to sense that something is amiss, she feels Jenny’s stomach and sees a heartwarming scene before getting a horrifying vision in which something awful happens to her dear friend.
Greer owns a beauty salon, aptly named Eye of the Beholder, and lives in the community of Shadow Hills in Los Angeles. Her business is in the same retail space as Jenny’s coffee shop and next to Sterling’s architecture office, her new boyfriend who she met and opened up to about her special gifts in book one. Around that time all those months ago her son, Joshua, began experiencing similar but different gifts. Such gifts of sight were thought to only be passed down to the women in Greer’s family but due to Joshua being an only child he got the ability to see spirits linked to individuals in the world of the living.
One day while hiking Joshua comes upon a group of young boys in a juvenile detention center working under the supervision of a senior fireman. He sees a dark, menacing figure over the shoulder of one of the boys and then he sees a dog mutely barking in the aether as well. He was witnessing a true battle of good vs evil over one boy. Joshua wants to forget about it. The one big thing he doesn’t like about this ability is that he feels compelled to help those who seem to be going through something internally, hence the negative spirits. Even with feeling that way he gets to talking with the boy and learns that his name is Simon.
One day when Joshua is driving to a work site to meet Sterling he sees Simon walking on the side of the road after being newly released from the juvenile detention center. Simon’s troublesome gaggle of friends were unable to pick him up so Joshua gives him a ride and Sterling takes him on as an extra set of hands. All the while, Greer is doing all she can to keep Jenny safe without arousing too much suspicion that something may be wrong, at least in the future.
We’re introduced a handful of side characters and more important characters who have more a presence as the story progresses. Rowland and Susan Hughs, the ones behind the Golden Door development that many townspeople are adamantly against as it’s absolutely scraping the mountainsides clean of lush greenery. Emily and Larry, the Caseys, who Joshua befriends after warning them of smoke in the distance beyond their house that is an evident sign of a fire. Weston Oakland, a firefighter who feels most at home in the sky in a helicopter. Sheldon Tucker, a water delivery man for those whose wells are drying up in the oppressive heat, and his grandson, Tyler. And lastly, the menace who is committing arson by purposely starting the fires around the valley fueled by an unquenchable desire to see fire in all its glory doing what it does best.
All of our main characters that we know and love from book one mesh wonderfully with these new characters! I just love how some things mentioned or alluded to with one or two characters comes up again in a later chapter with another character. It’s just great seeing how this tight knit friend group, basically a family at this point, manages to come together every so often and share some important intel with one another regarding all that is going on around town.
Like with any book once I hit the halfway point the rest of the pages just flew by!! That day I read two hundred pages I was reading off and on throughout the day but for about four to five hours in the evening I was reading nonstop, even managing to hit one o’clock in the morning and still having around thirty pages left to enjoy! Funnily enough, that night I dreamt about this series and was thrilled that there were actually five books total, meaning three more that would allow me to see these characters again! Alas, it really was just a dream.
I can totally understand if Shari might’ve saw this as a good stopping point versus continuing on with a book three. But it’d be awfully sad if the poor reception (I’m guessing based on the so few ratings and reviews) and maybe lack of sales put a stop to this series because, like I said, it truly deserves some long overdue love and attention because both installments are fantastic!! Great stories, characters that are really well written, a devious antagonist, and an author who really knows how to breathe life into the pages… two books are proof enough that it’s a winning formula! Thank you, Shari!!!
December 29, 2025
Took me a whole decade to finish this book because the author took almost 20 chapters for character introductions before it gets to the interesting plots. It started very slow but it gets better after chapter 20.
April 17, 2009
I would label this one in the paranormal mysteries category.
This is the second book in a series featuring Greer Sands a psychic.
The author includes enough suspects to keep you guessing until near the end.
This is the second book in a series featuring Greer Sands a psychic.
The author includes enough suspects to keep you guessing until near the end.
October 21, 2008
had the privilege of spending an afternoon with Shari.. what a wonderful woman... she managed to stir up some inspiration within me that has been dormant for much too long... Thanks Shari!
May 17, 2009
This book is really only OK, but I had a lot of fun reading it because it is about my neighborhood and we were involved in the land development mess it was based on.
Read
November 6, 2008I have read it and it was a good book.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews