The Devil Makes Three

by Lucy Blue

A successful novelist who wants to do more than just write scary stories.A young widow who thinks there is no escape from a life she never imagined.A plantation house with dark secrets that infect every corner of a small South Carolina town.Will Jacob McGinnas’ dream house become a nightmare for him and everyone he cares about?In 1837, Briarwood Plantation was abandoned when Ezra Woodbine slaughtered his fianceé’s entire family. Now, after nearly two centuries, life returns to Briarwood. But for how long?Serena Decatur is a thirty-year-old Black woman trapped in a life she never asked for. Widowed, underemployed, drowning in debt, she is living with her in-laws in the small town where she grew up.Bestselling horror author Jacob McGinnas wants to dig into the secrets of Briarwood and write a new book, perhaps the literary masterwork that will etch his name in the lists of great authors.But as he enlists Serena’s help in bringing Briarwood back to life, they uncover a gruesome history of hatred and evil in Saxon County that extends far beyond the gates of the plantation and through time all the way to the present. Serena learns horrible truths about the town, her family, and their connection to Briarwood. Jacob’s writer’s block is shattered and he feels a bond with Briarwood and those who lived there. But is that bond imagined, or is it something real, something much darker?For there is a power long dormant on the grounds of Briarwood, and it seems to be stirring. When it wakes, will anything of the town survive?

397 pages, Paperback

Published October 14, 2021

About the author

I’ve been a writer since I was seven years old when I conceived my very first short fiction piece, a suspenseful tale of terror and triumph about a puppy stuck at the top of a very tall sliding board because he’s afraid to slide down. As I recall this plotline came to me as I was sitting at the top of a very tall sliding board with a long line of other second graders behind me yelling, “Are you gonna slide or what?” As an artist, I’ve always responded well to pressure.

​Since the puppy (who made it, by the way, for anyone who’s worried), I’ve written and released ten and a half full-length novels and many, many short stories, published with two big publishers (Berkeley-Penguin and Pocket Books-Simon & Schuster), a couple of small indie publishers, and all by my itty bitty self. With my sister, Alexandra Christian, I write, edit, and publish for Little Red Hen Romance, a micro-press for the kind of romances we want to read.

​I’m a graduate of the SC Governor’s School for the Arts and Winthrop University, so if we went to school together, by all means drop me a note at lucybluecastle@gmail.com and say hi. I’m married to game designer and artist Justin Glanville.

Reviews

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a satisfying story! If you enjoy Gothics, you should totally give this one a go. In some ways, it put me in mind of Mexican Gothic because of the mixture of some of the darker moments in our history with the creepy supernatural elements that make Gothics gothic. American slavery rather than Mexican colonialism in this case.

Briarwood, the house at the center of it all had seen a lot of violence, and the scars were still on the community over a hundred years later. I enjoyed all the twists as new information was revealed and my understanding of what was happening expanded and changed.

It's the kind of book that sometimes makes you gasp aloud and sometimes makes your cheer out loud. So choose your reading location with care.

[Benjamin Langley · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you’re looking for a heavy dose of racial tension, a twist of demonic possession and a big old drop of romance, Lucy Blue’s ‘The Devil Makes Three’ might be the book you’re after.
There are lots of aspects of this novel with promise, and sometimes it comes together really well in some shocking scenes. For me, though, the romance between Jacob and Selina takes up too much space on the page, including an unnecessary jaunt to Ireland. But if you’re not totally cold-hearted and look for that kind of aspect in a supernatural tale of ancient evil there’s a lot to enjoy. The racial tension is handled well and leads to some of the most shocking moments, and if Blue’s intention was to shine a light on some of the corruption within small towns and how insidious and pervasive is, she does a fine job with that. Overall, a mixed bag… and I am aware that I sound like I’m saying “No one told me this was a kissing book” but if the book’s called ‘The Devil Makes Three’ I want a little more time with The Dark Man!

[Kathryn McGovern · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don’t judge this book by its cover. It’s hard to confine Lucy Blue’s latest novel to one genre — historical fiction, fantasy, romance, horror? “The Devil Makes Three” is a big story that traces patterns of injustice though the bloodlines of several families in fictional Saxon County, SC, a place dripping with charm, hypocrisy and self delusion. It has its share of lovable and not-so-lovable eccentrics among the living. If that’s not enough, there are supernatural forces at work playing with the souls of its residents (black, white, alive and dead). As secrets are revealed about the long deserted Briarwood Plantation, the author manages to tie all their stories together and resolve the hell that has been unleashed on this small southern town to the reader’s satisfaction. This book is a worth reading and perhaps rereading, There’s a lot to take in on one pass. Lucy Blue has a unique style, and as a child of the South, she knows of what she writes. Five stars.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first book from Lucy Blue, and I honestly thought it was a fun read! It was fantastical and the paranormal aspect was well thought out and followed the story line. I also appreciate the amount of supporting characters, though it was difficult to keep the villains and their ancestry straight at points.
Overall, I loved reading this!