The Devil’s Right Hand

by Jason McIntyre

This novel is the fourth installment in the The Night Walk Men series but it can be read without having gone through the previous ones.

The Devil’s Right Hand has two plot levels that run interlacing with each other along the story. On the one hand you have Benton Garamond’s story, who wades through a long, hard path towards his vendetta against Donovan Lo, for reasons I’ll leave to future readers to find out. On the other hand you have the story of the Night Walk Men, entities of another world whose work is to interact surreptitiously with human beings (in this case Garamond and the rest of characters in this story) and their fate.

The story is delivered by Sperro, one of the Night Walk Men involved in the events, whose voice is addressed to both characters and readers, the latter being most of the time his main audience, sipping sweet or spicy cups of tea brewed by him. Sperro unfolds the events in a gradual way, creating expectation in his listeners/readers, taking his time to depict characters and events in a skillful way, as if giving jigsaw puzzle pieces that come together little by little until the listeners/readers get the whole picture at the end. This is why The Devil’s Right Hand is a good, challenging reading with a rewarding, satisfying ending.

The book is full of suspense, action and mystery, but at the same time deals with some serious topics such as destiny and parental responsibilities. The idea of our fate being in the hands of some beings (The Night Walk Men) whose duty is to follow “the Word” from higher echelons in their hierarchy is just terrifying and fascinating. On the other hand, like I said above, the topic of parents and their influence on their children’s future is an important one here, as it is the reason for all the events to happen, not only in the human dimension but also in the Night Walk Men’s world.

Once again McIntyre offers the readers a catalogue of interesting characters that are depicted in depth and detail. Indeed they are so well developed that readers won’t forget them easily. But apart from the treatment of characters, another aspect in favor of this novel is the degree of the readers’ involvement of the story, as they are constantly addressed by the narrator. It’s as if they were sitting by Sperro, who is telling the story to them orally, as in ancient times.

In conclusion, this book is one of the most original and fascinating works I’ve ever read in a long, long time.  McIntyre manages again a literary jewel with his well-crafted prose and his unique imagination. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes original plots, mystery, suspense and some food for thought at the same time.

You can find the book in digital format at www.amazon.com

The author's website: www.theFarthestReaches.com