Devils in Exile

"Devils In Exile" is the real deal, a top notch thriller / crime drama that is realistic, current & gripping! I first discovered Chuck Hogan after reading his last novel The Strain, co-written with movie producer Guillermo Del Toro. After finding out Chuck Hogan has alot of other very well written books - Prince of Thieves, The Killing Moon, I couldn't wait to read more from him. Then just last month I see he has a new novel coming out and I couldn't resist reading it. Great characters, great dialogue, great action with realistic but still exciting scenes & a not your usual "all is well" ending! Main character Neal Maven is freshly back from his tour in Iraq. Unfortunately those skills that kept you alive & made you special there, don't generally work in your favor here. Maven's working lackluster jobs until he meets smooth talking Brad Royce. Royce has a group of fellow veterans working for him and he wants Maven to join. They rob drug dealers of their money & they flush their drugs. Maven joins up, but it isn't long until he starts asking himself, where does Brad Royce get his inside information. Throw in a nosy DEA agent, innocent bystanders and two Jamaicans hell bent on killing and you've got a great read! I was especially impressed with Hogan's (Tomorrow Man) theory that Brad Royce uses to get Maven into the group! I hope to see more of Neal Maven and I think Chuck Hogan plans to deliver on that. Hogan's book "Prince of Thieves" is currently being made into a movie called "The Town"! If you've read Beat the Reaper: A Novel and enjoyed it as much as me, do yourself a favor and read "Devils in Exile", you will not be disappointed! Enjoy~

I read lots and lots of current crime thrillers, but honestly, this is the grittiest I've read for a long time. An ex Green Beret is unable to find decent employment after his discharge from the armed forces until he's offered a uniquely dangerous and illegal, but fulfilling job as part of a group of Vietnam vets who interrupt drug deals, keeping the money but destroying the product. But not all is as it seems and the novel builds to a truly explosive climax. One can hope for a sequel as there is an open end here. And as this is the first Hogan novel I've read, I'll definitely be reading his others.

What a great read! I've read other Chuck Hogan novels, but this is the best by far. It's not a long novel, but I felt like I knew everything about the two main characters. Not a word is wasted. I would love to see a sequel, and the ending leaves that possibility open, so who knows?

Green Beret Neal Maven is the ultimate warrior, with comparable smarts and a dry wit. Tragically, when he returns home to Boston from the War in Iraq, society has little use for him. As author Chuck Hogan puts it: People see not a battle-tested hero but a potential Travis Bickle. When they say, "Great to have you back," what they really mean is, "Now please go away again." The best work Maven can find is parking cars. At nights. Supplemented by shifts at a minor-league convenience store. On the whole, despite his considerable skills, there's no place for him. Until he meets a dynamic group of fellow veterans who use military tactics to intercept major narcotics deals. They keep the cash and--doing Robin Hood one better--destroy the drugs. The DEA regards them only as hoods, however. And the drug dealers they've left empty-handed would like to kill them, for starters. Thus Hogan launches Maven and readers onto a suspenseful, breakneck ride with as many twists as can be found in the thriller genre--or anywhere. Equally remarkable are the original and multi-dimensional characters, a vivid Boston backdrop, and prose laced with wry humor and crafted so artfully (though without a single superfluous syllable) as to put you right smack in the action--you will practically feel the bullets tearing apart the air all around you.

I discovered Hogan's books by accident a few years ago and I am glad I did. Each novel has been a great read and Devils in Exile continued the trend. I was unable to put the book down. This was one of those rare novels that I was compelled to read in one sitting. Lucky today was a 'snow day' in New York. The story is faced paced and gained momentum with each chapter. Too often the story based upon the troubled hero turns into a cliche, Hogan to his credit, did not take the easy way out. Unlike many novels, the ending did the story justice. If you have never read Chuck Hogan, start now and read them all.