A raw, riveting thriller with bite.
Deveny’s compelling latest novel blends wartime trauma, romance, and suspense into an emotionally charged story of guilt and survival. After fleeing an abusive home for the Army, Madeline Crowne serves in Afghanistan, where a disastrous combat incident leaves her accused of a war crime. On the run, she becomes entangled with arms dealer Mira before reconnecting with fellow fugitive veteran Eliot Lange, as federal authorities close in.
Deveny builds the novel around characters whose wars continue long after they leave the battlefield. Madeline is a particularly complicated protagonist: fierce and capable yet burdened by childhood memories, concern for her troubled brother John, and remorse over what happened in Afghanistan. Her psychological wounds shape her choices without reducing her to them, giving the thriller’s escalating dangers an intimate emotional foundation.
Eliot provides an effective counterweight. Haunted by his own military past and deeply concerned for his PTSD-stricken friend Will, he recognizes much of Madeline’s pain. Their romance becomes a fragile attempt by two traumatized people to recover trust, tenderness, and purpose. The recurring imagery of hands—capable of violence but also of protection and affection—nicely reinforces that tension. Mira brings a darker variation on the same theme. Her own history of war and suffering initially creates common ground with Madeline, but affection gradually gives way to possessiveness and danger. Deveny moves between personal trauma, romance, criminal intrigue, and pursuit while keeping Madeline’s divided loyalties at the center. The satisfying ending favors emotional resolution over easy answers, bringing the novel’s ideas about accountability, forgiveness, and healing satisfyingly full circle.
A dramatic, compassionate tale of damaged lives and hard-won healing.
***
Pub date May 21, 2026
ASIN B0H2HGZJPY
Price $3.99
