Book Review: Devil Within

Synopsis:

The border is a hostile place populated by venomous serpents where the searing heat is unrelenting. Yet the deadliest predator targets the innocent.

The Sun Valley Sniper is claiming victims at an alarming rate. Detective Nathan Parker quickly uncovers a connection between the victims. Each had a role in the Immigrant Coalition, a local organization dedicated to helping undocumented migrants make the dangerous crossing from Mexico, provide them resources upon their arrival in the United States, and raise awareness about their hardships. In fact, the latest victim is Roger Jessup, a well-known attorney and the group’s Executive Director.

As Parker’s investigation proceeds, he discovers that no one is exactly who they seem or claim to be.

And Billie Carson insists she spotted Esteban Castaneda, the Los Muertos leader who murdered Parker’s partner five years ago, in the area.

There’s the devil you know and then there’s the devil within. When the two collide, no one is safe.

Devil Within is the highly anticipated second installment in author James L’Etoile’s Anthony and Lefty Award-nominated Dead Drop.

Review:

Devil Within is the second installment in author James L’Etoile’s Detective Nathan Parker series. He is well aware that drafting a series presents specific challenges. “Sequels carry a special weight and, depending on the book, that weight can be the heady armor that the first book was well received, so chances are this one will be as well. Or that weight can be an albatross around the author’s neck. Often, a sequel falls short because the author said all there was to say in the first book and left no room for the characters to play out another story,” L’Etoile observes.

Devil Within definitely falls into the first category. It is as riveting and entertaining as Dead Drop in which L’Etoile introduced readers to Parker, a detective with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office in Arizona. He and his partner, Josh McMillan, were assigned to patrol a road near the United States-Mexico border to interrupt the flow of undocumented immigrants accessing it to bypass Immigration and Customs Enforcement checkpoints. McMillan was brutally murdered by Esteban Castaneda, a vicious leader in the Los Muertos gang, and Nathan blames himself, convinced that had he responded faster to McMillan’s radio call, he might have saved his partner. And apprehended Castaneda who, five years later, remains at large.

Following the harrowing events described in Dead Drop, Nathan officially became Miguel’s foster father. Now approaching his eighteenth birthday and planning his future, Miguel was journeying across the border from San Salvador all by himself when Nathan encountered him while on a dangerous undercover mission. Miguel’s older brother was killed by a gang and Miguel fled because he knew he would also be killed for his refusal to join. Miguel’s parents were also deceased, and no one was waiting for him in America. He had no particular destination in mind, intent only on escaping the unrelenting dangers in his homeland and going to school. After Nathan and Miguel survived their ordeal together, Nathan was moved to give Miguel a stable home, unconditional support, and a bright future. As Devil Within opens, Miguel and Nathan have settled into a father-son relationship, and Miguel has graduated from high school and commenced classes at the community college, proving himself to be an excellent student with myriad opportunities awaiting him after he completes his education. Nathan is still single, focused only on his career and caring for Miguel.

L’Etoile pulls readers into the fast-paced thriller from the very first sentence: “Nia Saldana didn’t think today would be the day she died.” But unfortunately, she is involved in a fatal, high-speed accident on the freeway as she is traveling home from her job as a housekeeper. Her employer, Roger Jessup, a prominent and wealthy local attorney, appeared to have been in his own vehicle and chasing Nia’s car when he was killed in the same collision. But why was he in pursuit of Nia? It is quickly determined that the crash was no accident. Rather, it was again the work of the Sun Valley Sniper, who has been claiming victims at a frightening rate.

Evil is hidden around us. It’s always there and we don’t get to choose when and where it finds us. . . . The world is a dangerous place to live, not because people are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it. Not everyone is who they seem.

Nathan is assigned to head up the investigation and immediately begins the search for a connection between the victims. It appears that the crimes are motivated by hate and the sniper is a dishonorably discharged veteran and registered sex offender with a criminal record in which he is identified as a White Pride sympathizer (a small extremist offshoot of the Aryan Nation). When the suspect is apprehended, the Sheriff is politically motivated to announce that the case has been wrapped up and assure the public they are again safe from the sniper’s unpredictable attacks. Parker is not convinced.

Nathan is alarmed and appalled when he is notified by Deputy Linda Marsh that Miguel has been detained after participating in a protest against the current administration’s immigration policies sponsored by the Immigrant Coalition. The demonstration got out of hand when some of the protestors blocked an onramp to Interstate 10. Marsh has convinced the arresting deputy to release Miguel with only a warning, but Nathan cannot hide his shock when he learns that Miguel has been affiliated with the organization without his knowledge. Given his own experiences, Miguel is fiercely dedicated to the group’s cause. “People need to know what’s happening. The families, the conditions, and this government are forcing innocent people into the hands of the cartels. You’re the one who told me there are over two thousand people who died making the crossing, and they never identify most of them,” he tells Nathan.

Not surprisingly, Billie Carson is also a member of the group. Billie lives in a dilapidated travel trailer, surviving by scouring the desert for lost and abandoned items she sells to recycling yards. She and Nathan met several years ago when she was facing a trespassing charge and began regularly reporting minor disturbances in the desert to him. She became embroiled in an investigation when she happened upon four fifty-gallon drums, pried the lid off one of the barrels, and discovered the decomposing body of a man inside. It was the beginning of the unforgettable journey depicted in Dead Drop that forever changed both Nathan and Billie, and brought Miguel into their lives. A former coyote, Billie was familiar with the routes across the border that kept Miguel alive, and they formed an extremely close bond.

No sooner does Nathan get Miguel safely home, but Billie arrives at their home. She is as nervous as the day she discovered those drums in the desert and afraid she might be followed. With good reason. Nathan’s blood runs cold when Billie declares, “He’s back. Esteban Castaneda. He’s back, and I saw him.” Nathan has wanted to bring Castaneda to justice since the day McMillan died and is determined not to let him slip away again.

The story’s pace never slows as Nathan continues the investigation into the sniper killings and soon finds that all of the victims were associated with the Immigrant Coalition in various capacities. In fact, an attempt is made on the life of Tim Brunell, the Coalition’s Vice Chair, who is launching his campaign for the state Senate. Nia Saldana’s sister turns a thumb drive over to Nathan. That Nia was in possession of it struck her sister as highly unusual, given that Nia did not own or use a computer. Did she steal it from Jessup? If so, why? Nathan is unable to decipher the spreadsheets he finds on the drum, and enlists assistance from forensics specialists while he attempts to unravel the workings of the Coalition and its leaders, extracting some helpful information from the organization’s legal counsel, Isa Sanchez. She reveals the extent of the threats regularly made against the Coalition and its members by various anti-immigrant factions. When two young men with leadership roles within the Coalition — Miguel’s friends and associates — are abducted, it becomes clear that Miguel is also in danger and Nathan must protect him. Is Castenada the source of the threat to Miguel? Are his interests somehow entangled with those of the Coalition and its leaders?

As with Dead Drop, L’Etoile has crafted an intricately woven tale featuring many familiar faces, including Nathan’s colleagues and former love intrest, FBI Agent Lynnette Finch. They did not part on good terms, but she is willing to help. L’Etoile introduces numerous intriguing new characters, some of whom have nefarious intentions and scandalous backgrounds. At least one has gone to great lengths to prevent their true identity from being revealed in order to evade detection and execute a plan to become both powerful and wealthy. At whose expense and by what means? Surprising alliances, interconnected pasts, and hidden motives come to light as Nathan’s investigation proceeds, often resulting in more questions than pat answers. Other characters, particularly those who are vulnerable, marginalized, and subject to abuse and manipulation, are quite sympathetic and heartbreaking, their experiences a mirror reflection of the real-life struggles related by too many of America’s undocumented population.

The crisp dialogue and procedural aspects of the story are credible and believable, and L’Etoile deftly unveils clues at well-timed junctures. Readers are kept guessing as L’Etoile proves numerous theories wrong with additional revelations. He expertly ramps up the dramatic tension as the tale proceeds, and Nathan, aided by Billie, risks his own well-being in order to save the precious boy he loves unconditionally and considers his son. But the body count grows and time is running out. For Miguel, along with many others.

Devil Within is highly entertaining, but also richly moving and deeply thought-provoking. L’Etoile correctly believes that “readers want to see characters bumping up against situations that lead to some fundamental change. That change could be anything from a reaction to the event, a spiral into despair, or a struggle to overcome the obstacles erected in their path. Think about the real world for a moment. We change. Our change is caused by the people, situations, conflict, and challenges we face. We change. We are influenced by these things — often for the better, but sometimes we experience a setback. We should expect our fictional characters to experience the same change.” Thus, as Devil Within opens, time has passed during which Nathan and Miguel have become a family. Because of that Nathan has more to lose than he did in the firt book and he shoulders his responsibility to protect Miguel at all costs. He carries the guilt he feels about not being able to save his partner and knows that letting Miguel down will finally and irrevocably break him. Eccentric, quirky, but endearing Billie, who has a mysterious past, is also a beloved member of their little family, a trusted and loyal confidante who blames herself for the predicament in which they find themselves. Once again, she and Nathan make a formidable team who refuse to be deterred from achieving their goal, no matter what personal sacrifices they might have to make. L’Etoile wisely notes that where his characters “intersect and collide is where the story is found.”

Once again, L’Etoile uses his story to pose timely questions about the humanitarian considerations at the heart of the ongoing debate about events unfolding daily that are the topic of many news reports. Would-be immigrants flock to the border seeking refuge and opportunities. What immigration policies should be enacted and enforced, considering the dangers those individuals journeying north confront both along the way and when they finally reach the border? How can they be protected from further victimization once they arrive on American soil? Who profits from maintaining the status quo and what will it take to enact real reforms? L’Etoile does not provide ready or preachy answers. Rather, through his characters he invites readers to consider those difficult questions and formulate their own opinions, invoking a deep emotional response to his characters’ experiences in the process.

L’Etoile leaves significant plot points unresolved and ripe for exploration in the upcoming third installment in the series. He says “I knew going in that I was committed to at least three [volumes] in the series . . . There is a series arc to keep the characters moving in the right direction at the pace that sustains not only that book, but the stories to follow.” Hopefully, the wait for his characters’ next journey will be short.

Excerpt from Devil Within

Also by James L’Etoile:

Guest Post by James L’Etoile:

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one electronic copy of Devil Within free of charge from the author in conjunction with Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours. I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own. This disclosure complies with 16 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 255, “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”