Reviews

Devil Makes Three by Ben Fountain

brianjolsen's review

adventurous dark funny hopeful informative sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

w0wenwils0n's review

His writing style is atrocious and really all over the place. It seems to jump around to different time periods with no warning and he provides very little explanation for some things and way too much for others.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: War, Colonisation, and Gun violence

livingprose's review

adventurous dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

marymerrick's review

adventurous informative slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Last third lost me but very ending was okay. 

daschneider's review

challenging dark informative sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

vannychopiny's review against another edition

adventurous reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

no_more_shelf_control's review

adventurous challenging informative tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

 DEVIL MAKES THREE by Ben Fountain and narrated by Ron Butler sheds Light on a historical time in Haiti with a layered suspense!

⭐⭐⭐⭐

1991-1992 Haiti is not a typical setting for historical fiction, but it came alive in its complexity through the combination of Fountain's writing and Butler's voice. I was entering high school during this period, so I was not remotely aware of anything outside my sphere (though I do remember the election).

Haiti has just experienced a coup d'état and the life of American, Matt Amaker is about to come undone. His surf shop is seized and he has reluctantly agrees to go in with his business partner Alix to look for undersea treasure. This adventure has them finding way more danger than they expected, and it ripples through to Alix's sister Misha as well as his girlfriend Audrey, another American with intelligence conflicts.

This is really a fantastic history lesson inside the world of entertaining fiction. The myriad of accents and voices were so well done by Butler, it made this story so easily consumed, despite its heft. I am so glad I had both the physical and audio for this one.

I could feel how this story showed the difference of my culture and Haitian culture. I say feel because it made me uncomfortable at times, but I am so glad to be immersed in a place (and time) that pulls me into new insights.

Thank you so much to @Flatiron & @goodreads for the physical ARC and @netgalley & @macmillan.audio for the audio! 

platypus1's review

adventurous challenging dark reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0