Devil’s Thirst Book Review
Synopsis
A new neighbor with a secret identity and a deadly obsession…
Amelie
I knew I shouldn't have asked him for a ride.
My new neighbor is a study in contradictions—covered in tattoos and dripping intensity.
He’s alluring yet aloof, and his every calculated move is dangerously seductive.
Little did I know, he’s been systematically inserting himself into every part of my life.
Creeping beneath my protective armor.
Trapping me like a fly in his web before revealing his true identity.
Now, he’s standing before our families calling me his future wife.
He doesn’t understand that my life isn’t that simple.
I have secrets of my own, and his obsession with claiming me might just get me killed.
REVIEW
I wanted to like this more than I did.
Devil’s Thirst by Jill Ramsower has the bones of a great dark romance—Italian/Irish mafia, alpha anti-hero, the whole “good girl meets dangerous man” thing. But it didn’t quite land for me.
Sante, the MMC, has been obsessed with Amelia for years after one brief meeting—and I do mean obsessed. He stalks her, inserts himself into her life without consent, and calls it love. And while I don’t mind a possessive hero in dark romance, the obsession here didn’t feel earned. Their original encounter was sweet, sure, but not world-altering enough to justify the level of fixation that follows.
It also didn’t help that while he’s supposedly spent years consumed by his feelings for Amelie, that didn’t stop him from sleeping his way through Italy in the meantime. It made his whole “you’re mine” vibe feel hollow. And the way the story handles Amelie’s sexual inexperience—specifically her never having had an orgasm until him—felt like a tired trope that wasn’t even executed believably.
That said, Sante does care about her. Deeply. He would probably burn the world down for her. Unfortunately, Amelie gives him almost nothing in return. On top of that, she spends most of the book flipping back and forth on what she wants, making impulsive and sometimes dangerously dumb decisions. I kept waiting for her to grow, to show some emotional depth or agency, but it never really came.
Plot-wise, it had potential, and I was definitely more interested in the wider world and side characters than the central romance. But I also felt like I’d walked into the middle of a story. Even though this is technically a standalone, there’s clearly an overlap with Ramsower’s other series, and it shows. A lot goes unexplained or is glossed over quickly (or the opposite in that certain points are repeatedly made over and over again), and I found myself wishing I’d read her earlier books just to get a better grasp on the dynamics.
Still, the book is readable. It’s a quick read, and the setup for the next installment was just intriguing enough that I’ll likely keep going. But as a standalone, this was surprisingly lukewarm for a story that markets itself as dark and all-consuming.
TL;DR: Potentially hot in theory. Red flags in practice. Readable, but underwhelming.
Thanks to IngramSpark for the free copy for review.
Publication date was 21 December 2024.
Author Profile
Jill is a Texan, born and raised. She manages the hectic social calendars for her three active children and occasionally spends an evening with her dashing husband. Aside from being an author and a mom, she’s a travel junkie and loves to read when she is not lost in her own stories.
With Jill’s books, you can count on confident heroines, plenty of steamy tension, and deliciously assertive leading men. There are no guarantees in life, but with her books, you know everything will work out in the end. However, a perfect ending would not be nearly as satisfying without a seemingly insurmountable challenge. Jill loves to add plenty of adversity in her stories, creating unforgettably dynamic characters and sneaky plot twists you will never see coming.
