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The Devils' Cradle Kindle Edition

by Darcy Daniel (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

1,739 ratings

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NOTE: This book explores dark topics. Please be aware of the trigger warnings before reading. Your mental health matters.

GRAND PRIZE WINNER - TopShelf Magazine's 2018 Indie Book Awards! "An exquisite exercise in psychological suspense, a dark tale cut from the cloth woven by the likes of Lisa Gardner and Harlan Coben. Timely, tumultuous and terrific." - Jon Land, USA Today bestselling author.

On Australia’s island state, more than one species of Tasmanian Devil exists...

Beneath the surface of Nina Holt’s perfect marriage lurks a life of terror inflicted upon her by her politically powerful husband Michael and his brother Greg, a sadistic detective. For over a decade they have managed to keep Nina imprisoned, using her to satisfy their every whim. Worse still, the only light in her life—her 9-year-old son, Sam—considers Michael a hero.

When Sam imitates Michael’s violence by lashing out at her, Nina knows it’s time for both of them to escape before Sam truly turns into the monster Michael is grooming him to become.

After crashing her car in her haste to escape, kind motorist Case Herder offers her help. Unaware that he has his own plans for her, Nina accepts, igniting a deadly game of cat and mouse as they flee across Tasmania with Sam.

As Michael and Greg relentlessly hunt them down to Cradle Mountain, Nina finds herself with nowhere left to run. Cornered, she has no choice but to face evil head-on.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The Devils' Cradle is an exquisite exercise in psychological suspense, a dark tale cut from the cloth woven by the likes of Lisa Gardner and Harlan Coben. Darcy Daniel shows us that the real monsters don't live in the big house on the hill or even the one next door; sometimes they share our bed and strike terror into our hearts at every turn. Daniel has taken the popular neighborhood nightmare thriller to a whole new level in crafting a tale that, at its heart, is about the love of a mother for her child. Timely, tumultuous and terrific." - Jon Land, USA Today bestselling author and reviewer for TopShelf Magazine.

"Darcy Daniel's award-winning thriller THE DEVILS' CRADLE reminded me of the first time I read Sandra Brown. From the opening page to the last, the novel is fraught with tension, suspense, and pathos and kept me reading long into the night. Here is a writer destined for great things."--James Rollins, New York Times bestseller of The Demon Crown

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00HL74LJ6
Publisher ‏ : ‎ N L Lamont
Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 15, 2014
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 2.8 MB
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Print length ‏ : ‎ 482 pages
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0992400422
Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled

Best Sellers Rank: #563,923 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #20,954 in Romantic Suspense (Kindle Store)
- #22,176 in Romantic Suspense (Books)
- #63,078 in Romance (Kindle Store)

Customer Reviews:
1,739 ratings

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Darcy Daniel
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Darcy Daniel loved reading from an early age and fell in love with many genres, but was drawn most of all to thrillers and romances, leaving her elated when she won the 2018 TopShelf Magazine Grand Prize for her novel The Devils' Cradle.
She has also won the Charter Oak Golden Acorn Excellence in Writing contest for Best Contemporary Series Romance.

She lives on acreage in a cottage with her family and energetic dog. With friends and family close by, she enjoys country life in the picturesque, small historic town of Windsor in Sydney, Australia.
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Darcy Daniel
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Customer reviews

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Customers say

Customers find this book to be an amazing read with a storyline that's riveting and full of twists and turns. The writing is well-executed, with one customer noting how it creates a clear picture, and the characters are well-developed, with one review highlighting how it flows seamlessly between multiple perspectives. Customers describe it as a fast-paced book that kept them turning pages from the first page. The emotional and graphic content receives mixed reactions, with customers describing it as very raw emotionally and gritty, though some find it disturbing.

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Readability Suspenseful Writing quality Character development Pacing Page turner Emotional content Graphic content

166 customers mention "Readability"160 positive6 negative

Customers find the book highly readable, describing it as an amazing and enjoyable read, with one customer noting they were completely immersed in the story.

"...other, which only made this novel come across as more believable and realistic. This is truly a terrific thriller that should be read by all...." Read more

"...The first part of the book was riveting in the portrayal of Michael and Greg and their deep darkness and sickness...." Read more

"...She keeps it dark and keeps it realistic...." Read more

"...So three stars for the pretty well done, tense mystery, and minus two for the overdone love scenes...." Read more

162 customers mention "Suspenseful"145 positive17 negative

Customers find the book suspenseful with a riveting storyline and many twists and turns.

"...Indeed what a thrill ride. I couldn’t get enough. When I reading the ending, my first thought was the story was too short; that there had to be more...." Read more

"The Devils' Cradle is a good solid romance thriller light on the romance and heavy on thriller...." Read more

"...This provides an absorbing story in a book that you won’t want to put down. One word of caution to more sensitive readers...." Read more

"This book captured and held me as I read it...." Read more

56 customers mention "Writing quality"41 positive15 negative

Customers find the book well written and easy to read, with one customer noting the author's ability to create clear visual imagery, though some mention minor grammatical errors.

"...Darcy Daniel (“Daniel”) also delivers a well-written and truly engaging and compelling story about Case and his missing wife, Julie...." Read more

"...with his in-laws (Julie’s parents, David and Emma) was beautifully detailed...." Read more

"...Darcy Daniel is a very capable writer." Read more

"...Four stars instead of five due to a slight lack of sophistication and layering, though this story works just fine without it." Read more

52 customers mention "Character development"48 positive4 negative

Customers appreciate the well-developed characters in the book, with one customer noting how the story flows seamlessly between multiple perspectives.

"...This was a great thriller with a compelling plot and characters that you’ll get to know in depth...." Read more

"Enjoyable read with a well-developed plot. The characters show depth and are skillfully drawn, making the reader feel as if she knows each character..." Read more

"...The characters are very easily relatable. I specifically loved the two brothers.. They had such a weird relationship...." Read more

"...The characters are multi-faceted and the layers are added in nicely...." Read more

34 customers mention "Pacing"34 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the pacing of the book, describing it as fast-paced and well-flowing, with one customer mentioning they finished it in one day.

"...Intriguing to say the least! Also, as a mom, it is very easy to relate with Nina and her situation...." Read more

"...The way he treated Nina was appalling. The story was paced well, and the author did a good job of building the suspense...." Read more

"...The plot is tight and paced quite well. As I wrote earlier, it's a page-turner. It has great elements that explore the human condition...." Read more

"...Very well written and flows very nicely. Thank you Ms. Daniel and I am hoping to read more of your works in the future." Read more

20 customers mention "Page turner"20 positive0 negative

Customers describe the book as a page-turner that grips them right from page 1, with one customer noting they never let go until the end.

"...The plot is tight and paced quite well. As I wrote earlier, it's a page-turner. It has great elements that explore the human condition...." Read more

"...The book flowed well and kept me turning the pages to see what would happen next...." Read more

"...It grabbed me from the get-go. Nina is the beautiful young wife to Michael, the Premier of Tasmania, and mother to 9 year old Sam...." Read more

"...She has made sure to keep the reader turning those pages by injecting just enough murder, mystery, and romance to keep you tuning the pages until,..." Read more

44 customers mention "Emotional content"24 positive20 negative

Customers have mixed reactions to the emotional content of the book, finding it raw and disturbing, though one customer describes it as heart-poundingly intense.

"...mistakes, guilt, to the joy of finding one’s path - allow the reader to feel everything deeply. This contributes to a gratifying read...." Read more

"...Never have villains ever come across as so evil, twisted, sadistic, and powerful as Michael and Greg Holt, two brothers cut from the same cloth...." Read more

"This book - a psychological thriller - is the story of hair-raising spousal abuse, of a man deliberately teaching his young son how to abuse females..." Read more

"...I really enjoyed this book. It contains a lot of graphic sexual violence and strong language so if you are not okay with either, I'd highly..." Read more

18 customers mention "Graphic content"11 positive7 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the graphic content of the book, with some finding it gritty and sexy, while others appreciate the fully realized background details.

"...The characters show depth and are skillfully drawn, making the reader feel as if she knows each character better than some of the other characters do..." Read more

"...Yes, it's gritty and graphic in some places, but how better to take us into that horrifying world of psychological and physical domination and abuse?..." Read more

"This is a “take no prisoners” book! Gritty, sexy, scary ... Darcy Daniel sucks you in, turns you six ways from Sunday, and spits you out and all you..." Read more

"...It grabbed me from the get-go. Nina is the beautiful young wife to Michael, the Premier of Tasmania, and mother to 9 year old Sam...." Read more

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Pamela
Absolutely Amazing! A Must Read
Reviewed in the United States on March 9, 2014
Verified Purchase

-- SPOILER ALERT!!! --

I absolutely loved “The Devil’s Cradle.” Right from the start the novel just grabbed me. I was totally mesmerized. I eagerly kept reading on never wanting to take a break. “The Devil’s Cradle” is a riveting, engaging, and chilling tale of a woman held prisoner in her home, being mentally, physically and sexually abused at the hands of not only her cold-hearted, vicious husband, Michael, but also by Michael’s brother, Greg, whom Michael encourages to do as he pleases with his wife, Nina.* You can feel Nina’s deep-rooted fears, the mental anguish, the despair of being continuously tortured by Michael, then to watch in horror as her nine-year old son, Sam, starts acting like his father who he looks upon as a hero.

Darcy Daniel (“Daniel”) also delivers a well-written and truly engaging and compelling story about Case and his missing wife, Julie. Just when Case is finally coming to terms that Julie, who’s been missing for two years, is most probably dead, Case discovers something that not only reveals just who the killer might be, that he also didn’t know his wife as well as he thought he did. His search for answers brings Case to Nina’s front door. Like myself, Case and Nina are two people who you’ll fall in love with; Case especially as he’s he just an amazing individual.

Never have villains ever come across as so evil, twisted, sadistic, and powerful as Michael and Greg Holt, two brothers cut from the same cloth. You’ll absolutely detest these two as much as I did. Michael is the Premier of Tasmania, and his brother Greg is a Detective Inspector. Nothing and no one gets in their way of everything and anything they so wish or desire. I absolutely loved reading about the brothers’ relationship with their father, Larry; about when they were growing up, and their interaction then and at present as their father is still alive living in an old age home. As much as I hated Larry, I do admit I felt a little bad for him as to how he was living out his final days. As evil as they both Michael and Greg are, it was quite interesting to see how different they were from each other, and how each brother thought they had more power over the other one. As nasty as these two brothers were, every word written about them was truly entertaining.

I loved the two scenes near the end where Michael, after trying his best to control his rage towards Nina and Greg that’s been building up, he loses it completely in front of police officers and on national television for all to see. Regardless of all this, Michael still believes that nothing or no one can touch him and or hurt him; that he’s still loved and respected by all because of who he is, all the money he has, all the power that he believes he wields, and the fact that he’s the Premier.

When I reached the end, I was actually hoping to read the hell Michael found himself to be in; his thoughts as to where he ends up. No matter, the ending worked well. A big thank you to the author for not ending the novel where the two protagonists end up declaring their love for each other, which only made this novel come across as more believable and realistic. This is truly a terrific thriller that should be read by all. Indeed what a thrill ride. I couldn’t get enough. When I reading the ending, my first thought was the story was too short; that there had to be more. That’s how much I truly enjoyed this novel. One of the best books I’ve read for 2014.

*(Please note that the abuse Nina endures from Michael and Greg are quite graphic, and most likely will disturb some.)

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jcmulligan
Solid Thriller Light on the Romance
Reviewed in the United States on June 12, 2015
Verified Purchase
The Devils' Cradle is a good solid romance thriller light on the romance and heavy on thriller. Set in Tasmania, Nina is a wife of a prominent official and is held captive in her home. Michael, her husband, took Nina in as she was robbing his home to help pay for her heroine habit and decided to turn her into his slave. They now have a son that he is training to be just like him. Part of Nina's duties is sexual servicing Michael's brother Greg, a high level police official. Both Michael and Greg are a twisted pair that get enjoyment from tearing others down including Nina. Every part of Nina's life is orchestrated to please or displease Michael where he would let his feeling be known with his fist and other items of injury. The beginning of the story did have a few scenes of violence and rape but I've read much more disturbing portrayals in other books. The other half of the story is about a man named Case who previously worked with Greg and is trying to prove Greg had something to do with his wife's murder. Nina meets up with Case somewhat by accident after she decides to leave Michael with her son. Case has ulterior motives in the beginning but starts to develop true feelings for Nina as they try to get away.

My opinion on the book is that it's a straight forward type of read with not many twists. The first part of the book was riveting in the portrayal of Michael and Greg and their deep darkness and sickness. The second part was consistent however I would have liked to see a little more romance between Nina and Case. I would have also liked to see Nina be more strong and fight back harder. Having said that, the story was consistent with how people like them would probably behave.

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William G. Davis
Great Thriller, Terrific Story, Superb Characterization
Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2014
Verified Purchase
I took a chance on a $.99 offering of The Devil’s Cradle. Boy, am I glad I did! This was a great thriller with a compelling plot and characters that you’ll get to know in depth. The heroine and hero are truly admirable and courageous. The villains are utterly despicable.

Rescued off the street from a life of drug addiction and prostitution, Nina is saved by a powerful man who makes her his wife. But does she live happily ever after? Not hardly. Nina becomes his slave and an object of his ridicule. Not only does he physically and sexually abuse Nina, but her husband shares her sexually with his sadistic police officer brother. The only thing saving her sanity is the love of her young son, who is slowly being transformed by his father into a miniature version of himself.

Though brave, Nina has been shut out from the outside world (she doesn’t even know how to drive a car. She’s not allowed any friends or access to the media or phone). Nina finally determines she must escape her prison of existence and rescue her son from becoming his father. Enter Case, a former police detective who was falsely accused of killing his wife. Though never convicted, he’s lived under a shadow of suspicion while planning revenge against the man he knows killed her, Nina’s sadistic brother-in-law.

Fate brings Case and Nina together, Case helping her in a flight to freedom motivated by his hatred for her brother-in-law. From this point it becomes predator versus prey as Case seeks to get Nina to safety.

Author Daniel has the ability to get the reader under the skin of her main characters. You feel what they feel and experience what they do. This provides an absorbing story in a book that you won’t want to put down.

One word of caution to more sensitive readers. There is a graphic rape scene that leaves nothing to the imagination. Also a couple of sexual encounters that are detailed as well. Don’t let those stop you from reading this book—just skip over them if you choose. This is an extremely well-written thriller that will have you cheering for Nina and Case.

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Top reviews from other countries

Debra
Great setting
Reviewed in Australia on January 3, 2018
Verified Purchase

This book was just fantastic. The Cradle Mountain setting was unusual and worked well. Nina was feisty when it counted, and Case the nice guy hero I couldn't help but love. The violence was unsettling at times, and a little over the top, I thought. The romance bordered on cheesy but was a welcome relief from the violence that most times I didn't care. A great read.

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Johnp
Me ... read a romance ... never ....??
Reviewed in Canada on January 21, 2017
Verified Purchase
I admit, romance novels are definitely not in my 'wheelhouse', but Ms. Daniel introduced me to this 'thriller containing romance' and I was hooked!
I was initially intrigued by the cover but after reading the preview I downloaded it. At the beginning I was a touch sceptical but it
didn't take long to become totally engrossed.
To me it was unique in that it not only introduced the thriller/romance genre but that it took place in Tasmania, Australia's island state, an area most of us outsiders only know as the home of the Tasmanian devil. As much as I enjoy the publishing industry's dominant authors (British and American) I was delighted to discover an 'Aussie' author who by the way, can really write.
The storyline highlights a very serious issue in today's world; spousal abuse and how the abused can become the abuser.
My goodness, does Ms. Daniel have a way with words! She totally unblinkingly immerses you in her description of the abject suffering her protagonist, Nina, suffers at the hands of not only her psychopath husband but his equally psychopathic brother.
Yes, it is a romance novel also but she does a beautiful job of keeping you in suspense in this area to the very end ... and the sex ...(blush) ... whew ... enough said!
Ms. Daniel did something most unique with this novel that I have never seen before. I felt it was perfect but you will have to read it to find out.

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Camille
made for TV movie screenplay?
Reviewed in Germany on January 23, 2017
Verified Purchase
The first chapter or so was promising but spiralled down to becoming like a screenplay for a cheap film. Many of the scenarios were unlikely and the plot predictable. The characters were one dimensional. The main character was also annoyingly pathetic even when she was trying to be built up into a stronger personality towards the end.

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Phyl
Devils Cradle
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 1, 2024
Verified Purchase
Before I purchased Devils Cradle,I had read These Hands by Darcy, I loved it, but I honestly could not put this book down. It was quite harrowing but well worth reading

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Tolya
A fair book
Reviewed in France on June 24, 2015
Verified Purchase
This book adresses turns around the topic of abused women. however it is just a fair book you easily read .. and forget. Nothing great about it, neither the characters, nor the story line.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely Amazing! A Must Read

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid Thriller Light on the Romance

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Thriller, Terrific Story, Superb Characterization

Top reviews from other countries

5.0 out of 5 stars Great setting

5.0 out of 5 stars Me ... read a romance ... never ....??

1.0 out of 5 stars made for TV movie screenplay?

5.0 out of 5 stars Devils Cradle

2.0 out of 5 stars A fair book

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Absolutely Amazing! A Must Read

Solid Thriller Light on the Romance

Great Thriller, Terrific Story, Superb Characterization

Great setting

Me ... read a romance ... never ....??

made for TV movie screenplay?

Devils Cradle

A fair book