Lord John and the Hand of Devils (Lord John Grey)

These are short stories featuring Lord John Grey--shorter adventures in which he gets the better of the Hellfire Club, uncovers a copper smuggling ring and a ring of spies (on the field of battle). A great read.

As usual, the writing is excellent. You feel as though you were right there. I always love the historical novel. With mysteries added to make it interesting, and an active warrior detective of the 18th century, I had a fun read.

Lord John is such an interesting character. Diana G. developes her characters so completely, you can't help but fall in love with them. Plus, my vocabulary is always enhanced with plenty of new words! BTW-Tom Byrd is one of my favorite co-stars of the Lord John Series.

As usual, Ms. Gabaldon treats the reader to intrigue and entertainment at the same time, using her very capable verbage to generate a mental picture, allowing us to "be there". Without obviously saying "now, here's what I'm going to tell you next" we understand the tribulations of Lord John's "proclivities" via a subtle use of her capable, creative way of "saying something without a hammer". Always a "jaw-dropper", and a missive that can be read even without knowing anything of the previous Outlander history.

The was a very interesting story involving Lord John. The beginning was great and the characters very interesting. Love his man servant, Tom. There is so much heartache in this time period and Diana is quick to point them out.

I enjoyed reading this book written by my favorite author, Diana Gabaldon, but not quite as much as the books of the Outlander series. I will, however, continue to read all of the Lord John books to keep me busy while waiting for the next Outlander novel.

I read "Brotherhood" first and was very disappointed. I found The Hand of Devils easier to read, maybe because they are short stories. But still, this is a serious distraction from what true fans are waiting for: the final chapters of the Outlander series.