In this thriller by “the female John Grisham” (The Providence Journal), prosecutor Anna Curtis must stop a vicious street gang before it destroys more lives—and her own family.
On the very night she gets engaged to the man she loves, sex-crimes prosecutor Anna Curtis’s professional life takes a shocking turn that threatens everything she holds dear. A few miles away from where she’s enjoying her romantic dinner, two separate groups are gearing up to raid a brothel. A vicious killer known as Diablo—the Devil—leads one group. A few minutes later, Anna’s own investigative team heads in to search the brothel, as part of an ongoing fight against human trafficking in DC. Both groups are caught off guard, with deadly results.
As Anna investigates the bloody face-off, the boundaries between her work and home life begin to blur when she discovers a web of long-buried secrets and official lies that lead straight to her doorstep. And everything Anna counted on—the happiness she seemed so close to securing—comes into question as Diablo moves in for yet another kill.
Allison Leotta draws on her experience as a DC sex-crimes prosecutor to take you into the back rooms of the US Attorney’s Office, the hidden world of the Witness Protection Program, and the secret rituals of one of America’s most dangerous gangs.
Allison Leotta was a federal sex-crimes prosecutor in Washington, DC, for twelve years. In 2011, she left the Justice Department to pursue writing full time. She is the acclaimed author of Law of Attraction, Discretion, Speak of the Devil, A Good Killing, and The Last Good Girl and founder of the award-winning blog, The Prime-Time Crime Review. Leotta lives with her husband, Michael, and their two sons outside of Washington, DC. Visit her online at AllisonLeotta.com.
"If you relish hard-hitting, take-no-prisoners cops and a sharp, committed prosecutor who doesn't hesitate to face down evil, Speak of the Devil is for you. . . . An excellent book.""The moment you start reading, you'll realize Allison Leotta doesn't just write about this world. She lives in it—and works in it. She's absorbed all its darkest parts. That's why Speak of the Devil comes to life in the most haunting and best way.""Leotta . . . knows her subject all too well. Fans of Linda Fairstein and Law and Order: SVU will be right at home here.”“Suspenseful . . . Exciting.” “Leotta shows her strongest suit when she places her action in the courtroom in this pleasing third effort.”"Entertaining."