Product Description

From New York Times bestselling author Greg Iles comes his most electrifying thriller yet. The Devil's Punchbowl reveals a world of depravity, sex, violence, and the corruption of a Southern town.

As a prosecuting attorney in Houston, Penn Cage sent hardened killers to death row. But it is as mayor of his hometown -- Natchez, Mississippi -- that Penn will face his most dangerous threat. Urged by old friends to try to restore this fading jewel of the Old South, Penn has ridden into office on a tide of support for change. But in its quest for new jobs and fresh money, Natchez, like other Mississippi towns, has turned to casino gambling, and now five fantastical steamboats float on the river beside the old slave market at Natchez like props from Gone With the Wind.

But one boat isn't like the others.

Rumor has it that the Magnolia Queen has found a way to pull the big players from Las Vegas to its Mississippi backwater. And with them -- on sleek private jets that slip in and out of town like whispers in the night -- come pro football players, rap stars, and international gamblers, all sharing an unquenchable taste for one thing: blood sport -- and the dark vices that go with it. When a childhood friend of Penn's who brings him evidence of these crimes is brutally murdered, the full weight of Penn's failure to protect his city hits home. So begins his quest to find the men responsible. But it's a hunt he begins alone, for the local authorities have been corrupted by the money and power of his hidden enemy. With his family's lives at stake, Penn realizes his only allies in his one-man war are those bound to him by blood or honor:

Caitlin Masters, the lover Penn found in The Quiet Can Game and lost in Turning Angel

Danny McDavitt, the heroic helicopter pilot from Third Degree

Tom Cage, Penn's father and legendary local family physician

Walt Garrity, a retired Texas Ranger who served with Penn's father during the Korean War

Together they must defeat a sophisticated killer who has an almost preternatural ability to anticipate -- and counter -- their every move. Ultimately, victory will depend on a bold stroke that will leave one of Penn's allies dead -- and Natchez changed forever.

After appearing in two of Iles's most popular novels, Penn Cage makes his triumphant return as a brilliant, honorable, and courageous hero. Rich with Southern atmosphere and marked by one jaw-dropping plot turn after another, The Devil's Punchbowl confirms that Greg Iles is America's master of suspense.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4336 in Books
• Published on: 2009-07-07
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 592 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780743292511
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Bestseller Iles's stellar third suspense novel to feature Penn Cage (after Turning Angel) finds the former prosecutor and bestselling novelist serving as the mayor of Natchez, Miss., his hometown. Frustrated by his limited ability to change the system, Cage is plunged into a deadly duel of wits with some bad guys after a childhood friend, Tim Jessup, now a card dealer, alerts him to illegal dog fighting and sexual abuse connected with a floating casino. Before Jessup can deliver proof of his allegations, he's tortured and killed. Convinced Jessup managed to pass on the evidence to the mayor, Jessup's boss confronts and threatens Cage. Daniel Kelly, an old friend working for a private security organization, lends support, sneaking Cage's 11-year-old daughter out of town to safety. Iles brilliantly creates opportunities for his characters to demonstrate principle and courage, both on a large and small scale, making this much more than just an exciting read. (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From The Washington Post
From The Washington Post's Book World/washingtonpost.com Reviewed by Patrick Anderson There is a lot going on in Greg Iles's third novel featuring Penn Cage, the mayor of Natchez, Miss., but finally it's a story about evil. Cage, a lawyer and successful novelist, has run for mayor of his home town to save it from troubles that he believes are largely caused by de facto school segregation. His challenge grows even greater when he confronts two Irishmen who run one of the floating gambling casinos that have done much to rejuvenate the Mississippi economy. Their boat, the Magnolia Queen, makes available illegal drugs, teenage prostitutes and dogfights to attract high rollers from out of state. When Cage tries to stop them, he finds that these two psychopaths will gladly murder, rape, torture, bribe and kidnap to maintain their power. Some readers may toss the novel aside because of its scenes of horrific violence. Others will tolerate the violence because Iles is a talented writer who puts the horror in a believable context. Penn Cage is a solid portrait of a good man trying to do a hard job for a city he loves: "For sheer beauty Natchez is unmatched along the length of the river; with its commanding site above the river Mississippi it surpasses even New Orleans, and one would have to travel to Charleston or Savannah to find comparable architecture." Iles gives us a good sense of the city and the woes of being its mayor. Cage is also a widower trying to raise a beloved 11-year-old daughter. But everything he has accomplished, personally and politically, is imperiled by the two corrupt gamblers. At the outset, a friend who works at the gambling casino tells Cage of illegality aboard the ship -- and in the wooded hideaways where dogfights are staged -- and soon that friend has been mauled to death by dogs. When Cage sets out to investigate the charges, the two gangsters visit his home. They come armed with guns, knives and a well-trained bully kutta, a Pakistani breed celebrated for its size, strength and fearlessness. The gangsters tell Cage that unless he does exactly as they say, they will not only murder him, they'll kill his daughter, parents and friends. Cage pretends to go along, but of course he intends to bring down the two, aided by some lethal friends in the world of private security. The rest of the novel details a gripping, often frightening clash between good and evil. Evil seems to have the upper hand. We see an all-too-graphic dogfight and learn that the villains grab household pets off the streets to provide snacks for their pit bulls. We see women suffer in agonizing detail, among them a good-hearted but penniless stripper who goes to work on the casino ship only to be subjected to rape, torture and the threat of an attack by hungry dogs. These killer dogs are prominent in the novel, if only as tools used by despicable men. Even more awful creatures, alligators, also play a role -- they are the reptilian equivalent of the two villains. Cage tells us that "there's no sight quite like the dozens of red eyes hovering just above water level among the twisted cypress trunks" of the Mississippi. Early in the novel, Cage's journalist girlfriend argues that the villains must be brought to trial, not assassinated. Later, after she has suffered a great deal, Iles contrives to put her in a boat at night with one of her tormentors -- sadist, rapist, murderer -- and to give her the option of having him thrown to the waiting alligators. It's a gripping scene but not a pretty one. Unless you're an alligator. Iles's writing held my interest even as I began to think he was moving past a serious look at depravity in favor of an exercise in cheap thrills. It's an old problem. Evil is a legitimate subject for fiction, but at what point, in relating horrors, particularly horrors against women, is the writer simply pandering? "The Devil's Punchbowl" is not without merit, but it's hard to think many women could read it with pleasure; and, even for us insensitive males, a strong stomach is useful.
Copyright 2009, The Washington Post. All Rights Reserved.

Review
"A knockout thriller that's just the right degree of chilly to combat the dog days of summer... Iles' knack for perfectly integrating character and plot could serve as a master's class for other authors."-- The Dallas Morning News

Customer Reviews

Greg Iles returns to form
I really enjoyed a couple of the earliest Greg Iles' novels (Spandau Phoenix, Quiet Game) and found them to be uniquely suspenseful with great complexity. While still good and better than a lot of other new fiction, the last few books were not quite as good as the earlier ones, in my opinion. Iles took his time completing this one, and it shows. I would much rather wait for a more finely-tuned yarn than to get a lesser product on schedule or in a shorter time. Devil's Punchbowl was worth the wait. Penn Cage is the best character Iles has crafted, and he's back in this novel. Greg Iles is a great storyteller, but what makes his best novels special is how the story is unfolded and shaped and how much extra depth there is besides just the plot. It's so much more than a mere whodunit that is the model for so many other popular authors. Looking forward to the next one - keep them coming!

A gripping thriller from Iles, perhaps a bit too long
For many years, Greg Iles appealed to me as an author because each book was a totally unique experience. With THE DEVIL'S PUNCHBOWL, Iles brings back crusading lawyer/writer/polician Penn Cage for his third appearance in a novel that tackles corruption in Natchez, the cost of doing the right thing, and the choices one must make. Although the story never draged, the novel seemed too long and the book lacked the typical internal struggles that have haunted the characters in other Iles novels.

Cage has been mayor for two years, and was instrumental in expanding the riverboat casino industry in the city. Cage is considering resigning to spend more time with his family when a childhood friend Tim Jessup tells Cage of some horrible evils and corruption occuring on one boat, the Magnolia Queen. Jessup offers evidence of prostitution and dog fighting and promises to get more if Cage is willing to help. Cage agrees, but Jessup is murdered the next night and then his entire family is threatened by the sauve Englishman Jonathan Sands. Sands wants the evidence Jessup took, or Cage's family could be in danger.

Cage is conflicted and doesn't know if he should fight Sands, or just look for the evidence, surrender it, and ignore Sands like every one else in the town. Of course, Cage decides to fight. He enlists the help of ex-girlfriend Caitlin Masters, who left town when he decided to run for mayor. He also has the services of Danny McDavvit, a pilot, Kelly, a ruthlessly efficient soldier, a ex-marine sniper and an old Texas Ranger. With his all star team in town to fight Sands, the action scenes are numerous and exciting.

The best parts of the book are the portrayal of the dog fighting culture. It is new and fresh and enlightening. Even at over 500 pages, the plot flows seamlessly. On the downside, the book went on forever. Cut out a few fights and you lose one hundred pages and still retain the power of the novel. In the author notes, Iles says he couldn't fit all he wanted into this novel, so look for another Penn Cage novel sometime next year.

A worthwhile read....
Just when I was bemoaning the fact that there was nothing I was interested in reading, I found The Devil's Punchbowl by Greg Iles. This Iles book is my first and now I have a whole body of work to catch up on; one of the dangers, and benefits, of reading an author for the first time.

The story in The Devil's Punchbowl is pretty straightforward. Natchez, Mississippi is a town that has seen better times. Like many places in America, the once golden American dream seems to have passed on, leaving a mere shell of its form self behind. Penn Cage is elected Mayor of Natchez on a now-a-days common platform of economic recovery. Before Penn can get really started, a childhood friend, Tim Jessup, tells Penn of some not so savory activity on the casino river boats operating from the old slave market. Tim is murdered before he can deliver proof of this accusation, however. Those who operate these activities assume that Jessup did deliver proof to Cage and warn him off. The setting is there and the rest of the book is a thrilling "mind" ride for the reader. Very well done!

Since I haven't read any of Iles other novels, a comparison to other authors is dangerous, but what the heck. Iles The Devil's Punchbowl is very reminiscent of the early works of James Lee Burke, at least to me. Burke's stories such as Neon Rain, Black Cherry Blues, or even Dixie City Jam come to mind. Iles is perhaps less gritty than Burke, and Cage isn't as earthy as Dave Robicheaux, but the story elements and plotting seem to be similar.

I highly recommend. This is a great beach read.

Peace to all.