Product Description

Three heads are better than one...

What do a feisty New Yorker, an LA rock chick and a dreamy English public school girl have in common? On paper, not a lot. But even though they live thousands of miles apart and have never met, Rose Fiorello, Poppy Allen and Daisy Markham have the strongest of bonds. They just don't know it yet.

A sinister secret is buried deep at the heart of all their pasts, and sooner or later it has to come out. When that happens, one thing's for certain: the three girl's lives will never be the same again. But will it finally bring them together? After all, when there are old scores to settle, there's definitely strength in numbers...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12262 in Books
• Published on: 2008-04-17
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 576 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Remember the 80s, when padded shoulders and big hair sprayed 'dos were all the rage? Louise Bagshawe, it seems, is spearheading an 80s literary revival The Devil You Know is this young author's seventh novel (other titles include Career Girls, Tall Poppies, A Kept Woman, so you know this author's stalking ground; money, men, high-flying jobs) and stars three sisters who defiantly want it all.

The opening 20 pages are a little ludicrous, featuring an evil brother, a handsome, daredevil Italian count, his gypsy wife, and their triplet girls who are adopted, following their parents' horrible murders. The action swishes ahead a bit and we meet gorgeous Rose, who lives in a poor area of New York, but who is destined to become a property tycoon. Then there's stunning Poppy, an American Jewish princess obsessed by heavy metal, and who ends up in the rock & roll world. And lastly there's Daisy, overweight and stuck in an English boarding school. But with a little application she sheds the pounds and transforms herself into a best selling romantic novelist.

So that's the ambitious careers sorted out. But what about their love lives? Just as glamorous; the Superwomen end up with a real estate giant, a senator and a media magnate respectively. The Devil You Know is a high concept read where revenge is always sweet and the grooming impeccable. --Eithne Farry

About the Author

Top ten bestseller Louise Bagshawe is the author of twelve bestselling novels, published in more than eight languages. She has also adapted her books for major Hollywood film studios. She is married with three children and lives in Northamptonshire.

Customer Reviews

Please write a different story!
Terrible. That is the only way to describe this current offering my Louise Bagshawe. I have been a fan since her first books, but found my interest wavering slightly after the last woeful offering. This book is just a rehash of every other one she has written, and those that have read previous books will see this. The Blonde and the brunette (Elizabeth Savage and Rowena Gordon/Nina Roth and Topaz Rossi) the job in the music industry, the ambitious girl who will stop at nothing to suceed. Trust me, you have read it all before. I advise anyone to skip this book, go back to the beginning and re read her classics such as 'The Movie' and 'Career Girls'.

feel like i've been here before
My first introduction to Bagshawe was "When she was bad", and i must admit i found it a breath of fresh air compaired to other female, so-called "chick lit" authors. All other writers seemed to base their charcters and plots around a neurotic 20-30 something woman whose only real aim in life was to find a gorgeous man and live happily ever after. For those of us who have aspirations beyond such things, Bagshawe really hit the mark for me. Her characters were strong, inspirational and knew their own minds and what they wanted out of life. Love and romance obviously did come into it but it wasn't the sole focus of the story. Therefore when "The devil you know" came out i was looking forward to reading it.
One thing i have realised since is that although Bagshawe seems to have a great skill in writing a unputdownable read, she does seem to be a little short on plot and characterisation these days. I did only get into her through one of her most recent novels and having now read the two mentioned and also her acclaimed "Career girls" i am beginning to feel that everytime i pick up a Bagshawe book i am reading a very similar story to the previous. "The devil you know" is still a good read and a pretty good introduction to Bagshawe. But for those of us familiar to her work, it really does have far too much likeness to her past works. For example, Poppy from "The devil you know" and Rowena from "Career girls" are both young girls trying to forge a career within the rock music business. Although not totally the same circumstances, they both seem to break into it and become overnight success's. From my own personal experience i can say that this is not only highly unlikely but also far to alike than is acceptable. I feel like i am re-reading the same book again.
I wouldn't write Bagshawe off as a waste of time, on the contrary, her books are some of the most gripping and enjoyable that i have read within this genre. But a word of warning, if you read more than one Bagshawe novel the "i've been here before feeling" will be inevitable.

VERY Good but the ending chapters are a big letdown
This recommended summer reading book is a great chick lit novel and im not even a fan of these transparent excuses for literature. i read this and couldnt put it down, the book starts good, the story even develops and i actually start to care for the three protagonists. BUT the anti climax of the ending seems rushed and too predictable.The story had so much potential that i felt so letdown at the end i just didnt care about the characters anymore