Luck of the Devil (Speak of the Devil, #1) by Patricia Eimer

Jun 29, 2011 Andrea rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-paranormal

Luck of the Devil focuses on the life of Faith, the daughter of the Devil (yes that devil). It boast a hilarious cast of characters that includes Faith(a do-gooder half-sister/pediatric nurse), her sister Hope (a failed occult leader), her mother (the devil’s consort), her brother (a demon screw up), her roommate (a recently turned succubus), and her love interest who is part of a celestial army out to destroy all demons. They live in Pittsburgh. They have family fights that result in flooding a...more

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Aug 02, 2011 Christi Snow rated it 4 of 5 stars

This one is so close to a 5-star rating...easily 4.5! Full review to come, but this is a seriously FUN, entertaining book! LOVED it!

Full review reposted from my Smitten with Reading blog...

My Review:
Opening paragraph of the book:
quote from book:
"You just couldn't help yourself, could you?" Lisa and I stared in revulsion at the freshly dead body of my former boss lying on the carpet in his office, wearing nothing but plaid boxer shorts, a striped tie, and his white lab coat.

"Faith, I'm sorry. I w...more

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Aug 18, 2011 Angie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: net-galley, adult

I received a free digital copy through Net Galley.

What do you get when you combine a less than evil daughter of Satan, her spoiled siblings, brother-in-law who has "fallen up," inept succubus roommate, crazy mortal mother, Satan himself, a hunky lawyer across the hall, the ghost of a dead doctor, and a stalker? One wacky mystery, a little bit of romance, and the family reunion from Hell!

This was a very fun read, but was also quite predictable. Some plot points mysteriously disappeared after the...more

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Mar 20, 2013 My Book Addiction and More MBA rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: paranormal-romance

Faith was a normal girl with a normal job trying to lead a normal life. That may have been easy to do, except for the fact she was a half demon and the youngest daughter of the devil. Faith's family showed up out of nowhere just when she was getting to know her new handsome neighbor better. Things start to go bad fast when Faith finds out she had a dangerous stalker and he/she wanted to eliminate her family.

The art work for the cover was what drew me to this book. The humorous story was what kep...more

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Mar 12, 2013 Fangs for the Fantasy rated it 4 of 5 stars

We all love of our families but if we're honest, family get togethers do have a tendency to become stressful. This is especially true, if your name is Faith Bettincourt and your father is the Devil. When her entire family descends upon her apartment, Faith knows that her plan to spend her week of vacation watching reality TV, is officially out the door. If that were not enough, her succubus roommate has accidentally killed her boss and his ghost keeps popping up because his paperwork keeps getti...more We all love of our families but if we're honest, family get togethers do have a tendency to become stressful. This is especially true, if your name is Faith Bettincourt and your father is the Devil. When her entire family descends upon her apartment, Faith knows that her plan to spend her week of vacation watching reality TV, is officially out the door. If that were not enough, her succubus roommate has accidentally killed her boss and his ghost keeps popping up because his paperwork keeps getting messed up. Life was simpler when she was simply flirting with the hot guy next door. Just having the Devil, your wiccan mother and police attention would be bad enough, but things get even worse for Faith, when an angel begins to stalk her, intent on stealing her powers and ending her immortal life.

Luck of the Devil is absolutely laugh out loud funny. It takes the average (if there such a thing) dysfunctional family dynamics and throws in demons and angels. It's completely irreverent and despite it's supernatural cast, completely relateable. No child, not matter how old they are, ever wants to walk in on their mother giving their father a blowjob. The therapy bills alone would be horrific, never mind, the push to scrub the image from your mind. But isn't that what family is all about?

But what do you do if your human mother keeps going on about Gaia, and refuses to believe that her Devil husband is immortal? Then there's the little issue of your demon brother in-law "falling up." Your half brother Tolliver, who is the son of Lilith and Satan, who is not happy with your mother and just happens to be in love with your succubus roommate, who he turned because he is in love with her. Speaking of the Succubus roommate, what if she cannot control her powers and keeps accidentally killing people? And Then there's your uncle The Alpha with a mean streak for vengeance.

Clearly, there is a lot going on with Luck of the Devil. When it first started it was like being thrown into mosh pit. I had no idea which way was up, or what direction I should be heading in. Slowly, the story started to come together and I began to make sense of the plot. The main issue in Luck of the Devil, is stopping Faith's stalker, but it took quite sometime for me to realise that this was the issue which needed to be resolved, because it was surrounded by so many incidental anecdotes. Had these anecdotes not been so entertaining, like introducing your nephilim boyfriend to your father, who is the Devil, or having to threaten God and the Devil because they wouldn't stop playing Mario Cart, the story would have felt incredibly derailed.

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Aug 08, 2012 Deborah Riley-Magnus rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

If you’ve ever sat at a Sunday family dinner and wondered if there could possibly be a family more dysfunctional or strange than your own, I’m here to tell you that Luck of the Devil heroine, Faith Bettincourt, has us all beat by a mile! Her father is the Devil, her mother is an existential spiritualist human nutcase, her sister Hope (half human/half demon nehalim like Faith) is as wickedly manipulative as they come, and her half-brother Tolliver is a pure demon spawn of the Devil with designs o...more If you’ve ever sat at a Sunday family dinner and wondered if there could possibly be a family more dysfunctional or strange than your own, I’m here to tell you that Luck of the Devil heroine, Faith Bettincourt, has us all beat by a mile! Her father is the Devil, her mother is an existential spiritualist human nutcase, her sister Hope (half human/half demon nehalim like Faith) is as wickedly manipulative as they come, and her half-brother Tolliver is a pure demon spawn of the Devil with designs on her sweet, newly-turned succubus roommate. (And you thought your sister’s penchant for red shoes was weird!)

Faith has powers, a tail, wings and horns as well as a lovely human conscience that keeps her from doing only evil. She also has the hots for Matt, the guy across the hall. She’s a sparkplug, independent and resilient and constantly dealing with some sort of supernatural disaster or another. She’s definitely an easy character to love.

Among the best scenes in this book are those where Faith and the Devil are together doing the father/daughter thing. Some relationships are the same, no matter how strange dad is. Other wonderful explorations involve the many levels of heaven and hell, the creative strata of supernatural personnel, and the beautiful way Faith and Matt consummate their love.

Without giving away any spoilers, I will say that this fantastic romp though Pittsburgh (my home town!) is twisted with good and evil, weather patterns that surely reflect that supernatural creatures are at play (who knew?) and a story that tingles the imagination and makes you really wonder about God, the Devil, good and evil as it plays out in our everyday life.

Faith is delightful, Matt, her very special new love is fascinating and this story pulls the reader through at the perfect pace. Oh, and the biggest laugh I got from this book (and there were many) is the fact that the Devil’s favorite restaurant in Pittsburgh is Permanti Brothers.

The writing in Luck of the Devil is very good, smooth and easy to read but I did have a few issues with the e-book formatting which in the beginning, took a bit to get used to. This may have been only in the “reviewers version” that I was given, and even if not, Luck of the Devil is still so worth the read.

I can’t wait for the next book in this fun series!

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Sep 19, 2011 Amber R at Awesomesaucebookclub rated it 4 of 5 stars

Luck of the Devil is witty, funny, sexy, and full of all kinds of goodness. It's the story Faith a half human, half demon who lives in Pittsburgh. Her room mate is a newly made succubus, her half brother is a demon, her sister is a demon, her mother is bat shit crazy, her hot neighbor has some secrets up his sleeve, and to top it all off, her father is Lucifer himself.

This is family is the poster child for dysfunctional. You know that they love each other but they are crazy. Faith has all of th...more

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Sep 15, 2011 Jane Niemeyer rated it 5 of 5 stars

What a hoot! We are introduced to Faith and Hope Bettincourt, the half human, half demonic daughters of Lucifer himself. We meet their Mother Roisin, her brother Tolliver, his girl friend Lisa, a newly made succubus and a whole host of minor deity’s. Along with hell’s denizens we also get to meet Matt, a half human and half angel , the Lord Almighty and his son Jesus.
The story takes place in Pittsburg Pennsylvania, who knew that will become a portal to hell. I know that there are probably some p...more What a hoot! We are introduced to Faith and Hope Bettincourt, the half human, half demonic daughters of Lucifer himself. We meet their Mother Roisin, her brother Tolliver, his girl friend Lisa, a newly made succubus and a whole host of minor deity’s. Along with hell’s denizens we also get to meet Matt, a half human and half angel , the Lord Almighty and his son Jesus.
The story takes place in Pittsburg Pennsylvania, who knew that will become a portal to hell. I know that there are probably some people who consider Pittsburg hell, but in this book, it really will turn into a way to the dark side. Faith is the youngest of Lucifer’s half daughters and turns out to be his favorite! In the story she is just trying to lead a normal human life away from the family. Normal for Faith turns out not to normal for the rest of us. Turns out that Matt, her neighbor, is trying to do the same, hide from his family. When the story opens, all Faith Wants to do is enjoy a vacation from her nursing job and watch reality TV. Instead she needs to deal with murder of her boss by her roommate Lisa, a visit from her sister and her brother in law, and a visit from her parents. As she says, she’ll need a vacation from her vacation !
This is a laugh out loud book. The descriptions of how Hope and her husband Boris, managed to lose control of an entire cult will have you thinking and laughing at the same time. Thinking because many the extremist form of any religious practice is controlled by the Devil, or his minions, and laughing because Ms Eimer knows how to tell a story. The scenes with Faith, and everyone else in the book, especially in the hospital’s ER will make you realize that the line between good and evil is very fine and can be easily crossed.
At it’s heart this is a love story. Faith, for all of her evilness, loves her family and would like to find a love of her own that would not be frightened by what she is. The same is true for Matt. Her sister Lisa looses the cult because she has fallen in love with her husband and will do most anything for him. Now doesn’t this sound like some people you may know? The book gets a little complicated at times, but then so does life.
With a little help from her father, the Devil, and Matt’s father, the Lord almighty, these two fall in love and in the end, the Lord makes things right !
A good read and an author that I will look for more stories from.
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Aug 16, 2011 Mel rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: paranormal, romance, demons

This was such a fun read! I was entertained from the minute I started reading with this cosy supernatural story. There is a great family dynamic between Faith and the rest of her family – including her sister and half brother. Not to mention her whacky mother and her father, Satan the devil. Plus there is her uncle and cousin... I loved the dysfunctional family element which made them all relatable and feel like a normal family. Some of the one-liners are hilarious and had me laughing out loud....more

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Aug 06, 2011 OpenBookSociety.com rated it 5 of 5 stars

Review brought to you by OBS staff member Karolina

Being the youngest daughter of the Devil isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. The days of teenage rebellion and vows of chastity made just to tick off her father are over, and now all Faith Bettincourt wants is a nice, quiet life. Unfortunately, thanks to the unexpected arrival of her demonically-downsized sister, a ditzy succubus roommate, and dear old Dad himself, Faith’s plans for a relaxing vacation spent watching reruns go up in flames.

Now it’s...more Review brought to you by OBS staff member Karolina

Being the youngest daughter of the Devil isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. The days of teenage rebellion and vows of chastity made just to tick off her father are over, and now all Faith Bettincourt wants is a nice, quiet life. Unfortunately, thanks to the unexpected arrival of her demonically-downsized sister, a ditzy succubus roommate, and dear old Dad himself, Faith’s plans for a relaxing vacation spent watching reruns go up in flames.

Now it’s all Faith can do to keep the family reunion from Hell (literally) under wraps, and the angelically-inclined hottie across the hall from realizing there’s something weird about his neighbor. And, thankfully, it’s working. Until an angelic stalker shows up in a bid to steal her powers and take over the world.

Forget watching reruns. With the way things are going, Faith will need the luck of the Devil just to survive until Monday. Source

Luck of the Devil by Patricia Eimer is a wonderful, feel good paranormal comedy that sucks you in from the beginning (pun completely intended!). Faith Bettincourt – the Devil’s youngest daughter- and her roommate Lisa begin the story by accidentally murdering a doctor who they work with (Lisa – the ditzy succubus in the write up is the culprit). Things definitely go pear-shaped from here on in with the appearance of Faith’s older brother Tolliver, sister Hope (along with her recently ‘fallen up’ incubus husband, Boris) and her own dear father (the Devil Himself) and her ditzy mother to really make things complicated! This family reads as any disfunctionally functional family would – they all love each other to death; but have their own hang ups and crazy antics (and horns and tails thrown in to the mix). Eimer’s devil is surprisingly sane – and not as evil as you’d expect. His offspring and chosen partner are far crazier than he is. It’s kind of disconcerting how much I enjoyed the devil and his characterisation in this – he really could be anyone.

Tolliver and Hope are a lot of fun with their attempts at villainy , and Lisa, though ditzy, is a complete sweetheart. Faith is a great storyteller, and a protagonist I think a woman can relate to -in a crazy “this could never happen to me, but if it did, that’s so something I would do” way. Matt – the angelic hottie from next door, is also a great addition to the cast of wacky characters this book provides. He’s incredibly grounding, and seems to take everything that goes on around Faith in stride- something (and someone) this character seems to desperately need. Eimer also does an amazingly good job at developing the mystery around Faith’s creepy, malicious stalker (yep, that’s right, there’s a bit of a mystery running through the book, too!) with a satisfying ending. There’s even a cameo from a Divine power, or two.

The only downside of this book, from my point of view, was sort of being thrown into who the characters were. It took me a few chapters to ascertain who was who and how they connected to Faith, and why. For someone who is quite character based when she reads a book (which I definitely am) it was a little frustrating. But, once that was sorted out, the story made up for that hiccup. All in all, Luck of the Devil by Patricia Eimer is a great read, with really fun, engaging and (although wacky) amusingly real characters and a great plot. Definitely not a run of the mill story, and completely recommended!

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Jul 25, 2011 Rebecca rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed, paranormal-romance

You can also read this review at Reflections on Reading Romance

This book was irreverent and more than a bit blasphemous, and it totally cracked me up! Luck of the Devil is a light-hearted paranormal romance based in Pittsburgh, and thanks to Ms. Eimer’s sense of humor I had to clean Coke Zero off my Kindle screen far too many times after laughing at the Pittsburgh references. For those of you not in the know, my DH and his family are from Pittsburgh, and I’ve had to add phrases such as “Yinz” a...more You can also read this review at Reflections on Reading Romance

This book was irreverent and more than a bit blasphemous, and it totally cracked me up! Luck of the Devil is a light-hearted paranormal romance based in Pittsburgh, and thanks to Ms. Eimer’s sense of humor I had to clean Coke Zero off my Kindle screen far too many times after laughing at the Pittsburgh references. For those of you not in the know, my DH and his family are from Pittsburgh, and I’ve had to add phrases such as “Yinz” and “Innat” to this Southern Belle’s “Y’all” and “Fixin’ To”. What made this book all the funnier was that the heroine is the daughter of the Devil. Yes, Satan’s hell spawn lives in Pittsburgh, and if you think after suffering through 5 Midwestern winters I’m not convinced that the Devil himself lives in the Midwest, you’re crazy. Patricia Eimer’s Luck of the Devil is a hoot, and I highly recommend it!

The novel opens with Faith Bettincourt, pediatric nurse, staring down at the corpse of Dr. Harold Wilkins, her boss. Once again Faith’s roommate Lisa, a recently converted succubus, has lost control of her powers and killed someone by mistake. Faith and Lisa have to figure out how to dispose of poor Harold’s body without anyone being the wiser and without Lisa suffering the hellish consequences of her mistake. Fortunately, Faith’s the youngest daughter of the Devil and is able to take care of matters quickly and quietly, but Harold’s died before his time, and his soul’s appearance in Hell has caused problems that attract the attention of Faith’s half-brother, Tolliver.

Up till now Faith has been trying to live a low-key life with little demonic activity, which doesn’t please her father, but instead of enjoying her well-earned week of vacation from the hospital, she’s hosting her entire demonic family. Her older sister Hope and her incubus husband Boris have descended upon Pittsburgh after losing control of an Armageddon fearing Satanic cult, and Faith’s mother Roisin has also arrived to spread her special brand of craziness through her hippy-dippy, Mother-Earth loving ways. To top it all off, the Devil has arrived for a cozy family reunion, unaware that Roisin hasn’t informed Faith that she’d be hosting the affair. All this togetherness would be more than enough to force out a minor’s demoness’s tail and horns, but Faith’s also dealing with a creepy stalker who’s been snapping photos of her disposal of Harold’s body. When Faith is called into a police interview, she has to call in legal reinforcements, namely her nerdy yet studly neighbor Matt. Faith and Matt find themselves searching for her stalker and starting a relationship, all while dealing with Dear Old Dad.

As I mentioned earlier, this book is more than a bit blasphemous, but I adored Ms. Eimer’s clever take on the Devil and his brother God, referred to as the Alpha. In this world Jesus is Faith’s cousin, and he has a great sense of humor, while the demons seem less frightening than you would think. But some of their demonic activity strikes a little too close to home, as I’m sure no one will be shocked to learn that the Devil invented computers and at least one insurance company has outsourced its customer service to a demon. Makes perfect sense to me. And contrary to popular belief, Faith and her demonic siblings interact with their holy uncle and his family on a fairly regular basis.

It’s the relationships between the various demons in this extended family that really sold me on the book, because they were imminently believable. Faith’s blended family, while demonic, suffers from the same relationship problems many families suffer, and the scene where she walks in on her parents during an “intimate” moment is as funny as it is cringe-worthy. The Devil is a likeable fellow, but you can imagine the awkwardness of introducing your date to your father when he’s in charge of Hell and all its realms. Fun times! And Faith’s relationships with her sister Hope will be immediately familiar to any woman with a sister, especially if that sister is prissy and insists on always being perfectly dressed. When her mother sets Faith up as hostess for this impromptu family reunion, lots of craziness ensues, and believe me it’s both painfully familiar and funny all at once.

I also loved the Pittsburgh setting. It seems that the Devil loves to eat at Primanti Brothers and drink Yuengling beer served by waitress calling them all “yinz”. You just don’t get more Pittsburgh than that, and I suspect most Pittsburghers wouldn’t be surprised to learn that in Ms. Eimer’s world the Alpha is a Penguins fan. Actually, I’m betting that the Washington Capitals and Alex Ovechkin wouldn’t be shocked to learn that either.

However, if you’re looking for a kick-butt heroine, you won’t find her in Faith. There’s a lot to like in her character, mainly her relationship with her family and her attraction to and romance with hottie lawyer Matt, but she’s a bit of a wimp. In fact, her sister calls her a wimp, and Faith’s a bit of a disappointment to the Devil, since she’s an outstanding pediatric nurse and rarely engages in demonic activity. All this makes her a character you can relate to, but I would have liked to see her go demonic on someone or witnessed her having to fight her demonic nature. She just doesn’t develop much as a character. However, I do think that there’s room for a sequel, and I’d love to see Faith deal with issues of her hellish background while keeping the snappy dialogue between characters.

I only have two small complaints about the novel. Overall I felt that Ms. Eimer did an outstanding job of gradually introducing new elements of the demonic world to the reader, but I was a bit confused about the Angale, the group with a supposed divine purpose to overthrow the Devil and force God to allow them dominion over Earth. I was a little unclear about the parentage of the Nephilim, the foot soldiers of the Angale, and had to go back and check on a few points in the text to make sure I had understood the situation clearly. Also, early in the book Faith calls Matt for help when she’s interviewed by the police about morphine stolen from the hospital, and after the two leave the hospital, the missing medicine isn’t mentioned again. The implication is that this was an attempt by the stalker to get Faith into trouble with the police, but because the topic never comes up again, it feels a bit like a plot device that allows the stalker to slip Faith some photos while jumpstarting her relationship with Matt.

Despite this, I very much enjoyed Luck of the Devil. It was the perfect lighthearted paranormal romance for the overwhelming heat wave we’re fighting at the moment, and I can’t wait to see Ms. Eimer’s next book. Luck of the Devil releases on August 2.

I received this book for review from the Publisher through NetGalley.(less)

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Jul 13, 2011 Nikki rated it 5 of 5 stars

No matter how dysfunctional you may think your family is, I guarantee Faith Bettincourt, main character of Luck of the Devil, by Patricia Elmer, can top it. Her half brother is the Demon of Gluttony, her sister makes the girls in Jersey Shore look like regular Pollyannas, her mom is a nature-worshiping, spirit-communing, off her rocker nosy busybody, her brother-in-law is an incubus, her best friend Lisa recently became a soul-eating succubus, and her dear old Daddy is the Devil himself. Then th...more No matter how dysfunctional you may think your family is, I guarantee Faith Bettincourt, main character of Luck of the Devil, by Patricia Elmer, can top it. Her half brother is the Demon of Gluttony, her sister makes the girls in Jersey Shore look like regular Pollyannas, her mom is a nature-worshiping, spirit-communing, off her rocker nosy busybody, her brother-in-law is an incubus, her best friend Lisa recently became a soul-eating succubus, and her dear old Daddy is the Devil himself. Then there’s Faith, a demoness who just wants to live a normal life as a pediatric nurse. All is going fine and dandy until the entire dysfunctional family descends (or ascends, since some are coming from Hell) on her apartment at once. Dysfunctional doesn’t even begin to cut it! To make matters worse, Faith is being framed for stealing drugs from her hospital, Lisa accidentally kills a smarmy doctor, and Faith has a major case of the hots for the do-gooder next door neighbor. On top of all that, she has a crazed stalker trying to steal her powers. All during the week that she is supposed to be on vacation.

Words can not even describe how much I loved Luck of the Devil, but since this is a blog and words are my living, I’ll try. This book had everything in it- romance, blasphemous comedy, God, the Devil, age old rivalries and mystery. I laughed out loud in some spots, and I’m not really a laugh out loud while reading type. The Devil of Elmer’s world is oddly cuddly, a little overprotective, and on very good terms with his brother God, or the Alpha as he’s often referred to. Oh, and Jesus, Faith’s cousin, is a school teacher in the Midwest. And while Faith explains that every myth has a bit of truth to it, it’s usually been blown completely out of proportion. For example, the Archangel Michael DID in fact beat the Devil…at chess, many times, because he’s competitive.

The mystery aspect is underplayed in the book, leaving the sheer comedic brilliance take center stage, but it is still an integral part of the plot. The romance between several of the characters adds another facet to the comedy, but it’s also oddly sweet at times, even when it’s between the Demon of Gluttony and the poor girl he accidentally turned into a succubus while she was drunk one night. Reading Luck of the Devil was one of the most fun experiences I’ve had in a long time. Highly recommended, as long as you don’t mind the fact that it casts the Devil in a good light (I don’t believe in the guy myself, so I was okay with all that). Also, not for those who take offense to curse words or demonic sex scenes (which is a lot like the regular kind, but with horns, a tail and hellfire). But if you’re looking for something light and really fun to read, definitely check this one out!(less)

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Jul 12, 2011 Kathy Martin rated it 5 of 5 stars

This was a fun, irreverent paranormal romance. The family dynamics really put the "fun" in dysfunctional. Faith is the devil's youngest half human daughter. She tries to distance herself from the whole evil thing as she works as a pediatric nurse. But trouble just seems to keep finding her. She accuses her boss of sexual harassment and then her roommate who is a new demon eats him. They have to dispose of the body but wind up being haunted by Harold's ghost. Drugs have gone missing from her ward...more

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Jul 11, 2011 Rebecca rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: for-review, net-galley

Who knew the devil was a family guy? I sure didn’t. As I was reading through Luck of the Devil, I honestly had to put it down at one point to ask one of my sisters was she sure our father was not the devil. My family dynamic was so much the same, just take out all the paranormal. Of course my sister has assured me she has never seen any horns.

Faith is in a bit of trouble, she has gone and gotten herself a stalker. When your overprotective dad is the devil you have to devise ways of keeping your...more

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Jul 06, 2011 Kristen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: paranormal-romance

Luck of the Devil by Patricia Eimer can be summed up in two words: awesome fun! My biggest disappointment with this book: I always look to goodreads to tell me if books are to be part of a series, and it looks like it is a standalone. I want more! **stomps feet** That's a bummer because it was a great cast of characters and a great little world. They were funny, it was action packed and it was a great little escape. I would love to see more of these characters.

We have Faith, the youngest daught...more Luck of the Devil by Patricia Eimer can be summed up in two words: awesome fun! My biggest disappointment with this book: I always look to goodreads to tell me if books are to be part of a series, and it looks like it is a standalone. I want more! **stomps feet** That's a bummer because it was a great cast of characters and a great little world. They were funny, it was action packed and it was a great little escape. I would love to see more of these characters.

We have Faith, the youngest daughter of the Devil. She lives in an apartment in Pittsburgh and she's a nurse. She a demon and supposed to cause mayhem, but she's really good at heart. She has a thing for her neighbor, a geeky lawyer named Matt (and there is more to Matt then first meets the eye). And her roommate Lisa has been turned into a succubus by her half brother, Tolliver. When her sister Hope comes to town, family in tow, things get a little crazy. If they aren't trying to deal with Lisa's latest accidental kill, they are trying to deal with the family drama of Hopes' husband "falling up", her looney mother's looney-ness, the resident "spirit" thing that's Malachai. All while Faith tries to avoid a stalker and date her neighbor and enjoy her week of vacation.

How could this not be fun: J (that is short of Jesus) moonlights as a paramedic and helps his cousins the demons; God and the Devil play Mario Kart over Dunkin' Donuts; Malachai is a little demon protector thing that can change his appearance at will from being a debonair James Bond look-a-like to a Japanese geisha; Mom thinks that Satan isn't really immortal, just really, really old and while she's met God she believes in her own flow of things; and last but not least, Hopes husband, a half demon finds God and goes all good on everybody.

I love Faith's inner voice. While not Jane True good, she's funny and smart and feels like the average normal woman. The action is well done and the pace of the plot is perfect. We get some romance, some action, lots of comedy and all the things that make me love to read. We got to know the characters, and feel attached to them but it wasn't all set-up and no plot. This really is the perfect first book in a series - so, hint, hint to the author.

The evilness isn't dark and ugly evil. Satan is a likable character because he's such a typical father. We don't get any darkness here; it's all good hearted light fun and humor. I laughed out loud a number of times, causing those around me to look at me and wonder "what is she reading?"! I highly recommend this book to those who are fans of the Queen Betsy or Vegas Vamps books. (less)

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Sep 14, 2011 Amber I. (AwesomeSauce Book Club) rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book was just pure fun, I loved every minute of it. You have Faith the daughter of the devil himself, her succubus room mate, her demon half brother , her demon sister Hope, a haunting ghost, and her crazy mortal mother plus many more make this family dysfunctional on a new level.

At first I thought this book was going to be a bit much, maybe over the top but I was so so wrong! I easily got caught up in it and I loved it all. Its not every day you see God aka Alpha and Satan sitting in a Pi...more

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Aug 17, 2011 Diane rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I loved this book! It was a Hell of a lot of fun. And I mean that with the huge grin and behind the scenes giggles that it implies.

While the deeply religious would not agree with me, I thoroughly enjoyed the intelligent wit threaded through the whole story, and delightful humor surrounding the idea of, "well if you think YOUR family is bad..." I think most of us can sympathize with.

If I were to try to summarize the deeper theme behind the fun fiction story it would be: Evil done in the name of g...more

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Aug 26, 2011 Melissa rated it 4 of 5 stars

Looking for a paranormal that makes you laugh? You have found it! I really enjoyed Faith and her family. I don't always connect to the characters so easily in a comedy/parody like this, but I didn't have this problem here. The whole family dynamic you are introduced to was more like a dysfunctional family ratcheted it up to new heights because of the paranormal aspects. Makes it perfect comedic fodder.

So is it just the dad the Devil and his minions.. uh family... we deal with? Oh no, you also ha...more

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Apr 16, 2013 Aishwarya Hariharan rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy-of-the-awesome-kind, giggled-through

3.5 stars for this bucket of laughs. It's a gorgeous, irreverent romp through mythology that hilariously explains away some things, leaves some things hanging and makes you wish Satan was your dad at times XD even if you have to listen to the all night Mario Kart session.

My problems with the book began with the loose threads were left hanging, unexplained. There were story lines could have been explored better and some of the characters could have been better fleshed out (like Lisa. Lisa is a s...more

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Jul 26, 2011 Jennifer | Nerdhuffing rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, chick-lit, paranormal-romance, 2011

When I was offered to review this book, I grabbed it. Seriously, the Devil's daughters are named Faith and Hope, Faith's roommate is a clumsy succubus, Jesus is a first cousin and "Lou" Lucifer and God are chummy bros. I knew - KNEW - this novel would be full of snark and wit, and I wasn't disappointed. The dialogue was quick, the characters were sarcastic and overall, the whole thing is laugh out loud funny. That's right, folks: L - O - L.
The family dynamics really make this entire story. Faith...more When I was offered to review this book, I grabbed it. Seriously, the Devil's daughters are named Faith and Hope, Faith's roommate is a clumsy succubus, Jesus is a first cousin and "Lou" Lucifer and God are chummy bros. I knew - KNEW - this novel would be full of snark and wit, and I wasn't disappointed. The dialogue was quick, the characters were sarcastic and overall, the whole thing is laugh out loud funny. That's right, folks: L - O - L.
The family dynamics really make this entire story. Faith is the youngest daughter of the Devil: half-human and half-demon, complete with retracting horns, wings and tail. She lusts after her hot next-door neighbor, avoids her family like the plague - because they're crazy - and works as a pediatric nurse, trying to "do good." Satan is your typical, over-bearing father, intent on making up for his absenteeism when the girls were growing up, yet somehow makes his opinion of his youngest daughters' "do good" intentions humorously clear.
What I really enjoyed was the dysfunctional family-dynamic. Patricia Eimer creates a completely believable fantasy fiction, and writes it well. Despite the interesting set of circumstances that surrounds this story, it could be anyone's real family, complete with lusty parents and sibling rivalry. Her take on Hell in the Midwest is pretty great! I lived in MI for a few years and if that isn't a cold, frozen tundra of hell, then I don't know what is. I'm not sure I liked her reference that the Pittsburgh Penguins are God's team (my being a Washington Capitals fan and all!), but I guess we can't win them all. ;)
There is only one thing that makes this a 4-star book instead of a 5: the lack of real emotional depth in the characters. They were fun - and certainly funny - but that's the scope of their range. Hope's despair over her marriage felt false to me and other characters were lacking similarly. I enjoy full characters that evoke a rainbow of emotions in me and these didn't.
However, that's not to say this wasn't a fantastic read, because it was! I loved everything else about Luck of the Devil and I can't wait to read more from this author. This is a feel-good book; read it if you have a good sense of humor, don't mind the giddy play on religion and are not offended by playful blasphemy. (less)

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Feb 14, 2013 Melliane rated it 5 of 5 stars

4.5/5

Mon avis en Français

My English review

With the release of the second book, I thought it was finally time to read this first novel. I won it a long time ago on a blog but I never got into it as I always had something else to read. What a mistake! I was completely swept away by the story and the writing style of Patricia Eimer.

Faith tries hier best to live a normal life, but it's difficult when you have a family as unusual as hers. Yes, because she is the youngest daughter of Satan. But she li...more 4.5/5

Mon avis en Français

My English review

With the release of the second book, I thought it was finally time to read this first novel. I won it a long time ago on a blog but I never got into it as I always had something else to read. What a mistake! I was completely swept away by the story and the writing style of Patricia Eimer.

Faith tries hier best to live a normal life, but it's difficult when you have a family as unusual as hers. Yes, because she is the youngest daughter of Satan. But she lives far away from them in an apartment in Pittsburg, and even worked as a nurse in a hospital, something she loves to do. She is supposed to be evil, but irritating her father is always a good opportunity, so she does what she wants without any real consequences. We also discover her roommate Lisa become succubus recently transformed by Tolliver, another son of the devil. This new state is very complicated for her, especially when she needs to feed on men. She has never learned to control her powers and ends without realizing it by killing Harold, the department head of the Faith hospital and turned him into a ghost. The life of our heroine continues like that without really hooks until her family decides to visit her during her only one week of relaxation she was granted. You can imagine that having her father, her mother, her sister Hope and her husband with her brother at home, will completely mess up her day. Each child has something to hide, trying not to be noticed by their father, but he is much more insightful than expected. Hope is in a deep depression following her separation with her husband, a demon who fell in religion. In addition, Tolliver is determined to make succumb Lisa to his charm; Satan wants to reconnect with his children and his wife. Besides talking about his wife, she is very very special! Roisin has very original ideas and is completely crazy. We always wonder how she found some of her deductions, such as her husband Satan, even if he is several millennia old, is not immortal. Yes, because she is convinced of that! Added to these characters, we also meet Matt, the charming neighbor Faith likes. His character is really interesting and I was intrigued by him from the beginning of the book. I must say he has a lot to teach us! I confess that I never expected to cross Jesus, God and other characters. Jesus is really different from what we might imagine, but it was nice to have the chance to find him like that. But that's not all, our beloved Faith finds herself with a strange stalker and he could put the lives of each of the members of her family in danger.

I really get into the story from the first chapter and I loved to follow the plot and relationships of all the protagonists. They are all different but all very funny too. We can not doubt the dynamics of this family without knowing them. I really regret for waiting so long to read this first book and I am very happy to be able now to read the second. There are some very good finds throughout the story, and it was a great pleasure to read this first volume. It is for me a very good novel and I can not wait to read more. If you want something funny with atypical characters and a cute little story, do not hesitate to start it, you will not be disappointed!(less)

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Jul 25, 2011 Heather Book Savvy Babe rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: paranormal-romance, review-on-blog

The dysfunctional family meets paranormal in Luck of the Devil, a creative and funny new novel by Patricia Eimer.

As the youngest daughter of Satan, Faith has a tough time dealing with family and fitting into the human world. Faith’s human mother is a nutcase who has a problem facing reality. Faith’s sister, Hope struggles with a demonic demotion, and her brother Tolliver turned her roommate into a succubus. Just as Faith finally begins to make progress with her handsome neighbor, the entire fami...more

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Aug 16, 2011 Kristen rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: angels, demons, ghosts, immortal, romance

GENRE: Paranormal Romance
THEME: Angels/Demons
RECEIVED: Review Request by Entangled Publishing
BLOG: http://seeingnight.blogspot.com/

REVIEW:
Luck of the Devil was definitely once of those books that makes a topic such as heaven and hell into something with spunk, humor, family drama and just a fantastically entertaining read. Patricia Elmer is an author who knows how to write a story that will keep a smile on your face from beginning to end.

Luck of the Devil follows the youngest daughter of the Dev...more GENRE: Paranormal Romance
THEME: Angels/Demons
RECEIVED: Review Request by Entangled Publishing
BLOG: http://seeingnight.blogspot.com/

REVIEW:
Luck of the Devil was definitely once of those books that makes a topic such as heaven and hell into something with spunk, humor, family drama and just a fantastically entertaining read. Patricia Elmer is an author who knows how to write a story that will keep a smile on your face from beginning to end.

Luck of the Devil follows the youngest daughter of the Devil himself, Faith Bettincourt. She’s what everyone calls the nice daughter, working as a pediatric nurse and likes to live a calmer less family dramatic life on earth. But when her family comes to visit, not only do they bring drama, a stalker shows up, her dream guy next door comes to her rescue, and her roommate has been turn into a succubus. It’s not easy being a demon, the daughter of Satan, having two demon siblings and a mother who drives her nuts.

I found this novel to be such a refreshing story, there wasn’t a bit of dark creepy vibe to the story. It’s more about how very dysfunctional family of demons learn how to understand, live, and handle crazy situations together. Faith is a great lead to follow, she is the “normal” one of the family and has a sister who I felt was annoying at first but she grew on me and a bother who is a pain but he as well grew up a little. Her parents were a hilarious pair to watch together and they have tiffs here and there that just cracked me up.

I really enjoyed the addition of characters from heaven and how they fit into the family and gave more funny moments to the story. Just imagine the Devil and God playing Mario Cart together and you’ll understand what I mean. I also loved the relationship between Faith and her neighbor Matt, he’s a bit of a mystery and someone who I felt fit her personality perfectly.

Overall I felt the first couple of pages were a bit slow, but once everyone was fully introduced and I was able to get the craziness of the family I couldn’t get enough and I really hope there is more to come of Faith and her family.

RECOMMENDATION:
This is an adult book with minor adult situations and a humor side of good and evil. Fans of Katie McAlister and Gena Showalter will enjoy Luck of the Devil.
(less)

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Feb 14, 2013 Alice rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: review

recieved this book in exchange for an honest review

this book had me hooked from page one. it was a laugh out loud book and im sure people looked at me funny more than once.
the characters are all memorable and there is one part where i want to scour if from my memory, involves the parents and a couch ~shudder~

faith is the youngest daughter of the devil, she wants to live a normal mortal life, has a crush on her hunky lawyer neighbor matt. everyone knows who/what matt is except for her and when s...more

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Jul 13, 2011 Sharon Tyler rated it 4 of 5 stars

Luck of the Devil by Patricia Eimer is a funny paranormal romance set to be released on August 2 2011. The story focuses ob Faith, the youngest daughter of the devil, yes really. She just wants to live a normal, non-evil life, and is doing pretty good. She works as a pediatric nurse and hangs out with her roommate Lisa, who her brother Tolliver turned into a succubus. So, Lisa is still getting used to her powers and accidentally kills Faith’s boss, then the entire family comes to visit, Faith ge...more

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Aug 01, 2011 Lexie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: genre-romance-paranormal, review-blog, book-type-e-book

Oh my. I heard about Entangled Publishing on twitter first and checked out their line up of upcoming novels. As a new publisher they have a nice assorted of books with more in the future looking rocking (check out Inara Scott's Radiant Desire!). If LUCK OF THE DEVIL, the first in the "Speak of the Devil" series is any indication then I think I found a new publisher love of life.

At first the book begins kind of shaky--it tosses information, snark and pithy commentary at us at fast speeds that onl...more Oh my. I heard about Entangled Publishing on twitter first and checked out their line up of upcoming novels. As a new publisher they have a nice assorted of books with more in the future looking rocking (check out Inara Scott's Radiant Desire!). If LUCK OF THE DEVIL, the first in the "Speak of the Devil" series is any indication then I think I found a new publisher love of life.

At first the book begins kind of shaky--it tosses information, snark and pithy commentary at us at fast speeds that only go faster with the introduction of Faith's siblings (Tolliver - Archdemon of Gluttony, Hope - Archdemoness of Lust and Boris Hope's Incubus husband) and friends (Lisa - misfit Succubus roommate, Matt - hot new neighbor) dysfunction. There's only one way to really describe her siblings and parents--High Functioning Dysfuncionals. They kind of toss things at the wind and hope it all comes out okay. Faith is more practical, but she's also the baby of the family and (as far as I can tell) the only one who wants a normal life. They are a rock solid family unit however--fiercely loyal to each other and willing to go to great lengths to protect their family.

I described this to a friend as if Satan decided to do a sitcom--God (or Alpha) is the older brother, Jesus is the do-gooder cousin, Roisin is the dippy mother and they all just kind of...work. Eimer is basically doing to the Christian mythos what countless other writers have done to Greek, Roman, etc mythologies. And I kind of love it like all get.

There are some problems with pacing--when the plot is on, its ON and doesn't stop until a slow moment (Faith failing at flirting with her neighbor Matt, bickering with her siblings or oddly sweet moments with her father Satan) literally pushes it out of the way. This kind of stop and go action made it hard for me to read at length, but made for very good reading short term commuter wise.

The characters are also lively and set themselves apart easily. Eimer catches a different tone for each, making them fun to read and watch Faith's more than down to Earth attitude interact with. Whereas in some books I've read recently I couldn't stand the internal commentary about everything, I loved Faith's. It would kind of be like 'No really. Seriously? Stop already.' which is more or less how I often respond to idiots and family.

As I read an electronic-ARC of this novel I can't speak for the length or quality of the paperback edition, but I do like the cover (even though its slightly spoiler-ish) and the electronic edition is smooth as can be. Some plots are left dangling (I'd love to know more about the ex-hockey player bakery dude from the beginning) as the narrative focused on the threat plaguing Faith and Co. and truly if you don't like your religious views messed with I wouldn't read this book. This isn't a criticism, but a warning that if you take offense to Christianity being questioned or outright disregarded do no not read this book.

In the end this book was enjoyable, had some very funny moments and made me eager to know what's next for Faith and Co. And that's all you really ask for from a novel right?(less)

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Aug 12, 2011 Sherri rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: e-book, read_2011, demons, update-2011-challenge

. . . .being evil has never been as much fun.

First Impressions – The book summary attracted me right of the bat. I am a sucker for quirky, offbeat comedies and the storyline, although not unique, it appeared fun and perfect for a summer read. I did not see the cover until after I had received the book, and although I wouldn’t say it is outstanding it does fit the book.

While Reading – The book starts out by thrusting the reader right into the storyline. It was a bit of a jolt and it took me a w...more

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Feb 22, 2013 Dianne Socci-Tetro rated it 5 of 5 stars

Luck of the Devil (Speak of the Devil) – Patricia Eimer

What a romp! This was one hell of an engrossing read, which is odd for a book like this. Sure, it was funny and irreverent but it had a great mystery, several surprising romances, some hot bits and a wonderful cast of quirky characters! I seriously could not put it down and stayed up until 1 am to finish it!
It is a fairly fast and somewhat fluffy read, but the author has put enough work into her plot to make it one of the better books of t...more

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Aug 02, 2011 Rhianna rated it 4 of 5 stars

And you thought your family had issues...

Faith Bettincourt is a pediatric nurse juggling problems at work and trying to keep her roommate out of trouble, not easy for anyone but a lot more complicated when you're the daughter of the devil. When her family decide it's time for an impromptu visit dragging along a mass of baggage both literally and figuratively, Faith's patience gets put to the test. Could they have picked any other time than the week she took vacation?

Meanwhile, Matt, the sexy la...more And you thought your family had issues...

Faith Bettincourt is a pediatric nurse juggling problems at work and trying to keep her roommate out of trouble, not easy for anyone but a lot more complicated when you're the daughter of the devil. When her family decide it's time for an impromptu visit dragging along a mass of baggage both literally and figuratively, Faith's patience gets put to the test. Could they have picked any other time than the week she took vacation?

Meanwhile, Matt, the sexy lawyer across the hall she's crushing on has a heavenly secret of his own. Hiding in plain sight Matt's own angelic kin make Faith's devilshly disastrous family seem just a little less crazy. But someone is following Faith, waiting for the chance to steal her demonic powers and take over the world, something she'd really prefer didn't happen now that she's got her crush meeting the parents.

As much as my leanings in fiction go toward the dark side of things I need comedic stories now and again to break it up. LUCK OF THE DEVIL is exactly the kind of hilarity that can turn a frown upside down. While it's not quite littered with witty one-liners and the Whedon-esque style I usually favor it's Faith's family that makes the book for me. The very idea of The Devil, his adult children and their mother stuck together for a weekend is one bound to be amusing.

What knocked a star off for me was that I think this comes across as a romance but there's not quite, in my opinion, a solid happily-ever-after at the end. While it worked for me the story just didn't quite feel finished when I mulled it over from a romance purists' viewpoint. Okay and maybe I didn't feel like enough was revealed about Matt for me to be completely sold on him as the love interest before he was suddenly with Faith. Do I love the slight geekishness about him? Hell yes! (No pun intended).

Now, it came to my attention a few months ago that there are readers out there who do NOT like angels and demons used in romances, I guess you might say they feel it's blasphemous, I really don't know since the concept doesn't offend me. If you're one of those readers this book will definitely push your buttons, I don't recommend it. But if you enjoy a really tongue-in-cheek fun-poking at the idea of angels, devils and nephilim this is a terrific example of the concept done right.

Overall I think Eimer's debut is great. A little flawed but just the kind of funny, light read I'd enjoy at the beach if I didn't live hundreds of miles from the ocean. If you love a good romantic comedy without any "Big Misunderstanding" tropes LUCK OF THE DEVIL is just that! I'd most recommend it to fans of Angie Fox, Darynda Jones, and Molly Harper.

***Review Copy via NetGalley.(less)

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Feb 05, 2012 Emma rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: fans of cozy romance, people who appreciate humor

Shelves: angels, demons, paranormal, romance

This review originally appeared over at my blog, which can be found here.
THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS, STRONG OPINIONS, AND FRANK DISCUSSION OF SEXUAL SCENES. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

To be honest, my expectations for Luck of the Devil were not very high. I’m not really a fan of cozy romances, and that’s what it seemed like it was going to be. In the end, it still was—complete with a slightly tepid Happily Ever After ending—but I enjoyed it way more than I thought I would.

Our heroine, Faith Bettinc...more

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