Name: aleksandra's review of The Devil You Know by Elizabeth O'Roark
Item: The Devil You Know
Rating: 4
Author: aleksandra

Elizabeth O'Roark

There’s a devil on my shoulder, and every Monday morning she announces herself. She’s this delicious flame in my chest, a flurry of whispered suggestions in my ear. Suggestions I ignore…because every single one of them is about Ben Tate.

Ben—Stealer of Clients, Evicter of Homeless Women, Nemesis. Sitting across from me every damn Monday with his lovely, smug smile and his too-perfect teeth, the living symbol of everything I hate.

It’s been my policy to avoid him, but when a case comes into the firm—one that could change his career and mine—I make an exception. It means weekends and evenings by his side. It means enduring his smirk and his smart mouth and never taking the bait.

Until the night Ben says “Beg"...and that devil on my shoulder decides to make a few demands of her own.

The Devil You Know

rhea ⸆⸉

And that's precisely the problem: men in power keep the circle closed by making it uncomfortable for women to step inside, which leads to a conference room full of men in gray suits making more decisions that only benefit them.

They want me to call the guy who assaulted me and ask for a favor, for fuck's sake.

He's punishing me because he sees this incident as a problem 

 created, with my female tendency to misconstrue things.

If I'd complained, I'd be made to feel like shit by Webber and every man I work with.

So I said nothing, yet I feel like shit about that too.

But I'm so goddamned tired of staying silent just to get the things I deserve.

I want the world to be a different place for the women who come after me. And the only way to make that happen is to ignore the fact that it isn't different yet.

Seeing the best in people and forgiving the worst has never gotten a female anywhere, as far as I can tell.

I wince. I'm not sure how my mother is so big-hearted, but it's a quality I did not inherit.. and I'm glad.

a jury will label a distressed female as shrill or hysterical for the exact same behaviors they'd term righteous indignation in a man.

being exactly the kind of attorney my father hired-the kind who's willing to destroy anyone and worry about the damage later. Today, though, he is evenly matched because I'm that kind of attorney too.

Someone has to be, to make sure women like my mother aren't absolutely screwed by men who promise not to turn on them, and do it anyway.

I want to argue that I don't hate all men, but I don't think I could swear to it under oath. I hate more men than I don't, I suppose.

They think it's a slur when they refer to me as a castrating bitch, but all it says to me is that they've finally realized I'm not someone to fuck with. I was someone who was fucked with a lot, once upon a time. It won't happen again.

“But men expect you to be more thoughtful than they are-softer, more accommodating. And when you are paid less than your peers, or assaulted on a date, or lose a promo-tion, they'll tell you it was your fault- you were too soft, too accommodating.”

Genesis (@whisperingchapters)

aleksandra

4.5/5

"The Devil You Know"? No. 
"The Perfection (Ben Tate) You Know"

My favorite book in the series and my favorite hero in the series. Honestly, Ben, it should be illegal to be this perfect, Tate made reading this book so much more enjoyable. I wish there was his pov because he would carried the boy obsessed trope perfectly.


Now potential spoilers, but I just have to write more about this man. I apologize in advance as this review will mainly focus on him.


  
    "I blink. “Arrested?” It has to be a mistake. Ben is too smart for that. “He hit some guy at the party,” she says, “and the guy is a friend of Fields’. He won’t even explain why he did it. All hell is breaking loose.” I stare at her, speechless." 
  


He hit a guy who assaulted her, and got arrested for it knowing he is a lawyer and it could destroy his reputation. 


  
    "I feel his breath against my skin as he laughs. “Gemma, I’m doing exactly what I’ve wanted to do for two fucking years.”
  


Yeah I don’t I think I have to say anything, just Ben being perfect. 


  
    "His mouth is against my ear. “Do you have any idea how many times the memory of you on my desk has made me come?”
  


It’s hot in here. 


  
    "The outfits you wear fucking destroy me,” he says. There is something so certain in his voice, so determined…"
  


It’s hot in here. Again.


  
    "I want to be someone you trust enough to invite home, Gemma. And I’m willing to wait for it."
  


Just Ben making me swoon idk know which time.


  
    "I laugh. “You just love to throw that in my face.” I can hear the smile in his voice. “I do. Mostly because you laugh, every fucking time."
  


Yeah I think I love him.


  
    "I start to kick the shoes off and he stops me. “Not yet,” he says. “Those goddamn heels of yours have tortured me for two years straight."
  


I sense some foot fetish but I’m suddenly blind. 


  
    "You’ll eat an acai bowl at any hour of the day, and you’re the only person alive who prefers strawberries to donuts, which is why I’ve been buying them for staff meetings for the past year.”
  


BEN *crying from cuteness*


  
    "You don’t have to admit it,” he says. “But I will. I missed you."
  


Now words needed, just Ben being perfect. 


  
    "Mom, how the hell did you meet Ben?” “I heard someone outside this morning, so I went to the window and there he was, shoveling my path, wearing a suit."
  


Day like everyday, Ben = hot, smart, obsessed with you lawyer shoveling your mom's path because you were mad that no one else did it for her in her neighborhood.


  
    "This can’t be a surprise to you. I’ve been in love with you for two years straight. You were the only reason I interviewed there in the first place."
  


I LOVE YOU BEN TATE


  
    "I gasp. “It’s exactly like my Pinterest board.” 
“Yeah,” he says. And he sounds ashamed"
  


Ben Tate decorating his house the way you wanted because he saw your Pinterest board with your dream interior design. No comment needed again. 


  
    "He shrugs. “It mattered to you, so I watched a few of them the last time you went back to visit your mom."
  

 
Ben Tate watching Hallmark movies because you and your mom love them. No comment needed again. 

It was also the hottest book in the series as there were more than five scenes I believe, not like the second book which was a slow burn.

The plot wasn't as exciting as I thought it would be, but it was okay. There was some subplot about a case they were working on together, a rivalry to become a partner at the company they worked for and some short chapters about her ex partner which was a total douchebag.

I had to add, that I was extremely happy that the heroine’s mom found her own happiness too. She deserved that after being the sweetest person ever. Overall, as I said, my favorite book in the series, I can highly recommended!

I think this may have been my favourite of the series. Well written, surprisingly intense and good spice. 

Alyssa deRaad

i enjoyed getting to know gemma’s character through her pov and seeing her slowly open herself back up to love

elizabeth o’roark knows how to write her men!! ben is the best obsessed man ever!!! he’s so in love with gemma UGH I wish we got his pov but reading about the things he does for gemma and how he acts because of gemma speaks volumes in the way he loves her. like he drove all the way to her mom’s house so he can shove the snowy driveway for her mom!!! also ben stalked gemma’s pinterest page!! I giggled

i enjoyed getting to know gemma’s character through her pov and seeing her slowly open herself back up to love

elizabeth o’roark knows how to write her men!! ben is the best obsessed man ever!!! he’s so in love with gemma UGH I wish we got his pov but reading about the things he does for gemma and how he acts because of gemma speaks volumes in the way he loves her. like he drove all the way to her mom’s house so he can shove the snowy driveway for her mom!!! also ben stalked gemma’s pinterest page!! I giggled

Sara Uribe

I received a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book was an absolute pleasant surprise! I honestly didn’t know what to expect with this book, but I surely didn’t expect to love Ben and Gemma as much as I do. I've read the other books in this series and I don't know what this author did with this story, but it was on a completely different level than the other two books. The writing, plot, characters, and chemistry was amazing! It felt so real and was incredibly easy to connect with Ben and Gemma. When I started this book I figured I was gonna probably end up giving it four stars, because I knew how this author wrote the other books in this series. Yet, even before the 50% mark, I knew that I was going to rate it five stars. If I was actually able to sit down and read it in one setting I totally would have! This book is on my list of favorite reads from this year. It was such a steller story! I highly recommend this book if you are looking for a realistic story with main characters who aren't perfect but will win you over with their wit, charm and steamy chemistry.

I also had the pleasure of listening to this book on audio and Samantha Brentmoor did such a great job as Gemma!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

i liked gemma as a lawyer and her inner monologue but how can the author write a “feminist” character with so much internalized misogyny?? i tried really hard to ignore the sly comments about “dumb blonde instagram models that can’t spell” every two chapters.

She did however have her “my girl 🫶” moments :

“ But men expect you to be more thoughtful than they are-softer, more accommodating. And when you are paid less than your peers, or assaulted on a date, or lose a promo-tion, they'll tell you it was your fault-you were too soft, too accommodating.”

“ They think it's a slur when they refer to me as a castrating bitch, but all it says to me is that they've finally realized I'm not someone to fuck with. I was someone who was fucked with a lot, once upon a time. It won't happen again.”

“ I want to argue that I don't hate all men, but I don't think I could swear to it under oath. I hate more men than I don't, I suppose.”

“…. exactly the kind of attorney my father hired-the kind who's willing to destroy anyone and worry about the damage later. Today, though, he is evenly matched because I'm that kind of attorney too. Someone has to be, to make sure women like my mother aren't absolutely screwed by men who promise not to turn on them, and do it anyway.”

jury will label a distressed female as shrill or hysterical for the exact same behaviors they'd term righteous indignation in a man.”

“ In a different sort of world, I'd be going straight to the police to file charges, or straight to the media to tell them what an utter douche the CEO of West Forest is. In the real world, I'm on the cusp of getting the promotion I've always wanted, and the last thing I need right now is to get pegged as a hysterical female and have the partners suggesting I invited what Webber just did.

But I'm so goddamned tired of staying silent just to get the things I deserve.”

“ If I'd complained, I'd be made to feel like shit by Webber and every man I work with. So I said nothing, yet I feel like shit about that too.”

“ men in power keep the circle closed by making it uncomfortable for women to step inside, which leads to a conference room full of men in gray suits making more decisions that only benefit them.

ben was such a random character, but he was okay i think ?

the writing wasn’t engaging for me.

i liked gemma as a lawyer and her inner monologue but how can the author write a “feminist” character with so much internalized misogyny?? i tried really hard to ignore the sly comments about “dumb blonde instagram models that can’t spell” every two chapters.

She did however have her “my girl 🫶” moments :

“ But men expect you to be more thoughtful than they are-softer, more accommodating. And when you are paid less than your peers, or assaulted on a date, or lose a promo-tion, they'll tell you it was your fault-you were too soft, too accommodating.”

“ They think it's a slur when they refer to me as a castrating bitch, but all it says to me is that they've finally realized I'm not someone to fuck with. I was someone who was fucked with a lot, once upon a time. It won't happen again.”

“ I want to argue that I don't hate all men, but I don't think I could swear to it under oath. I hate more men than I don't, I suppose.”

“…. exactly the kind of attorney my father hired-the kind who's willing to destroy anyone and worry about the damage later. Today, though, he is evenly matched because I'm that kind of attorney too. Someone has to be, to make sure women like my mother aren't absolutely screwed by men who promise not to turn on them, and do it anyway.”

“ a jury will label a distressed female as shrill or hysterical for the exact same behaviors they'd term righteous indignation in a man.”

“ In a different sort of world, I'd be going straight to the police to file charges, or straight to the media to tell them what an utter douche the CEO of West Forest is. In the real world, I'm on the cusp of getting the promotion I've always wanted, and the last thing I need right now is to get pegged as a hysterical female and have the partners suggesting I invited what Webber just did.

I want the world to be a different place for the women who come after me. And the only way to make that happen is to ignore the fact that it isn't different yet.

But I'm so goddamned tired of staying silent just to get the things I deserve.”

“ If I'd complained, I'd be made to feel like shit by Webber and every man I work with. So I said nothing, yet I feel like shit about that too.”

“ men in power keep the circle closed by making it uncomfortable for women to step inside, which leads to a conference room full of men in gray suits making more decisions that only benefit them.“

ben was such a random character, but he was okay i think ?

Ana Clara Moreno

"I love not being alone in everything anymore. But I especially love that he’s the one in my court. There’s no one I’d rather have here."

It was good. This is the second book i’ve read  in this series where the fmc is short and her father left her mother or treated her mother badly. some types of daddy issues is going on. i have a thing for lawyers in romance books especially contemporary ones and this one checked the box. Ben was such a good hero that i forgot he was 36. damn grandpa you ate that one little thing. I wish graham and keely’s book was paced as good as this one. But one thing about miss elizabeth, her female characters need therapy 

also this didn’t really feel like enemies to lovers idk 

Davina 

It was good. This is the second book i’ve read  in this series where the fmc is short and her father left her mother or treated her mother badly. some types of daddy issues is going on. i have a thing for lawyers in romance books especially contemporary ones and this one checked the box. Ben was such a good hero that i forgot he was 36. damn grandpa you ate that one little thing. I wish graham and keely’s book was paced as good as this one. But one thing about miss elizabeth, her female characters need therapy 

also this didn’t really feel like enemies to lovers idk 

lo amé pero faltó el dual point of view 

Valeria 

jupiter

Andrea Rodriguez

3.75 stars 

I’m torn on this one. On the one hand, it had its moments and there was plenty that I liked about it, but on the other, it was a bit disappointing. 

I did enjoy their back and forth banter. They were ruthless with each other and it made me laugh a few times. 

I loved how little by little, it’s revealed just how much Ben has always loved Gemma. I thought it was so, so sweet. 

Not sure why each book in this series up to this point had been dual pov and then all of a sudden this one wasn’t. I don’t always need dual pov, but this is one where I desperately needed to know what Ben was thinking to justify some of the shit he did. Obviously the more the book progressed, the more we realized he cared with his actions, but still. 

Also, their communication was pretty awful. So many disagreements and fights could have been stopped if they just communicated properly lmao. 

I didn’t like how the ending played out. Again, if Ben had just communicated what was going on, it would have been fine. 

Anyway, I will still read the fourth once it comes out, but I had high hopes for this one considering how much I loved the second. Curse of the third book I guess lmao.

sydney

ingrid

SO GOOD!! i loved gemma, she was such a great character + ben and gemma were so good together, loved them and this book 🫶🏻

bengemma were such good together and had great chemistry and banter elizabeth o’roark always knows how to get me also very excited for the next book grahamkeeley sound like a hit

krissy

lalitha

BEN TATE ‼️😭🫶💪 love my silly little lawyers and their fancy lives and their fancy bantering <3

Genesis (@whisperingchapters) &
The Devil You Know by Elizabeth O'Roark

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