A Review of The Deal, the Dance, and the Devil by Victoria Christopher Murray

When the going gets tough, how far would you be willing to go to stay afloat? Well, the Langstons have hit a rough financial spot and temptation was right around the corner with an offer from Shay-Shaunté, Evia Langston’s boss. This was more of an indecent proposal with a five million dollar string attached to it. The deal was for Evia to agree to have her husband, her own Adonis to spend a weekend with Shay-Shaunté in celebration of her 50^th birthday.

Evia balked at the thought but then her husband had to go through with it creating a chasm in their marriage. The dance was whether the Langstons could stand up to Shay-Shaunté who now sued them for breach of contract. Go figure. Then again they were dealing with the devil.

Great dialogue. Great story. Great read.

Some of my favorite lines:

SILENCE. THE QUIET THAT WAS BETWEEN us was like our fourth child. It was always there, and over the past weeks, we’d nutured silence, allowed it to live, allowed it to grow.

Shay-Shaunté was the cause, and now it was all over. There was no need to let silence stay and separate us any longer; the deal, the dance, the devil…it was done.

Rating: 4 stars

Image result for the deal, the dance and the devil

Comments

Interview with Jacqueline Seewald, Author of THE INHERITANCE

Author’s Bio: Multiple award-winning author, Jacqueline Seewald, has taught creative, expository and technical writing at Rutgers University as well as high school English. She also worked as both an academic librarian and an educational media specialist. Sixteen of her books of fiction have previously been published to critical praise including books for adults, teens and children. Her short stories, poems, essays, reviews and articles have appeared in hundreds of diverse publications and numerous anthologies. What inspired you to write your book? I enjoy writing romantic mystery fiction. The idea for this particular novel just seemed to evolve organically from my imagination. Is there any particular author or book that influenced you in any way either growing up or as an adult? I would have to say reading the Bible was influential. As far as regular books go, I’m a big fan of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Is this your first book? How long did it take to start and...

National Poetry Month’s Feature: Poet Cherrie Amour

Poet’ s Bio: Cherrie Amour aka Cherrie Woods is a Baltimore-based, award-winning poet known for her candid, narrative verse exploring love, identity, relationships, and the layered complexities of belonging. Her work is featured in her poetry collection, Free to Be Me: Poems on Love, Life and Relationships. She is the creator of the Words, Wine & Wings Poetry and Open Mic Show and has been featured by FOX45 News, The Baltimore Beacon , and Baltimore City Paper . Her poetry has appeared in Paterson Literary Review , Understorey Magazine , Poet’s Ink , The Pen Woman , The Fire Inside: Collected Poems and Stories from Zora’s Den , America’s Future Anthology , Yellow Arrow Journal , and Maryland in Poetry . She is currently submitting her new poetry chapbook manuscript, Sit Comfortably Elsewhere , to publishers—a deeply personal collection exploring her life and perspective as a double immigrant. Deliah Lawrence: When did you first realize poetry was a p...

National Poetry Month’s Feature: Poet Buddah Desmond

Poet’ s Bio: Buddah Desmond aka BDEZ (he / him / they / them) is an award-winning author, poet, artist, and singer based in the DMV. His writing shares lessons from adversity to triumph and offers messages of hope, love, faith, and persistence. He ’ s the author of multiple poetry collections, including the most recent releases Everything I Miss(ed) At Home (2023), Coming Up From the Downside: Finding Joy in Our Song (2024), and Exotic Shifter: 11th Anniversary Edition (2025). His writing has appeared in Creative Currents , Rebel ’ s Zeitgeist , Liquid Cat Quarterly , MelaNation , Mixed Mag , and The Sound of the Collective Pen: A Poetry Anthology by Emerging Voices . He served as a healing leader in the DC-based arts + faith + social justice organization, The Sanctuaries. He ’ s currently a National Board of Trustees At Large Member (Beta Chapter) for the professional arts fraternity, Gamma Xi Phi. ...

Vocal Expressions

Search This Blog