Book Club Discussion- The Devil and Miss Jones

We at Romance Book Haven Book Club read Kate Walker's The Devil and Miss Jones  and decided to pick it as our book for this month!

When Martha Jones and Carlos Diablo Ortega meet that day on the road, they were both on the run from something. What was she running from and what was he running from?

Nas: Ooh! I loved that part! Martha was running from her own wedding! And in a bridal costume at that!

Maria: She was running away from her wedding, which had turned out to be a sham. She'd just discovered her groom in bed with her bridesmaid and she'd overheard him telling the bridesmaid that there was no need to worry, he didn't fancy Martha, he just wanted to remain married to her long enough to be able to claim half of her fortune. He also said nasty things about Martha being ugly and that hurt her terribly.

Desere: I adored that part, as seeing a bride running around in her wedding dress away from her wedding is surely a strange sight to see and Kate Walker described it perfectly and I could imagine the scene in my minds eye perfectly! He was running from his own demons in life and she- from a marriage that she did not want and which did not match with her future plans, and of course she had seen her.... well really any bride's worse fear!

Why did they give each other false names? Were they trying to deceive each other?

Nas: Actually not to really deceive each other but they just wanted to remain incognito.

 Maria: She was afraid to give him her name because she'd already had one gold digger deceive her, Gavin her groom. If by chance Carlos heard her full name, Martha Jones, she was afraid he might have read the papers and known- well I don't want to give away the suspense here!  Then he could pretend to be kind. So she was protecting herself. As for him, he wanted to leave his Ortega name behind as he no longer felt a part of that family.

Desere: In my opinion it was because they did not know each other at all and meeting strangers is dangerous enough so giving false names yes did help to as Nas says remain incognito but to also protect themselves against any danger lurking. (This was a wonderful suspense part of the book ~~ well done Kate )

When the pair took off together, where did they end up? What did they end up doing for each other?

Why did they separate so soon?

Nas: Oh? The delicious part?

Maria: Carlos swept Martha away on his motorcyle and they ended up in a hotel room. Because of the unusual circumstances they were both probably in a lot of tension. They ended up making love and had a wonderful time, but whatever about him, I know that this was unusual behaviour for Martha. Then they had to come back down to earth.

Desere: They ended up at a hotel, tearing each other's clothes off, written by the author with true passion and heat I might add and offered in the process in my mind a escape from the outside world and all they were running from. The depart each other's life so soon due to the fact that he is so very upset that he slept with a vigin, which I found really strange as most men these days seem proud of themselves when seducing a virgin but not this man- he is complete opposite, and for her she feels ashamed in a certain way she almost used and decides to rather just leave than lust after a man that did "not" really want her.

Why was Martha's virginity such an issue for Carlos?

Nas: He never expected her to be a virgin. He was after some fun but not with an innocent....


Maria: Carlos was afraid that because he was her first real lover, Martha would end up falling heavily for him. He was scared that she would try to trap him into staying with her.

Desere: Simply put because he finds that virgin's tend to cling and he does not do cling! To much of a complication in his life that he definitely does not need in his life. Typical man huh?

How did Martha know where to find Carlos when she needed him?


Nas: Good thing she knew because she did need him later!

Maria: When Martha was left alone in the room by Carlos, she had a look in his bag. Not because she was nosy but because she needed some kind of change of clothes to get out of the hotel without being noticed. That's when she saw Carlos's passport and discovered his identity. Just as well really, because after a while, she realised that she needed to see him again.

Desere: Well she had been a bit of a snoop, as when checking out at the "one night lovemaking session with the devil" she rumaged through his luggage saw his correct name on his passport and also information for a next of kin! I just loved this part, really wonderfully creative way of incorporating the information into the book Kate!

What was Martha's motive in seeking Carlos out? 

Nas: She deceived him with her name and her sexual experience or lack of- but she could not deceive him with such a profound truth...

Maria: She wanted to tell him that he was going to be a father. She didn't need anything from him, but she didn't want her child not to have a relationship with it's father. Having been raised by a single parent, she didn't want her child to undergo that experience.

Desere: Because of their unborn baby that they had created during the one night they spend in the hotel and I have to say that I loved this twist Kate, very nice way to bring the couple back into each other's lives.

Carlos had left his home in Argentina hurt and angry. Why did his grandfather call him home? 

Maria: Well, obviously, when Martha turned up at the Ortega home in Argentina and informed Carlos' grandfather that she was pregnant by Carlos, obviously his grandfather would have wanted to call him home so that he'd be informed that he was going to become a father and to make a decision about what role he'd play in the baby's life. His grandfather had disowned him when he discovered that Carlos was the illegitimate son of his mother and not a family member by blood. But don't forget, Carlos had been a member of that family since he was born. The old man must have regretted making Carlos want to leave and was probably delighted to have a chance to call him back.

Desere : Because Martha had come to him asking for help and he also realised that his "grandson" had the right know about his unborn child. Here again the author gave the perfect amount of information as with the calling home for the sake of the baby as the reason, I could still pick up in the wording that there was something more behind the calling home of his "grandson". Brilliant Kate!

What did having a baby with Martha mean for Carlos's future?

Maria: It meant that now Carlos would have a relative who was actually his own blood. He was not related by blood to the Ortega family so it would have been a chance for him to start afresh in life and live for someone else who really belonged to him, unlike his mother who had left him at her husband's home when her husband died.

Desere : The right to provide a secure home for his child and to create a sense of belonging and also he would have the woman who sets his blood on fire in his bed every night, if he can convince her to marry him. At the same time they will offer him a escape from his past  and a chance to start new.

And finally ladies.......was Carlos really such a devil? Be frank now.......

Maria: I'd say he was going through hell at the time, having lost his family ties. He was probably, as the British would say, 'going to the devil.' But his experience with Martha seems to have changed him. When he came back from his walk and found Martha missing, he seems to have looked all over for her. He wasn't a devil in the true sense. In fact, he was an angel for Martha that day. Angels are helpers who appear just when you need them, and that's exactly what he did for Martha. He was well out of his devil phase when he met up with Martha again!

Desere: Not a devil at all! He was a somewhat tortured character with a stressful and mysterious past and I for one loved him! The author so beautifully brings him out from under his devilish clock and shows us a man that learns that it is time to stop running and that putting ones demons to rest is best as it is the only way to start a new life with the woman who knocked his socks off. The author stunningly takes him from handsome devil in disguise to a man that every and any woman will love!

Nas: Well said, Desere and Maria! He was a gorgeous, tortured hero whom we end up loving!


The Devil and Miss Jones  - click for reviews.

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