Red Waters Rising
Book 3 in the Devil’s West
“[A] gripping conclusion” – Kirkus Reviews
East of the Mississippi, in the civilized world, dime store novels and gossips claim that the territory to the west is home to monsters and magic, wild Indians and disreputable whites. They claim that in order to survive, any who live there must make a deal with the Devil.
Some of this is true.
Isobel has spent nearly a year on the Road with her mentor Gabriel, learning the obligations of her role as the Devil’s Left Hand, and the needs of the people she has been set to both serve and protect. The events of SILVER ON THE ROAD and THE COLD EYE have toughened her, trained her, and she thinks she understands now what she is, and what she needs to be.
But the Territory isn’t only wide open spaces and isolated villages, and it holds more than the magic Isobel knows. Along the Mudwater, called the Mississippi by outsiders, a city is growing. And not everyone within is a friend of the devil’s….
And not even her mentor can help her through this final test of what it means to be the Devil’s Hand.
RED WATERS RISING.
One of the chiefs lifted his hand, palm up, and the medicine man nodded at him. His hands were badly scarred, palm to wrist, as though he’d grasped a burning log at some point.
“My grandmother was a pale rider,” he said. “She has gone back to the bones,” – died, Gabriel translated in his head – “but as she weakened, her dreams became stronger. Her last dreams, this winter, were of a fish on the shore, an owl covered in snow, and the river waters rising red.”
AVAILABLE NOW in hardcover, trade paperback or ebook at the following fine book-shilling establishments.
Simon & Schuster / B&N / Kobo / Powells /Indigo/Chapters / Indiebound /Book Depository / Amazon / iBooks / Books-A-Million / GooglePlay/ Amazon UK
or find it at your local library!
A B&N Bookseller’s pick for June!
“In the fascinating third Devil’s West novel, Gilman successfully renders a magic-riddled, mysterious, even ambiguous weird West where spirits drop in and out of conversation and danger lurks around every bend in the road. Part coming-of-age story, part adventure, Isobel and Gabriel’s journeys don’t always offer neat explanations or solutions, but they satisfy nonetheless…bring(ing) the current story line to an appropriate conclusion while setting up potential future installments.” – Publishers Weekly
Praise for The Devil’s West series:
“SILVER ON THE ROAD take(s) on the sheen and weight of forgotten history, and it’s that echo in the brain that makes the thing hard to put down, because reading (this book) is not like falling into some new and unfamiliar world. It’s more like a true American myth being found.” NPR
“[THE COLD EYE is] a fabulous coming-of-age tale of magic and power, set in a conflict-ridden alternative Wild West so vividly evoked that readers will be saddling up to ride along.” Library Journal (
starred review! )
“SILVER ON THE ROAD takes an underused setting for fantasy,” the American West, and uses it to explore coming of age, the limits of power and responsibility, and the importance of mingling compassion and justice. It’s fresh and original and the language is both stark and lovely. The descriptions of the natural landscape of the West fit beautifully with descriptions of talking animals, traveling magicians and terrifying supernatural forces. 4.5 stars RT Reviews
“The Cold Eye is a captivating read, smooth and absorbing. From page one I was sucked in, thrilled to be stepping back into the Devil’s West.” B&N SF/F Blog
“With The Cold Eye, Laura Anne Gilman magnificently continues to forge her own version of a Western, American myth of the very early days of a West that wasn’t, but, perhaps reading both Silver on the Road, and The Cold Eye, I wish it might have been.” Skiffy and Fanty Reviews
“Intriguingly different… compelling reading.” Locus