Hell to Pay Portland Devils, Book 6

A Devils Historical

By: Rosalind James

Narrated by: Emma Wilder

You can take the princess out of the palace, but you can’t take the palace out of the princess.

Running for your life is never easy. Doing it at age 16, after losing your family, your friends, and your home, with three-quarters of a priceless emerald parure sewn into the sleeves of a battered old Army greatcoat and your beloved city in flames behind you, is harder still. Why did I do it? Because I had no choice. The Red Army was knocking at Dresden’s door, and the Jewish family hiding in our cellars had been marked for transportation to the camps. So we stripped the yellow stars from their clothing, hid our identity documents, and struck out west through the chaos with nothing to eat, nowhere to stay, and no plan at all.

I’d left Germany behind all those decades ago, so why was I back in Dresden now, at the age of 94? I was on a quest, you see. My mother’s emerald tiara might still lie hidden in those cellars, and I…wanted it back? Wanted to show my beloved granddaughter the place where I’d grown up? Wanted to remember the wounded GI I’d pulled off the street and finally married over the objections of almost everybody? Our motivations can be unclear even to ourselves. But I’d chosen to come here, so I was going to do what I’d always done.

I was going to do my best.

Note: This book can be listened to as a standalone, or as a sequel to Hell Bent (Portland Devils Book 5). Watch for the continuation of Marguerite and Joe’s story in Heaven Forbid.

©2025 Rosalind James (P)2025 Rosalind James

An ersatz princess or two

This is the continuation of the family story in Hell Bent. The story line has time jumps from present day to the early childhood of an ersatz princess fleeing her war torn home. The historical details are rich and greatly add to the story’s poignancy. As with all of Rosalind James’ stories, the characters and dialogue are interesting, funny and almost sure to leave you with a tear or two. The narrators do a great job with the accents and differing characters’ voices.

I received a feee copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated for my review, and I was not required to write a positive review. The opinion expressed here is my own.

A Well Written New Genre

Hell to Pay (Portland Devils Book 6) was not at all what I was expecting. Rosalind James has proven her ability to write an outstanding, readable book many, many times and virtually all of these books have been romances. I have enjoyed them all and, not bothering to read the description of this book first, I expected another enjoyable, well written romance. Wow, was I wrong. Many times as I was reading this book, I wondered about how much work and research Ms James must have done in the creation of this book. While the story is fiction, the general scope of events seem accurate. The book has two timelines: current day and WWII Germany. The WWII timeline is stark, harsh and sad, as it should be. The heroine of that story is 16 year old Marguerite, aka, Daisy, a Saxony princess, now trying to escape from the nazis with a Jewish family that her father had been hiding in the cellar. Along the way, Daisy rescues an American soldier, Joe Stark, and their stories entwine. The combined stories of young Marguerite, Dr. Becker and his children, and Joe will have the reader on the edge of their seat and shaking their heads at the inhumanity that existed during that time and place. The current day plot line follows the now elderly Marguerite, her granddaughter and a small group as she returns to Germany in hopes of finding the tiara she hid as she escaped the castle where she was raised. The historical story is told by Marguerite to her family and others. It is riveting. I enjoyed this book very much, as dark as it was. There is an excellent twist near that end that I appreciated.

I listened to this book on Audible and Emma Wilder’s narration was well done and competent.

This book is well worth the read or the listen and I highly recommend it. Four and a half stars, rounded up to five.

I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions stated are solely my own.

Riveting, Powerful

This is my review of the audio version. Some of the things I stated in my ebook review.

This book was not my expected Rosalind James read. It had a combination of historical and contemporary elements. I thought the narration was powerful and served to make everything happening in the book more emotional, more intense. The heavier moments as well as the lighthearted ones.

This book can be read as a standalone, but it is also a continuation of the previous Portland Devils book focusing on Alix's grandmother. Sebastian, Ben, and Alix take this journey back in time with Daisy (Marguerite). I found some elements of a Rosalind James novel in this book, but it was much more of a historical read including some fictional aspects.

It is a long book. A heavy with solemnity, but a well written one nonetheless. I am looking forward to reading Joe and Daisy's story once they return to the US. I am sure they will encounter additional difficulties, but I hope it is a little more lighthearted than this book.

I voluntarily listened to and reviewed this book.

Mrs James Best Book Yet!

I loved the history and the skipping back and forth between current and past events. The story was very interesting definitely a reread. Also the narrator did an amazing job.I keep wondering if she will ever run out of different voices and accents!

Wow.

I don't think I have the words to convey how deeply I loved this story, both parts 1 & 2. It was hard to listen to at times, and it broke my heart in so many ways. But the joy, and the life, and the true happiness that was found. It was marvelous, and worth the tears and sadness along the way. This story is sadly so relevant in today's world, and I hope everyone takes the time to read it.

Joe is truly one of a kind. And Marguerite is the type of woman I want my daughter to grow up to be. Please read their story. It is so worth it!

As always, Emma Wilder was a marvelous narrator for this incredible story. She's always a must listen for me!