Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Unavailable
    The Devil’s Punchbowl
    Unavailable
    The Devil’s Punchbowl
    Unavailable
    The Devil’s Punchbowl
    Audiobook (abridged)5 hours

    The Devil’s Punchbowl

    Written by Greg Iles

    Narrated by Kerry Shale

    4/5

    ()

    Unavailable in your country

    Unavailable in your country

    About this audiobook

    The disturbing new thriller from the king of southern gothic.

    When he was a prosecuting attorney Penn Cage sent hardened killers to death row. But it is as mayor of his hometown, Natchez, Mississippi, that Penn will
    face his most dangerous threat.

    Urged by old friends to try to restore the town to its former glory, Penn has ridden into office on a tide of support for change. But in its quest for new jobs and fresh money, Natchez has turned to casino gambling. Five fantastical steamboats float on the river beside the old slave market like props from Gone With the Wind. But one boat isn't like the others. Rumour has it that the Magnolia Queen has found a way to pull the big players from Las Vegas. And with them comes an unquenchable taste for one thing: blood sport, and the dark vices that go with it.

    When a childhood friend of Penn's who brings him evidence of these crimes is brutally murdered, the full weight of Penn's failure to protect this city hits home. So begins his quest to find the men responsible. But it's a hunt he begins alone, for the local authorities have been corrupted by the money and power of his hidden enemy. With his family's life at stake, Penn realizes his only allies in his one-man war are those bound to him by blood or honour:

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateAug 6, 2009
    ISBN9780007316434
    Unavailable
    The Devil’s Punchbowl
    Author

    Greg Iles

    Greg Iles spent most of his youth in Natchez, Mississippi. His first novel, Spandau Phoenix, was the first of thirteen New York Times bestsellers and his new trilogy continues the story of Penn Cage, protagonist of The Quiet Game, Turning Angel, and #1 New York Times bestseller The Devil's Punchbowl. Iles' novels have been made into films and published in more than thirty-five countries.

    More audiobooks from Greg Iles

    Related to The Devil’s Punchbowl

    Related audiobooks

    Suspense For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Karin Slaughter

      Jul 2, 2020

      This American crime author has sold more than 35 million copies of her books globally. This month she’s celebrating the release of her 20th novel in as many years. It’s also the 10th book in special agent Will Trent’s series. “It feels really great a

      1 min read

    • Article

      TV Pieces Of Her

      Mar 24, 2022

      TV Pieces Of Her
      1 min read

    • Article

      How I Write

      Jan 2, 2020

      B.A. Paris is the author of four bestselling novels. Her debut, Behind Closed Doors , sold over a million copies, while her long-anticipated latest novel, The Dilemma , is set to be one of this year’s most chilling thrillers. I’m not a planner – I

      1 min read

    • Article

      A Year in Reading: Iľja Rákoš

      Dec 12, 2021

      As long as there are authors, translators, publishers large or small committed to the deliberate word deliberately committed to the page, and so many who still need those words on pages, legal or illegal, right, left, or center, we’ll find our feet a

      8 min read

    • Article

      Speedboat

      Mar 24, 2022

      Nobody died that year. Nobody prospered. There were no births or marriages. Seventeen reverent satires were written – disrupting a cliché and, presumably, creating a genre. That was a dream, of course, but many of the most important things, I fi nd,

      14 min read

    • Article

      Four Of A Kind

      May 3, 2023

      Four Of A Kind
      4 min read

    • Article

      Stranger Than Fiction

      Jul 20, 2021

      Stranger Than Fiction
      7 min read

    • Article

      One Coyote

      Sep 29, 2020

      One Coyote
      9 min read

    • Article

      I’m Not Black, I’m Kanye

      May 7, 2018

      I’m Not Black, I’m Kanye
      17 min read

    • Article

      Letter to My Son

      Jul 4, 2015

      Letter to My Son
      30 min read

    • Article

      Deep Impact

      May 31, 2020

      Deep Impact
      9 min read

    • Article

      Come the Renaissance

      May 20, 2020

      I’VE escaped from the Abbey. Am I skipping up the drive back to the house, swinging my guitar case and trilling I Have Confidence in Me? Not so much. Bit more Fidelio, if I’m honest: creeping, wan, unshaven, shielding my eyes from the unfamiliar sun.

      3 min read

    • Article

      The Way We Were

      Jun 1, 2023

      The Way We Were
      7 min read

    • Article

      A Year in Reading: Tim Lane

      Dec 8, 2021

      We stopped at the Topaz Internment Camp, where my wife’s family was held during World War II, near the tiny town of Delta, Utah. We found the apocalyptic remnants of one of our country’s great shames. The post A Year in Reading: Tim Lane appeared fi

      7 min read

    • Article

      Manson Inc.

      Jul 2, 2019

      The Benedict Canyon house was demolished years ago. A church looks down on the old ranch, which is now a state park. Most everyone who fell under his thrall is dead, or aging quietly in prison. None of that matters. The further events recede into his

      12 min read

    • Article

      Where Is Black Life Lived?

      Jul 21, 2020

      Where Is Black Life Lived?
      6 min read

    • Article

      What's The Meaning Of Life? Ask Protomartyr

      Sep 29, 2017

      Protomartyr lead singer and lyricist Joe Casey walks us through some of the thorny questions behind the band's new album, Relatives In Decent, track by track.

      10 min read

    • Article

      Book Club

      May 25, 2022

      Book Club
      5 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for The Devil’s Punchbowl

    4/5

    366 ratings26 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      I always enjoy reading books by Greg Iles and this book did not disappoint. It follows the repeating character of Penn Cage and the world of Natchez, Mississippi. This book was not as much of a mystery as previous ones, but it was more of an action thriller where we know the bad guys pretty early on and just see how the good guys are going to get them. This story involved more high tech/navy seal type of action, but Iles always does a good job with character development and giving the reader an appreciation of Southern culture. Exciting and mindless entertainment.
    • 3/5
      Dog fights the Irish and a small town in South USA. On the Mississippi gamblers dream comma but the devil Waits 2 pounce. Goodread for the bus.
    • 5/5
      Years ago I read a Greg Iles book that was the best thing I had ever read. I read all his others and none matched the first but I kept trying. The Devil's Punchbowl comes very close. It's interesting to me what makes a good book. I generally think that interesting characters and interesting plots make the difference and mostly it does but this time it was the story telling. This is a book of many many word and they tell a tale that I am sorry is over. It was a great read.
    • 4/5
      Well written -- often disturbing!
    • 4/5
      This was another very good book in the Penn Cage Series. I really enjoyed the book overall and the story as it progressed. However for the first time in this series I did feel the book was longer than it had to be with too many superfluous details which is why I can only rate it a 4. The general feel of the story and the plotting most probably deserved more but I just felt it took too long to get into it as a result of the length of the book. However it was still a very enjoyable read and I look forward to continuing the series which gives a good feel for the area in which it is set. I also like the main characters in this book.
    • 3/5
      Cage has been mayor for two years, and was instrumental in expanding the riverboat casino industry in the city. Cage is considering resigning to spend more time with his family when a childhood friend Tim Jessup tells Cage of some horrible evils and corruption occuring on one boat, the Magnolia Queen. Jessup offers evidence of prostitution and dog fighting and promises to get more if Cage is willing to help. Cage agrees, but Jessup is murdered the next night and then his entire family is threatened by the sauve Englishman Jonathan Sands. Sands wants the evidence Jessup took, or Cage's family could be in danger. Cage is conflicted and doesn't know if he should fight Sands, or just look for the evidence, surrender it, and ignore Sands like every one else in the town.

      Greg Iles is a great storyteller, but what makes his best novels special is how the story is unfolded and shaped and how much extra depth there is besides just the plot. It's so much more than a mere whodunit that is the model for so many other popular authors.
    • 3/5
      This was a great crime thriller that had me hooked from the first page to the last. It was rather violent at times as it dealt with dog fights, money laundering, rape and child prostitution but it was fast paced and a great read.
    • 3/5
      Playaway Audio book read by Dick Hill

      Book three in the Penn Cage series finds our hero settled in as mayor of his hometown – Natchez Mississippi. Still he cannot help but keep certain ways of thinking that served him well as a prosecuting attorney in big-city Houston Texas. Like many other towns eager for jobs and an infusion of cash into their economies, Natchez has turned to casino gambling, and five “steamboats” float on the Mississippi River attracting tourists and locals alike. But the Magnolia Queen seems set apart. Somehow she brings in the big gamblers who arrive in private jets for special games of chance; and crime comes with these big dollars. When a childhood friend of Penn’s makes arrangements to meet at the cemetery with a promise of evidence of the criminal activity, things get nasty quickly. Corruption has spread throughout all official channels and Penn can trust only those closest to him.

      I’d never read a book by Iles before and wasn’t sure what to expect (other than a fast-paced thriller). I didn’t realize when I picked it up that this was book three in a series, but I’m not sure I missed much by not having read the previous books. Iles gave me enough background on the central characters and their relationships to Penn to make me comfortable.

      This is less of a murder mystery than it is a grand international conspiracy with “national security” interests trying to stop Penn from his own investigation. Iles peoples the book with colorful characters, including an ex-Texas Ranger gone undercover, a mysterious beautiful Chinese woman, and an evangelical preacher with a secret vice. I thought the plot got overly complicated, but the action still moved at a fairly quick pace and I was sufficiently interested to keep turning pages. I did find the book pretty violent – dog fighting is part of the plot and Iles spares no details of that bloody “sport.” One of the bad guys is also a sexual sadist and descriptions of his deeds left little to the imagination. Neither of these elements was more than what was necessary given the plot, but readers who find this kind of thing particularly distasteful are best warned away.

      Dick Hill did a credible job with the audio though his voice tends to be too gravelly to convincingly voice the women characters. Still his ability with various accents, especially when he’s required to switch quickly from a cultured British accent to a Texas Ranger’s twang to an Irish brogue, really added to the enjoyment of the audio.
    • 5/5
      Sordid and seedy, disgusting and dispicable people. Sleazy the worst kind of "bad men" and once again Penn's entire family is in life-threatening danger and needs protection. But I kept turning the pages and you have to say Iles writes a good story.Dog fighting, money laundering, IRA thugs, Chinese murderers, vicious Bully Kutta & Tosa dogs ripping people to death. UGH. As if "Turning Angel's 45+ yr old family doctor protagonist having an affair with a 17 yr old wasn't low enough. Ick.
    • 4/5
      Grisly....yet exciting! Gripping....yet horrifying! Oh well, just a typical installment of the Penn Cage series entitled "The Devil's Punchbowl". I really enjoyed this story, although a few passages were difficult to read due to graphic sexual violence. There is something intriguing when reading about the lengths a person can go to on behalf of loved ones, and this suspense novel is centered on the theme. I like to think my own sense of honor runs deep, but have never really had it tested. Hmmm.....
    • 4/5
      Although I already have 40-some books in my wishlist, I now have to add at least one, maybe five, more. I like this book a lot.THE DEVIL'S PUNCHBOWL is my first Greg Iles book, which is the third in a series about the Penn Cage character. While Iles is good about supplying background information, so a reader can start these books out of order, THE DEVIL'S PUNCHBOWL ends on a cliffhanger. Now I want to read the next and maybe the next and the next (still to be published) in the series.In this book, Cage is the mayor of Natchez, Mississippi. A casino there, which he had hoped would help revive Natchez's faltering economy, is owned by a corrupt Irishman who is bilking Natchez out of tax money, running dog-fighting rings, and supplying his customers (and himself) with prostitutes. Cage gets wind of it when his old friend, who had worked as a dealer in the casino, is murdered, and the murder is apparently tied to the casino.A couple parts of this book (descriptions of dogs and rape scenes) were hard for me to read; they were too graphic for me. But you can skim those if they bother you, too, and not lose track of the story.One other criticism has to do with two of the other characters: Cage's friend Daniel Kelly (note Iles' use of a good-guy Irish-American to balance the bad-guy Irishman) and girlfriend Caitlin Masters. They seemed superhuman to me, especially Kelly. He was a Bruce-Willis-type character. She could kick off a tin roof with her bare feet after she walked up a wall and while she was upside down. They are both a little too amazing.Otherwise, I really enjoyed this book and look forward to more by Greg Iles.
    • 3/5
      The Devil's Punchbowl (Penn Cage Series), Greg Iles third installment in his suspenseful, southern Gothic thriller, with more dark secrets, illegal cover ups, corruption, murder, and the nasty sins of Natchez, MS.

      Former prosecutor Penn Cage, turned mayor of Natchez is anything but boring. He is always battling to help save his hometown and his family, but things always get in the way. The casino operators on the one of the gambling steamboats on the Mississippi River with exclusive clientele and high stakes agendas, are up to no good.

      When one of his childhood friends is murdered after contacting him with information concerning dog fighting, prostitution, drugs, and money laundering presided over by the manager of a Natchez gambling casino, Cage takes on an investigation that makes him the target of organized crime, endangers the lives of his family and closest friends, and draws the wrath of the Justice Department and Homeland Security.

      When Cage learns of the dangerous games, which of course, murder, plus more, he launches a campaign to stop the business, and as always, some protector, and political battles to fight in order to unravel the culprit.

      I love the Penn Cage series and Greg Iles is an incredible writer, with his latest (#4) Natchez Burning which was excellent, and working my way backwards. David Ledoux, the narrator was superb!

      Love the characters, Penn, his southern physician dad, and his relationship with beautiful Caitlin Masters, and of course, the humor, and the naughty bad guys.

      Unfortunately, I dislike Dick Hill, as a narrator, for the audiobook, so this pulled my rating down for this one. Was not one of my favorites, in the series; however; plan on reading the rest in the series, to catch up with all the history of the characters. Would recommend reading them all!

      “When everything is at risk, good judgment, not haste, makes the difference between life and death. Panic is the enemy.” ― Greg Iles, The Devil's Punchbowl
    • 5/5
      Absolutely fabulous! First time I've read any work by this author and I am very impressed. Suspenseful and well-written, Iles pulls you into the story and doesn't let you go. I am looking forward to reading some of his other work.
    • 4/5
      Start to finish, I couldn't put this book down. It's a flurry of action. Although the subject matter made me a little ill and I just skimmed the details of the dog fighting, for me, it was another unputdownable book from Mr. Iles.
    • 5/5
      The latest in the Penn Cage series is so well done that it pulled me in effortlessly. Amazing job - and characters so real you feel like you know them.
    • 4/5
      Addresses some serious topics gambling, drug addiction, dog fighting, prostitution, rape, kidnapping, assault, money laundering, blackmail and politics! super brutal but all in context. Not my favourite Penn Cage thriller, but an excellent read
    • 4/5
      A blood-chilling novel about astrong man who is eleted mayor of Nathchez, MS after his wife dies. Two years into his term, he becomes aware more that casino gambling which is a sure bet for bring new money into his fading hometown has a dark side. When an old school friend hands Penn evidence of the blood sport & dark vices that has prevaded his town, he has to make a decision to rope them in or close his eyes
    • 2/5
      This is my least favorite book by this author. I got lost in the plot or maybe it was just too long
    • 4/5
      2 Words that describe the book: Suspenseful thriller3 Settings where it took place or characters you met:1. Setting: Natchez, Mississippi, modern times2. Penn Cage—A former DA and now mayor of his hometown of Natchez, Mississippi, Penn returns for another thriller, accompanied by Caitlin Masters (his beautiful newspaper reporter ex-girlfriend) and other characters we've met in previous Penn Cage books. (This book can stand-alone but does reference previous books at times.)3. Jonathan Sands—The local head of a riverboat gambling operation (which has brought corruption to Natchez since its arrival), Sands is a ruthless and chameleon-like bad guy who seems to have his fingers in quite a few pies, including dogfighting and prostitution. Plus he seems to have "friends in high places" who seem willing to protect him despite his corrupt and violent behavior.4 Things you liked and/or disliked about it:1. I liked how Iles keeps the story moving. This particular book was 577 pages (!), but it moves along at a good clip, and the plot is always branching off into some new area.2. I liked revisiting the characters and locations that Iles have written about in previous books. This is the third Penn Cage book he's written, and he even incorporates a character (Danny McDavitt) from one of his previous Natchez-based books that didn't feature Penn Cage.3. Greg Iles is one of my "go to" thriller writers, along with Nelson DeMille. Although he used to mix it up a bit more at the start of his writing career, lately he's focused on Natchez and Penn Cage. I think I've read every book he's written, and he is one of the few fiction writers that Mr. Jenners will read regularly. He comes out with a book every few years, and we always pick them up.4. I liked knowing that there will be another Penn Cage book on the horizon based on the ending of this book, which ends with a bit of a cliffhanger for Cage's personal life.5 Stars or less for your rating?I'm giving the book 3.5 stars. Like I said, Iles writes a decent thriller, and if you're in the market for a well-done, not too gruesome story with an author who has a decent backlog of books, Iles is the writer for you. This isn't great literature by any means, but it is a great candy bar book to occupy the time when you're between "heavier" books.
    • 3/5
      Fun, fast-paced, good plane reading. Honest, strong characters who always err on the side of good and win, too.
    • 4/5
      On page 550, Mr. Iles is having a private joke on his own readers who, while being shocked and horrified by his graphic depictions of torture and degradation, still continue reading. Mr. Iles writes "Don't pretend you don't want to look....everything that walks on 2 legs would watch this...if they knew no one was watching."
    • 4/5
      For some reason I always tend to underestimate this author. Perhaps it's the graphic-ness of some of his writings, but for whatever reason I seem always delay starting his novels only to thoroughly enjoy them once immersed. This one is no exception. A suspense novel with all the glory of the south wrapped up in a love story. Probably his best work. Hopefully somebody has snatched up the rights, because it would make an exceptional movie.
    • 4/5
      Greg Iles returns to his old stomping ground of Natchez Mississippi and its faithful mayor/lawyer/novelist Penn Cage in his latest thriller. We also see, if only peripherally, characters who have played roles in his other works: Tom Cage, Daniel Kelly, Chris Sheppard, Carl Sims and Danny McDavitt. This time Penn, on the verge of resigning his position as mayor due to his disappointment over his lack of accomplishment, reconnects with a childhood friend. His friend Tim, after experiencing the usual literary horrors of drug abuse, has reclaimed his life and currently serves as a card dealer on one of the riverboat casinos that Penn has been instrumental in bringing to the city.But Tim doesn't have good news. There's money laundering, dog fighting, and forced sexual molestation happening on the boat. Tim understands the danger of knowing and telling Penn of the events, but feels he must do so. Before Penn can obtain all of the information he needs, Tim is kidnapped, tortured and finally killed by the runners of the illegal operations. Penn himself is forced to comply with the bad guys' demands, lest his family be hurt. What follows is the story of how they stop the evil from continuing.Graphically disturbing, this novel is not for the faint of heart (or stomach!). Protracted scenes of vicious dogfighting, rape, and torture make it difficult at times to persevere through, though Iles still writes deftly. Penn is a decent but flawed character - it's easy for him to question his ideals when those he loves are in danger. Indeed, this is a hallmark of this tale; in the earlier chapters, Penn's former girlfriend argues vigorously against vigilante justice, insisting the perpetrators be brought to justice through the legal system. After she's been through an ordeal herself, she is given the opportunity to choose vigilante justice herself, and Iles does a remarkable job of showing her struggle.As an audiobook, this is an amazing work. The reader, Dick Hill, is a magnificent reader. I have lived in the south all of my life, and take lots of teasing about my accent, but it honestly took me a little while to even understand Mr. Hill, he was that good. His inflection and entire reading were spot on.
    • 3/5
      This is a book about dogfighting & the other blood sports that surround it. You know the ones - drugs, human trafficking - the list goes on & on.When Michael Vick was convicted for dogfighting & sent to prison for 23 months, many people wanted to minimize the offense. Some argued that God has given us dominion over animals so Vick's actions were inconsequential. People that are involved in dogfighting don't just pit their dogs against one another to fight to the death for a ravenous crowd exploiting the love of human beings that has been bred into these most domesticated of species. They also torture & kill these dogs for poor performance, including electrocuting them, starving them to death, or just beating them to death. They use bait animals, obtained from shelters or stolen from people's yards, to test a dog's fighting instinct. The list of cruel behaviors also goes on & on. It's very hard for me to believe that a loving God would support the overtly cruel treatment of animals. Penn Cage, a recurring character in Greg Iles' novels, returns - this time as Mayor of Natchez, MS. A childhood friend who works on one of the casino boats brings him pictures that show dogfighting & various kinds of sexual cruelty to underaged girls - acts that are being facilitated & sponsored by the casino. This novel is the story of Mr. Cage & his friends & allies trying to stop these actions from continuing to poison their town.Unlike his other thrillers, Greg Iles casts a wide net here - much of the action is global & plays out on a national security stage. I think his books are better when they deal with more local events & players, but this is a good thriller. Penn Cage can be a self-righteous martyr, but as this novel progresses those tendencies become minimized in the face of the utter depravity that our heroes (& heroines) are up against.This book is filled with graphic violence - against animals, against women, against men - these are equal opportunity offenders. If you are squeamish about this sort of thing, this may not be the book for you. The violence is not gratuitous or entertaining. It is integral to the plot that Mr. Iles has built & it moves the story along. It also gave me a lot to think about with regard to bloodsport & its place in our culture.A good well-written page-turner, although somewhat less successful than some of Iles' other books. As an argument for how awful the reality of dogfighting is, however, this scores a 15 on a 1 to 10 scale. That may or may not be what you want from a thriller, but I'm glad I read it.
    • 4/5
      Iles never fails to provide a great read.......in this novel we return again to Natchez, Mississippi and lead character Penn Gage. This fast paced suspense novel takes on river boat gambling and dog fighting. Penn must decide between trusting the courts to punish the guilty and stopping the bad guys permanently - with whatever means necessary. Not any easy choice considering the atrocities committed. Non stop action makes this a tough one to put down.
    • 4/5
      If you haven't read Greg Isles before you are in for a treat with his latest Natchez, Mississippi based novel about riverboat gambling. The unsavory investors and gamblers it attracts are just the beginning of problems faced by the small town mayor (a continuing Isles character the multi-talented Penn Cage, also a writer and former prosecutor) in The Devil's Punchbowl. Murder, riverboat gambling, and dogfights are the core around which we see Penn's relationships with his family, girlfriend(s), childhood pal as well as law enforcement play out in this thriller. Penn matches wits with nasty, cruel thugs and the tension builds along with the body count. Like any Isles book it is a page turner.