Nora Roberts prove that she know best when it comes to writing a romantic suspense set in small town with its tight-knit community and that evil comes in many forms, especially those who seems as harmless at first. This book is first written in 1992 (wow, 31 years ago!) and feature murder spree by a Satanism cult. Make me want to check if in 90's there's a movement of Satan worship. There's no supernatural element, but the deeds that the cult do in favor of their perversion of worship chilled me to the bone. Divine Evil have SO MANY trigger & content warning that I believe will appalled today reader's sensibilities so proceed to read this one with cause. This book, so far is one of the darkest NR books that I've read and much darker than her JD Robb ones.

As for the characters, I liked that both Clare and Cameron written as jaded version of themselves, but still manage to overcome their pasts to become a better person. Clare that struggle with her grief over her father death and also alcoholism. The way NR describe Clare's grief is well written, she can capture its nuance and how Clare still processing with her grief and trauma since it's her who found her father's corpse. Cam that want to forget his partner's death, also struggle to not succumb to alcoholism. Also his relationship with his mother is strained and you can't help to feel disgust but also pity for Cam's mother because she is like one of those housewives that become dependent because of her situation. Clare and Cam romance is just a so so, thought, although the conflicts are pretty much just Clare didn't like to be bossed around and Cam itself try to respect her boundaries. I liked that both are mature so there's no prolonged drama. Another characters also well written, but the amount of characters are plenty, so maybe not that much development. The villains are slowly revealed and NR shows that power, indeed, corrupt. It's corrupt a rather calm and serene small town into murders that shocked their very foundation. On the other side, I liked how NR describe Emittsboro and its citizen. She detailed some of the town history, the citizen dynamics and events, also didn't shy away to point their conservatism views, especially toward stranger. What feel weird maybe the way Nora write the book in omniscient views, but somehow it didn't written smoothly

The ending also left open, if not tad bit rushed. There's no further explanation for any consequences that the cult face because of their crime. Some things left unexplained, some of victims fate also left unknown. I really want to know what happen to Emmitsboro after the villain and their cult got caught, but what I got is another thread that still loose. Still, Dark Evil is one of Nora Robert's title that not to be missed, although with plenty of trigger warning and since this book written roughly 30 years ago, there's many moral values that seems outdated.