“Skillfully blending his fictional hero’s coming-of-age story with a real-life racial confrontation aboard ship, Carter’s tale is a winning combination of military procedural, suspense, and Black history.”
—Booklist, STARRED Review

“This excellent first novel, while chronicling the racism faced by main character César Alvarez, in the end is [a] love letter to the U.S. Navy . . . Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea is not a war story; it’s a war-time story. And a great one.”
—The VVA Veteran

“Taking its title from a nautical term for a conundrum, the novel is a coming-of-age and redemption story about two young Black men going through boot camp, training school and their first assignments in an early 1970s Navy struggling with racism and sexism.”
—The Oregonian

Included in New West Indian Guide Bookshelf 2021 Roundup

“The strength of Carter’s lean, straightforward prose . . . mirrors César’s earnest, ethical nature and urges readers to root for him . . . A naval adventure thriller from recent history, told in a fresh, straightforward new voice.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“One of the most empathetic depictions of navy lifers since The Last Detail.”
—Publishers Weekly

“André Lewis Carter weaves a riveting tale about a side of the US Navy we seldom see. Tone-perfect delivery and an inarguably authentic voice mark the debut of a powerful new talent.”
—David Poyer, author of Violent Peace

“César Alvarez doesn’t know if he deserves a second chance, but he gets one anyway in Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea. From the streets of Orlando to the deck of a Vietnam-bound carrier, André Lewis Carter finds ambiguity in moments of conscience, self-preservation, loyalty, and betrayal. This is an outstanding read.”
—Barbara J. Taylor, author of Sing in the Morning, Cry at Night

“André Lewis Carter can tell a helluva story. With well-paced prose and silky-smooth voice and style, Carter also makes a case for the beauty and brilliance of human redemption in the face of irredeemable trauma. Full of complex characters to root for and believe in, and set against the backdrop of one young man’s evolving understanding of American racism, this coming-of-age story manages to tell that truth without preaching. It acknowledges America’s deep generational hurts, without turning from beauty and love. And what more could we ask from any writer chronicling a life, a place, a generation? This novel is worth everyone’s time.”
—Roger Bonair-Agard, author of Where Brooklyn At?

“The first virtue of Carter’s book is its authentic, granular depictions of life aboard an American aircraft carrier during the Vietnam War—the best I’ve ever encountered. But the novel’s other virtues—vividly depicted characters; an unsparing examination of racial discrimination and conflict aboard ship and at the San Diego Navy base; and a simmering story line that explodes on the high seas—makes this engrossing debut novel a must-read for Navy vets, as well as all who appreciate a fast-paced tale of a young man trying to find love, forge a new identity, and come to grips with his criminal past while serving his country.”
—J. Michael Lennon (LCDR, United States Navy Reserve, ret.), author of Norman Mailer: A Double Life