The Witch's Grave
A Fever Devilin Mystery
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
Fever Devilin was raised amongst the hill-country people of the deep Georgia Appalachians and their seemingly simple folk ways are in his blood and his soul. His own family, however, was another matter and at sixteen he left home for college, returning only rarely and always under protest. In the years to come, Fever became a noted folklorist of the Appalachian region and a college professor. He never quite adjusted to the realities of city life and academic politics, and has now returned to the deceptively quiet life amongst his people. But below the surface, nothing is ever as quiet and simple as it appears.
When Truevine Deveroe, a local girl reputed to be a witch, goes missing and the local mortician, acknowledged as an unpleasant character, turns up dead near Devilin's home, Able Carter, fiancé of the missing girl, is suspected of killing them both. Tied by friendship and long-term enmity to all of the principals, Fever finds himself in the midst of a very difficult situation. To make matters even worse, the brothers of the missing girl are determined to find Carter - who has taken it on the lam - and administer their own brand of justice. With precious little time, lives at stake, and a missing girl to be found, Devilin must unravel the mystery behind this perplexing series of events. A series of events somehow related to the hidden history of the area and the old folk legend of the witch's grave.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Murder, ghosts, folklore and echoes of a recent, macabre news story combine to make Edgar-winner DePoy's second Fever Devilin adventure (after 2003's The Devil's Hearth) a memorable stroll through the graveyard. Fever, a folklorist and native of the Georgia Appalachians, is host to a vacationing British colleague, Winton Andrews, when they witness a lover's quarrel between Able Carter and Truevine Deveroe. After the lovers disappear and a body turns up, Fever, Winton and Fever's best friend, Sheriff Skid Needle, face the beginning of a mystery whose tendrils spread like kudzu. Fever stands out among Blue Mountain folk not only because he's unusually educated but because, as Winton describes him, "You're near seven feet tall, your hair's white as snow, you're loud, you're a know-it-all, and your name is Fever." Fever's knowledge of his neighbors, their geography and history enables him to interpret signs and clues in a case that grows more complex and deadlier as he pieces it together. Sharp characterization, a broad humorous streak and sumptuous descriptions of country cooking all add to DePoy's beguiling brew. FYI: DePoy is also the author of Too Easy (1998), which was a finalist for a Shamus Award, and other mass-market titles in his Flap Tucker mystery series.