The Old Fox Deceived

The Barnes & Noble ReviewMartha Grimes fans will be thrilled to hear that her second Richard Jury novel, The Old Fox Deceiv’d, is finally back in print after an absence of nearly 20 years. In this traditional English mystery, Detective Chief Inspector Richard Jury of New Scotland Yard joins forces with noble-born amateur investigator Melrose Plant to unravel a puzzling case in the quaint and usually quiet northern fishing village of Rackmoor: Near midnight on Twelfth Night, on the steep and shadowy Angel Steps of Rackmoor, a costumed reveler is found savagely stabbed to death. The victim is soon identified as a visitor named Gemma Temple, and authorities are puzzled as to who might have had cause to kill a stranger in this usually quiet town. Motives and connections soon abound when it’s revealed that the costume she was killed in was only one of the victim’s disguises — that she’s been claiming to be Dillys March, the long-missing but seldom-missed ward of a wealthy local landowner and avid fox hunter. This story is vintage Martha Grimes, with well-drawn characters, an evocative setting, and an intricate plot that stands the test of time. Sue Stone