The Devereaux Legacy

December 10, 2012
In the new introduction to this Carolyn Hart classic reissue, Hart (What the Cat Saw) explains just how difficult it was for a woman to publish mysteries in the late 1970s (“New York believed in two kinds of mysteries, the hard-boiled private eye books written by American men and traditional mysteries written by dead English ladies”). Leah Devereaux Shaw’s quest to locate other family members after the death of the grandmother who raised her takes Leah to a historic plantation in South Carolina, where she finds a ghost, danger, and love. Despite the dated, formulaic plot, this “gothic romance” (as it was labeled on first publication in 1986) shows the promise of the future winner of multiple Agatha, Anthony, and Macavity awards. Hart fans will appreciate what were later to become the author’s signature elements: the Lowcountry setting, the vivid physical description, and surprising twists.

January 1, 2013

Leah, a lovely young woman from Texas, shows up at the Devereaux plantation in South Carolina because she recently learned that she was born there. Her appearance causes a local sensation, because everyone thought she had died in a boating accident along with her parents when she was just a baby. Her maternal grandmother is shocked and thrilled, of course; Leah is the spitting image of her deceased mother. But some of her cousins react coldly, knowing their inheritance is at risk. Now Leah must contend with a Civil War-era ghost who haunts the grounds, two handsome strangers, and cold-fish cousins. VERDICT Turn up your gothic-romantic suspense meter for this spooky Low Country treat. Hart's 1986 standalone has enough espionage and intrigue to keep readers guessing. Recommend this quick read to those longing for the old-fashioned romantic suspense novels of Phyllis Whitney or Victoria Holt.

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