Devil in Velvet

To solve a centuries-old crime, a man makes a deal with the devil: "e;The fantasy, the murder and the historical action are . . . all wonderful"e; (San Francisco Chronicle). An aging scholar of Restoration history, Nicholas Fenton has long dreamed of traveling into the past. He has a date in mind May 10, 1675 as well as a purpose: to solve the murder case of the woman he loves, his rakehell ancestor's lovely wife. Obsessed with delivering her from danger, he turns to an unlikely accomplice: the devil. After striking a bargain with the prince of darkness, Fenton awakens in the seventeenth century in the much-younger body of dashing Sir Nick Fenton. In an era when gentlemen died by the blade, Fenton is handy with a rapier, and his knowledge of local history gives him a leg up on the swashbucklers who would have his hide. But while his sword may help him rescue his beloved, it will take more than that to save his soul. Even in 1675, the devil is in the details.