Agatha investigates after a naked man bursts out of the woods claiming to have seen a dead body near a sight supposedly once used for sacrifices in the latest addition to the series following Down the Hatch. 75,000 first printing. - (Baker & Taylor)

"Beloved New York Times bestseller M.C. Beaton's cranky, crafty Agatha Raisin--the star of her own hit T.V. series--is back on the case again in Devil's Delight. Toni and Agatha are in the car on the way to Officer Bill Wong's long-awaited wedding when, much to their shock, a naked young man bursts through a hedge on the side of the road and comes running toward them. Terrified, he explains that he has just seen a dead body in the woods. Toni lends him an old t-shirt to cover himself, Agatha calls the police, and the young man takes them to the spot where he saw the body, across from a meadow where the Mircester Naturist Club is due to have its annual summer barbecue. The young man, Edward, explains that he is the club's social convenor and had arrived early to set things up. He says he found the body at the edge of the woods, near an ancient stone known as The Lone Warrior and said to have once been used as a sacrificial altar. When they reach the spot, however, there is nothing on the large, flat rock except a small wet patch. Even that has dried up by the time the police arrive, and Chief Inspector Wilkes accuses Agatha of wasting police time on a prank. But Agatha and Toni grow suspicious after meeting some of the club's members, whose diverse interests range from artisanal ice cream to ancient curses. And when another disappearance occurs, it's up to them to put together the pieces...or end up on the altar themselves"-- - (Baker & Taylor)

Agatha investigates after a naked man bursts out of the woods claiming to have seen a dead body near a sight supposedly once used for sacrifices, in the latest addition to the series following Down the Hatch. 75,000 first printing. - (Baker & Taylor)

Beloved New York Times bestseller M.C. Beaton's cranky, crafty Agatha Raisin—the star of her own hit T.V. series—is back on the case again in Devil's Delight.

Agatha and her assistant, Toni, are driving to their friend Bill Wong’s long-awaited wedding, thinking of nothing more than what the beautiful bride will be wearing when a terrified young man comes running down the country lane towards them wearing…nothing at all.

The encounter leads them to become embroiled with a naturist group, a disappearing corpse, fantasy games, witchcraft, an ice cream empire, intrigue and murder. In the meantime, Agatha’s hectic life swirls along at dizzying pace, her private detective agency as busy as ever and her private affairs in turmoil, with old loves to contend with and a new suitor on the scene.

But when she begins to close in on a suspected murderer, she finds herself in deadly peril, as the sinister nature of the ice cream business leads her to a chilling conclusion…

M. C. BEATON (1936-2019), the “Queen of Crime” (The Globe and Mail), was the author of the New York Times and USA Today bestselling Agatha Raisin novels—the basis for the hit show on Acorn TV and public television—as well as the Hamish Macbeth series and the Edwardian Murder Mysteries.

A long-time friend of M. C. Beaton, R.W. GREEN has written numerous works of fiction and non-fiction.

Publishers Weekly Reviews

The rambling 33rd outing for private detective Agatha Raisin (after 2021's Down the Hatch), Green's second collaboration with Beaton (1936–2019), finds Agatha and Toni Gilmour, her colleague at Raisin Investigations, driving through their beloved Cotswolds on their way to a policeman friend's wedding. Then they spot a naked young man, Edward Carstairs, running down the middle of the road, and they soon learn that Edward, a member of a nudist club, has just found a dead body in the woods. Agatha and Toni follow him to the spot, but the body has vanished. Agatha decides to get to the bottom of things. To that end, Toni, who's smitten with Edward, suggests that she go undercover—so to speak—at the Mircester Naturist Society. In addition, the pair look into a potential drug ring at a girls' boarding school and a spot of pilfering from a brewery. Agatha at times comes across as a sad figure, not her usual confident, funny, strong-willed self, and the thin mystery plots offer little suspense. This one's for established fans, who may appreciate catching up with the current status of Agatha's ever-expanding team of once, current, and possibly future beaus. Agent: Barbara Lowenstein, Lowenstein Assoc. (Dec.)