THE DEVIL IN VELVET

by John Dickson Carr ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 11, 1951

.....is Sir Nicholas Fenton, whose 17th century body, Nicholas Fenton, of 1925, sells (with reservations) his soul to the devil to inhabit. Steeped in research of the period, Nicholas is determined to learn who killed Sir Nicholas' wife by arsenic, and returned to the fateful time, discovers he has as mistress, the queenly slut, Meg, the evil cook, Kitty, and a young Roundhead partisan, Lydia as wife. He curest the first of Lydia's poisonings, dismisses Meg and Kitty, and lives a reformed life in trying to prevent the horrible angers of his borrowed personality from running amok. He outfaces Lord Shaftsbury, is set upon by bully boys and the hirelings of the Green Ribbon, he stands for royalty and wins King Charles' friendship, is prevented by the devil and Meg from averting Lydia's death, and is taken to the Tower from which Meg rescues him....There's a vast fund of period and historical detail here, exciting sword play and incidents, the always provocative theme of modern man arrived backwards in time, the extra fillip of demonology and mystery, the challenge to change history -- which makes for a fascinating reconstruction.

Pub Date: April 11, 1951

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Harper

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1951

Categories: FICTION