Jess Armstrong

Set after the Great War, Jess Armstrong's USA Today bestselling and award-winning series is historical gothic murder mystery at its best, and Ruby Vaughn returns in The Devil in Oxford. If someone were to ask American heiress Ruby Vaughn how exactly the occult came to play such a large role in her life, she would immediately point to her octogenarian housemate and employer, Mr. Owen. Together, the pair run a rare book shop in Exeter. Mr. Owen's penchant for arcane, unusual--and occasionally illegal--books has been known to get Ruby into her fair share of trouble. And after the last year, she is looking forward to spending a quiet holiday in picturesque Oxford while Mr. Owen attends the annual meeting of his antiquarian society. Secretly, Ruby is also looking for a holiday from her confounding feelings for Ruan Kivell, the intriguing folk healer Pellar that she met in Cornwall. When Mr. Owen secures two tickets to an upcoming exhibition of artifacts amassed by disgraced scholar Julius Harker, Ruby reluctantly agrees to attend. The evening turns out to be more eventful than either of them bargained for. Harker's dead body is discovered amongst the collection, his business partner is hastily arrested, and Ruan arrives...wanting to speak with Ruby. It seems both the arcane and her Pellar have followed Ruby to Oxford. The murder case is suspicious at best, but the last thing Ruby wants is another investigation. That is, until an old friend comes begging for Ruby's help. It soon becomes painfully clear that there is more going on in Oxford than meets the eye. Ruby and Ruan will have to uncover the dark secrets of the competitive world of antiquities while trying to understand the peculiar force that keeps drawing them back together.

December, 1923. Ruby Vaughn is looking forward to a quiet, relaxing trip to Oxford in the week before Christmas with her octogenarian housemate and colleague Mr Owen. Far away from the arcane, unusual - and occasionally illegal - books that seem to always get her into trouble. The most she expects to do is attend a handful of his antiquarian society meetings. But when the body of disgraced scholar Julius Harker is amongst his exhibition of Egyptian antiquities looted by Napoleon, panic spreads throughout the cobbled streets of Oxford. The last thing Ruby wants is another investigation, but then an old friend comes begging for her help. If that wasn't enough, her past insists on haunting her when Ruan Kivell, the intriguing folk healer that she met in Cornwall, suddenly reappears. It seems there is much more going on in Oxford that meets the eye.

December, 1923. Ruby Vaughn is looking forward to a quiet, relaxing trip to Oxford in the week before Christmas with her octogenarian housemate and colleague Mr Owen. Far away from the arcane, unusual - and occasionally illegal - books that seem to always get her into trouble. The most she expects to do is attend a handful of his antiquarian society meetings. But when the body of disgraced scholar Julius Harker is amongst his exhibition of Egyptian antiquities looted by Napoleon, panic spreads throughout the cobbled streets of Oxford. The last thing Ruby wants is another investigation, but then an old friend comes begging for her help. If that wasn't enough, her past insists on haunting her when Ruan Kivell, the intriguing folk healer that she met in Cornwall, suddenly reappears. It seems there is much more going on in Oxford that meets the eye.

Following the atmospheric and award-winning gothic historical mystery debut, The Curse of Penryth Hall, USA Today bestselling author Jess Armstrong's heroine, Ruby Vaughn, returns in The Secret of the Three Fates, where the Scottish Hills hold ghosts of the past that threaten Ruby's present. American heiress Ruby Vaughn still hasn't entirely forgiven her octogenarian employer and housemate Mr. Owen for bringing the occult into their lives during her recent trip to Cornwall. He claims their journey to Manhurst Castle in the Scottish Borders is simply to appraise and acquire illuminated manuscripts for their rare books shop, however when Ruby discovers there are no manuscripts and receives news of a s ance to be held that very night, she begins to grow suspicious about the true reason why they have come. The Great War left grieving families willing to sacrifice anything for the chance to say goodbye to a lost loved one. Mr. Owen is no exception. He is desperate to speak to his son, but he doesn't want to face the spirits alone. When the s ance--hosted by a trio of mediums billing themselves as The Three Fates--goes awry, Mr. Owen's secrets begin to unravel, threatening to reveal a history that he has been running from for half his life. Something Ruby knows all too well how to do. When Ruby finds one of the Three Fates murdered the night of the seance, she and Mr. Owen quickly become the prime suspects. To clear their names, Ruby enlists the help of Ruan Kivell, the folk healer Pellar who helped her weeks before in Cornwall. As their investigation progresses Ruby and Ruan realize someone is determined to prevent them from uncovering the truth about what happened to the dead medium.

Jess Armstrong's USA Today bestselling and award-winning series is historical gothic murder mystery at its best, and Ruby Vaughn returns in The Devil in Oxford. If someone were to ask American heiress Ruby Vaughn how exactly the occult came to play such a large role in her life, she would immediately point to her octogenarian housemate and employer, Mr. Owen. Together, the pair run a rare book shop in Exeter. Mr. Owen's penchant for arcane, unusual--and occasionally illegal--books has been known to get Ruby into her fair share of trouble. And after the last year, she is looking forward to spending a quiet holiday in picturesque Oxford while Mr. Owen attends the annual meeting of his antiquarian society. Secretly, Ruby is also looking for a holiday from her confounding feelings for Ruan Kivell, the intriguing folk healer Pellar that she met in Cornwall. When Mr. Owen secures two tickets to an upcoming exhibition of artifacts amassed by disgraced scholar Julius Harker, Ruby reluctantly agrees to attend. The evening turns out to be more eventful than either of them bargained for. Harker's dead body is discovered amongst the collection, his business partner is hastily arrested, and Ruan arrives...wanting to speak with Ruby. It seems both the arcane and her Pellar have followed Ruby to Oxford. The murder case is suspicious at best, but the last thing Ruby wants is another investigation. That is, until an old friend comes begging for Ruby's help. It soon becomes painfully clear that there is more going on in Oxford than meets the eye. Ruby and Ruan will have to uncover the dark secrets of the competitive world of antiquities while trying to understand the peculiar force that keeps drawing them back together.

October, 1922. Ruby Vaughn's octogenarian employer and housemate Mr Owen said the trip to Manhurst Castle in the Scottish Borders was to appraise some illuminated manuscripts for their bookshop. However, the truth soon unravels along with the decades-old secrets he has been carefully hiding. For Mr Owen, whose son Ben was killed in the Great War, is desperate to speak to him again and a trio of mediums billing themselves as The Three Fates are the answer to this keen wish. However, as the candle smoke from the séance clears, Ruby finds a body and discovers that she and Mr Owen are the prime suspects. In a desperate bid to clear their names, they must uncover the truth about the killing even as they realise someone is determined to prevent them at all costs.

1922. Ruby Vaughn has made a life for herself running a bookshop alongside octogenarian Mr Owen. When she finds herself at Penryth Hall, deep in the Cornish countryside, painful memories emerge of her lost friendship with Tamsyn, now married to the rather sinister Sir Edward Chenowyth. Although desperate to leave, Ruby's plans are thwarted when Penryth's bells ring for the first time in thirty years. Edward has been brutally killed in the orchard and fears are rife that a dormant curse has been awoken. Sceptical Ruby doesn't believe in such things, nor in the power the locals swear Ruan Kivell, the Pellar, possesses to break the curse. But, to protect her friend, Ruby must work alongside this unsettling man to find out what really happened that night.

October, 1922. Ruby Vaughn's octogenarian employer and housemate Mr Owen said the trip to Manhurst Castle in the Scottish Borders was to appraise some illuminated manuscripts for their bookshop. However, the truth soon unravels along with the decades-old secrets he has been carefully hiding. For Mr Owen, whose son Ben was killed in the Great War, is desperate to speak to him again and a trio of mediums billing themselves as The Three Fates are the answer to this keen wish. However, as the candle smoke from the séance clears, Ruby finds a body and discovers that she and Mr Owen are the prime suspects. In a desperate bid to clear their names, they must uncover the truth about the killing even as they realise someone is determined to prevent them at all costs.

1922. Since the Great War, Ruby Vaughn has made a life for herself running a rare bookshop alongside octogenarian Mr Owen. She thought that she had consigned painful memories of Penryth Hall, deep in the Cornish countryside, to the distant past. Returning to the hall, home to a once dear friend, Tamsyn, leads Ruby to cross paths with Tamsyn's sinister husband, Sir Edward Chenowyth. Desperate to leave, Ruby's plans are thwarted when Penryth's bells ring for the first time in thirty years. Edward has been brutally killed in the orchard prompting fears that a dormant curse has been awoken. The Pellar, Ruan Kivell, is summoned. The locals believe that this unsettling man can break the curse. Sceptical Ruby doesn't believe in curses or Pellars but to protect her friend, she must work alongside him to find out what really happened that night.

After the Great War, American heiress Ruby Vaughn made a life for herself running a rare bookstore alongside her octogenarian employer and house mate in Exeter. She’s always avoided dwelling on the past, even before the war, but it always has a way of finding her. When Ruby is forced to deliver a box of books to a folk healer living deep in the Cornish countryside, she is brought back to the one place she swore she’d never return. A more sensible soul would have delivered the package and left without rehashing old wounds. But no one has ever accused Ruby of being sensible. Thus begins her visit to Penryth Hall. A foreboding fortress, Penryth Hall is home to Ruby’s once dearest friend, Tamsyn, and her husband, Sir Edward Chenowyth. It’s an unsettling place, and after a more unsettling evening, Ruby is eager to depart. But her plans change when Penryth’s bells ring for the first time in thirty years. Edward is dead; he met a gruesome end in the orchard, and with his death brings whispers of a returned curse. It also brings Ruan Kivell, the person whose books brought her to Cornwall, the one the locals call a Pellar, the man they believe can break the curse. Ruby doesn’t believe in curses - or Pellars - but this is Cornwall and to these villagers the curse is anything but lore, and they believe it will soon claim its next victim: Tamsyn. To protect her friend, Ruby must work alongside the Pellar to find out what really happened in the orchard that night.