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The Secret of the Three Fates

A Ruby Vaughn Mystery

#2 in series

ebook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available

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 séance 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 séance—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.

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    • Publisher's Weekly

      September 30, 2024
      American heiress Ruby Vaughn returns in Armstrong’s irresistible sequel to The Curse of Pentryth Hall. In 1922, Ruby is under the impression that she and her elderly housemate, Mr. Owen, are headed to Scotland to pick up ornate manuscripts for the rare bookshop they own together. When the pair arrives at Manhurst Castle, however, Ruby learns that Owen has tricked her into accompanying him to a séance with his dead son. Initially, she’s furious; Ruby still hasn’t forgiven Owen for putting her in contact with the afterlife during the events of the previous novel. She sets her anger aside, however, after one of the three mediums Owen has hired for the séance turns up dead. When another soothsayer goes missing, Ruby and Owen become the primary suspects, and Ruby gets back in touch with Cornwall witch Ruan Kivell to find out who’s framing her and why. Evocative descriptions of 20th-century Britain and Armstrong’s unique mix of gothic grandeur, supernatural flourishes, and cozy-adjacent sweetness make this sequel sing. It’s sure to satisfy series fans and newcomers alike.

    • Library Journal

      October 1, 2024

      Heiress and antiquarian-bookshop proprietor Ruby Vaughn returns in the sequel to Armstrong's gothic historical mystery debut, The Curse of Penryth Hall (winner of the Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Award). When a s�ance goes awry and one of the mediums is murdered, Ruby and her employer, Mr. Owen, investigate to clear their own names. Prepub Alert.

      Copyright 2024 Library Journal

      Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

    • Kirkus

      October 15, 2024
      An American heiress becomes caught up in a series of mysterious deaths at a Scottish castle. Ruby Vaughn is as infuriated as she is intrigued when she discovers that her octogenarian employer, Mr. Owen, has brought her to Manhurst Castle to buy illuminated manuscripts that don't exist. When he confesses that his real reason for the visit is to take part in a s�ance that will put him in contact with his son, killed in World War I, she follows him, certain that the three mediums they will see (who call themselves the Three Fates) are frauds. The s�ance is brought to an abrupt close by the shocking accusation that Mr. Owen is a murderer. Ruby realizes that nothing about this adventure and people she and Mr. Owen meet are quite what they seem, including the elderly medium who dies shortly afterward by apparent suicide. From the moment the body is discovered, Armstrong draws readers deep into an ever-twisting, page-turning narrative set against a haunting gothic backdrop. Ruby, along with a handsome folk healer named Ruan who has followed her to Manhurst to warn her of impending danger, soon begins to uncover clues about family betrayals, lost loves, secret identities, and deadly sexual predators. But the closer she comes to the truth about her beloved employer and his entangled history, the more she is forced to face truths about her own painful past and the disturbing but profound psychic and physical connection she has with Ruan, a man with blood ties to the supernatural world of mermaids and witches. Armstrong's deft merging of mystery and gothic genre elements make this novel, the second in her Ruby Vaughn series, a suspenseful, sometimes chilling read that never ceases to surprise and delight. Eerie and thoroughly bewitching.

      COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

    • Booklist

      January 10, 2025
      Armstrong (The Curse of Penryth Hall, 2023) brings readers the further adventures of Ruby Vaughn, the disgraced American socialite who has found a new life in England as the assistant to rare book dealer Mr. Owen. When Mr. Owen receives a telegram saying that there are illuminated manuscripts at Manhurst Castle in Scotland, he and Ruby travel to investigate, but find none there. In fact, someone has lured Mr. Owen to a s�ance, saying that he will be able to contact his son who was killed in World War I. Instead, Ruby and Mr. Owen uncover a history of dreadful things happening to women at the castle. One of the mediums is murdered and further killings ensue. Ruby and Mr. Owen are obvious suspects, and they must work to clear their names. Ruby turns to Ruan, the Cornish Pellar she met on her previous case, for help. They uncover a family history full of scandal and nearly die in the process. Readers who enjoy traditional British mysteries with a touch of the Gothic and the occult will enjoy this story, though they may need a family tree to keep the characters straight.

      COPYRIGHT(2025) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

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