Elizabeth Peters

Elizabeth Peters was the mystery-writing name of American Egyptologist Barbara G. Mertz, whose fiction pairs suspense with wit and strong women at the center of the action. Devil May Care is a stand-alone romantic mystery set around an old Virginia house. Ellie agrees to care for her aunt's crowded household of animals, but unsettling appearances and long local grudges soon disrupt the visit. With neighbor Donald Gold, she has to separate staged disturbances from threats rooted in the town's history. Dodd, Mead's 1977 edition used the hyphenated title Devil-May-Care, while later editions use the unhyphenated form. The audio edition is read by Grace Conlin. Peters also created the Amelia Peabody archaeological mysteries, work that reflects Mertz's doctorate in Egyptology from the University of Chicago. Her academic knowledge never displaced humor or character; instead, it helped her build mysteries in which research, eccentricity, and danger could occupy the same page.