The Deadly Dance 30 [15] Beaton, M

(15/30) The Deadly Dance 30 [15] Beaton, M. C. Minotaur Books (2010) Bossy, impulsive, and unlucky in love, the all-too-human Agatha Raisin has proved to be a surprisingly effective---and endearing---amateur sleuth. But can Agatha make it as a private investigator? After getting mugged on vacation, in what she will always think of as the Paris Incident, she decides to find out. Agatha soon learns that running her own detective agency in the Cotswolds is not quite like starring in a Raymond Chandler movie. Instead of dames in distress with big shoulder pads, her clients are ladies with missing cats and a man whose son has run off with his car. Agatha even worries that she might be outclassed by her sixty-seven-year- old secretary, Emma Comfrey. But then wealthy divorcée Catherine Laggat-Brown walks in with their first "real" case. Mrs. Laggat- Brown's daughter has received a death threat, and when Agatha thwarts an attack on the girl at a dinner dance, she recognizes an opportunity to show what Raisin Investigations can do. Even better, the case gives her a chance to reunite with her long-absent friend, Sir Charles Fraith. As they scour the Cotswolds in search of leads, Charles' insights prove invaluable and his charms irresistible, leading poor Emma to fall madly in love with him. As ever, Agatha bumbles her way through the case, trying her friends' patience and flirting shamelessly with the chief suspect. Will she put her tiny agency on the map, or has even the outrageous Agatha finally bitten off more than she can chew? GET A CLUE! Be the first to hear the latest mystery book news.… With the St. Martin’s Minotaur monthly newsletter, you’ll learn about the hottest new Minotaur books, receive advance excerpts from newly published works, read exclusive original material from featured mystery writers, and be able to enter to win free books! Sign up on the Minotaur Web site at: www.minotaurbooks.com CRITICS HAIL AGATHA RAISIN AND M. C. BEATON! “Beaton’s Agatha Raisin series just about defines the British cozy.” —Booklist “Few things in life are more satisfying than to discover a brand new Agatha Raisin mystery.” —The Tampa Tribune-Times “Beaton has a winner in the irrepressible, romance-hungry Agatha.” —Chicago Sun-Times “The Raisin series brings the cozy tradition back to life. God bless the Queen!” —Tulsa World THE DEADLY DANCE “Its been 40 years since Dame Agatha Christies death, and in that time, reviewers have often bestowed her mantle on new authors. M. C. Beaton is one of those so honored, and she deserves it. When it comes to artfully constructed puzzle plots and charming settings, Beaton serves it up … This is a classic British cozy plot, and a setting done with panache. Maybe M. C. Beaton really is the new ‘Queen of Crime.’” —The Globe & Mail “It is always fun to read an Agatha Raisin mystery, but the latest installment freshens up a delightful series by converting the heroine from amateur sleuth to professional without changing her caustic wit. Agatha remains crude and rude even to clients, but also retains that vulnerability that endears her to readers ” —Midwest Book Review “A very satisfying change for the smart woman of mystery with a new cast of colorfully realized characters blending with a few old favorites.” —Mystery Lovers Bookshop “The story was first-rate and moved along with many twists and turns that kept me always guessing … I read this book in one sitting, which I think speaks for itself” —I Love a Mystery “Fans of Agatha Raisin will be absolutely delighted at this latest addition to the series. Ms. Beaton has surpassed herself in The Deadly Dance.” —Reviewing the Evidence ALSO BY M. C. BEATON Agatha Raisin Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House Agatha Raisin and the Case of the Curious Curate Agatha Raisin and the Day the Floods Came Agatha Raisin and the Love from Hell Agatha Raisin and the Fairies of Fryfam Agatha Raisin and the Witch of Wyckhadden Agatha Raisin and the Wizard of Evesham Agatha Raisin and the Wellspring of Death Agatha Raisin and the Terrible Tourist Agatha Raisin and the Murderous Marriage Agatha Raisin and the Walkers of Dembley Agatha Raisin and the Potted Gardener Agatha Raisin and the Vicious Vet Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death The Skeleton in the Closet Writing as Marion Chesney Snobbery with Violence Hasty Death Sick of Shadows THE DEADLY DANCE M. C. BEATON St. Martin’s Paperbacks NOTE: If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed ” to the publisher, and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.” For Richard Rasdall of Stow-on-the-Wold, his wife, Lyn, and children, Luke, Samuel, and Bethany, and with many thanks to Richard for freeing up Agatha’s brain THE DEADLY DANCE Copyright © 2004 by M. C. Beaton. Excerpt from The Perfect Paragon © 2005 by M. C. Beaton. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. For information address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2004049036 ISBN: 0-312-98474-X EAN: 9780312-98474-8 Printed in the United States of America St. Martin’s Press hardcover edition / November 2004 St. Martin’s Paperbacks edition / January 2006 St. Martin’s Paperbacks are published by St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 ONE THE thing that finally nudged Agatha Raisin into opening her own detective agency was what she always thought of as the Paris Incident. Made restless by the summer torpor blanketing the village of Carsely in the Cotswolds, Agatha decided to take a week’s holiday in Paris. She was a rich woman, but like all rich people was occasionally struck by periods of thrift, and so she had booked into a small hotel off Saint Germain des Prés in the Latin Quarter. She had visited Paris before and seen all the sights; this time wanted only to sit in cafés and watch the people go by or take long walks by the Seine. But Paris, after the first two days, became even hotter than Carsely and her hotel room did not have any air- conditioning. As the heat mounted to 105 degrees Fahrenheit and she tossed and turned on her damp sheets, she discovered that Paris never sleeps. There were two restaurants across the road with outside tables, and, up until one in the morning, the accordion players came around to get money from the diners. Agatha, as she listened to another rendering of “La Vie en Rose,” fantasized about lobbing a hand grenade through the window. Then there was the roar of the traffic and the yells of the tourists who had drunk not too wisely. Later on, as they felt not too well, she could hear moans and retching. Nonetheless, she decided to see as much of Paris as possible. The Metro was cheap and went all over the place. On the fourth day of her visit, she went down into the Metro at Maubert-Mutualité. She sat down on a hard plastic seat on the platform and pulled out her subway map. She planned to go to W. H. Smith on the Rue de Rivoli and buy some English books. As she heard the train approaching, she stuffed the map back in her handbag, flipped open the doors of the carriage with that silver handle which had so bemused her when she had first tried to board, and went inside, aware that someone was crowding behind her, and at the same time feeling a sort of tremor reverberating from her handbag up through the shoulder strap. She glanced down and saw that her handbag was open again and that her wallet was missing. Agatha stared wrathfully at the man who had crowded behind her. He was of medium height, white, with black hair, wearing a blue shirt and blue jeans. “Here, you!” Agatha advanced on him. He nipped out of the carriage and into the next one, with Agatha in pursuit. Just as she was leaning forward to grab him and the train was moving out, he wrenched open the doors of the carriage and escapedonto the platform, leaving Agatha, who did not have the strength to do the same thing, being carried furiously away to the next station. Agatha blamed the hairdresser. A Parisian hairdresser had told her that there was no crime around Maubert because of the huge commissariat. So Agatha took the Métro back to Maubert, darted up the escalator and demanded directions to the commissariat. She was told it was just round the corner. It was an ugly modern building with steep steps up to the main entrance. Dripping with sweat and bad temper, Agatha erupted into the entrance hall. There was a very beautiful girl with long dark hair sitting behind bulletproof glass. Agatha poured out her tale of the mugging, expecting to be shown to some detective’s room immediately, but the girl began to interview her. Agatha thought sourly that someone so young and attractive should give way to someone with a bit more authority. She was fortunate in that she had only had sixty euros in her wallet and that she had left her credit cards in the hotel safe.

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