{"product_id":"2940170762095","title":"Hotspur: A Novel","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIn her well-received novel \u003ci\u003eOutfoxed\u003c\/i\u003e, Rita Mae Brown vividly and deftly brought to life the genteel world of foxhunting, where hunters, horses, hounds, and foxes form a tightly knit community amid old money and simmering conflicts. With \u003ci\u003eHotspur\u003c\/i\u003e, we return to the Southern chase amp;mdash; and to a hunt on the trail of a murderer.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eJane \"Sister\" Arnold may be in her 70s, but she shows no signs of losing her love for the hunt. As Master of the prestigious Jefferson Hunt Club in a well-heeled Virginia Blue Ridge Mountain town, she is the most powerful and revered woman in the county. She can assess the true merits of a man or a horse with uncanny skill. In short, Sister Jane is not easily duped.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhen the skeleton of Nola Bancroft, still wearing an exquisite sapphire ring on her finger, is unearthed, it brings back a 21-year-old mystery. Beautiful Nola was a girl who had more male admirers than her family had money, which was certainly quite a feat. In a world where a woman's ability to ride was considered one of her most important social graces, Nola was queen of the stable. She had a weakness for men, and her tastes often ventured toward the inappropriate, like the sheriff's striking son, Guy Ramy. But even Guy couldn't keep her eyes from wandering.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhen Nola and Guy disappeared on the Hunt's ceremonial first day of cubbing more than two decades ago, everyone assumed one of two things: Guy and Nola eloped to escape her family's disapproval, or Guy killed Nola in a jealous rage and vanished. But Sister Jane had never bought either of those theories.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSister knows all the players are probably still in place, the old feuds haven't died, and the sparks that led to a long-ago murder could flare up at any time.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eHotspur\u003c\/i\u003e brings all of Rita Mae Brown's storytelling gifts to the fore. It's a tale of Southern small-town manners and rituals, a compelling and intricate murder mystery, and a look at the human\/animal relationship in all its complexity and charm.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Recorded Books, LLC","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47100137472240,"sku":"2940170762095","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940170762095_p0.jpg?v=1763716750","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940170762095","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}