Up Jumps the Devil

Up Jumps the Devil
AuthorMargaret Maron
LanguageEnglish
GenreMystery novel
PublisherMysterious Press
Publication dateSeptember 10, 1996
Publication placeUnited States
Pages278
ISBN0-89296-568-1
Preceded byShooting at Loons 
Followed byKiller Market 

Up Jumps the Devil is a mystery novel by American author Margaret Maron, first published by Mysterious Press in 1996. The fourth in the Deborah Knott novel series, it follows the namesake North Carolina judge as she investigates close-to-home murders over the sale of farmland to land developers. It received praise from critics for its writing quality, characters, and detailed setting, culminating in winning the Agatha Award for Best Novel in 1996, despite some criticism of the mystery itself being lacking in comparison.

Plot

Up Jumps the Devil follows Deborah Knott, a 36-year-old district judge in her home state of North Carolina. She is the youngest of twelve children, and the only daughter. They live out in the country, and there is growing pressure to sell their land to people moving in from the city. Deborah, her father (an ex-moonshiner), and some of her brothers (all of whom own land nearby) want to keep their land, while others are looking to sell, which causes tension in the family. Deborah is drawn into the investigation when their neighbor Dallas Stancil, an old friend of her father's from his moonshining days, is murdered by his stepson and wife after refusing to sell his land. This brings one of Dallas's cousins, Allen Stancil, back into town; he is Deborah's ex-husband from a brief marriage when she was 18 years old that she regrets immensely. When Dallas's father is murdered while figuring out how to divide the estate, Deborah tries to solve the mystery while also keeping her own family together as her hometown changes with the times, with multiple plausible suspects in the case.

Publication history

Up Jumps the Devil was first published on September 10, 1996 by Mysterious Press. It is the fourth book in Margaret Maron's Deborah Knott novel series, which started with Bootlegger's Daughter in 1992. It was preceded by Shooting at Loons and followed by Killer Market in 1997.

Reception

Up Jumps the Devil was frequently praised by critics for its characters and setting. Kirkus Reviews and the Sun-Sentinel's Oline Cogdill both considered Deborah's courtroom cases to be a highlight. Allyson Duncan of the News and Record enjoyed the political and social themes present in the changing era of the American south, as the role of land changed, in addition to the other Southern characteristics in the writing. Although The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Kristina Brooks found that the family and political arguing about land ownership was often more in-depth than necessary, she still enjoyed the look into the local culture.

It received a starred review from Publishers Weekly for its detailed writing, characters, and plot. Kirkus Reviews considered the actual mystery plot to be less interesting than the interplay between the characters and the changing nature of the "New South". The actual mystery plot was frequently considered to be the least engaging part of the novel. San Francisco Chronicle mystery reviewer Peter Handel wondered why Maron was writing in the genre instead of focusing on the region and complicated cast of characters, while the Salisbury Post's Deirde Smith wrote that the mystery plot was "shortchange[d]" in favor of the family dynamics, though still positive on Maron's storytelling overall. Both agreed that the characters were so numerous it was often confusing, even among Deborah's family alone. Smith and Duncan both criticized for being unsatisfying, with the last chapter focusing on the family property rather than the mystery. Despite this, it was still critically successful, winning the Agatha Award for Best Novel in 1996.

References

  1. 1 2 Cogdill, Oline H. (October 13, 1996). "Finding A Dark Side of Growth in South". Sun Sentinel. p. F.11. ProQuest 388482005.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Up Jumps The Devil". Kirkus Reviews. No. 15. August 1, 1996. ISSN 1948-7428. ProQuest 917215713. Archived from the original on April 17, 2026. Retrieved August 27, 2026.
  3. 1 2 Wentworth, Anna (November 10, 1996). "Southern setting more vital than plot in mystery". The Roanoke Times. p. 72. Archived from the original on April 25, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. 1 2 3 Smith, Deirdre Parker (December 22, 1996). "Judge Deborah tackles a 'Knott-y' problem". Salisbury Post. p. 45. Archived from the original on April 17, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ Steelman, Ben (September 15, 1996). "Tar Heel Mystery". Morning Star. p. 6D. ISSN 1937-4097. ProQuest 285481655.
  6. ↑ Brainard, Dulcy (June 16, 1997). "Killer Market". Publishers Weekly. Vol. 244, no. 24. p. 47. ISSN 0000-0019. ProQuest 197033504. Archived from the original on August 4, 2025. Retrieved August 27, 2026.
  7. ↑ Stasio, Marilyn (September 29, 1996). "Crime". The New York Times Book Review. p. 28. ISSN 0028-7806. ProQuest 2571156965.
  8. 1 2 Wilkinson, Joanne (August 1996). "Up Jumps the Devil by Margaret Maron". Booklist. Vol. 92, no. 22. p. 1887. ISSN 0006-7385. ProQuest 235409514.
  9. 1 2 Duncan, Allyson (October 6, 1996). "Richly textured but disappointing". News and Record. p. 95. Archived from the original on April 17, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ Brooks, Kristina (September 29, 1996). "Maron's 'Up Jumps the Devil' unravels just right". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. p. L11. ISSN 2473-1609. ProQuest 247403072 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ Brainard, Dulcy (July 15, 1996). "Up Jumps the Devil". Publishers Weekly. Vol. 243, no. 29. p. 58. ISSN 0000-0019. ProQuest 197015025. Archived from the original on July 18, 2026. Retrieved August 27, 2026.
  12. ↑ Handel, Peter (September 1, 1996). "Crimes Out of the Past". San Francisco Chronicle. p. 154 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ "Agatha Awards". Stop, You're Killing Me!. Archived from the original on December 25, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2026.