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Summary
Summary
When Jude agrees to lend her vintage chaise longue for the local Amateur Dramatics Society's production of George Bernard Shaw's The Devil's Disciple, little does she realize she'll end up in a starring role. It's an ambitious play, culminating in a dramatic execution scene: a scene that's played for real when one of the leading actors is found hanging from the especially-constructed stage gallows during rehearsals.
A tragic accident - or something more sinister? Carole and Jude make it their business to find out.
Reviews (4)
Publisher's Weekly Review
The world of amateur dramatics provides the backdrop for British author Brett's witty and intelligent 15th Fethering mystery (after 2012's The Corpse on the Court). During a rehearsal of George Bernard Shaw's The Devil's Disciple, the body of actor Ritchie Good is found dangling from the gallows on stage at Fethering's St. Mary's Hall, after someone substituted a real noose for the Velcro one designed for the production. Could Ritchie have committed suicide? Was his death somehow an accident? Once the police lose interest in the case, the victim's wife asks Carole Seddon and Jude Nichol to investigate. The two amateur detectives discover that members of the acting company, all engaged in petty intrigues, had good reason for wanting Ritchie dead. Amid a series of skillfully placed red herrings, the action builds to a resolution that will catch most readers by surprise. The motive when finally revealed is hilarious. (Feb.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
An amateur dramatic production turns deadly in the latest Fethering cozy. Jude Nichol, a former model and actor, has settled comfortably into her life as a healer in the English village of Fethering. When Storm Lavelle, one of her clients, asks Jude to bring a favorite prop for a production of the Smalting Amateur Drama and Operatic Society, Jude has her first chance to witness SADOS jealousies and backbiting in the rehearsal for George Bernard Shaw's The Devil's Disciple. She becomes more than an onlooker, however, in her attempts to help prompter Hester Winstone, who makes a suicidal gesture because of a one-night stand with lead actor Neville Prideaux. After a feud with guest actor Ritchie Goode, Elizaveta Dalrymple, the august widow of SADOS' founder, walks out on the production, and Jude finds herself back on stage in the grand dame's role. Jude persuades her neighbor and fellow amateur sleuth Carole Seddon, lately of the Home Office, to take over Hester's role as prompter. When Goode is found hanged on the prop gallows, Jude and Carole discreetly investigate the other members of the castthe beleaguered director, the set carpenter who built the gallows, the supremely self-idolizing Elizavetato find out whether the hanging was accidental. Or did the pompous and womanizing Goode have more enemies than anyone realized? Although Brett (A Decent Interval, 2013, etc.) effectively skewers small-town theatrics, occasional glints of pathos and an unexpectedly tragic outcome darken the tone. The abrupt return to the comfort of levity is as unconvincing as the murder motive itself.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
*Starred Review* Brett injects his latest Fethering mystery (the fifteenth) with the backstage maneuvers, short-lived affairs, and backstabbings (sometimes literal) that form the suspenseful spine of his theater-based Charles Paris series. As with the Paris mysteries, what goes on in rehearsal space, green room, dressing rooms, and the nearby pub totally upstages any actual acting. Brett's focus this time is on an amateur dramatic (or amdram) society in Fethering; part of the fun is seeing how Brett gets his two middle-aged women sleuths, who are far removed from any connection to the theater, involved in the production, so that, like Charles Paris, they have access to everything that occurs onstage and, more important, off. This particular amdram is run like a little fiefdom by the widow of a well-known local actor. The widow still gets the best parts, even if she's 30 years too old for them, and has a stranglehold over other roles in the productions. This heightens the tensions already present among local actors jockeying for parts, producing a poisonous atmosphere. At the center of the mystery is a very well constructed gallows to be used in the climactic hanging scene of the play; no spoiler here, but what Brett does with this bit of stagecraft is a stunner. As usual with the Fethering mysteries, the characterization of part-time sleuths Jude and Carole Seddon is rich with subtlety. And, as with the Charles Paris mysteries, readers are treated to a cunningly crafted mystery set in a world where stagecraft can serve sinister uses.--Fletcher, Connie Copyright 2010 Booklist
Library Journal Review
A community theater might not be where we'd expect to find veteran amateur sleuths Jude Nichol and Carole Seddon, but through a series of unconnected events, there they are in the midst of a George Bernard Shaw production. Shaw's play The Devil's Disciple involves a hanging; unfortunately for one thespian, the stage prop works too well. Not believing the death to be an accident, Jude and Carole know the responsible party must be a member of the troupe. It would be easy to blame the props craftsman for a faulty design, but Jude and Carole suspect that something more sinister motivated the killer. They make it their goal to find out. VERDICT Brett excels at character studies and social mores. His chatty and totally enjoyable 15th series entry (after The Corpse on the Court) is a breezy diversion, perfect for readers who enjoy British comic mysteries. (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.