The Strangling on the Stage (A Fethering Mystery)
*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. --Connie Fletcher