Cue the action and catch a killer in THERE'S NO MURDER LIKE SHOW MURDER, M.S. Greene’s new delightful and entertaining cozy debut. Everyone knows the show must go on, but murder definitely casts a shadow on the production, and finding a killer before the show’s opening night will take all the resources costume designer Tasha Weaver has in her toolbox.
Tasha Weaver loves her job as the costume shop head at the Eastbrook Playhouse in her small Connecticut hometown. The mid-regional theater and its employees have been Tasha’s family over the years, helping soften the loss of her mother to cancer. Yet, the playhouse is struggling, and the current production of Annie Get Your Gun, starring two Broadway stars, is the catalyst to make the playhouse financially sound again. However, one star, Kurt Mozer, is difficult to work with, and when he winds up dead, Tasha is afraid someone from the theater crew killed the demanding star. Now Tasha has a slew of suspects, including a few theater directors, a shady local real estate developer, a squirrely agent, a replacement actor, a suspicious husband, a sneaky starlet, and a fledgling restaurateur. Can Tasha figure out who the murderer is and save the Eastbrook Playhouse before opening night?
THERE’S NO MURDER LIKE SHOW MURDER is a winning mystery debut featuring drama and behind-the-scenes action at a local mid-regional playhouse. There are the actors, crew, fame, costumes, rehearsals, romances, and squabbles that accompany any theater production. This mystery is a perfect balance of relationship, work, and community drama. Tasha's world is the playhouse, but its impact on the local community and its struggles to maintain a presence in a technology-driven world is center stage. Tasha is a likeable protagonist and a cat lover. The theater employees are her family, and she is still healing from the loss of her mother, trying to reconnect with old friends, and exploring (slowly) a possible love interest. She has a straightforward sleuthing approach and there are plenty of suspects and action to drive the plot to a good, solid ending. THERE’S NO MURDER LIKE SHOW MURDER is highly entertaining from the opening act until the final curtain call.
Tasha Weaver has seen her fair share of divas come and go while working as the costume shop head at the Eastbrook Playhouse, but her beloved theater is put at risk when the star of the show is killed in this fun but deadly debut for fans of Ellery Adams and Kellye Garrett.
Tasha Weaver is most at home in the cozy backstage world of the Eastbrook Playhouse. As the costume shop head at the charming regional theater, she’s used to watching dramatic acts of love and revenge from the shadows. But when Kurt Mozer—the insufferable Broadway reject who stars in their production of Annie Get Your Gun—is shot center stage, the spotlight turns to her.
Everyone knows Kurt was difficult to work with, and after he got into a fight with both director Marnie Mason and artistic leader Arthur Winston, he promptly decided to quit the show. In deep financial trouble, the Eastbrook Playhouse depended on a big name like Kurt to keep afloat. With reporters coming in from the Big Apple to Tasha’s little corner of Connecticut, she realizes it's up to her to save their local theater and keep her community safe. After all, the show must go on…but what do you do when the killer could very well be one of your loved ones?
With the help of her friends, her long-time crush Bruno Machado, and her feline colleague Hilly, Tasha must catch a murderer before the shining lights of the playhouse go out forever.