I borrowed this audiobook from the library.
Publisher: Kensington Books / Highbridge
Published: October 22, 2024
Summary:
A witty and inventive treat for lovers of all things Christie, Downton Abbey, and Knives Out, set in London and the English countryside and starring Phyllida Bright, fictional housekeeper to the great dame of detective fiction herself. “Dame Agatha would be proud” (Publishers Weekly).
Housekeeper Phyllida Bright is quite in her element at Mallowan Hall, the charming English manor that she keeps in tip-top shape. By contrast, the bustling metropolis of London, where her famed employer Agatha Christie has temporarily relocated, leaves Phyllida a bit out of her depth. Not only must she grapple with a limited staff, but Phyllida also has to rein in a temperamental French cook who has the looks of Hercule Poirot, but none of the charm.
When a man named Archibald Allston is found dead in an armchair onstage at the Adelphia Theater, first impressions are that he died of natural causes. But the very next day, the unlucky actor playing Benvolio at the Belmont Theater is found with his head bashed in. And when a third victim turns up, this time with double-C initials, the fatal pattern is impossible to ignore.
With panic erupting among theater folk—a superstitious bunch at the best of times—Phyllida steps up to help with the investigation. The murderer’s M.O. may be easy to read, but can Phyllida uncover the killer’s identity before the final curtain falls on another victim?
My thoughts:
This is the fourth book in Colleen Cambridge’s Phyllida Bright Mystery series and I somehow got behind in the series. The fifth book has just come out, so I am quickly getting myself caught up and oh what fun I had revisiting these characters!
I have really come to love housekeeper Phyllida Bright and her amateur sleuthing and boy does she have her work cut out for her in this latest installment! Because Agatha Christie and her husband have temporarily relocated to London for the time being, Phyllida finds herself taking care of their temporary housing there. A bit out of her element, and somewhat anxious about being in London for reasons unknown to the reader due to her past, Phyllida soon finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation that takes up all her energy.
I loved that the murders in this book had similarities to one of Agatha Christie’s own books – and I won’t mention which one for fear of spoiling anything – either with this book or the other one. Having read so many of AC’s books recently, it really is a treat to see where Colleen Cambridge draws her inspiration from, yet also makes the stories her own.
Audio thoughts:
I went the audio route again and was thrilled to see that it was the same narrator as the previous book. Jennifer M Dixon does a great job with the characters and her consistency book to book was perfection!
Books in series:
- Murder at Mallowan Hall
- A Trace of Poison
- Murder by Invitation Only
- Murder Takes the Stage
- Two Truths and a Murder
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