Dollycas's Thoughts
Now that her latest book is finished Jessica Fletcher is ready for a break. Her cousin Emma MacGill is traveling from the UK to Edmonton in Alberta, Canada to take part in an old-fashioned musical review. Derek Braverman is an internationally famous star of screen, television, and stage and is ready to retire but he wants one more big show and has invited Emma to be part of it. Emma would love for Jessica to be there for opening night. Emma even invites Dr. Seth Hazlitt, Sheriff Mort Metzger, and his wife Maureen. Seth and Mort are big fans of Derek Braverman so they are thrilled to go on the trip. Maureen is excited too.
Jessica hoping to fly under the radar and just have a good time is saddened that she is immediately recognized as mystery author J. B. Fletcher but she is even more upset that a member of the hotel staff assumes that she would be willing to have a book signing at the hotel gift shop. She explains several times she is not there to work, she is on vacation and has no plans to do a book signing. The staffer has also arranged for Jessica, Seth, Mort, and Maureen to take in the sights of Edmonton.
As if Jessica doesn't have enough on her plate, a hotel bartender and stagehand for Emma's musical review is found dead backstage at the theater. She suddenly finds herself and her friends investigating his murder. So much for a fun-filled vacation. Can Jessica go anywhere and not find a murder mystery to solve?
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It was so good to see Jessica, Seth, Maureen, and Mort get away from Cabot Cove for a little vacation. They all deserved it. The murder didn't happen until about 33% into the book so they did get to see some sights before the investigation began. What I really enjoy is that as a fan of the television series, I easily visualize the characters and hear their voices in my head.
Since Jessica didn't really know the deceased or any of the cast and crew she needed her cousin's help. While the show rehearsals didn't stop, they did move to another location, so Emma wasn't available very often forcing Jessica to get to know all the players/suspects in other ways. Readers are introduced to all these characters and the author does an excellent job of making each unique and memorable. Emma being an almost twin to Jessica was fun.
The murder mystery was very well-plotted with plenty of twists and turns. There was also the mystery of items missing from the hotel including Seth's prized pen. Jessica and her friends taking on an investigation in Edmonton was a delight especially when Sergeant Enook was familiar with the books of J. B. Fletcher. She knew Jessica wasn't going to sit idly by. It was great that Jessica, Emma, and the Sergeant were together when a major clue came from an unexpected place. What was even better was the way the Canadian police, Jessica, and Cabot Cove Sheriff Mort worked together to get the evidence they needed to make the arrest. I was totally surprised when the killer was revealed.
I really enjoyed touring around Edmonton, Alberta, Canada with my fictional friends from Cabot Cove. Their driver Rob was a fantastic guide with his knowledge about the places to see and the area's history. I would love to visit someday.
Murder, She Wrote: Murder Backstage was an entertaining read with the wonderful Jessica Fletcher solving another first-rate mystery. With the author's comfortable writing style and familiar characters it was easy to escape right into this latest Murder, She Wrote mystery.
Each book in this series reads well on its own, so don't think twice about starting with or jumping back in with Murder, She Wrote: Murder Backstage.
Now that her latest book is finished Jessica Fletcher is ready for a break. Her cousin Emma MacGill is traveling from the UK to Edmonton in Alberta, Canada to take part in an old-fashioned musical review. Derek Braverman is an internationally famous star of screen, television, and stage and is ready to retire but he wants one more big show and has invited Emma to be part of it. Emma would love for Jessica to be there for opening night. Emma even invites Dr. Seth Hazlitt, Sheriff Mort Metzger, and his wife Maureen. Seth and Mort are big fans of Derek Braverman so they are thrilled to go on the trip. Maureen is excited too.
Jessica hoping to fly under the radar and just have a good time is saddened that she is immediately recognized as mystery author J. B. Fletcher but she is even more upset that a member of the hotel staff assumes that she would be willing to have a book signing at the hotel gift shop. She explains several times she is not there to work, she is on vacation and has no plans to do a book signing. The staffer has also arranged for Jessica, Seth, Mort, and Maureen to take in the sights of Edmonton.
As if Jessica doesn't have enough on her plate, a hotel bartender and stagehand for Emma's musical review is found dead backstage at the theater. She suddenly finds herself and her friends investigating his murder. So much for a fun-filled vacation. Can Jessica go anywhere and not find a murder mystery to solve?
____
It was so good to see Jessica, Seth, Maureen, and Mort get away from Cabot Cove for a little vacation. They all deserved it. The murder didn't happen until about 33% into the book so they did get to see some sights before the investigation began. What I really enjoy is that as a fan of the television series, I easily visualize the characters and hear their voices in my head.
Since Jessica didn't really know the deceased or any of the cast and crew she needed her cousin's help. While the show rehearsals didn't stop, they did move to another location, so Emma wasn't available very often forcing Jessica to get to know all the players/suspects in other ways. Readers are introduced to all these characters and the author does an excellent job of making each unique and memorable. Emma being an almost twin to Jessica was fun.
The murder mystery was very well-plotted with plenty of twists and turns. There was also the mystery of items missing from the hotel including Seth's prized pen. Jessica and her friends taking on an investigation in Edmonton was a delight especially when Sergeant Enook was familiar with the books of J. B. Fletcher. She knew Jessica wasn't going to sit idly by. It was great that Jessica, Emma, and the Sergeant were together when a major clue came from an unexpected place. What was even better was the way the Canadian police, Jessica, and Cabot Cove Sheriff Mort worked together to get the evidence they needed to make the arrest. I was totally surprised when the killer was revealed.
I really enjoyed touring around Edmonton, Alberta, Canada with my fictional friends from Cabot Cove. Their driver Rob was a fantastic guide with his knowledge about the places to see and the area's history. I would love to visit someday.
Murder, She Wrote: Murder Backstage was an entertaining read with the wonderful Jessica Fletcher solving another first-rate mystery. With the author's comfortable writing style and familiar characters it was easy to escape right into this latest Murder, She Wrote mystery.
Each book in this series reads well on its own, so don't think twice about starting with or jumping back in with Murder, She Wrote: Murder Backstage.
