The Case of the Murdered Players

Special effects might look like magic to the audience, but there’s always someone behind a curtain pulling the strings

Someone is targeting the best actresses in London, and the only way to keep Verna Tillet safe is to keep her off the stage until Andrew Tillet, Sara Wiggins, and Inspector Peter Wyatt can find out who the deadly killer is.
 
But Andrew’s mother isn’t going to like being kept in the dark, and with a mysterious criminal mastermind set to take over London’s sordid underworld, Wyatt has his hands full already. For extra help, the intrepid sleuths turn to their friend Baron Beasley, a gentle giant of a man whose job as an antiquities dealer provides plenty of opportunities to meet people from every level of London society—including a colorful reformed safecracker. They’ll all have to work together to solve the case before time runs out . . . and the killer turns his attention to Verna.

Born in New York City, Robert Newman (1909–1988) was among the pioneers of early radio and was chief writer for the Inner Sanctum Mysteries and Murder at Midnight—forerunners of The Twilight Zone that remain cult favorites to this day. In 1944 Newman was put in charge of the radio campaign to reelect Franklin D. Roosevelt. He was also one of the founding members of the Radio Writers Guild, which became the Writers Guild of America.

In 1973 Newman began writing books for children, most notably the Andrew Tillet, Sara Wiggins & Inspector Wyatt mysteries. The series takes place in Victorian London and follows the adventures of two teenage amateur detectives who begin as Baker Street Irregulars. Newman has also written books of fantasy, among them Merlin’s Mistake and The Testing of Tertius. His books based on myths and folklore include Grettirthe Strong, and he has published two adult novels.

Newman was married to the writer Dorothy Crayder. Their daughter, Hila Feil, has also published novels for children and young adults. Newman lived his last days in Stonington, Connecticut.