Murder Takes the Stage
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- ¥1,200
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- ¥1,200
発行者による作品情報
In this delightful historical mystery, Phyllida Bright—amateur sleuth and Agatha Christie’s esteemed housekeeper—discovers a killer stalking the stages of London’s illustrious theaters.
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 Adelphi 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 MO may be easy to read, but can Phyllida uncover the killer’s identity before the final curtain falls on another victim?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Agatha Christie's housekeeper, Phyllida Bright, gets a taste of the theatrical spotlight in this jaunty historical cozy from Cambridge (the fourth in a series, after Murder by Invitation). With one of Agatha's plays in the early stages of production on the West End, she and her husband, Max, lease a house in London to facilitate rehearsal visits. The move means Phyllida—whose feelings about London are "exceedingly complicated"—has her hands full organizing the housemaids, dealing with the Christies' arrogant new French chef (who looks unnervingly like Hercule Poirot), and bickering with their handsome chauffeur. Shortly after the household arrives in London, an actor dies onstage, presumably of natural causes. When two more West End performers turn up dead, Agatha starts to suspect a serial killer. She taps Phyllida to investigate discreetly, plunging the housekeeper into a world of backstabbing thespians. Like its predecessors, this frothy fair-play mystery is a cut above the standard, with just enough wit and well-drawn characters to make an impression. Series fans will be delighted.
