Staging Death

When retired actress Vena Burford finds herself taking center stage again, it's in a role she never expected - as an unofficial private eye. She's been eking out a living as an interior decorator, refurbishing Aldred House, the stately home recently occupied by Toby Frensham, a Hollywood heart-throb with a bad boy reputation who's taking a lead role for the forthcoming season with the Royal Shakespeare Company in nearby Stratford upon Avon. Vena also works part-time for her estate agent brother, Greg, showing potential buyers around the top of the range country houses that are feathering his nest and providing her with a welcome, if unpredictable, commission. When a number of couples who don't fit the usual client profile begin to visit the properties, Vena is initially curious, then indignant, and finally alarmed. Why should these taciturn and frankly unsavory characters, who clearly have money but patently have no intention of buying, demand to explore every nook and cranny of the houses? And why do their beautifully dressed wives appear to be so cowed? When someone starts to tail Vena's car, leaving some silent but deeply threatening messages, it soon becomes clear that a very modern crime is being played out against the scenic background of leafy Warwickshire's picturesque towns and villages.


Genre: Mystery