"Typical Brett: Well-realized characters and urbane dialogue...a pronounced
touch of irony."New York Times Book Review

Charles Paris, middle-aged actor turned amateur sleuth, is vacationing at a small English seaside
town. Irresistibly drawn to anything theatrical, Charles seeks entertainment at the local music hall
and endures a series of not-so-wonderful vaudeville acts in the hope that the man given star billing
will be worth watching. This performer, Bill Peaky, comes on stage with his electric guitar, grasps
the microphoneand drops dead, due to faulty wiring of the stage equipment.

It looks like an accident, but Charles is not so sure and starts to find out more about the people in
the other acts on the billJanine, the pretty dancer who disappears; Miffy Turtle, Peaky's manager,
a little too sharply dressed and too sharp altogether; Chox Morton, seedy and unduly nervous,
manager of another act; Lennie Barber, one-time star comedian trying to make a comeback. The
more Charles investigates, the more suspects turn up.

Simon Brett worked as a producer with BBC radio before turning to writing full-time. A former president of Britain's Crime Writers Association, he is the creator of the Mrs. Pargeter mysteries and the Charles Paris series as well as the Fethering mysteries. He lives in the South of England with his family.

Frederick Davidson is a recipient of the Golden Voices Award and numerous Earphones Awards. After performing for years in many BBC radio plays, he came to America in 1976. He has narrated more than eight hundred audiobooks.