Customer Reviews

The Actor's Guide To Murder

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That's it! As I read through this in an afternoon, that's what I was thinking: this mystery reminds me of every sitcom I knew and loved, and some I didn't. It's funny, but it plays for the quick guffaw, not the introspective chuckle. And sometimes it plays for the slip-on-banana-peel howl. It's an amusement of the shallow variety--good entertainment without much involvement. And if that's your mood--it's good at what it does. And there are no commercials.

When 1980s teen icon Jarrod Jarvis is caught kissing another boy at the L.A. Gay Rodeo, "his star fades faster than a Kathie Lee Gifford CD" according to the dust jacket. That blurb alone convinced me to pick up the book and check out the first chapter. Boy, am I glad, too. Finally, a gay mystery that features characters who happen to be gay. The self-deprecating humor and vicious in-jokes made me chuckle aloud--a rare feat when I read. The story itself is standard cozy mystery fare, and I identified the killer halfway through, yet, unlike with other mysteries, once I thought I had the killer pegged, I still wanted to read to see how our hero figured it out.

Well written, breezy, with memorable characters and a terrific sense of humor. Recommended for all but the homophobic right-wing uncle we all have....

If Augusten Burroughs and David Sedaris got together with Sue Grafton and Agatha Christie, the result would probably be something very close to Rick Copp's fabulously entertaining debut novel, "The Actor's Guide To Murder".

Every once in a while a new voice in fiction comes along and spins an old genre in an exciting new direction. Copp does this brilliantly: refracting the classic mystery franchise formula through prism of smart social satire that is so effective because it's never caught trying. The mystery is full of fun twists, the characters are quirky and real, the Hollywood setting vivid. Most of all, the book is knee-slappingly funny. What more could you ask for...? (Except, perhaps, his next book!)

The Actor's Guide to Murder by Rick Copp is a wonderfully entertaining read, and a pretty darn good who done it as well. This charming story of a once famous child star determined to get to the bottom of his friend's death kept me burning the midnight oil. The book is full of interesting characters, and manages to maintain a good but not overblown sense of humor throughout. I was particularly fond of the twins, but I don't want to say any more about them, as I don't want to give anything about the murder plot away. I found the narrator and main character, former child star Jarrod Jarvis, to be well rounded and totally believable, and I found his butch but sensitive boyfriend Charlie the cop to be every gay man's dream...well at least mine. I love a book that has a strong and loving gay relationship at its core. The Actor's Guide to Murder does not disappoint on this score. With many an unexpected twist and turn, I found this book to be a fun filled ride through the murderous hills of Hollywood. I could not put it down! I highly recommend it.

This book (and its sequels) will definitely go on the "guilty pleasures" list. Here's why: these books are to the mystery genre what "Dawson's Creek" was to tv drama.

If you're looking for deep characters, meaningful plots and the kind of mystery that will stick with you long after the book is finished, these books are not for you. If you're looking for a light read, a lead character who drops more pop culture references than your average Gilmore Girl, and the kind of mystery you'd see solved in an hour on a tv show, then these books are definitely for you.

The lead character is Jarrod Jarvis, former child actor (on an 80s ABC Friday night comedy called "Go To Your Room!") best known for his catchphrase "Baby, don't go there!" Jarrod's career came to a screeching halt when he was 16 and was photographed kissing another boy at a gay rodeo. Thankfully, Jarrod's parents investing his 5 seasons worth of income well, and as an adult now he lives comfortably with his cop boyfriend Charlie in the hills outside LA.

The first book in the series, "Guide to Murder," starts the ball rolling when Jarrod discovers a fellow former child star murdered and vows to solve the crime (even though the police rule it an accidental death). From there, the pace is fast, the action is broken out like the acts of an hour-long detective show, and the pop-cult references are fast and furious.

Despite his self-absorption and penchant for dropping names, Jarrod is a very likeable character. Likeable enough that even though I thought the resolution to "Murder" came around a bit out of left field, I will still read the second book, "The Actors Guide to Adultery."

Author Rick Copp has worked as a tv writer for many years, and his credits currently include the Teen Titans cartoon among other sitcoms and action shows. His style is definitely "light and breezy."

Recommended, as I said, if you want some light reading.

When a former child star actor is found dead in his own pool just after landing a juicy new role, the door of opportunity is wide open: campy fun? noir crime novel? wide-ranging Hollywood satire? Yet Actor's Guide, written by TV script author Copp, remains bland and distant. This type of thing is done much better in other books, and why not read those instead?

Where the plot should be carried by dialogue, such as in Robert Parker's much sparer and funnier Spenser mysteries, it is instead burdened by exposition and remarkably similar characters. In Actor's Guide, child star, cop, and billionairess are all cut from the same bland prime time-TV mold. Even the main plot line of murder is artificial and pointless, similar to a typical sitcom plot.

Readers looking for serious gay crime fiction should search out the late Joseph Hansen's David Brandstetter mysteries (e.g., Fadeout), John Morgan Wilson's Benjamin Justice series, or Michael Nava's work.

Campy is a lot campier if you're reading Nathan Aldyne's "Slate" or "Cobalt," or Orland Outland's "Death Wore a Smart Little Outfit," or "Death Wore the Emperor's New Clothes." Campy exposes of Hollywood/LA can be found in the hilarious "Sex Toys of the Gods" and "Glamourpuss" by Christian McLaughlin.

Potential readers of those works should be warned. Romance there seems dangerous and serious, as does love. They can contain sex scenes and crime scenes more immediate, sometimes scarier, sometimes funnier than Mr. Copp's antiseptic rendering.

Actor's Guide would play well on network or cable TV, but you, gentle reader, should set your standards a touch higher.

Rick Copp surprised me.

I picked up this book on a whim after I saw a friend of mind reading 'An Actor's Guide to Greed', he really liked it and recommended I start with the first book.

Well, I couldn't have been happier, and I couldn't put the book down, I finally finished around 3am because I just had to know what was going to happen next.

I love a good book, and a good mystery, and this certainly fit the bill.

It's light hearted and easy to read, it will make you laugh certainly, but there's a few unexpected touching moments as well several heart pounding ones that had me on the edge.

Best of all, it will keep you guessing until the end, there are some great plot twists in 'Murder'.

Nicely done Rick! I can't wait to read the next two, and hopefully, many more to come!

...

Author Rick Copp does a wonderful job portraying the Hollywood that lies under the glamour that we see on television and in the magazines. Stars sell themselves for a few bucks, let their egos be defined by today's role, and let the media define their relationships and their honesty. Copp's descriptions and dialogue are frequently laugh-out-loud funny and Jarrod makes a convincing and sympathetic character. Mystery readers are likely to guess the killer a long time before Jarrod does, but that doesn't keep this short mystery from being an enjoyable read.

I can't believe Hollywood is really this shallow, but wouldn't we all like to think it is? The stars are money-hungry, admiration-greedy and maximally insecure. Because he was a child star, Jarrod will never have to work again. And that might be a distinct possibility after he's photographed kissing another guy at a gay rodeo.

His lover, Charlie, is there to buffet the winds of craziness as Jarrod's life changes. Jarrod runs into an old friend, Willard, who is vying for an acting part. Willard wins it, but is the loser when he turns up dead. Jarrod investigates, and while I don't want to give anything away, just let it be said that it's a satisfying amateur-sleuth book.

He grew up on a Friday night sitcom and everyone adored him until he was caught making out with a male teenager at a gay rodeo. That picture in the paper torpedoed his career but his parents invested his money wisely so Jarrod Davis doesn't have to work a day in his life if he chooses not too. He still wants to act so he makes the rounds but is committed to his live-in lover Charlie and their Pekinese dog Snickers.

At an audition Jarrod runs into his first love Willard Ray Hornsby, and his friend wins the part. Jarrod invites him to his home to celebrate getting the role and his birthday but Willard never arrives. Jarrod and Charlie check on Willard only to find him floating dead in his pool. The coroner rules it an accidental death but Jarrod is sure it is murdered and he intends to prove it at any cost.

THE ACTOR'S GUIDE TO MURDER is a serio-comic amateur sleuth novel featuring a stubborn, but lovable hero who risks his own life to see that justice prevails. His long-suffering lover and roommate has to keep getting him out of dangerous situations that makes for some very funny conversations between the two. Jarrod manages in his own indubitable fashion to make enemies of everyone. One other point of interest is that the hero believes his friend was murdered because his psychic predicted it.

Harriet Klausner