Murder in the Title [Paperback]

Simon Brett (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1990

Text for Author Bio: Simon Brett is a former radio and television comedy producer, who has been writing full-time for more than twenty years. Creator of the Charles Parks, Mrs. Pargeter and Feathering series of mysteries, his psychological thriller, A Shock to the System was filmed, starring Michael Caine. Married, with three children, he lives in an Agatha Christie-style village in West Sussex, England. Text for book description: Simon Brett again takes us behind the scenes in a back-stage drama of crime and detection. This time its the world of provincial rep, with an historic theatre threatened with closure by unscrupulous property developers. And the theatre management seems to be digging its own grave: a deplorable choice of current productions; a painfully incompetent director; bizarre accidents happening on stage. Charles, as Mr. Bretts readers know, is an amateur detective and a professional actor. As an actor his career is still on the way down, with not much further to go. But as a detective he goes from strength to strength. He soon establishes that someone is deliberately sabotaging the company. All this culminates in a spectacular suicide. Or is it murder, as Charles Paris suspects? Text for Review Box: "A mystery that astounds and delights. A hit." Booklist "Every page is gentle fun." Daily Telegraph

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

In his latest stage performance, Charles Paris hits a new low in his less-than-stellar career, for in The Message Is Murder, he plays a corpse. As this part allows him too much backstage time, he quite often is dead drunk by the time he makes his appearance. But when accidents begin to happen, Charles, amateur sleuth, is pulled out of his despair and is once again searching for the culprit. The accidents escalate until a death occurs behind the scenes. Was it suicide or murder? Brett will keep the reader and Charles guessing until the end. More than a mystery, Murder in the Title is a glimpse backstage at a genteel but failing small provincial theater. Simon Prebble's narration of this showstopper is excellent; highly recommended for all public libraries.DTheresa Connors, Arkansas Tech Univ., Russellville
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

About the Author

Simon Brett is a former radio and television comedy producer, who has been writing full-time for more than twenty years. Creator of the Charles Paris, Mrs. Pargeter and Fethering series of mysteries, his psychological thriller, A Shock to the System was filmed, starring Michael Caine. Married with three children, he lives in an Agatha Christie-style village in West Sussex, England. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Warner Books Inc (Mm) (October 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446359548
• ISBN-13: 978-0446359542
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,149,845 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very enjoyable book, April 9, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Murder in the Title (Paperback)

Murder in the Title is an excellent example of the humorous murder mystery genre. This book, like all of Simon Brett's Charles Paris novels, is centered around the English theatre scene, complete with egotistical actors, inefficient theatre staff and back-biting galore. This particular book has some extremely hillarious dialogues that will make you laugh out loud. If you enjoy a mix of murder and humor, like Charlotte MacLeod, Lillian Jackson Braun, and Elizabeth Peters, with a bit of theatre and British dialogue thrown in, you will love this book. I highly recommend it.