Stage Fright

Although she has spent two terms in Holloway Prison for her suffragette activities, it is amateur sleuthing that's gaining Nell Bray a reputation. She has already solved two murders, and tales of her success are spreading throughout London - and reaching the ears of none other than George Bernard Shaw. The formidable playwright approaches Nell with a case: His leading lady is in danger, and Shaw wants to ensure she makes it safely to curtain time. For the new play, Cindrella Revisited, Shaw has reworked the classic into a scathing attack on English marital law. The plot bears more than a passing resemblance to the life of its star, Bella Flanagan: Like her character, Bella is trapped in a loveless marriage to a man interested only in her money. It seems that her husband, Lord Penwardine, is no more willing to allow his wife to tread the stage than to give her her freedom. Threats and sabotage have followed the actress throughout rehearsals. With Nell's help the play does finally open - but hardly without a hitch. Penwardine's cronies are out in full force, heckling, rioting, doing just about anything to get the production stopped. But would a hateful husband resort to murder? Someone does, and it's up to Nell Bray, indomitable and irrepressible, to find out who.


Genre: Historical Mystery