Tangled Web UK Review April 2011
Stagestruck by
Peter Lovesey
pbk out March 12
(Sphere)
at £7.99
Peter Lovesey has written no fewer than four series of detective novels, all of
them highly enjoyable, as well as a number of stand-alone novels and five collections
of short stories. In recent years, he has focused mainly on books featuring the
appealing Bath-based cop Peter Diamond, and his latest entry in the series, the
eleventh, is well up to standard. The setting is the Theatre Royal in Bath, and
the story opens with a dramatic misfortune suffered by a fading pop star who has
taken the chance to re-launch her acting career in I Am a Camera. Her face is
scarred and it seems that the dresser who was in charge of her make-up may have
been responsible. When the dresser goes missing, and is subsequently found dead
in the Theatre Royal, one possibility is that she has committed suicide out of
remorse. But Peter Diamond is not convinced, and before long, the plot thickens.
While investigating the case, Diamond also has to confront a hidden and disturbing
secret from his own past. This is a very agreeable piece of light entertainment,
and the puzzle is neatly constructed. Rather like the late Michael Gilbert, Peter
Lovesey is such a smooth writer that it is easy to underestimate his skill, which
is very considerable. Recommended.
(
Martin Edwards
- author of the highly acclaimed Harry Devlin Mysteries)
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