Audition for Murder(Maggie Ryan 1967)
By P. M Carlson
Actors Nick and Lisette O’Connor need a change. They leave New York City for a semester as artists-in-residence at a college upstate, where they take on the roles of Claudius and Ophelia, two of the professional leads in a campus production of Hamlet.
Threats and accidents begin to follow Lisette, and Nick worries it might be more than just petty jealousy. Maggie Ryan, a student running lights for the show, helps investigate a mystery steeped in the turmoil of 1967 America.
“It’s a triple pleasure, a sophisticated theatre story, a knowing campus tale and a topnotch suspenseful mystery, with excellent characterizations and honest plotting.” — Judith Crist
“An extremely well-written tale, with a plotline that offers a jolt per page.” — CF, Booklist
“Very literate, sprinkled with surprises and offering that rarity of rarities — fully fleshed out characters.” — Bob Ellison, Los Angeles Daily News
Excerpt:
New York City, late 1960s
Nick O’Connor put down the telephone, his broad, muscular body sagging a little. So she hadn’t been merely tired. Hell. He changed to worn jeans and his old leather jacket, and made a mean face at the mirror. Nick the hustler tonight. Man of a thousand faces, said his agent, and every one of them homely. A regular one-man Dickens novel. Nick headed out for the West Forties.
The snow was not sticking much. It made the sidewalks shine darkly, splashed with gold and rose and white reflections from bars and street lamps, and pasted down scraps of paper that otherwise would be scuttling across the streets in the bitter wind. His way led past whores, pushers, tired old men huddled over warm grates. Without a hurt, the heart is hollow. No hollow hearts on this street.
Franklin’s place was halfway down the block. A worn brass door handle, chipped paint. Nick wiped a few snowflakes from his thinning hair and pushed through the crowd to the end of the bar. In a moment the bartender, black, with a trim mustache, had worked his way down to him.
“Hey, man, where ya been?”
“Yeah, I was working tonight. I just heard.”
“Hey, we can’t all be self-employed minority success stories.”
Franklin chuckled. “You watch your honky mouth.” He went off to break up a loud argument about whether or not the Vietcong were winning, served a whisky, and returned to Nick. “Room B”, he said.
About The Author:
P.M. Carlson taught psychology and statistics at Cornell University before deciding that mystery writing was more fun. She has published twelve mystery novels and over a dozen short stories. Her novels have been nominated for an Edgar Award, a Macavity Award, and twice for Anthony Awards.
Two short stories were finalists for Agatha Awards. She edited the Mystery Writers Annual for Mystery Writers of America for several years, and served as President of Sisters In Crime.
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Purchase links (print, Kindle, Nook, other e-books): Crum Creek Press Shop
P.M. Carlson will be awarding a $50 Amazon GC to a randomly drawn commenter at every stop during the tour. So be sure to follow the tour and comment on each stop-the more you comment the more chances you have to win. Head over to view the full list participating.
Thanks for hosting!
I love the suspense of mysteries where you dont want to put the book down . It is always fun when you think you know where the story is going and then you find out it is something else entirely
Stacey, I like the twists and turns in mysteries too. Most of the Maggie Ryan books have good reasons for Nick and Maggie and the other characters to be afraid. But they’re smart and evade trouble, until…?
I love reading mysteries because I can infer a little bit too much, just to see that I may be right or wrong! XD However, that’s the fun about reading, you’ll never know what’ll happen next!
Thanks Enrique. I like the puzzle too, and also I like the human psychology in mysteries. The ones I enjoy most involve lots of complex people with complex emotions. It’s not just “whodunit,” it’s why.
Good luck with the release!
Thanks Trix!
I like mysteries because they are exciting to read. Thank you for the giveaway
Thanks Elena. That’s why I love them too!
I’ve enjoyed being here today. Thanks for hosting!
Hi Again!
Can you describe the cover a bit for me? Any influence of yours there?
Hi Andra! The cover art is by Robin Agnew, an artist who LOVES mysteries. She reads the books and her art reflects something important about the story. For AUDITION FOR MURDER, she shows a theatrical curtain with an image of the dead Ophelia– a good image for a book about a rehearsal of HAMLET where the actress playing Ophelia is under siege. For MURDER IS ACADEMIC, the cover art shows a Maya statue because a main character is studying the Maya and keeps track of the Mayan calendar, and in the background there’s a highway because that’s the scene of the crimes. So my input was basically writing the stories!
I love a good mystery.
Thanks, Rita, obviously I agree! They’re a great combination of interesting human psychology, exciting situations, and intellectual challenge!
I like that a well written mystery surprises me with events and I didnt already figure out what was going to happen
That’s definitely part of the fun. My mysteries the characters usually are struggling with life problems, and then the murder happens and really brings things to the boil. But I’m always careful to be sure that readers have all the necessary clues to figure out the solution. The readers have the information before detectives Maggie Ryan and Nick O’Connor do!
Thanks for hosting!
Our Wolves Den has also posted a page about the second book in the series, MURDER IS ACADEMIC. Check it out!