Murder, She Wrote: Murder Backstage by Jessica Fletcher

Murder, She Wrote: Murder Backstage by Jessica Fletcher & Terrie Farley Moran

Series:  Murder, She Wrote #58

Published by Berkley on April 2, 2024

Genres:  Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Fiction

Pages:  272

Format:  Audiobook

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★★★

The newest entry in the USA Today bestselling Murder, She Wrote series.

Jessica Fletcher’s British cousin, Emma MacGill, will be traveling to Edmonton in Alberta, Canada, to perform with internationally famous star of stage, screen, and television Derek Braverman in an old-fashioned musical review. Emma would love for Jessica to join her there and suggests she bring along some friends. Having just finished her latest book, Jessica is ready for a vacation and is delighted to agree.  Dr. Seth Hazlitt and Sheriff Mort Metzger are huge fans of Braverman, so they are eager to tag along, and their fanboy behavior gives Jessica and Mort’s wife, Maureen, more than occasional cause to roll their eyes.

Upon arrival in Edmonton, Jessica is quickly outed as mystery writer J. B. Fletcher, and despite numerous protests, a hotel staffer arranges a book signing for her. This and touristy adventures arranged for the group make for a much busier trip than Jessica was expecting. When a hotel bartender, who also happens to be a stagehand for Emma’s play, turns up dead backstage at the theater, Jessica’s fun and relaxing vacation quickly becomes anything but.

This was my first Murder, She Wrote book ... why I decided to start with the 58th in the series is beyond me lol

This is a pretty straightforward police procedural led by an amateur detective. Jessica Fletcher and her friends go to Canada to see Jessica's cousin who is performing in a musical. While in Canada, they get a lot of new friends and discover a murder. Jessica quickly inserts herself into the investigation and gets her friends to help her discover clues.

I enjoyed this, the audiobook narration was wonderful. The story had it's usual twists and turns as you are pulled through the case. But for me it was just your average cozy mystery that has an exceptionally large series - it felt like an less than exciting episode of a mystery tv show. It felt like one of those filler episodes that you watch to get to the next one but it's not one that will stick in your mind.

Overall, a 3-star read for me. It wasn't amazing but it wasn't bad. I would consider reading more of the books in the series though. Sometimes I need a good cozy mystery inbetween darker reads.

Big thanks to Jessica Fletcher, Berkley and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinions!