Dead on Cue — Anne Morice

'Ever heard of the Alibi Club?,' Robin asked when he was driving me home after one of the most disastrous first nights in theatrical history.

When Tessa's Scotland Yard husband Robin is invited to speak at the renowned and respectable Alibi Club, she is excited to be surrounded by the members - all mystery writers of the first rank - although one is missing.

Crime novelist and playwright William Montgomerie has died, leaving behind a widow and a lost manuscript. His former spouse, Gwen, suddenly blossoms into literary fame after years of struggling in the shadows. The splendidly eccentric Myrtle Sprygge, whose clairvoyant powers and old relationship with Montgomerie further complicate the situation, and lead Tessa to wonder whether Gwen is taking credit for something she didn't write. When Gwen is found murdered, everyone wonders what - and who - could have triggered such revenge.

Dead on Cue was originally published in 1985. This new edition features an introduction and afterword by crime fiction historian Curtis Evans.

'A light hand, an engaging ease, and an inventive mind: all welcome qualities in the writing of crime novels.' Financial Times

'What makes her such good company - and the whole point of Miss Morice's book is to converse, as it were, with Tessa Crichton - is not her deductive skill but her shrewd eye and quick tongue for people and situations.' Daily Telegraph