Death of a Hollow Man - Graham Caroline

For detective Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby a visit to the Causton Amateur Dramatic Society s production of Amadeus is not an ideal evening s entertainment. But loyalty to is wife Joyce (noises-off), mens that attending the first night is a must, and Barnaby knows that an immense amount of hard work has gone into the show.Backstage, nerves are fraying. Director of the play, Harold Winstanley, has introduced a strict pecking order among the cast but the leading man is taking his role far too much to heart. For Salieri (alias Esslyn Carmichiel), suspecting that his wife is having an affair, has decided that the stage is as good a place as any to wring the truth out of the guilty party. It is is final act, though, that proves to be a pièce de résistance and when the scene takes a particularly gruesome turn, barnaby finds that his professional skills are called to the fore.Superbly plotted and sparkling with vivid characters, Death of a Hollow Man is a first-class whodunnit that brings the author to the very front of her field.