What do you think?
Rate this book
Angie Deacon Mysteries #2
Checkmate: Murder: Angie Deacon Mysteries
Act 1, Scene 1: John Bloom is shot by the burglar
The burglar is played by Detective Colby Jarvis The shooting is done with Jarvis' service revolver, which he left home in his dresser.How did it get to the theater? Who switched it with the prop gun?Angie Deacon has a new career, co-owner of Alton Bay, New Hampshire’s community theater.Her first play Murder is in the works. She also has a new love--police detective Colby Jarvis. Jarvis loses a bet with fellow officers, and the payoff is, he's got to try out for a part in the play. He is "rewarded" with the part of co-star--coincidentally, or maybe not, he'll be playing the part of a burglar.Things go well...until opening night when burglar Jarvis shoots the leading man. Who substituted Jarvis’s real gun for the prop gun? How did they get it from his sock drawer?He bends under the tight scrutiny. But doesn't break. Why would anyone want the star dead? By day John is an unassuming nursery owner. Could his murder have anything to do with the fact that he’s trying to breed an as-yet-undiscovered red iris?Angie helps dig into the clues to help new love interest Jarvis, but suddenly her clingy needy mom is in town. Maybe it's a good thing Jarvis's long-lost father has returned. He makes a good diversion for Mom.Can Angie and Jarvis find the real killer before he's ousted from the force? Before Angie's theater is closed down before the first performance?Before their parents drive them crazy?MULTI PUBLISHED FLORIDA AUTHOR Cindy Davis is the author of 22 mysteries and romantic suspense novels, and several non-fiction books. She’s a 20-year veteran free-lance editor, and a recent transplant to the land of sunshine where she can be outdoors twelve months of the year rather than the four or five in New England.Cindy and her new husband Rick do a lot of hiking and swimming. They like to travel—next on the bucket list is Italy. Personally, she’s addicted to coffee—particularly chocolate raspberry flavor. And don’t anyone dare get between her and her Ben & Jerry. Other than that, she’s pretty laid back.Now go back up to the top and purchase this book
The burglar is played by Detective Colby Jarvis The shooting is done with Jarvis' service revolver, which he left home in his dresser.How did it get to the theater? Who switched it with the prop gun?Angie Deacon has a new career, co-owner of Alton Bay, New Hampshire’s community theater.Her first play Murder is in the works. She also has a new love--police detective Colby Jarvis. Jarvis loses a bet with fellow officers, and the payoff is, he's got to try out for a part in the play. He is "rewarded" with the part of co-star--coincidentally, or maybe not, he'll be playing the part of a burglar.Things go well...until opening night when burglar Jarvis shoots the leading man. Who substituted Jarvis’s real gun for the prop gun? How did they get it from his sock drawer?He bends under the tight scrutiny. But doesn't break. Why would anyone want the star dead? By day John is an unassuming nursery owner. Could his murder have anything to do with the fact that he’s trying to breed an as-yet-undiscovered red iris?Angie helps dig into the clues to help new love interest Jarvis, but suddenly her clingy needy mom is in town. Maybe it's a good thing Jarvis's long-lost father has returned. He makes a good diversion for Mom.Can Angie and Jarvis find the real killer before he's ousted from the force? Before Angie's theater is closed down before the first performance?Before their parents drive them crazy?MULTI PUBLISHED FLORIDA AUTHOR Cindy Davis is the author of 22 mysteries and romantic suspense novels, and several non-fiction books. She’s a 20-year veteran free-lance editor, and a recent transplant to the land of sunshine where she can be outdoors twelve months of the year rather than the four or five in New England.Cindy and her new husband Rick do a lot of hiking and swimming. They like to travel—next on the bucket list is Italy. Personally, she’s addicted to coffee—particularly chocolate raspberry flavor. And don’t anyone dare get between her and her Ben & Jerry. Other than that, she’s pretty laid back.Now go back up to the top and purchase this book
375 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 10, 2013
20 people are currently reading
9 people want to read
About the author
Cindy Davis
192 books41 followersWhen I lived in New England I stayed indoors and wrote murder mysteries. Now, in Florida, where I can be outdoors twelve months of the year, I write self-help and metaphysical fiction.
Maybe it's the warm weather!
I travel around absorbing earth energy and doing motivational speaking.
www.cindydavisauthor.com, www.fiction-doctor.com
Maybe it's the warm weather!
I travel around absorbing earth energy and doing motivational speaking.
www.cindydavisauthor.com, www.fiction-doctor.com
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
July 16, 2021
Rhapsody in Red
It was a flower to die for…literally. For years, horticulturists had been searching for the perfect formula to create the elusive red iris. Whoever succeeded in that quest would become a millionaire several times over. Since he was a teenager, John Bloom had dreamed of breeding just such a flower. At last, he hinted to friends that he may have full-filled his long-held dream. In a bizarre twist of fate, Bloom is shot during a theater production of Checkmate Murder. The fellow actors and audience gasp as they discover this is not a staged event, but a real murder mystery.
Theater owner Angie Deacon and police detective and part-time actor, Colby Jarvis, work their way through a cast of real suspects trying to find the killer. I’m a seasoned mystery reader, but author Cindy Davis kept me guessing until the very last minute. I had to restrain myself from paging forward to find the culprit. An enjoyable read and a well-deserved five-star rating.
It was a flower to die for…literally. For years, horticulturists had been searching for the perfect formula to create the elusive red iris. Whoever succeeded in that quest would become a millionaire several times over. Since he was a teenager, John Bloom had dreamed of breeding just such a flower. At last, he hinted to friends that he may have full-filled his long-held dream. In a bizarre twist of fate, Bloom is shot during a theater production of Checkmate Murder. The fellow actors and audience gasp as they discover this is not a staged event, but a real murder mystery.
Theater owner Angie Deacon and police detective and part-time actor, Colby Jarvis, work their way through a cast of real suspects trying to find the killer. I’m a seasoned mystery reader, but author Cindy Davis kept me guessing until the very last minute. I had to restrain myself from paging forward to find the culprit. An enjoyable read and a well-deserved five-star rating.
December 27, 2018
Angie Deacon is embarking on a new adventure as a co-owner of a local theater. During the theater's very first performance an actor who is supposed to be shot during the scene actually is shot by Colby Jarvis a police investigator who is also an actor in the show. No one can figure out how the prop gun got switched for a real one. Angie and Jarvis have a odd sort of romantic relationship going on throughout this story. Angie is divorced and Jarvis widowed. Both are older, which I liked. Angie decides to play amateur detective and help Jarvis figure out who would want to kill the actor, John Bloom, who was a guy who grew irises for a living. Come to find out his irises are the key to this murder investigation.
This was a nice little mystery that kept a pretty good pace. It wasn't a roller coaster ride mystery, but the plot was good and the characters I liked very much.
This was a nice little mystery that kept a pretty good pace. It wasn't a roller coaster ride mystery, but the plot was good and the characters I liked very much.
December 7, 2018
A page-turning whodunnit
Checkmate: Murder will keep you guessing until the final reveal. It is peopled with characters with flaws and baggage and hope that keeps the reader rooting for them. Angie Deacon is a former nurse and new theatre owner. Opening night of her first play is marred by the murder of the leading man in the middle of a scene. Who switched the prop gun for a real one? But the big question is why. What is so important about a red iris that people have to die?
This story kept me rushing towards the ending and I’m sure it will you, too!
Checkmate: Murder will keep you guessing until the final reveal. It is peopled with characters with flaws and baggage and hope that keeps the reader rooting for them. Angie Deacon is a former nurse and new theatre owner. Opening night of her first play is marred by the murder of the leading man in the middle of a scene. Who switched the prop gun for a real one? But the big question is why. What is so important about a red iris that people have to die?
This story kept me rushing towards the ending and I’m sure it will you, too!
December 19, 2018
Curtains closed.
This is the first time reading a murder mystery . The theater, in the first part is what made really had me eager. After that, I completely set up every scene in my head. If you are interested in a book that is exciting with unexpected surprises this book is for you.
This is the first time reading a murder mystery . The theater, in the first part is what made really had me eager. After that, I completely set up every scene in my head. If you are interested in a book that is exciting with unexpected surprises this book is for you.
January 27, 2021
Murder Mystery
Nicely woven murder/mystery book. Around 3/4ths way in, I had the main suspect figured out, but couldn't connect the name with a good reason for what went down. Four stars for being a nice novel to read. One star off for this book needing a good editing job.
Nicely woven murder/mystery book. Around 3/4ths way in, I had the main suspect figured out, but couldn't connect the name with a good reason for what went down. Four stars for being a nice novel to read. One star off for this book needing a good editing job.
April 22, 2016
Nail bitter!
I literally had to stop myself from bitting my nails. This addition put everything into perspective by adding a must read, thrilling experience with a spicy layer of mysterious adventure. The lively, magnetic characters continue to captivate me. You've captured my imagination again Cindy Davis, ten stars!!
I literally had to stop myself from bitting my nails. This addition put everything into perspective by adding a must read, thrilling experience with a spicy layer of mysterious adventure. The lively, magnetic characters continue to captivate me. You've captured my imagination again Cindy Davis, ten stars!!
December 26, 2018
A murder mystery in a theatre cross-bred with iris genetics? Whatever next? A cleverly arranged plot surrounding the accidental (or otherwise) death of an actor at the hands of a co-star/local cop. With beguiling characters with their own set of motives make this a blooming great whodunnit (see what I did there?)
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews