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Rosa Thorn Thriller #4
Playing Dead
It’s all fun and games until someone ends up dead…
When Rosa Thorn, star of top soap opera Camden Lock, has her big moment hijacked she is furious.
Her character was about to be revealed as the killer of Elsa Gibson’s character Maudie, but Elsa has used her influence to ensure that she gets the final scene all to herself.
The next day, Elsa is found dead in her dressing room and in a bizarre twist, her own death mimics the death of her character, Maudie.
As someone known to have a grudge against Elsa, and as the last person to see her alive, suspicion falls on Rosa, both from the police and from her colleagues.
Things go from bad to worse when another famous actress, who is an old enemy of Rosa, is also murdered on the very night that she and Rosa met up and supposedly sorted out their differences.
The final straw is at the BAFTA award ceremony in the Grosvenor House Hotel.
Rosa is nominated for Best Supporting Actress but the evening is brought to an abrupt end when yet another woman is brutally murdered shortly after she has been seen talking to Rosa.
Rosa is convinced that someone is out to ruin her and when she talks through everything with her friends Jess and Georgie, she realizes that there are several people who might hate her enough to frame her.
It’s not long before Rosa realises that not only has she been set up as the killer of three innocent people, but that she herself is in mortal danger…
When Rosa Thorn, star of top soap opera Camden Lock, has her big moment hijacked she is furious.
Her character was about to be revealed as the killer of Elsa Gibson’s character Maudie, but Elsa has used her influence to ensure that she gets the final scene all to herself.
The next day, Elsa is found dead in her dressing room and in a bizarre twist, her own death mimics the death of her character, Maudie.
As someone known to have a grudge against Elsa, and as the last person to see her alive, suspicion falls on Rosa, both from the police and from her colleagues.
Things go from bad to worse when another famous actress, who is an old enemy of Rosa, is also murdered on the very night that she and Rosa met up and supposedly sorted out their differences.
The final straw is at the BAFTA award ceremony in the Grosvenor House Hotel.
Rosa is nominated for Best Supporting Actress but the evening is brought to an abrupt end when yet another woman is brutally murdered shortly after she has been seen talking to Rosa.
Rosa is convinced that someone is out to ruin her and when she talks through everything with her friends Jess and Georgie, she realizes that there are several people who might hate her enough to frame her.
It’s not long before Rosa realises that not only has she been set up as the killer of three innocent people, but that she herself is in mortal danger…
109 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 25, 2016
7 people are currently reading
35 people want to read
About the author
Vena Cork
16 books26 followersVena studied at Homerton College, Cambridge, and was one of the first female members of the Cambridge Footlights. She was an actress, playwright and teacher before becoming a full-time writer and producing the Thorn trilogy.
Thorn, the first in the trilogy, was hailed by the Guardian as ‘a compelling, dark-hued psychological thriller’, by Time Out as ‘an outstanding debut’, and by The Times as ‘one of those rare and energetic books you can’t put down and don’t want to end.’ It was followed by The Art of Dying and Green Eye, both also highly praised. The trilogy is now available from Endeavour Press.
Her new standalone novel, The Lost Ones was published in May 2016 and her fifth novel, Toxic will be published later in 2016, also by Endeavour Press.
Vena lives in London with her husband, the art critic Richard Cork. She has two sons and two daughters.
Thorn, the first in the trilogy, was hailed by the Guardian as ‘a compelling, dark-hued psychological thriller’, by Time Out as ‘an outstanding debut’, and by The Times as ‘one of those rare and energetic books you can’t put down and don’t want to end.’ It was followed by The Art of Dying and Green Eye, both also highly praised. The trilogy is now available from Endeavour Press.
Her new standalone novel, The Lost Ones was published in May 2016 and her fifth novel, Toxic will be published later in 2016, also by Endeavour Press.
Vena lives in London with her husband, the art critic Richard Cork. She has two sons and two daughters.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
February 2, 2026
EXCERPT: Maudie Campbell will soon be dead.
I'm going to kill her.
But I feel nothing.
I feel nothing as I observe the kindly old eyes, and he halo of white hair shimmering around her head, giving her the look of an elderly angel. I feel nothing as I listen to her gently chiding me for my latest bunder. I feel nothing as I pour her a cup of tea from the elegant pot on the sideboard behind her. And I certainly feel nothing as I drop crushed-up anti-depressants into the heavily sugared beverage and hand it to her.
ABOUT ' PLAYING DEAD': When Rosa Thorn, star of top soap opera Camden Lock, has her big moment hijacked she is furious.
Her character was about to be revealed as the killer of Elsa Gibson’s character Maudie, but Elsa has used her influence to ensure that she gets the final scene all to herself.
The next day, Elsa is found dead in her dressing room and in a bizarre twist, her own death mimics the death of her character, Maudie.
As someone known to have a grudge against Elsa, and as the last person to see her alive, suspicion falls on Rosa, both from the police and from her colleagues.
Things go from bad to worse when another famous actress, who is an old enemy of Rosa, is also murdered on the very night that she and Rosa met up and supposedly sorted out their differences.
The final straw is at the BAFTA award ceremony in the Grosvenor House Hotel.
Rosa is nominated for Best Supporting Actress but the evening is brought to an abrupt end when yet another woman is brutally murdered shortly after she has been seen talking to Rosa.
Rosa is convinced that someone is out to ruin her and when she talks through everything with her friends Jess and Georgie, she realizes that there are several people who might hate her enough to frame her.
It’s not long before Rosa realises that not only has she been set up as the killer of three innocent people, but that she herself is in mortal danger…
MY THOUGHTS: Stephen King famously said, There’s something to be said for a shorter, more intense experience. It can be invigorating, sometimes even shocking, like a waltz with a stranger you will never see again, or a kiss in the dark. Vena Cork has hit the mark with 'Playing Dead.
Playing Dead is a superb short story featuring 3 murders, each with the finger of suspicion pointing directly at one person - the same person each time.
Plot and characters are well developed. The plot has a beginning, a middle, and an end - something a lot of short story writers don't achieve. It has suspense. The writing is compelling. The mystery is intriguing. The characters are fully fleshed out - something many authors have difficulty with in a full length novel, let alone a short story.
So, why four and a half stars, not five? I had an issue with the timeline of the third murder (I just couldn't make it work) and some of the forensic evidence.
But as for pacing and thrills, Vena Cork has hit a home run.
⭐⭐⭐⭐.5
#PlayingDead #NetGalley
MEET THE AUTHOR: VENA CORK was one of the first female members of the Cambridge Footlights. She was an actress, playwright and teacher before becoming a full-time writer.
Vena lives in London with her husband, the art critic Richard Cork. She has two sons and two daughters.
DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Endeavour Press via NetGalley for providing a DRC of Playing Dead by Vena Cork for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.
Playing Dead by Vena Cork was published November 2016
I'm going to kill her.
But I feel nothing.
I feel nothing as I observe the kindly old eyes, and he halo of white hair shimmering around her head, giving her the look of an elderly angel. I feel nothing as I listen to her gently chiding me for my latest bunder. I feel nothing as I pour her a cup of tea from the elegant pot on the sideboard behind her. And I certainly feel nothing as I drop crushed-up anti-depressants into the heavily sugared beverage and hand it to her.
ABOUT ' PLAYING DEAD': When Rosa Thorn, star of top soap opera Camden Lock, has her big moment hijacked she is furious.
Her character was about to be revealed as the killer of Elsa Gibson’s character Maudie, but Elsa has used her influence to ensure that she gets the final scene all to herself.
The next day, Elsa is found dead in her dressing room and in a bizarre twist, her own death mimics the death of her character, Maudie.
As someone known to have a grudge against Elsa, and as the last person to see her alive, suspicion falls on Rosa, both from the police and from her colleagues.
Things go from bad to worse when another famous actress, who is an old enemy of Rosa, is also murdered on the very night that she and Rosa met up and supposedly sorted out their differences.
The final straw is at the BAFTA award ceremony in the Grosvenor House Hotel.
Rosa is nominated for Best Supporting Actress but the evening is brought to an abrupt end when yet another woman is brutally murdered shortly after she has been seen talking to Rosa.
Rosa is convinced that someone is out to ruin her and when she talks through everything with her friends Jess and Georgie, she realizes that there are several people who might hate her enough to frame her.
It’s not long before Rosa realises that not only has she been set up as the killer of three innocent people, but that she herself is in mortal danger…
MY THOUGHTS: Stephen King famously said, There’s something to be said for a shorter, more intense experience. It can be invigorating, sometimes even shocking, like a waltz with a stranger you will never see again, or a kiss in the dark. Vena Cork has hit the mark with 'Playing Dead.
Playing Dead is a superb short story featuring 3 murders, each with the finger of suspicion pointing directly at one person - the same person each time.
Plot and characters are well developed. The plot has a beginning, a middle, and an end - something a lot of short story writers don't achieve. It has suspense. The writing is compelling. The mystery is intriguing. The characters are fully fleshed out - something many authors have difficulty with in a full length novel, let alone a short story.
So, why four and a half stars, not five? I had an issue with the timeline of the third murder (I just couldn't make it work) and some of the forensic evidence.
But as for pacing and thrills, Vena Cork has hit a home run.
⭐⭐⭐⭐.5
#PlayingDead #NetGalley
MEET THE AUTHOR: VENA CORK was one of the first female members of the Cambridge Footlights. She was an actress, playwright and teacher before becoming a full-time writer.
Vena lives in London with her husband, the art critic Richard Cork. She has two sons and two daughters.
DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Endeavour Press via NetGalley for providing a DRC of Playing Dead by Vena Cork for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.
Playing Dead by Vena Cork was published November 2016
December 18, 2016
I have read all the Rosa Thorn stories and this one is just as good as the other but can be read as a stand alone story. The main character of her tv series is about to be written off the series and she will be given a bigger role. When everyone around Rosa starts to turn up dead Rosa is ostracized and afraid she will be arrested for the deaths. Who would be killing those around her in the same manners as their celebrity characters. Can she figure out who has done this before her career is over. Great read. I would like to thank the Publisher and Net Galley for the chance to read this ARC.
December 1, 2016
A quick little novella you can burn right through. It's ideal when you want something fast and not too complicated. It's a bit soapy of course, the main character actually being in a soap opera herself. Her real life is about as dramatic as the storylines on the show.
Actress Rosa Thorn has a lot to be excited about. She's up for an award. Her character is entering a big story arc on the soap opera and she's getting more screen time. Things are looking good. However, she becomes angry when the final shot on the episode which was supposed to belong to her as the big reveal goes to the actress her character kills. She confronts her soon after learning she was responsible for the change. She doesn't deny it. Rosa leaves her in her dressing room, fuming. The next day, the other actress is found dead in the same manner in which her character met her demise. This is only the beginning, as people around Rosa start dropping like flies and she soon falls under suspicion, bring the last one most of them have seen and even a reason to be angry with them.
Most of the story is pretty obvious. A few more believable red herrings could have been thrown in there. I still enjoyed it, though.
I received a ARC of this book from Net Galley and Endeavour Press, thank you! My review is honest and unbiased.
Actress Rosa Thorn has a lot to be excited about. She's up for an award. Her character is entering a big story arc on the soap opera and she's getting more screen time. Things are looking good. However, she becomes angry when the final shot on the episode which was supposed to belong to her as the big reveal goes to the actress her character kills. She confronts her soon after learning she was responsible for the change. She doesn't deny it. Rosa leaves her in her dressing room, fuming. The next day, the other actress is found dead in the same manner in which her character met her demise. This is only the beginning, as people around Rosa start dropping like flies and she soon falls under suspicion, bring the last one most of them have seen and even a reason to be angry with them.
Most of the story is pretty obvious. A few more believable red herrings could have been thrown in there. I still enjoyed it, though.
I received a ARC of this book from Net Galley and Endeavour Press, thank you! My review is honest and unbiased.
November 27, 2016
A short novella or long short story easily read in an hour or two: here we find Rosa working on a TV soap only everyone who crosses her seems to end up dead...
This series is a bit mixed for me: the writing is easy and fluent, drawing us in effortlessly, but the plotting is frequently over the top. Here the perpetrator is easy to spot immediately and it's only Rosa who suspects everyone else but the actual culprit.
Easy reading for when you want something entertaining that doesn't involve any intellectual effort.
Thanks to the publisher for a review copy via NetGalley
This series is a bit mixed for me: the writing is easy and fluent, drawing us in effortlessly, but the plotting is frequently over the top. Here the perpetrator is easy to spot immediately and it's only Rosa who suspects everyone else but the actual culprit.
Easy reading for when you want something entertaining that doesn't involve any intellectual effort.
Thanks to the publisher for a review copy via NetGalley
December 9, 2016
The 4th in the Row Thorn series, this novella is a quick and enjoyable read. A little over the top,but fun. Rosa is a star in England's hottest soap opera and the murder and mayhem in her life are as overwrought as the scenes of the soap. A good way to while away a few hours, I do hope the next Thorn will be less fluffy and definitely longer.
Thank you Netgalley, Endeavour Press and Vena Cork for the ARC.
Thank you Netgalley, Endeavour Press and Vena Cork for the ARC.
January 7, 2018
Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the Publisher, Endeavour Press, for this review copy given in exchange for an honest review.
My first Vena Cork book. It is a short novella book and is book 4 of the Rosa Thorn Thriller series. For information its location is set around the London area.
The book centres on Rosa Thorn. Rosa is a soap star actress. As I haven’t read any previous books in this series, I don’t really know Rosa’s back story, but a little bit of what has happened in her life is explained in the book. Rosa finds herself involved in the murders of 3 separate people, and it seems that she is either the murderer or is being set up for the killings. The victims are all people she knows, and they are also all people who she may bear a grudge against. Is she the murderer? If she isn’t, who is?
This was an entertaining little book, bar the murders of course. Set in Soap Land, it gives good insight behind the scenes of a soap opera. Rosa is becoming an up and coming star and she is getting more screen time. When she becomes implicated in these murders, she starts to lose friends and it looks like her time on screen may be over. I have to admit, for such a short book, there are an awful lot of characters and I found it a bit confusing to try and keep up with who was who. I also guessed who the murderer was quite early on, but I still quite enjoyed it even though I figured what was going to happen.
It was great that it was so short, I do like to read short stories every now and then as they are usually quick and easy books! Rosa’s character was fun and interesting, so I may go back to the beginning of the series to give the other books a try!
A fun, quirky read which was great to pass away a couple of hours!
My first Vena Cork book. It is a short novella book and is book 4 of the Rosa Thorn Thriller series. For information its location is set around the London area.
The book centres on Rosa Thorn. Rosa is a soap star actress. As I haven’t read any previous books in this series, I don’t really know Rosa’s back story, but a little bit of what has happened in her life is explained in the book. Rosa finds herself involved in the murders of 3 separate people, and it seems that she is either the murderer or is being set up for the killings. The victims are all people she knows, and they are also all people who she may bear a grudge against. Is she the murderer? If she isn’t, who is?
This was an entertaining little book, bar the murders of course. Set in Soap Land, it gives good insight behind the scenes of a soap opera. Rosa is becoming an up and coming star and she is getting more screen time. When she becomes implicated in these murders, she starts to lose friends and it looks like her time on screen may be over. I have to admit, for such a short book, there are an awful lot of characters and I found it a bit confusing to try and keep up with who was who. I also guessed who the murderer was quite early on, but I still quite enjoyed it even though I figured what was going to happen.
It was great that it was so short, I do like to read short stories every now and then as they are usually quick and easy books! Rosa’s character was fun and interesting, so I may go back to the beginning of the series to give the other books a try!
A fun, quirky read which was great to pass away a couple of hours!
December 4, 2016
A quick campy who dunnit that's a little obvious but still a decent read thanks to the writing and the character of Rosa. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Try this one if you're looking for a short self-contained mystery that's not a cozy. It's pretty entertaining.
July 29, 2022
Rosa Thorne is a star of the series Camden Lock. But soon she will be connected to a murder of a fellow actor. How in the future can she be connected to two morw murders.
An entertaining cozy modern mystery though Rosa doesn't seem to do any detecting.
An entertaining cozy modern mystery though Rosa doesn't seem to do any detecting.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews