‘What a treat!  Just got home from seeing 'Murder By The Book', a gloriously entertaining locked room murder mystery – beautifully constructed, deliciously witty, wonderfully played.  Such an entertaining evening.’ 

Synopsis

Rob and Jane run a writers’ retreat on an otherwise uninhabited island.  He’s a somewhat bitter, formerly successful novelist.  She’s his less than happy wife.  And it’s possible the house is haunted. Six guests turn up for a weekend’s writing course, but it soon emerges that not all of them are there to write.  There’s Nick, Jane’s old flame; Ali, who seems to have a secret concerning Rob;  Kerry, who wants to make a serious allegation;  Sonia, Rob’s biggest fan, until she finds out some rather hurtful truths;  Leo, who’s there because his therapist told him to go; and Betty, who seems permanently on the edge of a nervous breakdown.  Not long after they arrive, a storm breaks and the island is cut off from the mainland.  Now, no-one can leave and no-one can arrive.  When dangers arise, there is no escape.

Meanwhile, the tension is increasing.  It’s fair to say that not a lot of writing gets done.  A stolen manuscript, a revelation of blackmail, accusations of plagiarism and assault, frayed tempers and guilty secrets all add to the drama.  And what happened during the power cut?  Could it be poltergeist activity, as Jane seems to claim, or human intervention? Before we can find out, with the storm still raging outside, one of the characters goes missing.  Will the others find him before he meets with an accident…. or his killer?

There are plenty of questions and some surprising twists.  All is not finally resolved until the play’s closing moments.

Duration

Characters

Principals:  3m, 5f

• Rob - middle aged or older, a writer who had one successful novel, and nothing ever since, bitter, resentful, cynical, sarcastic, combines charm with malice
• Jane - his wife, runs the writer’s retreat, has a rather put-upon air at times
• Nick - comes across as quiet, but has a steely centre
• Kerry - youngish woman, confident, can be fierce
• Ali - white, dry, cynical, world weary
• Leo - waspish, troubled
• Betty - humourless, neurotic, ‘difficult’
• Sonia - a bit nervous, decent