Phyllida Bright is one of my favorite cozy mystery characters. Phyllida is housekeeper to Agatha Christie, but also a friend and former war nursing colleague. Phyllida is brilliant, organized, and lovely, but fears London and Scotland Yard because of a mystery in her past.
The Christie household heads to London as Agatha has a new play based on one of her books being produced and she wants to be there. Phyllida is included in the London group, as is Bradford, the family chauffeur. An actor dies onstage in Agatha’s play and the theatre critic writes an alliterative title for the news, using A. The following week, another death using the letter B, then a death using the letter C. Agatha is inspired with the idea of a new novel (The ABC Murders). Phyllida is recruited to solve the mystery and prevent another death, which she does in her usual efficient way, while still managing the household, dealing with a fake-French chef, and a flirtation with Bradford.
I enjoy the Phyllida Bright series and each one is delightful. The characters are interesting and very real and the mystery well-crafted.
Thanks to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC.

I really enjoyed Murder Takes the Stage. Agatha Christie is my favorite author so this series is one of my favorite contemporary cozy mystery series. Phyllida is such a great character and I'm so happy about the progress that was made in her now relationship with Bradford. The murder mystery was very intriguing as the story takes place in London, which is a Metropolitan city compared to the village of Listleigh where Mallowan Hall is. I'm really looking forward to the next book in this series.

This is the fourth installment of the Phyllida Bright murder mysteries, and this time murder happens in alliterative fashion in the theaters of London's West End. One need not have read Colleen Cambridge's other titles in this series to enjoy the story. Phyllida' asides are very humurous, and the plot is fast-paced. The conclusion to the mystery is also satisfying. Agatha Christie readers will find much here to love. Even if you've never read a Christie novel, this is a fun read.

Murder Takes the Stage, book four in the Phyllida Bright Mystery Series by Colleen Cambridge is part Agatha Christie except it’s her housekeeper who always steals the show. She is just as interesting and quite mysterious herself, at least her past is. When the first victim is found dead at one theater, there is the assumption that it is one from natural causes. However, another follows and then another. There is a chilling pattern to the deaths that has Phyllida joining the investigation to find and stop a crazed killer.

Phyllida is one smart amateur detective who can and will solve this case. What a delight it is to see her work it all out. Great writing, great plot and great characters. This series is addictive. Catch up with Phyllida Bright in London for Murder Takes the Stage.

I am very excited to be reading this book! My full review to follow.
Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for this ARC. All thoughts and comments are my own.

Phyllida Bright is to historical mystery books what Columbo is to TV detective series.
The story follows the fictional housekeeper, Phyllida Bright, of the very real Agatha Christie, as the household decamp to London. Agatha is to supervise the staging of one of her books, but stopped dead when an actor, Archibald Allston, is found dead in an armchair on stage at the Adelphi Theatre. And so the mischief begins. Phyllida has a track record as a discrete sleuth and called upon to give an opinion as to whether foul play was involved or not (it wasn’t – not a spoiler). However, the proverbial plots thickens when two most definite murders follow: Benvolio bludgeoned at the Belgrave Theatre and Claudia Carmichael at the Clapham Theatre. What devilry is afoot? Phyllida dons her sleuthing hat and gloves to solve the riddle before Daphne Dewberry meets a sticky end at the first night of Dracula.
Murder Takes the Stage is a satisfying romp of a tale. There is a full supporting cast of engaging characters from an actor infiltrating the Christie household, posing as a French chef as an elaborate audition to play Poirot, to a darkly handsome chauffeur who provides a subtle love interest. Phyllida herself is a steel bar of a woman dressed in satins and silks, and with an eye-catching hair do – I liked her very much.
Along with the clever plot, the author hints that Phyllida’s adventures were the inspiration for some of Ms Christie’s novel. In this case – “The ABC Murders”…except, true to character, Phyllida much preferred the moniker “The Alliterative Murders.”
This is book 3 in the series and I haven’t read 1 or 2, but it is easily read as a standalone story. Without spoilers a significant event from Phyllida’s past was hinted at early on and left me feeling a bit of a dither…but this was explained later in the book, so no martini spilt there. So, if you want to relax on a rainy day with a coffee, and escape into an Art Deco world with a stylish sleuth and gentle humour…look no further than “Murder Takes the Stage.”
4.5 stars.

This author’s two current historical mystery series featuring real-life secondary characters are auto reads for me. Confident and enigmatic Phyllida is back, and we’re getting her tantalizing backstory in drips and drops. I’m also keen to know more about Bradford. We got other character POVs only a few times, but it was jarring. I’d rather have a more balanced POV or just Phyllida’s.
New readers could dive in to this fourth in the series and follow the well-plotted mystery, but it’s so much more fun when you know the characters too. This was well-paced and a nice change of setting from Mallowan Hall. This might be my favorite so far and I’m already eager for the next one!

Murder Takes the Stage is a Phyllida Bright mystery. It takes place in London. Phyllida Bright is the housekeeper for Agatha Christie and her husband, Max Mallowan who live in Listleigh in Devon but are renting a house called Gantry House on Matilda Street, London A small group of their staff came to London with them. Mr. Dobble is the butler, Elton, Max's valet, Molly, head kitchen maid and Opal, sculley maid. M. Chadonnay is the hired cook they employed who looks like Hercule Poirot. She does not get along with him. Later it is found out that he is not french but an actor who wanted to get to meet Agatha.

Shortly after arriving Phyllida gets a phone call from Agatha to come to the Royal Aldelphia Theatre as someone has died. Mr. and Mrs. Satterwait (Hugh and Melissa) are there too, They had all come into the auditoriam and found the actor, Allton Archibald dead in a chair on the stage. A program was found in his hand open to his page. Hugh was to direct Agatha's play Warps Nest. She viewed the body and left.

The next day, Phyllida is again by Agatha to the Belmont Theatre. The show that was about to open was Romeo and Juliet. She is met by director Joseph Tulley and asked to follow him. Another man named Trent Orkney who's head was bashed in lying on the stage dead. A program was found open to his page. It looked like he had fallen off the Romeo and Juliet balcony. Trent is Melissa Sattterait's nephew. After viewing the body she had hoped to get out before the police from Scotland Yard arrived but Inspector Wellbourne arrived before she was able to leave. When he heard her name he told her that inspector Cork from Listleigh told him about her and told her to stay out of his case. He did not particularly like her. She felt the same.

Mrs. Satterwait came to the house to speak to Phyllida and get her help. She bought Trent's fiance, Josephine Newby. She wanted Phyllide to help her find out who killed Trent. Arrangements were made with the editor, Herbert Foy that she will be a reporter at the Illustrated London News. The next day Phyllida goes to the theatre pretending she is a reporter and meets Lawrence Nesmith the stage manager. Joe had found Trent. She also spoke to Marilee Putnam-Percy who plays Juliet. She brings Phyllida into her dressing room. Marlee tells Phyllida that Vic London could have killed Trent. That they had words playing bridge. Also George Hadley who plays Romeo. She also runs into the seamstress outside the stage. He tells her that he overheard Trent on the phone saying he was going to meet someone at noon the day he was murdered. He was not happy about it. She goes Trent's dressing room and finds flowers there sent by the same person. Finds a slip of paper that says
"Need You". Also some matches from The Caveron Club. Inspector Wellbourne sees her at the theatre. He is not happy to see her there.

Mrs. Satterwait invited Phyllida to a party at the Savoy Hotel. to honor the two men who died. Many of the men and woman from the theatre will be there. Agatha does not want her to go along so she has Joshua Bradford who worked for Agatha as a driver be her escort. When arriving Phyllida sees many people she has met at the theatres. Miss Putnam-Percy sees her and came over. She still thinks that Phyllida is a reporter named Penny Bright to introduce her fiance, Harold Fortenberry. Phyllida speaks to both Melissa and Hugh. All of a sudden Lawrence Nesmith comes in carrying a newspaper looking at Abernathy Vance's article. Upon everyone seeing the article people become upset and a fight breaks out. Joshua removes Phyllida from the situation before it gets out of hand,

The next day Phyllida gets a note from Melissa telling her that Claudia Carmichael was found dead on the stage. at the Chapham Theatre. She was in the show Peter Pan. She had either been pushed or fell from the catwalk, A program was found open to her page. When Phyllida got to the theatre she ran into Mr. Pibble who worked the ropes. The flying one was not his. She went up on the catwalk to see the scene. She noticed the railing was not the same as if disturbed as if pushed. Abby Millhouse was Claudia's roommate. She plays Wendy. She told Phyllide that Ellen Marston had wanted the role of Peter Pan but was cast as Autumn Crocus.

The murders were named The Alphabet Murders.

Inspector Wellington threated Phlyllide that he had the folder from Sedwick showing that she had killed her husband, David after the war and if she didn't stay out of the investigation he would use them.

Phyllida got another invitation to Melissa and Hugh's home to a party. Ms. Putnam-Percy was there with George Hadley. She also found out that Ellen Marston was engaged to Lawrence Nesmith. Phyllida meets Mr. Vane at the party. He told her that he was suppose to met with Trent at the theatre at 12 but had another appointment and had to cancel,

Daphne Dayberry arrived with her brother, Ned Nuffley. Since she was a "D" could she be next. She was doing the show Dracula. Shook hands and noticed that her hand had a tremor. She makes arrangements to see her at the theatre the next day. She also went to speak to Ellen and Vic. When alone with Vic she mentions the Cavern Club. He denies that he knows the club but gives it away before he leaves.

Bradford is there when Phyllida leaves the party. This is where I will leave the remainder of the book to the reader to enjoy. There is too much to put on paper.. The end is very exciting and a surprise.

I really enjoyed the book. I plan to read the first three. I and especially like the relationship that developed between Phyllida and Bradford. I look forward to the next book in the series.

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Publishing Corporation for this ARC.

Phyllida must split her time managing Agatha Christie’s rental house in London and solving a series of murders in this 4th book in the series. The murders revolve around the theater and actors with alliterative names which leads to dubbing the murder the ABC Killer. Agatha is there to help produce one of her plays and has her friend contact Phyllida to help figure out if the first death is from natural causes or murder. Phyllida is then called to a 2nd death, and then a 3rd death, and must solve the mystery before the 4th death can occur. She must also confront her feelings for the chauffeur, Bradford, who we see has some surprises in his past. Bradford does not take kindly to the police officer who subtly threatens Phyllida and takes matters into his own hands to protect her. I liked this book more than the last one and look forward to seeing Phyllida and Bradford work together more in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for selecting me to read an advanced copy of this book.

This was a delightful addition to the Phyllida Bright series! Poor Phyllida just can't catch a break, as even her trip to London is filled with murder. We get to learn a bit more about her past in this one, and things with Bradford heat up as well. Yay! The mystery was quite enjoyable, and I loved the alliteration as well as the theater setting. The wit and banter were entertaining as always. I had no idea who the killer was so the reveal was a nice surprise. I'm already looking forward to the next book and I highly recommend this whole series if you haven't read it yet!

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for the ARC!

Highly recommend this book! This is a murder mystery where Agatha Christie's housekeeper, Phyllida, continues her winning streak of solving crimes, dodging Myrtle's antics (Bradford's dog), and all other idiosyncrasies that take place in the household. I never guessed the killer, it was that good! Great wit along with great storytelling.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for this early advanced copy!

This was a delightful addition to the Phyllida Bright series with plenty of twists and turns along the way. I enjoyed the plot, and the different setting of London, along with the revelation of the secrets that Phyllida has been keeping from the beginning.

For those of us who have been waiting to see how the Bradford/Phyllida connection develops, you’ll really like this one!

This may be the best one yet, mainly for character development. I can’t wait for the next one!

Thanks to Kensington Publishing and Net Galley for this ARC. The author is back on form! Book 3 was a blip but i'm very happy to say this book is excellent, i think moving the location to London has helped. The plot was very good and we are finally learning more about Phyllida's past. Hoping it won't be so long for the next installment

I think this my favorite book so far in this excellent series. It’s very well written, with lovely turns of phrase, witty dialogue, and a great sense of characterization. Phyllida and her friend and employer Agatha Christie are in London and involved in the theater in this one, which marks a change of scene and some interesting new points of view. A series of deaths that begin to resemble the, in the book’s timeline, later Christie classic The ABC Murders soon draws Phyllida back into investigating. She takes on more risk in this one as we learn more of her previously mysterious back story. There are some enjoyable personal developments and, as always in this series, some fantastic side characters. I highly recommend the whole series. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy. All views are entirely my own and given voluntarily.

Here's the thing about the Phyllida Bright mysteries. While the mysteries are fine, what really has kept me hooked on the series is the main character, her mysterious past, and her relationships with other reoccurring characters. Finally we learn more of her backstory. Of course, appearances by Agatha Christie are also enjoyable. Readers who enjoy Rhys Bowen's "Her Royal Spyness" series will enjoy these mysteries as well.

Colleen Cambridge has become a must-read author for. I'm caught up on two of her series and eager to sample some of the others. Historical murder mystery with a twist, where famous writers or chefs or folks people like us (readers who love good gems) can appreciate the time it takes an author to create authentic replicas without ever having known them. Phyllida is lovely, and I want her to succeed in each and every investigation. Tho Agatha Christie appears in a few scenes, she's not the start, and the love interest with Bradford is becoming quite spectacular. Just who is he besides the Christie's new chauffer. In this installment, the West End plays are the setting, and someone's killing off players a la Christie's future (and the inspiration) for the ABC Murders. Great setting. Tons of drama. Strong plot. Must keep up with this series!

historical-figures, historical-novel, historical-places-events, historical-research, history-and-culture, London, famous-author, class-consciousness, local-law-enforcement, 1930s, investigations, domestic-staff, relationships, cozy-mystery, situational-humor, sly-humor, Scotland Yard, amateur-sleuth, theatre, banter, murders*****

Phyllida Bright is housekeeper to Agatha Christie and her husband Max Mallowan, but she is the one who does the investigating and in her own way at the behest of Agatha herself. The story is well done with wit, humor, good sleuthing, devious plot twists and interesting characters.
This is not an unbiased review as I really enjoyed the first three in series.
I requested and received a free temporary EARC from Kensington Books via NetGalley. Thank you!
#MurderTakesTheStage #NetGalley #PhyllidaBrightMysteries4 #ColleenCambridge Avail Oct 22 2024

3.75 stars

The latest entry in the historical cozy series featuring Agatha Christie's close friend and sort of household manager Phyllida Bright. Christie isn't a main character here, just a means to introduce Bright who is a strong figure with an aptitude for crime solving.

The Christie household has temporarily moved to London due to a theater production so the locale is slightly different. Christie calls Bright in when a couple of suspicious deaths almost certainly appear to be murders. Bright is great at nosing her way in and is a very skilled interviewer. The police don't like her, but they need her. They have something from her past to hold over her head but she is not cowed.

In this outing we see the usual interplay among the staff which is nicely entertaining and a burgeoning relationship between Bright and chauffeur Bradford which is adeptly handled. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Alliterations abound in the 4th Phyllida Bright Mystery from author Colleen Cambridge! Murder Takes the Stage brings us to London's theater district in the West End, where alphabetical murders are being committed one by one. The illustrious Mrs. Bright is asked to investigate, but can she do so without risking the release of secrets from her past?!? Read and find out - I, for one, loved it!!! A+

Murder Takes The Stage, by Colleen Cambridge, is the 4th book in the Phyllida Bright Mystery series. I think it is a standout in this enjoyable historical series. I look forward to each book to see how the characters are progressing, The cameo appearances of Agatha and Max give substance to Phyllida's detecting cases.

I would recommend this charming cozy series to readers who enjoy historical bits in their period mysteries, light banter, and a solid crime or two to solve.

Many thanks to #NetGalley #KensingtonPublishing #KensingtonCozies for allowing me an advanced e-copy to read in consideration of review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
#MurderTakesTheStage #NetGalley #PhyllidaBrightMystery #ColleenCambridge