A Weekend in the Country?

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: I was going to say—remember when you read your first country house mystery? But instead—let me lead the standing ovation for Katherine Hall Page. Such a talented, brilliant and hilarious person--and the most loyal and loving and generous friend. In your library? Well, of course. You want Katherine. In the kitchen? Most definitely. Katherine's an amazing cook. 

And in the trenches? Trust me. You want Katherine.

And now, astonishingly, she’s on the twenty-fourth Faith Fairchild mystery. You’ve read her “The Body in the….”  books, right?  Traditional and contemporary at the same time, witty and smart and sophisticated and clever.

The dining room at Stonehurst

Now. Remember what I said about country houses?  You want Katherine's. I mean--the one she writes about in her brand new book!

Take One Manor House, Add Murder and Stir

   By Katherine Hall Page

I’ve always wanted to write a country house mystery. One in which all the action occurs over a weekend—a “Saturday to Monday” as the British called it—with the suspects limited to the guests, staff, and host. Bumps in the night could mean discreet visits to another bedroom, or something more sinister. A push down a flight of stairs or a perilous visit to the loo tripping over the piece of string stretched across the hall that released a deadly cudgel on a nearby suit of armor. A tray of drinks passed by the butler, one lethal. And the grounds offered plenty of pitfalls resulting in an empty place at table. Endless possibilities.

Agatha Christie certainly knew this and introduced Hercule Poirot in The Mysterious Affair at Styles, the first of many set in similar venues. Martin Edwards has edited a superb collection of country house mystery short stories—Murder at the Manor (Poisoned Pen Press), including a very witty takeoff on the genre, “The Murder at the Towers” by E.V. Knox.

Given the popularity of the setting during the Golden Age, it is a wonder that anyone accepted an invitation to one of these stately homes.

The Body in the Casket is the 24^th in the Faith Fairchild series and I decided it was more than time to try my hand at the iconic setting. It is Rowan House, near Faith’s home in Aleford, Massachusetts. She has never heard of it nor the enclave in which it is located—Havencrest.

The Rowan House is directly modeled on Stonehurst in Waltham, MA. It was designed by Henry Hobson Richardson with landscape design by Frederick Law Olmsted and I think it’s the only one of their collaborations that is open to the public. Stonehurst was completed in 1886 and sits on 109 acres. We live only a few miles away, but I had never heard of it (like Faith) until we went there for a friend’s wedding. 

It immediately suggested itself as the perfect place for a murder!

Rowan House’s current owner is Max Dane, legendary Broadway producer/director. He is throwing himself a weekend long 70^th birthday party and hires Faith to cater it, but tells her that although he knows her reputation as a chef, it’s her “sleuthing abilities” that have attracted him.

Max’s last show, Heaven or hell The Musical was a colossal flop twenty years ago and he has not done one since. An ominous early birthday gift delivered to his door has convinced him that someone associated with the production is out to kill him. All ten of the guests he’s invited—and one uninvited—have good reasons to wish him dead.

photo courtesy Jean Fogelberg

And so we’re off with a good old-fashioned ice storm, power outage and plenty of food. Not hampers from Fortnum and Mason, but dishes referencing the musical such as Lobster Fra Diavolo and fallen Angel cocktails.

What are some of your favorite country house mysteries? And heavenly or devily delicious dishes?

HANK: Ooh, cannot wait to hear what you all say. Ten Little Indians? In a Dark, Dark Wood? What say you, Reds and readers?

Katherine Hall Page is the author of twenty-three previous Faith Fairchild mysteries. The recipient of Malice Domestic’s Lifetime Achievement Award, she has received Agathas for best first mystery (The Body in the Belfry), best novel (The Body in the Snowdrift), and best short story, (“The Would-Be Widower”). She has also been nominated for the Edgar, the Mary Higgins Clark, the Macavity, and the Maine Literary Award. She lives in Massachusetts and Maine with her husband.

 

The Body in the Casket 

The inimitable Faith Fairchild returns in a chilling New England whodunit, inspired by the best Agatha Christie mysteries and with hints of the timeless board game Clue.
For most of her adult life, resourceful caterer Faith Fairchild has called the sleepy Massachusetts village of Aleford home. While the native New Yorker has come to know the region well, she isn't familiar with Havencrest, a privileged enclave, until the owner of Rowan House, a secluded sprawling Arts and Crafts mansion, calls her about catering a weekend house party.

Producer/director of a string of hit musicals, Max Dane—a Broadway legend—is throwing a lavish party to celebrate his seventieth birthday. At the house as they discuss the event, Faith's client makes a startling confession. "I didn't hire you for your cooking skills, fine as they may be, but for your sleuthing ability. You see, one of the guests wants to kill me."
Faith's only clue is an ominous birthday gift the man received the week before—an empty casket sent anonymously containing a twenty-year-oldPlaybill from Max's last, and only failed, production—Heaven or Hell. Consequently, Max has drawn his guest list for the party from the cast and crew.

 As the guests begin to arrive one by one, and an ice storm brews overhead, Faith must keep one eye on the menu and the other on her host to prevent his birthday bash from becoming his final curtain call.

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