From the author of wonderfully unconventional murder mysteries like Five Minds and Black Lake Manor comes a fiendishly clever and twist-laden legal thriller with a slyly theatrical tinge.
A trial is rather like a play.
We wear our costumes. We perform to the audience.
And on a good day no-one gets murdered.
Six nights a week the cast of the smash-hit play Daughter of the Revolution performs to a sold-out audience. A thrilling story of forbidden marriage and a secret love child, the critics say it'll run for years. That is until one night the third act ends not in applause but in death, when leading lady Alexandra Dyce is beheaded live on stage.
Every cast member has a motive, but it is the dead woman's co-star - and ex-husband - Hollywood legend Leo Lusk who is charged with the crime. When defence barrister Charles Konig is brought in last minute, he knows this ought to be the case of a lifetime. But Charles would rather be on his holiday trekking up K2, and he isn't interested in celebrities, especially ones that seem to be mysteriously trying to derail their own defence. But as he and his co-counsel New York lawyer Yara Ortiz sift through the evidence, it becomes clear that clues may lie in the play itself. And that Charles's only chance of victory is to identify the real murderer...
A delightfully clever legal mystery with as many layers as an onion. Perfect for readers of Janice Hallett, Tom Hindle, Rob Rinder and Richard Osman.
Publisher: Profile Books Ltd
ISBN: 9781800818989
Number of pages: 416
Weight: 620 g
Dimensions: 150 x 232 x 34 mm
Edition: Main
Morpuss interlards his larksome tale with gobbets of the drama, extracts from a legal blog, WhatsApp messages, forensic reports and letters to The Times... The courtroom scenes, naturally, are the most fun and the solution to whodunnit is admirably ingenious - The Times
An intriguing plot that asks the reader to decide... A delicious mystery - Daily Mail
Not another novel by a barrister, I hear you groan? But wait! A Trial in Three Acts by Guy Morpuss is rather splendid, with the experienced barrister author channelling the tropes of both a tense courtroom drama and a classic locked-room mystery. Defence lawyer Charles Konig is a strongly drawn, complex protagonist - Financial Times
Barrister Guy Morpuss describes with a light hand the splendours and absurdities of his profession in this novel about the murder of an actor during an intriguing historical play... The murder method is complicated and bloody and the legal machinations are highly ingenious... [Konig] is brilliant, funny, something of a misanthrope - Literary Review
An Agatha Christie-esque locked-room mystery - My Weekly
A considerable achievement as a courtroom drama that works as a page-turner at once witty, well-observed and a pleasing fantasy... Definitely one to read - The Critic
A captivating murder mystery executed with pin-point precision and skill that verges on the masterful. My verdict: all rise for a future book of the year - Janice Hallett, author of THE APPEAL
An excellent courtroom drama... Always great to read about trials and barristers when written by someone who knows exactly what they're talking about and this is a highly entertaining read. Very clever too with all the red herrings and intellectual arguments you could hope for - Harriet Tyce, author of BLOOD ORANGE
If you like your thrillers multi-layered, clever and compelling, this one's for you - Jennie Godfrey, author of THE LIST OF SUSPICIOUS THINGS
Is there a genre of comfort crime? A Trial in Three Acts is like a hearty stew on a winter's evening; it fills you up yet still leaves you wanting more. There are so many levels to savour through the brilliant writing and plotting and Charles Konig is a wonderful character - Ian Moore, author of DEATH AND CROISSANTS
I was found resoundingly guilty of dropping everything to lose myself in this courtroom tale of dark emotion and murder amongst the tombs of a Necropolis. The legal and historical twists were as involved and enthralling as the catacombs themselves - J.M. Hall, author of A SPOONFUL OF MURDER
Huge respect for the skilfully crafted legal thriller A Trial in Three Acts. A brilliant and entertaining read - B.A. Paris, author of BEHIND CLOSED DOORS
A Trial in Three Acts is as deft as it is surprising. It's a masterclass in character, has the wit of those sublime moments of Rumpole, and a plot that's completely unforgettable. Guy Morpuss is annoyingly good at this - Helen Fields, author of THE INSTITUTION
An absolute delight. A tale of rampant narcissism, cruelty and despicable behaviour. More Charles Konig please! - Emma Curtis, author of THE BABYSITTER
A clever, gripping and innovative legal mystery. It's a whip-smart page turner which truly delivers - Sarah J. Harris, author of THE COLOUR OF BEE LARKHAM'S MURDER
Masterfully devised with a Ingenious plot!
A Trial in Three Acts feels like a classic example of golden age crime fiction reimagined into a plot twisting head scratcher, which had me completely hooked and loving...
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This book engages from the first page with headlines about the death ranging from the sublime of the broadsheets to the ridiculous of the tabloids. The expertise of the author is evident and there is a hint of the... More
Legal thriller meets cosy murder mystery. Charles Konig KC has just successfully defended a case and is looking forward to his holiday when he is persuaded to forego his holiday and take on a high profile case... More
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