Death Off Stage

Rating:
Summary: Miller takes center stage.
Review: In Death Off Stage, Carlene Miller has done superbly what she does best: create believable characters involved in an intricate plot in a realistic setting. With Tory Gordon and Tandy Byers she has introduced two strong females equally but disparately likable so that the reader cares what happens to them. Even more beautifully limned than the leads in this drama are the supporting characters, especially the women -- indomitable Miss Verda, sailor-mouthed Maxine, talented and lovely Selinda -- and many more. Every character in the book supports the theater adage that there are no small parts, only small actors; but Miller allows no small actors. This large cast becomes involved in a murder mystery so carefully plotted that it ravels and unravels like fishline or like a drama unfolding on stage. The intertwined lives of the characters produce many motives, means, and opportunities making a Gordian knot for Captain Gordon and the reader to slash through. Finally, Miller's homey small town setting sets the stage with realistic local color -- the community theater undergoing remodeling, the Shack with its inimitable chowder, the annual River Festival complete with raft race, and the Coffeepot where everyone exchanges the latest gossip. Lending depth to the story is the realistic feel for the challenge of lesbian life in Small Town, South. All together, the characters, plot, and setting make Death Off Stage Carlene Miller's best book to date.

Rating:
Summary: Miller takes center stage.
Review: In Death Off Stage, Carlene Miller has done superbly what she does best: create believable characters involved in an intricate plot in a realistic setting. With Tory Gordon and Tandy Byers she has introduced two strong females equally but disparately likable so that the reader cares what happens to them. Even more beautifully limned than the leads in this drama are the supporting characters, especially the women -- indomitable Miss Verda, sailor-mouthed Maxine, talented and lovely Selinda -- and many more. Every character in the book supports the theater adage that there are no small parts, only small actors; but Miller allows no small actors. This large cast becomes involved in a murder mystery so carefully plotted that it ravels and unravels like fishline or like a drama unfolding on stage. The intertwined lives of the characters produce many motives, means, and opportunities making a Gordian knot for Captain Gordon and the reader to slash through. Finally, Miller's homey small town setting sets the stage with realistic local color -- the community theater undergoing remodeling, the Shack with its inimitable chowder, the annual River Festival complete with raft race, and the Coffeepot where everyone exchanges the latest gossip. Lending depth to the story is the realistic feel for the challenge of lesbian life in Small Town, South. All together, the characters, plot, and setting make Death Off Stage Carlene Miller's best book to date.