S7 TT18: The Stuff of Murder

Mysteries to Die For

Welcome to Mysteries to Die For and this Toe Tag.

I am TG Wolff and am here with Jack, my piano player and producer. This is normally a podcast where we combine storytelling with original music to put you at the heart of mystery. Today is a bonus episode we call a Toe Tag. It is the first chapter from a fresh release in the mystery, crime, and thriller genre.

Today’s featured release is The Stuff of Murder by Kathleen Marple Kalb.

TG Wolff Review

The Stuff of Murder by Kathleen Marple Kalb is an amateur sleuth cozy mystery. Dr. Christian Shaw is a mother, a widow, and the director of the historical society. She is responsible for the 17th century bible and pewter tankard used by the lead actor in a movie very loosely based on The Scarlet Letter. Then the actor dies, dramatically. Christian’s old stuff is at the heart of the investigation and where they go, she goes.

Bottom line: The Stuff of Murder by Kathleen Marple Kalb is for you if you like cozy mysteries, charming characters, and everyday old stuff.

One of my favorite things about The Stuff of Murder is the characters. Kalb does a wonderful job of giving the primary characters distinct voices and appearances, making the story easy to read. Christian Shaw is six foot one with flaming red hair. Her son Henry is a five-foot tall third-grader with photographic memory. The fathers she should have had are Garrett the academic and his husband Ed the retired state trooper. And last but certainly not least is the handsome, philanthropic, and very tall state’s attorney Joe Poli. Then there are the other parents, the society volunteers, and townspeople. This is an amazing, heartwarming cast.

The setting is small town Unity, Connecticut. As with most small town cozies, the nature of the town with the tensions and conflicts of people too involved in each other’s business is an amusing counterpoint to main mystery. This is the source of much of the information Christian uses as well as the bane of her busy days.

Brett Studebaker is a fifty-something actor looking to launch into the next stage of his career on a period film based loosely on The Scarlet Letter. Brett is filming a pivotal scene, acting in the pulpit of church turned synagogue some ten feet above the floor. When he goes off script, only Christian and the locals with her notice the odd behavior. Brett falls from the pulpit, breaking his neck. But it isn’t the simple accident someone wants everyone to believe. The leading theory is poison, introduced through the pewter mug the historical society lent to the film.

This mystery is a throw back to an older style where conversations, not evidence, are the primary detection tool. Christian pieces together the small facts she learns into a chain that will catch the guilty. It’s hard to discuss the logic of the mystery without giving too much away. Suffice it to say that the motives and actions of the guilty are consistent and follow logically in their minds.

The Stuff of Murder is a character driven story that would be enjoyed by readers who love cozies as well as those who prefer traditional mysteries.

The Stuff of Murder by Kathleen Marple Kalb was released from Level Best and is available from AMAZON LINK and other book retailers. Book 2, The Stuff of Mayhem is coming in November 2024.

About Kathleen Marple Kalb

https://kathleenmarplekalb.com

Kathleen Marple Kalb describes herself as an Author/Anchor/Mom…not in that order. An award-winning weekend anchor at New York’s 1010 WINS Radio, she writes short stories and novels including the Ella Shane and Old Stuff mysteries, both from Level Best Books. As Nikki Knight, she writes the Grace the Hit Mom and Vermont Radio mysteries. Her stories have appeared in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, Black Cat Weekly, online, and in anthologies, and been short-listed for Derringer and Black Orchid Novella Awards. She, her husband, and son live in a Connecticut house owned by their cat