A murdered starlet, a ‘lost’ theatre and a love letter to the golden age of detective fiction; Death on the Pier is the theatrical debut novel from West End insider Jamie West.
Set in and around the drama-filled world of theatre, renowned murder mystery playwright Bertie Carroll turns real life detective when his leading lady is shot and killed on stage, in full view of an unsuspecting audience. As motives, secrets and old rivalries begin to come to light, the murderer is still waiting in the wings.
Author Jamie West knows the intricacies of stage life better than most, having worked over the last 15 years backstage on countless shows in London’s West End including The Book of Mormon, Miss Saigon, Kinky Boots, Priscilla Queen of the Desert, and currently Dear Evan Hansen. This, twinned with his fascination for ‘lost’ theatres, allows him to lovingly recreate The Palace Pier Theatre, Brighton in the pages of Death on the Pier.
This theatrical murder mystery introduces Bertie Carroll, one of the most successful playwrights of the 1930s, and his old school friend Chief Detective Inspector Hugh Chapman. During the opening night of a revival of one of Bertie’s plays, the audience watches former Hollywood star Celia Hamilton as she is shot onstage, unaware that a real murder is taking place. It’s only when the curtain falls that the cast realise that something has gone horribly wrong. Together, Bertie and Hugh must unravel the clues and crack the case.
