Don't Upstage the Body - by Naomi Stephens (Paperback)

About the Book

Hippolyta Halfpenny and her family of professional mourners find themselves trapped at a reclusive lord's funeral after the undertaker is murdered. As suspicions rise, Hippolyta must conceal her family's true identities, unravel secrets behind the murder, and unmask the truth before the final curtain falls.

Book Synopsis

Hippolyta Halfpenny and her family of professional mourners have perfected the theatrical art of grief. When the reclusive Lord Basil Monfort engages her family's services for his own funeral, she vows it will be her last performance as she's tired of the disguise. Then she discovers the undertaker's body in the library and finds herself cast as an amateur sleuth in an undercover investigation.

Rain washes away the roads, trapping the funeral party at Lord Monfort's estate--with an unidentified killer in their midst. Bound by her father's wishes to maintain their charade, Hippolyta must navigate a web of secrets spanning decades. But sorting truth from deception proves even more difficult when Lord Montfort's charming yet perceptive heir suspects Hippolyta is not all she appears to be.

Concealing her family's true identities while unraveling secrets might be the role of Hippolyta's life, but with a murderer among them, she must unmask the truth before the final curtain falls.

With her Agatha Christie inspired voice, Naomi Stephens pens a 1950s manor house murder mystery where no one is who they seem.

About the Author

Naomi Stephens is a bookworm turned teacher turned writer. She authored The Burning of Rosemont Abbey, which won a Daphne du Maurier Award, and Shadow among Sheaves, which was an INSPY Award shortlist contender and the winner of the 2020 Carol Award in Debut Fiction. Though she has called many places home over the years, she currently lives in New York with her husband, her two children, and a rascal of a dog named Sherlock. Learn more at NaomiStephens.com.