Flirting With Disaster: a kate carpenter mystery

Kate Carpenter Mystery #4

by Deborah Nicholson

Kate Carpenter was hoping for a peaceful start to her summer but a serial killer is stalking her neighbourhood. The Bishop leaves distinctive clues on each of his a game piece, rearranged clothing and a missing body part. Kate and her friends are working the first festival of the summer but the cheerful atmosphere, amidst the clowns, bands and face-painters, is spoilt after yet another body is found – leaving the streets of Calgary deserted at night and a wake of fear rippling across the city. After Kate has a huge fight with her boyfriend, she is plagued by a member of the festival’s staff she is supervising, and is terrified that one of the volunteers could be the serial killer. And she starts to forget how much she is missing her boyfriend, Cam . . . A lost child, a kidnapped woman and a dead body all convince Kate that her life is on the line. Surrounded by strangers, and not knowing who to believe, will Kate solve the mystery and find out who she can really trust before it is too late?

318 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2005

About the author

Deborah Nicholson has always loved the arts. So much so that they inspired her Kate Carpenter Mystery series, based on her experiences as House Manager at Theatre Calgary. She has made numerous appearances on The Breakfast Show, Shaw Television and was a featured performed in "The Letters". Deborah is a member of Mystery Writers Ink, The Alexandra Writers Society, Crime Writers of Canada, The Alberta Writers Guild, and Romance Writers of America. Deborah is a great supporter of charity and volunteerism and donates 10% of all profits of her novels to charity.

Reviews

[Sunrise Scholar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Flirting with Disaster – Personal Review

Flirting with Disaster by Deborah Nicholson continues the adventures of theatre house manager Kate Carpenter, a character who seems to attract trouble even when she is simply trying to do her job. Once again, what should be an ordinary part of theatre life quickly turns into something much more complicated. Kate’s curiosity and natural instinct to pay attention to the small details pull her into another mystery that slowly unfolds behind the scenes.

What I enjoy about this story is the sense of familiarity that Nicholson builds around the theatre world. The characters feel like people you might actually meet in a busy arts community—each with their own quirks, secrets, and personalities. Kate herself is easy to cheer for. She isn’t fearless, but she keeps moving forward, guided by common sense and a determination to understand what is really going on.

The mystery develops at a comfortable pace, balancing suspense with moments of humour and everyday life. For me, the book felt like spending time with a group of interesting people while watching a mystery quietly take shape.

Overall, Flirting with Disaster is an enjoyable, character-driven mystery that keeps the curtain slightly open on the lively and unpredictable world of theatre. 🎭📚