This Enemy Town

Hannah Ives Mystery #5

by Marcia Talley

Hannah Ives is always ready to support others like herself who have been through the gauntlet of fear and uncertainty that a diagnosis of cancer often brings. So when friend and fellow survivor Dorothy Hart asks for help building sets for the Naval Academy's upcoming production of Sweeney Todd, Hannah readily agrees. But it means associating with an old foe -- a vindictive officer whose accusations once nearly destroyed Hannah's home life. And when one corpse too many appears during a dress rehearsal of the dark and bloody musical, Hannah finds herself accused of murder -- and enmeshed in a web of treachery and deception that rivals the one that damned the "Demon Barber." Caught up in a drama as sinister as any that has ever unfolded on stage, Hannah stands to lose everything unless she unmasks a killer before the final curtain falls ...

Genres: Mystery

255 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published August 30, 2005

About the author

Marcia Talley is the Agatha and Anthony award-winning author of DEAD MAN DANCING and six previous mysteries featuring amateur sleuth, Hannah Ives who, like the author, is a breast cancer survivor.

Marcia is author/editor of two star-studded collaborative novels, NAKED CAME THE PHOENIX and ID KILL FOR THAT set in a fashionable health spa and an exclusive gated community, respectively. Her short stories appear in more than a dozen collections including With Love, Marjorie Ann and Safety First, both Agatha award nominees, and the multi-award-winning Too Many Cooks, a humorous retelling of Shakespeares Macbeth from the viewpoint of the three witches. A recent story, Driven to Distraction won the Agatha Award, was nominated for an Anthony, and was reprinted in THE DANGEROUS BRIDE AND 21 OF THE YEARS FINEST CRIME AND MYSTERY STORIES.

Marcia is immediate past president of the Chesapeake Chapter of Sisters in Crime, serves as Secretary for Sisters in Crime National, and is on the board of the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the Mystery Writers of America. She divides her time between Annapolis, Maryland and an antique sailboat in the Bahamas.
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Reviews

[Christine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Set in Annapolis, this was an extremely light mystery, but does not rise to the quality level I associate with other fun, light mysteries by Sujata Massey (a friend and writing buddy of Marcia's) or Margaret Maron. The main character isn't entirely likable which I think is important in this type of mystery genre. If you don't like the "sleuth" you sort of want bad things to happen to her rather than cheer her on as she avoids yet another close one. I found her a bit of a snob. Whatever she does is always superior to other people in her life. She has a better, more devoted husband, she makes superior blueberry muffins, and her ability to "outthink" the bad guy is effortless, for her, because she's so smart. Anyway... the setting is the real draw here so if I read another, its because I had a spare 2 hours and wanted to imagine solving a mystery on Prince George St or Maryland Ave.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was so much to enjoy about this book. The historic setting of the US Naval Academy was fascinating. A behind the scenes look at a theatrical production was compelling. The mind of the protagonist, Hannah, was engrossing. You really felt what she felt whether anger or fear. This was an engaging story.