The Old Deep and Dark

Cordelia Thorn has a big project. She and her sister Octavia bought an old theatre in Minneapolis, and Cordelia intends to bring it back to its original glory. But old buildings have old secrets, and Cordelia discovers a gangland double murder had happened in the building. While Cordelia and her P. I. friend Jane Lawless are poking around, they discover a body stashed there more recently. Jane is already busy working on a case with her lawyer father to help discover who murdered a local country western singer. Dad’s client is the wife and family of the murdered singer. When even more bodies are discovered in the theatre, nobody thinks things can get much stranger until Jane figures out that all the cases are connected to the dead singer.

Ellen Hart has written a terrific mystery with believable, well-rounded characters, great setting, fascinating story line, and red herrings galore. She effortlessly juggles what seems to be three or four different story lines until she seamlessly brings them all together to a surprisingly logical conclusion. Those who love mysteries that are not filled with a lot of gratuitous graphic violence will really appreciate this smart, well-written book.