Murder in the Dressing Room

Murder in the Dressing Room is the debut novel of Holly Stars. It’s also the first book in the Misty Divine cozy mystery series. By day, Joe Brown is a somewhat shy hotel accountant bored with his job, but unwilling to give up the security of a regular paycheck. By night, they take the stage in cabaret venues as Misty Divine.

When Misty’s mentor, Lady Lady, is found murdered in her dressing room at Lady’s Bar, Misty and the other performers become the prime suspects. Heartbroken and frustrated by the detective inspector’s attitude and lack of progress, Joe is determined to find the killer with the help of Misty Divine.

While Joe is unassuming, introspective, and more emotional, Misty is much stronger, loves adulation, and is more confident and outgoing. The other characters had depth and their personalities came through extremely well.

This well-plotted cozy mystery has several twists and turns. While I guessed some of it, a couple of items caught me by surprise and I enjoyed how the author twisted those plot points. Most of the book takes place during one and one-half weeks with an epilogue two weeks later. Set in London, England, the world-building worked for the story, but I wanted a little better feel that it was London and not another large city. However, it was easy to visualize the venues and the characters, and this was important to the story-line. The search for the killer moves the story forward, but there were a few spots where the pacing slowed or the story felt repetitive.

The author managed to give great insight into Misty’s and Joe’s thoughts, behaviors, and actions towards others as well as the challenges and difficulties they faced from others. Despite the serious topic, there are occasional bits of humor that lightened the story. The novel shines a light on how people judge others, lack of trust, love, greed, prejudices, and much more. My biggest quibble was that there were times when the story was more telling than showing. However, this is a good start to the series and the ending gave clues to the next book’s main emphasis.

Overall, it was suspenseful at times, heart-wrenching at other times, and kept my interest. This story comes to a satisfying conclusion. If you are looking for a cozy mystery featuring diversity and with some important looks at the dual world of Joe and Misty, then this may be the novel for you.

Berkley Publishing Group and Holly Stars provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. The publication date is currently set for January 14, 2025.