“Oh my GAWD, it’s Renata Harwood!”

That was my maid, Elf, leaning precariously over the rail of the ocean liner. Of course, calling her a maid is a trifle optimistic. Luckily, she has other attributes (her skill with throwing knives is particularly impressive.)

My name is Lucy Revelstoke, Lady Revelstoke, if you insist on being proper (I rarely do.) It’s 1928, and we’re on board the Victoriana, a ship I happen to own, thanks to my late husband’s will. Johnny – the love of my life – died four years ago, at the age of 33. I miss him every day.

This is our second voyage to America, and it plans to be extra exciting. Renata Harwood, reigning queen of the Silver Screen, is traveling to Hollywood with her younger sister and husband! Everyone is star-struck! As if that isn’t sensational enough, her motion picture rival Stella Burke makes a surprise and spectacular entrance at dinner the first night. Not one, but TWO silent film stars are on board! I think Elf is going to have a coronary.

Everyone expects delicious drama to be served up by the leading ladies, and we are not disappointed. But then, Renata’s sister Meg goes missing the first night. Where can she be? Has an older man seduced her, as Renata fears? Could it be suicide? Or has something more sinister occurred?

Things turn to worse, when Renata’s stewardess Polly is found murdered in their cabin, wearing Renata’s dress. The murderer obviously mistook poor Polly for Renata. Or did they?

Why would anyone want to kill either of them?

Now I have to act. Elf is determined to avenge the death of her friend Polly, and Renata begs me to find Meg. Luckily, Elf and I are adept at breaking into cabins (did I mention that I was born with a seat at my family’s criminal high table? All in the past, of course.)

We do our darndest to find the poor girl by searching all the unoccupied cabins. But instead of Meg, we discover poisonous snakes! What the devil is going on? Have we tripped upon a dangerous smuggling ring?

And then something happens to Stella, and I have to wonder:
Does someone have a vendetta against film stars?

The Silent Film Star Murders ~ A Merry Widow Murders Mystery, Book 2
Genre: Historical Mystery 1920s
Release: April 2025
Format: Print, Digital
Purchase Link

Lady Lucy Revelstoke and her pickpocket-turned-maid Elf are once again embarking on a transatlantic crossing. Also on board are Renata Harwood, star of the silver screen, and her bitter rival, Stella Burke. Roy Armitage may be Renata’s husband, but he used to be Stella’s man.

Everyone expects these leading ladies to serve up delicious drama at dinner, but things take a tragic turn when Renata’s little sister goes missing. Has she been seduced by a cad and hiding out in second-class, as Renata fears, or has the poor girl thrown herself overboard?

Then Elf’s friend, stewardess to the Harwoods, is found brutally murdered while wearing Renata’s evening gown. From the back, it’d be hard to tell them apart, so was Renata the intended victim?

Lucy’s determined to investigate, proving once again that sometimes it takes a savvy woman to unravel the intricate relationships that lead to murder.

About the author
Called the “Queen of Comedy” by the Toronto Sun, Melodie Campbell writes capers, heists and golden age mysteries. Winner of ten awards for crime fiction, Melodie has 18 books and over 60 short stories, but she got her start writing stand-up. The Silent Film Star Murders, second in The Merry Widow Murders series, has just been released from Cormorant Books. “The high society flair of Death on the Nile meets a 1920s ocean liner in this sensational cozy mystery from Melodie Campbell.” Open Book.