Exit Stage Death is a thrilling page turner of a novel that kept me hooked from the first sentence: “I’d never stopped to think about how murder investigations and musical theatre are actually pretty similar until I was caught up in one when I was trying to focus on the other.”.
This book is set at a musical theatre summer camp, where the protagonist, Livi Campbell (who is a massive musicals geek), is determined to get the lead in the summer showcase, despite the famous newcomers that have shown up, jeopardising her spotlight. However, Livi and her new friends must come together after a fellow camper shows up dead in the lake, and the group start receiving suspicious notes that seem to imply her death wasn’t an accident.
I really enjoyed Eldred’s writing style, especially the way the novel incorporated a script, which truly has a deeper meaning at the end of the story.
Perfect for lovers of ‘Glee’, murder mysteries and musicals, this novel is full to the brim with mystery, romance, friendship and theatre. Eldred masterfully combines these into an exciting story, with a compelling plot and an ending which had my jaw on the floor.
Ciara Martin, 15
Exit Stage Death
Ava Eldred
UCLan Publishing, 2025
Paperback, €13.50
ISBN: 9781916747586
