By Jon King / jking@whmi.com


A local author’s latest release is winning acclaim from mystery lovers and fans of Agatha Christie alike.

Murder at Mallowan Hall is set in the 1930s at Agatha Christie’s home, although the main character is Christie’s housekeeper Phyllida Bright. Created by New York Times bestselling and award-winning author Colleen Gleason of Brighton, Bright is an avid fan of detective fiction and uses her skills after finding a dead body following a party.

Gleason, who uses the pseudonym Colleen Cambridge for her latest effort, was a guest on WHMI’s Mike & Jon in the Morning and says the process of writing this book allowed her to go back and re-read all of the Agatha Christie classics she enjoyed in her youth. But it also required some specific research into how an English estate would have been run in that era to make sure everything rang true.

Described by one reviewer as a “…a combination of Clue; Upstairs, Downstairs; and of course Agatha Christie,” Murder at Mallowan Hall was named as an IndieNext Recommended Read for November by the American Booksellers Association.

It officially goes on sale Tuesday, and there will be a book launch party Tuesday night at 6:30 at Two Dandelions Books in Downtown Brighton.