Too Famous To Live Long — David Linzee

In the third mystery about struggling opera singer Renata Radleigh, Renata finally gets her big break. She is set to co-star in a new work about to premiere at the Saint Louis Opera. Then the conductor is murdered. He was controversial for his loyalty to the President of Russia, whose outrages have infuriated Americans. Now everyone thinks it was a protestor who murdered him--everyone but Renata. She recognizes that his grisly murder was inspired by a famous death scene in an opera, which makes her suspect that the killer is someone close to the production. Struggling to make the show ready for opening night, Renata and company are buffeted by new shocks, as more victims turn up. Renata sees that each gruesome murder was inspired by an operatic death. The police are baffled. Renata's only ally is her lover Peter Lombardo. But even he is caught up in the passions swirling around the production. Too late Renata realizes that the scene is being set for her death. She is only trembling on the brink of stardom...but is she already too famous to live long?