THE UNDERSTUDY

An opera singer who has finally gotten her big break is tormented by an understudy who might be trying to kill her.

You don’t need to be an opera fan to follow the plot of Richter’s new suspense novel, which is set in the New York opera world, but you do need to suspend more than a little disbelief. The story follows Kit Margolis, an aspiring singer, who has finally landed the title role in a new and adventurous adaptation of the 1960s Jane Fonda film Barbarella (actually kind of a fun idea) with a chamber opera company. Originally an understudy, Kit secured the part when the original star was cast in La Traviata at the Met. Not everyone in the company is sure Kit can play the part, but she's determined. Unfortunately, her sexy new understudy, Yolanda Archambeau, is equally set on ousting Kit from the role by any means necessary, starting with but not limited to poisoning her tea and—maybe?—leaving a dead rat with a knife stuck through its body on Kit’s doorstep. As their rivalry escalates, Kit finds herself inexplicably drawn to Yolanda and pulled into her life. Then a murder rocks the opera company, and Kit takes on the role of crusading detective trying to unlock too many dangerous secrets. A character who refuses to go to the cops when she’s sure someone is trying to kill her is required for this particular plot to play out, and Kit’s unlikely behavior is almost certain to try the reader’s patience. What’s even harder to accept is that a struggling opera singer would jump into full detective mode for no particular reason or why she would feel compelled to help someone who has probably been trying to injure or murder her. The book is best early on, when Richter leaves you guessing about Yolanda’s actions, but as motivations become clear, the novel ends on a ridiculous note that falls sadly flat.

An interesting premise that relies too heavily on the reader’s ability to accept the preposterous.