From Publishers Weekly
In James's third witty cozy (after 2003's Faked to Death) to feature author, part-time sleuth and gay vampire Simon Kirby-Jones, the usually quiet English village of Snupperton Mumsley is astir over the arrival of Zeke Harwood, the obnoxious star of the popular TV decorating show Très Zeke. Zeke and his staff plan to film the redecorating of Lady Prunella Blitherington's drawing room, but he threatens to paint the room red when he and Lady Prunella get into a nasty argument, caught on tape. When Zeke is later found bludgeoned to death and smeared with red paint in the now dismantled drawing room, Lady Prunella becomes the chief suspect, but not, as Simon soon discovers, the only one. Joining forces with good-looking Det. Inspector Robin Chase, Simon uncovers motives galore among the guests, villagers and, yes, even the butler. Meanwhile, Simon is perplexed by his own personal mystery-his sudden urge to nibble the veins in people's necks, a vampire instinct that his medication is supposed to control. As in an elaborate and fun game of Clue, all the pieces come neatly together. A well-crafted mystery combines with whimsical characters (the interplay between Simon and Lady Prunella's son, Giles, is a highlight) to create an imaginative spoof on the classic locked-room mystery.Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

FROM OUR EDITORS

The Barnes & Noble Review
Critically acclaimed writer and mystery bookstore manager Dean James has mystery in his blood￯﾿ﾽand so does the hero of Decorated to Death. Simon Kirby-Jones is a man of many talents -- and many secrets. The Simon everyone knows is the American historian and historical biographer living in a small English village. What his neighbors don't know about their congenial transatlantic transplant would (and does) fill quite a few books. Simon's biggest secret is that he's a vampire. Fortunately, thanks to a regular regimen of special nutrient pills, Simon doesn't have to drink blood ￯﾿ﾽor risk getting caught at it. His other secret is less dangerous but still tricky to live with. The erudite scholar also writes popular fiction under several pseudonyms￯﾿ﾽand what keeps his bank account so healthy could be deadly to his academic reputation. Compared to those secrets, Simon's homosexuality is nothing more than a mild eccentricity, adding a certain cachet to his reputation for charming manners and exquisite taste. Taste, good and bad, is at the core of this volume's cleverly plotted locked-room mystery. When TV celebrity Zeke Harwood, self-proclaimed King of Home Decorating, comes to redecorate the drawing room of the local manor house, Simon is at a loss to explain the egotistical tyrant's popularity with Britain's home decorating disciples. From the first, the man is rude, lecherous, and arrogant￯﾿ﾽand things go downhill from there. When Zeke commits the ultimate home decorating faux pas by getting himself murdered in the drawing room he was commissioned to redo, it's up to Simon to discriminate between the many excellent motives and plausible murderers, and solve the case with all possible taste, elegance, and speed. Sue Stone

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

In James's third witty cozy (after 2003's Faked to Death) to feature author, part-time sleuth and gay vampire Simon Kirby-Jones, the usually quiet English village of Snupperton Mumsley is astir over the arrival of Zeke Harwood, the obnoxious star of the popular TV decorating show Tres Zeke. Zeke and his staff plan to film the redecorating of Lady Prunella Blitherington's drawing room, but he threatens to paint the room red when he and Lady Prunella get into a nasty argument, caught on tape. When Zeke is later found bludgeoned to death and smeared with red paint in the now dismantled drawing room, Lady Prunella becomes the chief suspect, but not, as Simon soon discovers, the only one. Joining forces with good-looking Det. Inspector Robin Chase, Simon uncovers motives galore among the guests, villagers and, yes, even the butler. Meanwhile, Simon is perplexed by his own personal mystery-his sudden urge to nibble the veins in people's necks, a vampire instinct that his medication is supposed to control. As in an elaborate and fun game of Clue, all the pieces come neatly together. A well-crafted mystery combines with whimsical characters (the interplay between Simon and Lady Prunella's son, Giles, is a highlight) to create an imaginative spoof on the classic locked-room mystery. (Apr. 6) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

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