He was confronted by the sight of his wife sagging full length on the sofa, where she had been since approximately half past six, when she was strangled to death with one of her own silk scarves.

Death isn't in the script of the comedy slated to open in London's West End. But bloody bad luck during rehearsals has convinced actress Tessa Crichton that the first night of Elders and Betters will be its last. Even a charming plot can't help the doddering old star, Sir Philip Mickleton, who is dying in every scene . . . or the indecisive director, who's killing the timing; the producer, who's fatally fouling up the financing; and the leading lady and her lover, who are battling it out in the dressing room. But the finishing touch comes with anonymous letters predicting murder. Fear suddenly takes centre stage as Tessa switches roles from ingénue to detective. A theatre goes dark . . . and somebody dies.

Sleep of Death was originally published in 1982. This new edition features an introduction and afterword by crime fiction historian Curtis Evans.

'The fun lies in the style, light and sweet as a soufflé." Daily Telegraph