This is the first Laura Lippman novel I have read and I have to admit I was a bit disappointed. It seemed a bit formulaic and slow-moving and I had expected something more. ( )

Tess Monaghan becomes involved in the protection of a young star of a television series, Mann of Steel, being filmed in Baltimore. Selene Waite, barely twenty, rather self-centred and seemingly vacuous, has already been the prey of a twisted stalker who then committed suicide. But that's not the only cause for concern - small incidents are happening on the set, and it seems that it won't be long before something really serious occurs. Selene is far from co-operative with Tess and even spikes Tess's drink at a nightclub to get away from her.

From the very start the reader knows, even if one stalker is already dead, there is another watching Selene, taking photos, planning havoc. And then there are the protesters, the steelworkers of Baltimore, who say the television series is not treating their industry with any accuracy, and is riding roughshod over the residents. And what about the ageing Johnny Tampa, playing opposite Selene, who definitely believes the script is being manipulated for her benefit?

I found ANOTHER THING TO FALL very hard to get my head around. It seemed to me to lack focus. There were lots of characters and for a large part of the plot I really didn't know where it was going. This is #10 in the Tess Monaghan series, and lovers of the series will probably be aghast at my criticism. I felt that Lippman has not taken sufficiently into account that the reader may have picked the series up for the first time. I was looking for a bit of background about Tess and her background, and yes, I did get some, eventually. I felt much of the characterisation, particularly of Tess herself, assumed that I had met Tess in earlier books. There are some interesting characters - I loved Mrs Blossom for example - but for many the details are thin, and I actually felt there were too many characters for me to assimilate into one story.

I was really disappointed that I didn't enjoy ANOTHER THING TO FALL more, because I have enjoyed other Lippman novels. For example I gave WHAT THE DEAD KNOW a rating of 4.7. Back in 2005 I gave BY A SPIDER'S THREAD a rating of 5. ( )

Laura Lippman lives in, and writes about, Baltimore, Maryland, just across the Bay from me. I don't often get over there but there is a kind of appeal to reading a novel with a setting that is sort of familiar. Another Thing To Fall is the latest in her Tess Monaghan series of crime novels. Tess Monaghan may be the only fictional female private detective who rows a racing shell as a hobby. She is also a fictional graduate of Washington College, which is within walking distance from my house.

Another Thing To Fall is not so much a whodunnit as a "What the heck are they doing?" story. There are several people who commit crimes ranging from vandalism to faking a kidnapping to, of course, murder. They all revolve around the filming of a silly sounding TV seriec called Mann of Steel. It's fairly clear, even before the crime is committed, who the perp is going to be, but hard to figure out why. The motives ov the various characters are revealed in the end and the book moves forward on a series of revelations about each of them.

Lippman uses the filming of a television show as the setting for her story. Baltimore has become known as the setting of gritty cop shows with The Wire and Homicide: Life on the Steets having long runs on the air. There is a new medical docudrama coming out called Hopkins, too. Baltimore really is a film industry town.



In the fictional show, Mann of Steel, the male lead is transported to the early 19th century by receiving a head injury and somehow is able to bring the female lead back to the 21st century with him. One of the themes of the novel is the difference between homage to earlier writing and theft of intellectual property, yet Lippman does not acknowledge the previous, and best known, example of time travel by head injury in Mark Twain's A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur's Court. This may be an oversight, or a very subtle irony, I'm not sure which.

I'll Never Forget The Day I Read A Book!

In this volume in the Tess Monaghan series, Tess is hired as a bodyguard to a young and wayward actress in a TV series being shot in Baltimore. Murder ensues, and the stakes get higher.

Good novel, not the best in the series, but well worth the read. ( )

Private Investigator Tess Monaghan unknowingly ruins a shoot for the film crew of TV series Mann of Steel and instead of being chastised for it ends up with a new assignment: bodyguard to the show’s youngest actor, Selene Waites. The producer Flip Tumulty and his company have had a run of vandalism, leading to bad press, and Flip is concerned for Selene’s safety. With the aid of her friend Whitney, Tess reluctantly takes on the job, and quickly learns Selene is not as passive and uneducated as she appears. When Flip’s assistant is found beaten to death, Tess realizes Selene may actually be in danger and begins her own investigation into what happened to the assistant.

As always, Lippman provides the reader with an interesting view of Baltimore and its people and culture. The plot seems to stagger along at first, with no real sense of the characters involved. The killer’s mindset is initially hard to grasp, as is his reason for creating such havoc for the producer and his series. One interesting and refreshing character is Mrs. Blossom, one of Tess’s students in her private investigation class, who this reviewer hopes will return in future books. ( )

good audio ( )

Just could not get interested in this one. Reminded me too much of the Sara Peretsky books. Turned it off after the first cd. ( )

Laura Lippman is usually a sharp writer, and Tess Monaghan is usually a good character. This mystery, though, is a bit of a mess. Lippman does some dishonest writing here by having characters' thoughts provided to the reader when only later we find those out to be false. This is true of Johnny Tampa's supposedly first person response to Selene. In addition, Lippman seems to want to prove she knows movie and tv trivia. Who cares. Wikipedia gives everyone that trivia. The shenanigans on the set of a tv show border on the boringly been there, read that. In her acknowledgments, Lippman tells the reader she is married to the producer of The Wire, a tv show set in Baltimore. Aha. She thought her insider's knowledge of a tv show would make a good novel. In this case at least, she was wrong. If Lippman does not know, she should, that nearly every viewer of a movie knows it's all smoke and mirrors. We know the sets are fake, that the views outside windows are bogus, and that lighting is used to make things appear either earlier or later in the day. Has she ever seen a movie set in Paris? Doesn't she think it odd that every single apartment, house, office, government building has a view of The Eiffel Tower. This is a patronizing book and a crappy mystery. ( )

Another Tess Monaghan story, a bit frothier than recent ones, and much lighter than her brilliant stand-alones. A film crew is in Baltimore and Tess gets to protect a spoiled brat actress. Entertaining, but not much to it.

Tess Monaghan is out rowing on the river when she inadvertently collides with the set of a TV Show. Once they find out she is a private investigator she is hired to work as a body guard for their young star. Seems she has been the target of a stalker in the past and now strange things are happening on the set, small fires and other small but annoying sabotages. Tess soon realizes there is a lot more going on and when someone is murdered her behind-the-scenes investigation starts.

This is the first Laura Lippman book that I have read. Usually I'm pretty particular about starting a series at the beginning so was a little wary about jumping into this tenth entry of the series. I had little to worry about as I was hooked from the prologue. There were a few references to the past here and there but this book was very easy for a newcomer to the series to get into. I also usually don't read private investigator type mysteries either so I was very pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed this. The behind the scenes look at a television show was a lot of fun. The mystery was very good and kept me guessing until near the end. Rather than being a fast-paced plot focused mystery I found this to be a character driven story. The characters were very well developed and much time was spent just getting to know the supporting cast. If you are looking for a page-turner, this is not for you but if you are looking more for an Elizabeth George type mystery where you can get inside the head of the characters this book will surely please. ( )

not as good as expected ( )

The tenth entry in Laura Lippman's Tess Monaghan series finds the Baltimore-native reporter-turned-private-eye rowing her way into the production of the television mini-series Mann of Steel. Tess is hired to provide security for young starlet Selene Waites (think Paris Hilton only with acting ability) due to a series of disturbing incidents plaguing the fledgling series.

At first Tess chalks Selene up to a ditzy Hollywood type, but events quickly show that Selene is cleverer than she lets on. When the series of incidents escalates into the death of one of the writing assistants, Tess' natural curiosity is piqued and she begins to investigate what's really happening with the Mann of Steel production.

As the story unfolds, a number of likely suspects enter into the picture with Lippman laying out a foundation and motive for each person to be part of the plot to disrupt the production of the show. As always with Lippman's books, the pages turn easily and the narrative shifts between several characters while staying firmly grounded with Tess. The first half of the book lays out all the characters and their potential motivations and the second half puts the pieces into place, leading up to a satisfying denouncement to multiple mysteries taking place within the novel.

Yet despite having several threads running, the novel never loses focus or the reader.

Along with Elizabeth George, Lippman writes the most satisfying, character-driven mystery novels on the market today. As with George's Lynley and Havers series, part of the pleasure in Lippman's Monaghan novels is the chance to "catch up" with Tess. Of course, the mystery is compelling as well or else the novels wouldn't be worth the time or effort. But the balance of character and mystery is well navigated here. And Lippman does the near impossible task of allowing new readers into the Tess universe while satisfying long-time readers of Tess' adventures. ( )

Seemed to be in a very different vein from the other Tess Monaghan mysteries I’ve read. More like Tess light truth be told. It was enjoyable though and pretty well populated with suspects, but I think it lacked an emotional hook for us to catch hold of. I think it was because Tess herself was so detached from everything. If her emotional investment is minimal, it makes the reader not ante up either.

But it was fun seeing the inside drudgery of making a TV show. The ins and outs of contracts and time tables and pandering to personalities and egos was exasperating and hilarious. How these people can stand each other is hard to get my mind around. No wonder they were ripe for blackmail or worse. I did like how Selene turned out to be a much better actress than we first surmised. Also that Crow wasn’t in this one much was a bonus. ( )