Author:
Writer, singer and actor Joanne Sydney Lessner draws on her own experiences pursuing a performing career in New York City for her acclaimed Isobel Spice Mysteries. With her husband, composer/conductor Joshua Rosenblum, she has co-authored several musicals, including the cult hit Fermat’s Last Tango and Einstein’s Dreams, based on the celebrated novel by Alan Lightman, opening Off Broadway in November 2019. Her play Critical Mass received its Off Broadway premiere in October 2010. Joanne is also a regular contributor to Opera News and a graduate of Yale University.

In the world of PR, there’s only one crime worse than killing a deal—killing a client. 

Aspiring actress and office temp Isobel Spice finds a warm welcome at Dove & Flight Public Relations, thanks to her old school friend Katrina Campbell. However, the atmosphere chills considerably when Isobel unwittingly serves an important client a deadly dose of poisoned coffee. Her stalwart temp agent, James Cooke, rushes to her aid, but balks when he learns that the victim was the fraternity brother who got him expelled from college. News that Dove & Flight is being acquired by an international conglomerate quickly supplants the murder as the hot topic of office gossip, but Isobel is convinced the two events are related. When all roads of inquiry lead back to Katrina, Isobel is forced to consider the possibility that her friend’s killer instincts go beyond public relations.

Bad Publicity

The only thing more infuriating than James not remembering she'd been at his apartment was his mistaking her for somebody else. And that obnoxious little gym rat, of all people! Isobel plunged her fists into her eyes to keep from crying, but succeeded only in smearing her eye shadow. 


She had gone over there on impulse, and now she regretted it. While there had been nothing attractive about James in the state in which she'd found him, she had to admit that when he'd asked her to stay, she had felt a rush of affection. But it appeared he thought he was asking Lily to stay. She took a tissue from the box on the desk in Kit's empty office, where she'd taken refuge, and blew her nose with enough force to stop up her ears. She tried to lob the tissue into the garbage can by the door and missed. With a self-pitying sigh, she got up from behind the desk and went to retrieve it. Kit's raincoat was still hanging on the door. It was a nice-looking coat. 


Chapter 43