A husband and wife were brutally murdered at their summer place on Deep Creek Lake, Maryland. Janice Stillman was a Hollywood talent agent who moved to the area with her husband Austin, to get away from the Hollywood rat race. Derrick Stillman, the couple’s only child, managed his mother’s comedy club called Lenny’s Comedy Café, and was currently under investigation for using drugs.

One of the chief suspects was one-time teen idol Lenny Frost who is now a drug addict and alcoholic. Mrs. Stillman named her comedy club after Lenny, her biggest star. He swore he would never have hurt the Stillman’s and that someone was setting him up.

In order to prove his innocence he takes over a local bar, the Blue Whale Pub, holds the bartender and patrons hostage, and demands to see Mickey Forsythe, a character in a movie. In his drunken state of mind, Lenny believed Mickey was real and could find out who really killed the Stillman’s.

Mac Faraday pretends to be Forsythe and goes into the bar to try to bring Lenny out. He has twelve hours to rectify the situation and free Lenny by catching the real killer according to Lenny who is brandishing a gun and threatening the hostages.

As Mac set himself up in the bar to try to talk Lennie into giving up, Spencer Police Chief David O’Callaghan works the case on the outside. As the clues mount up, the investigation becomes more complicated, especially when the DEA and FBI get involved. False names, fake alibis, drugs and lawsuits, and someone out for revenge, subsequently have the Spencer Police Department wondering what is going on in their small town.

Twelve to Murder is the seventh book in the Mac Faraday Mystery series by best-selling author Lauren Carr. She is also the author of the Joshua Thornton Mysteries, and Lovers in Crime Mysteries featuring prosecutor Joshua Thornton and homicide detective Cameron Gates.

In this fast-paced, provocative novel, the author takes a look at what happens when child stars or teen idols fall from grace due to drugs and alcohol. What happens when they realize they will never be able to achieve the level of success they previously enjoyed, and they wonder what’s going to happen to them now that they are out of the running for any new roles?

Twelve to Murder must be one of the more intense novels the author has written, and one readers will not want to put down. Twists and turns keep the plot moving forward at break-neck speed and fans working hard to figure out who killed the Stillman's. As always, it isn’t who we think.

A special thank you goes to Acorn Book Services for providing us with an advanced reader copy of Twelve to Murder for our review. Lauren Carr's books are at Amazon.