The Alexandrians Books in Order

The Alexandrians shifts Lesley Cookman from present-day village crime to Edwardian seaside mystery, but it keeps the same love of performance, gossip and close-knit communities. The series opens in 1907 with Death Plays a Part. Dorinda Alexander, once a governess and now the determined owner of the new Alexandria theatre in Nethergate, is trying to build a future for herself and her concert party troupe. Then one of the company is murdered, and her hard-won new life is suddenly at risk.

This is a theatre mystery series through and through.

Dorinda is practical, ambitious and very aware of how fragile respectability can be. She runs performers, schedules, money worries and backstage tempers, all while navigating a world that is not especially kind to independent women. Her troupe, The Alexandrians, lives by putting on a show, which means every season brings new personalities, rivalries and opportunities for trouble. When Scotland Yard detective Jack Colyer appears, he helps with the cases, but he also unsettles Dorinda in more personal ways.

Nethergate matters as much as any character. It is a Kent seaside town in the years when entertainment, class and social rules are all shifting. Visitors come down from London, the music hall world meets polite society, and people who want a quieter life quickly discover that the seaside is not always quiet. That tension gives the series a nice mix of glamour and unease. Costumes, rehearsal rooms and concert bills sit right alongside gossip, hidden histories and police questions.

The first three books show how flexible the setup is. Death Plays a Part brings murder into the opening season of the new theatre. Entertaining Death introduces the recently widowed Lady Amelia Washington, whose visit to Nethergate draws police interest and old secrets. In Death Treads the Boards, a famous male impersonator arrives looking for cover, only to find that the stage is never quite a safe place to hide. Each book uses performance not just as scenery, but as part of the mystery itself.

Cookman also uses the Edwardian setting well without turning the books into history lessons. Questions of class, reputation, work and female independence are always there, but lightly handled. Dorinda is building a life on her own terms, and every case threatens either her theatre, her company, or the people she has gathered around her.

If you like traditional mysteries with a strong sense of place, a backstage setting and a touch of slow-burn romantic tension, this series is a good fit. The crimes matter, but so do the rehearsals, the seaside atmosphere and the daily work of keeping the show going.