Il Maestoso

Note: This story is available in Black Cat Weekly #243

When a mysterious offer arrives promising Detective Mark Kilcullen the break he needs to advance his career from the financial crimes unit up to the homicide squad, he accepts an invitation to attend an intimate dinner party at Il Maestoso. While a blizzard rages outside the swanky restaurant, five strangers spend the evening working to piece together what connection they all share. But their unknown host has other plans, and Mark will get the opportunity to conduct a death investigation far sooner than expected.

Do you remember the first time you read And Then There Were None or saw The Mousetrap? I do. Or more specifically, I remember the feeling I had experiencing them. There's something about a good old murder mystery that I absolutely love. Part of it is getting to play detective right along with the sleuth, but there's also a dash of horror that sets is apart from most procedurals and hardboiled mysteries, since the people trying to solve the murder are also potential victims.

When I stepped into The Majestic, a wonderful resturant in Alexadria Virginia, I immediatly had that same feeling. The smells, the sounds, the atmophere, or maybe it was that I'd just attended ShortCon, but I knew that I'd found the set of a murder mystery. If you're ever in the DC area, make a reservation and see if you feel it, too (the foods great, by the way). But if it starts to snow and the hostess locks the door...make sure you sit with the back to the wall.