by Erica Miner Craft

In my 21 years as a violinist with the Metropolitan Opera in New York, I observed certain truths about my place of work. Such as…An opera theatre is the perfect environment for mischief, mayhem, and murder…What happens away from the stage can be more dramatic than what happens on the stage…And opera stories are among the bloodiest ever written. In my Julia Kogan Opera Mystery Series, I give readers an insider’s view, based on my years of experience, of the conflicts between the thousands of people working backstage and their homicidal thoughts about each other. What better way to bring murder and music together?

I originally wrote Aria for Murder as a standalone about gifted young violinist Julia Kogan. Much like me when I first started out at the Met, Julia is a starry-eyed neophyte, thrilled to be making her debut on opening night. Then a horrific event takes place. The intrepid violinist becomes entangled in a murder investigation and ends up the target of a ruthless killer. 

One opera-savvy reader insisted on a sequel set at the Santa Fe Opera. A brilliant proposition. Every summer, opera lovers come from all over the world to attend performances at this unique outdoor theatre positioned between two mysterious desert mountain ranges. 

Book Two, Prelude to Murder, was a golden opportunity to send Julia into another precarious situation. The born and bred New Yorker finds herself in the middle of the desert, in a small city with more ghosts than any other place in the U.S. 

What could possibly go wrong? Julia does not like ghosts. Of course, she encounters multiple ones and becomes involved in another murder investigation, this time pursued not only by a killer but by the ghosts that haunt the theatre. 

The dramaturg at San Francisco Opera asked if I would set the next sequel there. Et voilà, Book Three, Overture to Murder. A series was born. 

The possibilities for further series potential are endless. Seattle, Paris, Sydney. There is no limit to the opera houses that can help prove my theory that opera can kill. Fictionally, of course.

I believe the only thing better than a great story is a great story with music. Sharing juicy details in a series about behind-the-scenes chaos in the dark recesses of an opera house has been one of the most fun rides of my writing life.

About Erica Miner:

Award-winning Seattle-based author, lecturer and arts journalist Erica Miner draws on her 21 years as a violinist at the famed Metropolitan Opera in her award-winning Julia Kogan Opera Mystery series (Level Best Books): Aria for Murder (2022); Prelude to Murder (2023), Distinguished Favorite, NYC; and Overture to Murder (2024).

For More Information:

Website: https://www.ericaminer.com

Instagram: emwriter3

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/erica.miner1