Staged

John M Green

When a Hollywood star is killed live on stage, an entire cast falls under suspicion … Can a disgraced journalist and a detective with a PhD in AI crack the case?

A Sydney Opera House production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show ends in tragedy when a stage prop kills Hollywood star Dane Cooder in a spectacularly gruesome fashion. His wife and co-star Angelique Swan looks on in horror.

The death is ruled an accident, but Dick Sonntag, disgraced journalist and writer for online gossip site WTF, disagrees. Sonntag was in the audience that night and decides to investigate further. He launches and hosts a popular podcast around the celebrity death and, due to public demand, the case is reopened.

Detective Harry Stiles is brought in to lead the case. Stiles despises Sonntag: the last time she crossed his path, he derailed her investigation involving police corruption. Will Harry’s artificial intelligence skills help them pin down the culprit this time?

As the theatre investigation unfolds, Sonntag and Stiles uncover affairs, dark secrets and blackmail against the backdrop of Sydney Harbour.

This is an electrifying, fast-paced crime thriller for readers of Jack Heath, Benjamin Stevenson and Richard Osman.

Release: Feb-2026

ISBN: 9781923390546

RRP (AUD): $34.99

Pages: 336

Format: Paperback & ebook

Category: Commercial Crime Fiction

John M Green

John M. Green is the author of Double Deal, The Tao Deception, The Trusted, Born to Run, Nowhere Man and Framed. He left his day job as a banker two years before the global financial crisis – enough of a lag so no one could accuse him of starting the whole mess! Today, he straddles writing, business and philanthropy. He’s a director of several organisations, listed and unlisted, including cyber-security, financial services, engineering, publishing and not-for-profits. He lives in Sydney with his wife, the sculptor Jenny Green.