''Let's All Kill Constance'' is a mystery novel by American writer

Ray Bradbury Ray Douglas Bradbury (; August 22, 1920June 5, 2012) was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of modes, including fantasy, science fiction, horror, mystery, and ...

, published in

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

. Narrated by an unnamed Los Angeles writer and set in 1960, it chronicles an unexpected visit from aging

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

actress Constance Rattigan who gives him two death lists of once-famous people — with Constance's name on one of them, and the gradual unraveling of the mystery by the narrator with the help of

private investigator A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI and informally called a private eye), a private detective, or inquiry agent is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigators of ...

Elmo Crumley. The narrator visits the listed people in order, all of whom die under mysterious circumstances shortly thereafter. Suspiciously, each of them claims to have met Constance, who always flees one step ahead of the narrator. Is Constance the true murderer, or is someone seeking to sever all ties to her associates before finally killing her? ''Let's All Kill Constance'' is a sequel to Bradbury's '' Death Is a Lonely Business'' (1985) and '' A Graveyard for Lunatics'' (1990). The novel references Ray Bradbury's better-known work, ''

Fahrenheit 451 ''Fahrenheit 451'' is a 1953 dystopian novel by American writer Ray Bradbury. Often regarded as one of his best works, ''Fahrenheit 451'' presents an American society where books have been personified and outlawed and "firemen" burn any that ar ...

'', in chapter 16. In it, the protagonist muses on the possibility of people using books to start fires in the future.

References

External links

* Novels by Ray Bradbury 2003 American novels American mystery novels Fiction set in 1960 Novels set in Los Angeles Novels about writers Hollywood novels {{2000s-mystery-novel-stub