Gilda Liberty is called back to her hometown of Eden, Ohio, to attend the funeral of the family matriarch, her aunt, Mae Liberty. Heartbroken over a recent breakup, Gilda dreads the thought of being back in the bosom of her eccentric, movie-mad family. Wouldn’t you, too, with a name like Gilda, aunts and uncles Lillian, Gloria, Valentino and Douglas, and cousins Scarlett and Clark?

Nevertheless, Gilda goes, and the first thing she hears from her family is that Mae died with the word “Rosebud!” on her lips. How appalling! It’s been done!! More shocking to Gilda is learning that Aunt Mae left the town’s only independent cinema in her care. The night of the funeral -- staged and videotaped, of course -- the cinema’s only competition in town burns to the ground, with a body found inside. Subsequent investigation shows it was an old family friend -- or was he? Instead of mourning another loss, Gilda’s family seems strangely unmoved by the man’s death and uncharacteristically silent as to any reasons why.

Gilda reluctantly agrees to stay for two weeks to get the Paradise Theatre back on its feet, and soon finds herself caught up in the family dramas. Her parents beg her to meet with a private investigator that the late Mae had apparently hired. Along with learning the cinema business, she learns more family secrets than she bargained for. Piecing together what the detective tells her, along with her own understanding of her family’s history, Gilda comes to a conclusion that wasn’t in the script.

Gilda’s sexual orientation is woven into the story and is no more or less crazy than some of the personality quirks of the other family members. The various characters and their traits are somewhat confusing to track, especially in the beginning, but they eventually sort themselves out.

Fade to Black has a quick pace to it and the amusing anecdotes and references to old movies make for an entertaining read. You even pick up a little of what goes on behind the scenes at a movie theatre. I have a feeling the spunky female detective might be a continuing character. It will be interesting to see what takes center stage in Gilda Liberty’s next appearance.

--K W Becker