Elliot is not too concerned about Sharon’s disappearance at first. But when he hears that one of Sharon’s patients, Russell Chapman, committed suicide just after Sharon gave him the incorrect news that he had an inoperable brain tumor, he becomes concerned.  Other members of Sharon’s practice can’t understand why Sharon would tell Mr. Chapman he had brain cancer if he didn’t, or why he thought he did if he didn’t and Chapman’s daughters are crying murder. 

Sharon may look guilty to some people, but Elliot is sure there is a logical explanation for her disappearance and begins to follow her trail, at first with Gregory, and then with his long-suffering mother, first to Manhattan and then to a Pocono retreat, Sharon is always one step ahead of Elliot.  In the meantime, Russell Chapman’s body disappears from the morgue, reappears alive and well, and then is found in his study with his throat slit, a homicide for sure this time, but one Elliot is sure the recently reappeared Sharon did not commit. 

Elliot is in too deep by now and his friends and local Detective Barry Dutton and Detective Meg Vidal from Camden, are also on the case.  With all of this craziness going on, Elliot is very disturbed to hear that his ace high school employee Sophie has done very well on her SATs and is now being pressured by her parents to quit her job. 

Elliot’s vintage (old) theatre is having growing pains of its own:  there’s a plumbing problem that when fixed creates an electrical problem which creates a plumbing problem when fixed…Somehow, with a little help from his friends, Elliot is able to keep all these balls up in the air (or at least high enough to keep from smothering) and keep his good humor.  

A Night at the Operations will appeal to movie buffs and non-movie buffs alike, although true movie buffs will get the most out of Cohen’s references to the comedy classics and the use of the birth names of actors and directors famously known by pseudonyms. 

Elliot is such a sincere, good guy who wants simple things in life (his beloved comedy movies and the ability to share them with others, lunch with his wife Sharon, that may sometimes lead to other things) that it doesn’t seem fair for him to be caught up in the Marxesque zaniness that is his life. 

The plot moves along, twisting and turning, not unlike a ride in the Whacky Shack, yet somehow never feels out of control or completely crazy (sure the final scene in Elliot’s broom closet sized office is a bit over the top, but as a tribute to the classic Marx brothers’ scene it is understandable).  A thoroughly fun-filled, light read with a character with lot of heart, this latest Elliot Freed mystery will have readers, new fans and old, calling for an encore.                                                              

--Jennifer Monahan Winberry