Mystery Woman: Mystery Weekend (2005) Review

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(More customer reviews)Samantha Kinsey owns the Mystery Woman Book Store, and occasionally runs into murder mysteries of her own. During Mystery weekend, a chance for fans to gather and meet their favorite writers, writer diva Clare Beckman puts in the first appearance in almost fifteen years. No one knows why she's avoided the limelight. Arriving fashionably late, Clare immediately seizes everyone's attention, makes the announcement that her latest book is her last, and is promptly nearly murdered. Samantha ends up on the suspect list, alongside her most treasured patron. In short order, things go from bad to worse as the mysterious killer succeeds in killing Clare Beckman. With the police certain they've got the killer in custody, it's up to Samantha, her partner Philby -- who used to be a spy, and her assistant district attorney friend Cassandra to track down the real murderer.
This is the second entry in Hallmark Entertainment's MYSTERY WOMAN movie series. Kellie Martin stars as Samantha Kinsey, bringing a lot of experience as an actress as well as directing some of the series' entries. Created by Michael Sloan -- who's created or written for HARRY-O, COLUMBO, THE HARDY BOYS/NANCY DREW MYSTERIES, McCLOUD, THE EQUALIZER, and LA FEMME NIKITA, the series is off to a promising start.
Samantha Kinsey is an enjoyable sleuth. She's an everyday woman, with just a touch of something extra. Her curiosity about mysteries is a deeply rooted passion, and in her movies she's given a good chance to exercise it. Although there's no real drama involved in this movie, there is a good storyline that will keep avid mystery fans guessing up until the final moments. The story plays fair with the clues and the background to solve the murder. Doubtless, the writer, Joyce Burditt, wound the plot largely around British mystery maven Anne Perry's real life, which only came to public light in the last few years. The dialogue is quick and fast-paced, and the subplot involving Samantha and Cassandra's interest in the new lawyer in town is great fun.
The only real drawback to the DVD version is the lack of extras. These days all DVDs come with a little more than the movie, and interviews with the cast would have been a nice addition.
MYSTERY WOMAN: MYSTERY WEEKEND is highly recommended for the armchair sleuthing couples who want to while away a lazy hour and a half over the weekend playing guessing games with each other. This series doesn't have the intensity of something like FOYLE'S WAR, but it is an engaging effort well worth the visit.

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She's an avid mystery lover and bookseller, for whom crime has been comfortably confined to the pages of her favorite novels -- until a real-life murder turns a weekend of fun and games into a chilling whodunit...The quaint mystery bookshop bequeathed to Samantha Kinsey may be struggling, but the idea she's concocted for the weekend should drum up some killer publicity -- a book signing by three very popular and very competitive mystery writers; Maura Hobbs, Angela Cooke, and the reclusive Clare Beckman. Unbeknownst to Sam, Clare is using this "mystery weekend" to make the shocking announcement of her retirement. Just as Clare poses for a final career photograph, an ear-shattering gunshot rings out. Clare manages to dodge the bullet, but later falls victim to a cleverly planted poison. Wading through a long list of suspects and motives, Sam manages to uncover a convoluted plot of blackmail, greed, and deceit -- a real-life mystery that would have thrilled Clare...had she lived to see it unfold.

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