This is a list of fictional novels either from or inspired by Murder, She Wrote .
During the series many novels that J.B. Fletcher wrote, were mentioned. Her first novel, The Corpse Danced at Midnight, was made into a film in one episode, and later in the series another was made into a theatre play. The novel A Killing at Hastings Rock also underwent development to become a virtual reality video game.
In keeping with the spirit of the TV show, a series of official original novels have been written and published. The co-author credited for all of the novels is the fictitious "Jessica Fletcher". The first novel, Gin & Daggers, authored by American ghostwriter Donald Bain, included several inaccuracies to the TV series including Jessica driving a car which she could not do as she never learned to drive. Due to fans pointing out the errors, the novel was republished in 2000 with most of the inaccuracies corrected.
The title The Stain on the Stairs had previously been used by Agatha Christie in The Murder at the Vicarage as the title of a supposed detective story.
Novels that were written by the fictional character of Jessica Fletcher (J.B. Fletcher) within the storyline of the series:
A number of episodes were the basis for a series of novels released in the mid 1980s by Avon Books. The first three books in the series were written by James Anderson and the fourth was written by David Deutsch. Each book, with the exception of The Murder of Sherlock Holmes, utilizes two episodes from the show as the basis for its story.
James Anderson
David Deutsch
The following are novels inspired by the series, which are published by the New American Library. Donald Bain began writing the series in 1989 and continued authoring the books until his death in 2017. Bain's wife, Renée Paley-Bain (1945–2016), participated in writing the books beginning in 2002, [42] and received a co-author credit for the final three books on which she worked. After Bain's death in 2017, author Jon Land was approached to take over the series. [43] Land would go on to author six books in the series.
In 2020, it was revealed that author Terrie Farley Moran would be taking over the series beginning in 2021. [44] [45] In June 2024, it was announced that author Barbara Early would pen two Murder, She Wrote books; the first appearing in early 2025, with an additional book in 2026. Moran is expected to release two new titles following Early's release in 2025, as well as an additional book in 2026, again, after the publication of Early's. [46]
The book series has also been translated and published in Italian and French. [47] [48]
Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain
Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain with Renée Paley-Bain
Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain with Jon Land
Jessica Fletcher and Jon Land
Jessica Fletcher and Terrie Farley Moran
Jessica Fletcher and Barbara Early
Jessica Fletcher and Terrie Farley Moran
Beginning in 1997, a series of three anthologies were released, each featuring a number of stories by different authors. While none of the stories tied into the series (save for one story by Charlaine Harris in the first book, with Jessica Fletcher as a supporting character), each book was captioned as "Jessica Fletcher presents...", with the fictitious character being credited as the author of the book's introduction and making a short comment at the start of each story.
Murder, She Wrote is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The series focuses on the life of Jessica Fletcher, a mystery writer and amateur detective, who becomes involved in solving murders that take place in the fictional town of Cabot Cove, Maine, across the United States, and abroad. The program ran for 12 seasons from September 30, 1984, to May 19, 1996, for a total of 264 episodes and included amongst its recurring cast Tom Bosley, William Windom and Ron Masak, as well as a vast array of guest cast members including Mickey Rooney, Michael Horton, Keith Michell, George Segal, Kevin McCarthy, Gene Barry, Martin Milner, Earl Holliman, Pat Morita, Tom Wopat, John Astin, Loretta Swit, John Saxon, Ruth Roman, Kathryn Grayson, Ken Howard, Bradford Dillman, Jean Peters, Neil Patrick Harris, Harvey Fierstein, and Julie Adams.
Aileen Carol Wuornos was an American serial killer. In 1989–1990, while engaging in street prostitution along highways in Florida, she shot dead and robbed seven of her male clients. Wuornos claimed that her clients had either raped or attempted to rape her, and that the homicides of the men were committed in self-defense. Wuornos was sentenced to death for six of the murders. She was executed on October 9, 2002, by lethal injection after spending more than 10 years on Florida's death row.
Anne Perry was a British writer and murderer. She was the author of the Thomas and Charlotte Pitt and William Monk series of historical detective fiction.
Barbara Bain is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Cinnamon Carter Crawford on the action television series Mission: Impossible (1966–1969), which earned her three Primetime Emmy Awards, as well as a Golden Globe Award nomination. She also starred as Dr. Helena Russell on the British-Italian coproduction science-fiction television series Space: 1999 (1975–1977). Bain has also appeared in the films Animals with the Tollkeeper (1998), Panic (2000), Forget Me Not (2009) and On the Rocks (2020).
Jessica Beatrice "J. B." Fletcher (née MacGill) is a fictional detective and writer and the main character and protagonist of the American television series Murder, She Wrote. Portrayed by award-winning actress Angela Lansbury, Fletcher is a best-selling author of mystery novels, an English teacher, amateur detective, criminology professor, and (briefly) congresswoman. In 2004, Fletcher was listed in Bravo's "100 Greatest TV Characters". AOL named her one of the "100 Most Memorable Female TV Characters". The same website listed her among "TV's Smartest Detectives". She was ranked at number six on Sleuth Channel's poll of "America's Top Sleuths". Guinness World Records called her the "most prolific amateur sleuth".
Kurt B. Andersen is an American writer, the author of novels and nonfiction as well as a writer for television and the theater.
Richard Edgar "Rick" Castle is a fictional character on the ABC crime series Castle. He is portrayed by Nathan Fillion.
Donald Sutherland Bain was an American author and ghostwriter, having written over 115 books in his 40-year career.
Jessica Rowley Pell Bird Blakemore is an American novelist. Under her maiden name, Jessica Bird, she writes contemporary romance novels, and as J.R. Ward, she writes paranormal romance. She is a three-time winner of the Romance Writers of America RITA Award, once as Bird for Best Short Contemporary Romance for From the First and twice as Ward for Best Paranormal Romance for Lover Revealed and Dearest Ivie, and her books have been on The New York Times Best Seller list.
Sarah Pinborough is an English author and screenwriter who has written YA and adult thriller, fantasy and cross-genre novels. She has had more than 20 novels published by several companies and in several countries. They have also been translated into a number of languages.
The Zodiac Killer was a serial killer who operated in Northern California from at least the late 1960s to the early 1970s. His identity remains unknown. His crimes, letters and cryptograms to police and newspapers inspired many movies, novels, television and more.
Cop Hater (1956) is the first 87th Precinct police procedural novel by Ed McBain. The murder of three detectives in quick succession in the 87th Precinct leads Detective Steve Carella on a search that takes him into the city's underworld and ultimately to a .45 automatic aimed straight at his head.
87th Precinct is an American crime drama starring Robert Lansing, Gena Rowlands, Ron Harper, Gregory Walcott and Norman Fell, which aired on NBC on Monday evenings during the 1961–1962 television season.
Micki Pistorius is a South African forensic or investigative psychologist and author. She was the first woman in her profession and the first profiler in South Africa, working on many high-profile cases involving serial killers for the South African Police Service in the 1990s.
Tana French is an American-Irish writer and theatrical actress. She is a longtime resident of Dublin, Ireland. Her debut novel In the Woods (2007), a psychological mystery, won the Edgar, Anthony, Macavity, and Barry awards for best first novel. The Independent has referred to her as "the First Lady of Irish Crime".
Jon Land is an American author of thriller novels.
Stranger Things is an American television series created by the Duffer Brothers for Netflix. Produced by Monkey Massacre Productions and 21 Laps Entertainment, the first season was released on Netflix on July 15, 2016. The second and third seasons followed in October 2017 and July 2019, respectively, and the fourth season was released in two parts in May and July 2022. The fifth and final season of Stranger Things is expected to be released in 2025. The show is known for its likeable cast of characters, plot, nostalgic tones, and mix of the horror, drama, science-fiction, mystery, and coming-of-age genres.
The Shooting Party is an 1884 novel by Anton Chekhov. It is his longest narrative work, and only full-length novel. Framed as a manuscript given to a publisher, it tells the story of an estate forester's daughter in a provincial Russian village, who is stabbed to death in the woods during a hunting party, and the efforts to uncover her killer.
Holly Jackson is a British author of mystery novels. She is best known for her A Good Girl's Guide to Murder series.
I've been writing the MSW series for 25 years, with Renee's help the last dozen years or so.
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