Under Lock & Skeleton Key: A Secret Staircase Mystery

By Gigi Pandian

"Wildly entertaining." —The New York Times Book Review

A Lefty Nominee for Best Mystery Novel

Known for her wonderfully addictive characters, multiple award-winning author Gigi Pandian introduces her newest heroine in this heartfelt series debut. Under Lock & Skeleton Key layers stunning architecture with mouthwatering food in an ode to classic locked-room mysteries that will leave readers enchanted.

An impossible crime. A family legacy. The intrigue of hidden rooms and secret staircases.

After a disastrous accident derails Tempest Raj’s career, and life, she heads back to her childhood home in California to comfort herself with her grandfather’s Indian home-cooked meals. Though she resists, every day brings her closer to the inevitable: working for her father’s company. Secret Staircase Construction specializes in bringing the magic of childhood to all by transforming clients’ homes with sliding bookcases, intricate locks, backyard treehouses, and hidden reading nooks.

When Tempest visits her dad’s latest renovation project, her former stage double is discovered dead inside a wall that’s supposedly been sealed for more than a century. Fearing she was the intended victim, it’s up to Tempest to solve this seemingly impossible crime. But as she delves further into the mystery, Tempest can’t help but wonder if the Raj family curse that’s plagued her family for generations—something she used to swear didn’t exist—has finally come for her.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Macmillan Publishers
• Release date: Mar 15, 2022
• ISBN: 9781250804990

Gigi Pandian

GIGI PANDIAN is the USA Today bestselling and multiple-award-winning author of the Secret Staircase mysteries, inspired by elements from her own family background. She is also the author of the Accidental Alchemist mysteries, the Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt mysteries, and more than a dozen locked-room mystery short stories. Pandian has won Agatha, Anthony, Lefty, and Derringer awards, and was a finalist for an Edgar Award. A breast cancer survivor and accidental almost-vegan who adores cooking, she lives with her husband in Northern California.

Book preview

Introduction from the Author

Family, friendship, and good food, all wrapped up in a Gothic-tinged locked-room mystery that pays homage to deliciously devious classic mysteries like those of Agatha Christie and John Dickson Carr—that’s what I set out to create with Under Lock & Skeleton Key.

This is my twelfth novel, and one that took me a long time to figure out how to write. The seed of an idea came to me years ago: What happens when a carpenter and a stage magician fall in love? They form a Secret Staircase Construction business to bring magic to people through their homes. I clearly saw the wondrous architectural creations such a family could build into houses, from sliding bookcases leading to secret libraries to fireplaces built with bricks that hide secrets. I even had an outline of the mystery. But I didn’t yet have the perfect main character who fit the idea. When I wrote a short story featuring Tempest Raj, she sprung to life so vividly that she demanded I do more with her. I knew, then, that I could write this book.

I’ve always been drawn to locked-room mysteries, the type of mystery in which a crime looks truly impossible. It’s the ultimate puzzle because not only are you looking for who did it but also how. My favorites have backdrops of spooky, Gothic elements that make you wonder if a supernatural hand is at work, but then are resolved with a satisfying rational explanation. I had such fun playing with those elements in Under Lock & Skeleton Key.

Tempest is an inquisitive and headstrong twenty-six-year-old woman who’s moved home to live with her multigenerational, multicultural family. Her maternal grandfather is South Indian, her grandmother is Scottish, her dad is an ethnically ambiguous Californian, and she has roots in all those places like I do. Her original life plan has failed, leaving her on the brink of a huge decision and a burning desire to figure out what’s meaningful in her life. It’s no coincidence that she’s the same age I was when my own life plan fell apart and I had to put it back together. The age when I began writing my first novel.

Like Tempest, I grew up in California in a multicultural family. From a young age, I traveled the world with my cultural anthropologist parents on their research trips and visits to far-flung family. As an only child entertaining myself on those travels, I read a lot of mysteries—and I began making up my own stories. I adored mysteries that gave readers all the clues to solve the puzzle but still provided delightfully surprising endings. My favorites were novels that along with a mystery were also an adventure with a strong heroine. But in all those wonderful books, I rarely saw characters who looked like me and my family—so I wrote them into my own stories. I also couldn’t resist making food a central element of so much of what I write, since it’s such a big part of my own life. I hope you’ll enjoy both the descriptions of family meals and the recipes in the back of this book.

I’m delighted that Under Lock & Skeleton Key is just the beginning. It’s the first book in my new Secret Staircase mystery series, and I’m having so much fun working on many more adventures for Tempest and her family and friends.

—Gigi Pandian

PART I

The LoCk

Chapter 1

Tempest Raj tested the smooth, hardwood floor once more. Following the floorboards from the beaten-up steamer trunk with three false bottoms to the window letting in moonlight, she didn’t hear a squeak anywhere. Good.

In the dim light, she walked the length of the room once more in her crimson ballet flats that were wearing thin over her left pinkie toe. She glanced at the antique clock on the wall. Seven minutes past midnight. There was no way she’d get to sleep for hours.

Satisfied that the floor wouldn’t make a sound, she stretched her shoulders, then arched into a backbend kick-over. As soon as her feet touched down, she pushed off into a pirouette. Then another. Spinning, she felt almost free.

Almost.

When she came to an abrupt halt a full minute later, she was breathing harder than she should have been, and she hadn’t vanished. Of course she hadn’t. This wasn’t a stage. There was no trap door underneath her. No audience. She was no longer The Tempest. She was simply Tempest Raj, back at home in her childhood bedroom. And apparently, she was already getting out of shape.

She took a bow for an audience of no one, then kicked off her shoes and flopped onto the bed. Unlike the solid floorboards, the box springs protested with a dreadful screech. The twin-size mattress poking her hip was oh-so-different from the luxurious California king she’d had in Las Vegas up until two weeks ago—when she’d had to sell nearly everything she owned and get out of Dodge.

She was trying to adjust. Really, she was. The schedule of a stage magician meant she never made it to bed until the wee hours of the morning, as Grannie Mor would say. But she needed sleep. Tomorrow was a big day. No, that wasn’t quite true. It might be a big day. She knew she shouldn’t get her hopes up. The proposal he mentioned might mean a number of things. She’d narrowed it down to the two most likely possibilities, one of which she was desperately hoping for. It was her way out of this mess. As for the other possibility? She’d decide what she thought after she saw him.

She shifted and tried to get away from the most offensive mattress spring. Looking up at the glow-in-the-dark stars from her childhood that still dotted the ceiling, Tempest wondered yet again how she’d gotten here. Everyone believed the stage accident that had wrecked her career and nearly killed her was due to her own negligence. The public, her manager, the venue, and even her supposed friends were quick to accept the worst about her, assuming it was true that she’d replaced the vetted illusions for something far more dangerous. Tempestuous Tempest, who knew she couldn’t top her previous show, but went too far trying to, putting her own life and those of many others in danger … Her actions preparing for the new, unsafe stunt had supposedly been witnessed. But there was someone who could easily impersonate Tempest. Her former stage double, Cassidy Sparrow.

When Cassidy dyed her naturally mahogany hair black, she looked eerily similar to Tempest. Cassidy wasn’t quite Tempest’s doppelgänger, but with her strong and curvy five-foot-ten frame, large brown eyes, and wild black hair that reached halfway down her back, she came close.

Cassidy had purposefully wrecked Tempest’s career. Sabotage. The threat of lawsuits still hung over Tempest’s head like a guillotine.

There was no other explanation for what had happened that terrible night. No, that wasn’t quite true. There was one other possible explanation, but Tempest couldn’t let herself believe it. There was no way it could be true. The first glimmer of such a terrible possibility appeared five years ago, when she first began to wonder if—no. She pushed all thought of it from her mind.

At least one person besides her family believed in her innocence. That’s why she was hopeful about seeing him tomorrow. This could be the first step in getting her life back on track.

She closed her eyes, but they popped back open. The constellations on the ceiling didn’t mirror reality, but if you looked carefully, you could see that the pinpricks of light formed a constellation in the shape of a skeleton key. A symbol that connected her and her mom, guiding the way home.

Tracing the familiar path of the stars must have been like counting sheep, because the next thing she knew, far too much light was streaming in through the window. She squeezed a pillow over her eyes—then flung it away as she realized it wasn’t the light that had awakened her. She’d distinctly heard a jarring sound. Strange noises were to be expected in Vegas. Not in Hidden Creek.

Was someone shouting?

Definitely shouting. The raised voices came from the direction of the tree house in the backyard where her grandparents lived.

It wasn’t exactly fair to call the structure a tree house. Not for the past fifteen years, at least. What had started as a small child’s playroom for a ten-year-old Tempest had, like the rest of the house, grown into something much bigger than its original intention. The original tree house deck still wrapped around the massive trunk of the oak tree that had lent its support for years, and a second deck now surrounded its twin, but in between the trees, the rest of the structure was a proper two-story house that served as an in-law unit for Ashok Raj and Morag Ferguson-Raj.

Tempest leapt out of bed, still disoriented. It wasn’t even seven o’clock in the morning. She hadn’t been awake at this time of day for years. Crossing the section of floorboards assembled in the shape of a skeleton key and opening the antique steamer trunk serving as her dresser, she slipped on a pair of jeans and was pulling a T-shirt over her head when she heard her grandfather’s distinctive voice give another shout. She shoved her phone in her back pocket and hurried down the secret staircase that separated her room from the rest of the house.

This was the same house Tempest’s parents had moved into shortly before Tempest was born. At the time it was a modest 960-square-foot bungalow. The most unique feature of the original house was the land that went with it. Nestled into the hillside next to the hidden creek that gave the town its name, the half-acre of land had never been used for a larger dwelling because it was situated on such a steep slope—until Emma and Darius moved in. They had experimented over the years on their own house until it was over 4,500 square feet of magical, hidden hideaways across four separate structures.

As her dad loved to say: What happens when a carpenter and a stage magician fall in love? They form a Secret Staircase Construction business to bring magic to people through their homes.

The idea was quite romantic. Tempest’s parents specialized in building ingeniously hidden rooms for people who fancied a bookshelf that slid open when you reached for The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes or Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase; or a secret reading nook that only appeared when you said the words open sesame; or perhaps a door in a grandfather clock that led to a secret garden. Tempest’s house—named Fiddler’s Folly for her mom’s favorite instrument, and a tongue-in-cheek reference to the architectural term for decorative buildings different inside than their outward appearance—had all three features. And many more, including the tree house in back. Tempest loved every inch of it. What she didn’t love was the fact that at twenty-six, she’d been forced to move back.

Worse yet, if she didn’t receive the job offer she hoped for today, she’d be forced to accept her dad’s idea that she come work for Secret Staircase Construction. She’d been named one of the Top 25 Under 25 young entertainers in a prominent entertainment magazine three years ago, and that success meant she could not only live lavishly but also send money home. It was humiliating enough to be back in her childhood bedroom, but to work as her dad’s assistant when she knew he didn’t need one? She hoped it didn’t come to that.

Tempest rounded the gnarled trunk of the first oak tree and spotted her grandparents. Grandpa Ash and Grannie Mor were the only two people in sight, and they were scowling. Tempest grimaced as she stepped on a sharp root. She hadn’t taken time to put on shoes.

You two finally decided to murder each other after fifty-five years? Tempest asked, rubbing the ball of her foot.

Fifty-six years, dear, her grandmother corrected. Grannie Mor’s glamorous white hair was perfectly coiffed as usual, an argyle scarf of bright azure and white curled effortlessly around her neck. She always looked as if she’d stepped out of a 1940s Hollywood movie. Except as soon as she opened her mouth to speak, you knew she’d been born and raised in Scotland.

Where did he go? Grandpa Ash asked. A plaid newsboy cap covered his bald brown head. Tempest hadn’t seen that particular hat before. Her grandfather’s hat collection was as extensive as her grandmother’s stockpile of scarves.

Someone else is here? Tempest whipped her head around.

Grannie Mor hooked her arm through Tempest’s elbow. That rabbit of yours is the devil himself.

Tempest sighed. Now she really wished she’d taken time to put her shoes on. What did Abra do now?

Abracadabra was Tempest’s five-year-old, fifteen-pound, lop-eared rabbit. He’d already been a big bunny before Grandpa Ash began feeding him under the table. Tempest could have sworn Abra had gained at least a pound since they’d been back. The mischievous, tubby bunny should have been in his hutch in Secret Fort, the unfinished stone tower that made up the most recent Fiddler’s Folly structure on the hillside.

He ran that way. Grannie Mor pointed up the hill. Whiskers must have attempted to invade his territory.

Abracadabra’s favorite pastime, besides eating, was chasing cats. He was used to having free rein during the day, because he always came home. But that was back in Vegas. In his new surroundings, Tempest was keeping him in his hutch unless he was supervised, but clearly Abra was having none of that. The massive gray lop was smarter than your average rabbit. Or at least Tempest thought so. Maybe all rabbits were this intelligent, but she’d never had the opportunity to find out. In a lifelong attempt to eschew magician stereotypes, she’d never owned a rabbit before receiving Abra as a gift. She hadn’t planned on keeping him, but it was love at first bite. The curmudgeonly bunny was a superb judge of character and had bitten the awful woman who was dating Tempest’s friend Sanjay. Who could give up such an intelligent creature after that?

Abracadabra! Tempest called. Come on, Abra.

He’ll show up in his own good time. Morag led the way back to the tree house. Your grandfather was fixing breakfast when he spotted Abra on the loose. He insisted we check on the rascal. I hope his affection for that rabbit hasn’t burnt our kitchen down.

That rabbit is going to get into trouble one of these days, Ash called after them before shaking his head and following them back to the house.

Tempest agreed. She reluctantly went with her grandmother, telling herself that Abra had as many lives as a cat.

They followed the downward slope of the hill to the bright red front door of the tree house. No ordinary key unlocked this door. The door handle was smooth, with no opening for a key. It was the grinning gargoyle door knocker that held the secret to letting you into the house. The person standing on the threshold needed to place a three-inch brass skeleton key sideways in the gargoyle’s mouth, as if he was clenching it in his pointy teeth, then twist. As the gargoyle’s teeth bit down on the key, the door unlocked.

The door wasn’t locked just now. Even if it had been, it wasn’t especially secure. This was never meant to be a permanent house. Much like the rest of the dwelling, the front door lock was one of Tempest’s parents’ many experiments to create whimsical keys for indoor secret rooms. When her grandparents moved in five years ago, they never got around to installing a proper lock. It wasn’t like much crime ever happened in Hidden Creek. The only crime of interest that had happened in the town’s long history was the one that involved Tempest’s own family.

Tempest glanced at the eight silver charms dangling from the bracelet she wore all the time. The thick bracelet, made up of chunky charms related to her mom Emma’s love of magic, was the last thing her mom had given her before she vanished live onstage five years ago. The vanishing act wasn’t part of the show, and Emma Raj hadn’t been seen since. That was the first time Tempest began to wonder if the legendary Raj family curse was real.

Chapter 2

The charms brushed against each other as Tempest climbed the stairs to her grandparents’ kitchen. At the top, she closed her eyes and breathed in the fragrant aroma of ginger and cardamom filling the air. When she opened her eyes two seconds later, her grandfather was stirring a simmering pot of jaggery coffee with a wooden spoon, as if he’d been there the whole time.

Don’t do that, Tempest grumbled. Um … How did you do that?

Ash laughed. At eighty, her grandfather could do a better vanishing and reappearing act than she could. And she knew she was good.

She couldn’t take all the credit. Magic was a part of Tempest long before she was born. Ashok Raj was born in the Indian state of Kerala eighty years ago into a family of famous traveling magicians. But Grandpa Ash was no longer a professional magician, and hadn’t been for more than sixty years.

A magician never reveals his secrets. Ash smiled to himself as he turned off the burner and dipped a ladle into the pot of sweet and spicy coffee. He handed Tempest a steaming mug. It’s good to have you home.

She wasn’t sure what counted as home these days. She’d returned briefly five years ago, taking a leave of absence from college to join the search for her missing mom. She hadn’t returned to school, even after all the evidence pointed to one thing: Emma Raj had died by suicide, drowning herself in the bay.

The sea was at the heart of the Raj magic dynasty—and its curse. From the founding of the magic troupe on the rainbow-colored beaches of Kanyakumari to the Scottish selkie folklore that Tempest’s mom and aunt used in their show, water illusions were the soul of all Raj family magic. It was a self-fulfilling mythology. One that had now ensnared Tempest. When her mom vanished and was presumed dead, the idea that had previously seemed ridiculous—really, a curse?—finally lodged in Tempest’s brain as something that might have been more than superstition born of bad luck. And now, after what happened this summer, she wondered … could it really be true?

Tempest gripped the warm mug of coffee, savoring the safe normality. Her mom’s presumed death in the water five years ago was too close to her own near-death experience this summer. Pushing thoughts of the family curse aside, she blew on the steaming coffee and ran a hand through her hair. Her fingers caught in a tangle almost immediately. She hadn’t glanced in a mirror since waking up, but she knew what her voluminous black hair looked like in the morning.

Would you like the name of my hair stylist? Morag asked. Let me write down her number.

Tempest didn’t think she’d ever seen Grannie Mor with a hair out of place, even when she’d been painting in her art studio for hours, oblivious to time and the elements, with her skin and clothing covered in paint.

I promise I’ll look less like Medusa before going out in public, Gran. Tempest laughed and took a sip of the coffee. More than her grandfather’s words or sleeping in her childhood bedroom, breathing in the unique scent of the South Indian-style coffee made her feel like she was truly at home. Her mom used to make it for her and her best friend, Ivy. At thirteen, being initiated into the ritual of coffee made them feel like mature adults. Ivy had been Tempest’s closest friend when they were kids—until everything fell apart when they were sixteen. Tempest hadn’t spoken to Ivy in years. She wished she could erase everything that had happened, but she knew it was far too late for that. It was yet another reason she dreaded going to work for her dad’s company. Yet another reason she needed today’s meeting to go well.

Tempest savored another sip, then set down the mug. I should get ready for my ten o’clock breakfast meeting. She didn’t say so out loud, but she wanted time to go over some of the better ideas she’d sketched in a notebook. The mechanics of the illusions she envisioned weren’t yet fully formed, but the stories behind them were. That had always been one of her greatest strengths. The story came first, and then you figured out how to perform it. Many magicians had tried to mansplain to her why that wasn’t how it worked. But not the guy she was on her way to see. She wasn’t sure if he’d ask for her ideas today, but Tempest needed to be as prepared as possible. This could be her way back to the stage. Back to having a contribution to make in the world. And most importantly, back to recapturing the sense of wonder she’d once found in magic—that she’d once found in life. That sense of awe and wonder had vanished along with her mom, and she’d been chasing it ever since.

Ashok frowned. Who eats breakfast so late?

Tempest stole one last sip of caffeine. Entertainers who haven’t seen seven a.m. in years.

Her grandfather clucked his disapproval before his head disappeared behind the door of the fridge. He emerged a moment later holding a bowl of thick batter.

"For vada donuts?" Tempest’s mouth watered. Vada was a savory South Indian dish that resembled a donut but didn’t taste like one. Grandpa Ash had combined the classic dish with the sweetness of Western donuts to create one of Tempest’s favorite breakfasts. He’d made it for her the morning after she’d arrived and was thrilled by how many she’d eaten. Grandpa Ash enjoyed food, but his true love was feeding other people.

Ash chuckled. I knew you were hungry.

Maybe just one…

Within minutes, the scent of chili pepper and honey filled the air. Ash stacked three sizzling vada donuts into a stainless-steel tiffin and filled an insulated travel mug with coffee. He placed the hearty breakfast into a woven basket and scooted Tempest out the door.

It relieved her to find a fluffy gray mass waiting dutifully on the front porch of the tree house. That was one less thing to worry about. Tempest slid the basket to the crook of her elbow so she could scoop the hefty bunny into her arms and get him back inside his hutch.

What have you got there, Abra? What’s Grandpa Ash been feeding you? This wasn’t a chunk of carrot stuck in Abra’s teeth. Or food of any kind. He held a piece of black fabric in his mouth. The edges were frayed, as if it had been ripped. Or bitten.

Where did this come from? Tempest looked around the yard and didn’t see any obvious signs of destruction. Abra’s nose twitched and he nuzzled her hand. As curious as she was, she didn’t have time to explore where Abra had been digging. After a moment’s hesitation, she tucked the ripped piece of cloth into her pocket. There was more important work to be done. She was on her way to get her life back.

Chapter 3

When the wind cooperated, you could stand in front of Fiddler’s Folly, nestled into the hillside, and hear the faint whispers of lapping water from the hidden creek that gave Tempest’s hometown its name. The creek hadn’t always been hidden. The massive earthquake of 1906 that had destroyed much of San Francisco had also caused a fissure in this hillside across the bay. The water followed a new path, much of which was now beneath the earth. Tempest listened to the hypnotic melody for thirty seconds before stepping into her jeep and setting off to the meeting that could put her life back on track. The bright red jeep was the first big purchase she’d made in her adult life. Thankfully, she’d bought it outright, so it couldn’t be repossessed.

Bright morning sunlight shone through the jeep’s windows and landed on Tempest’s silver charm bracelet as she turned onto the winding road. The jester charm’s enigmatic smile appeared even more mysterious as it sparkled in the light. The bracelet lifted her spirits, as it always did. It made her feel like her mom was there with her.

The handcuff charm caught her eye before she turned her attention back to the road. The handcuffs represented Houdini. Tempest’s favorite magician from bygone days was Adelaide Herrmann, who took the world by storm as the Queen of Magic after her husband Alexander died in 1896, but Tempest’s mom had loved Houdini above all. Not for his skill, but for his approach to magic. He wasn’t just a master with lock picks, Emma had pointed out. "Houdini’s mind and perseverance formed the key. He was a key that could escape from any lock. If you apply that philosophy to yourself, you can become a key that can enter any world you wish." Tempest had rolled her eyes whenever her mother said that, because she knew what was coming next. A pep talk about how once Tempest grew up, worked hard, and forged her way in the world, she’d realize that even though she was different, she belonged. Why hadn’t she appreciated those times more when she’d had them? Both her mom and Houdini had been taken from the world far too young—and under mysterious

Reviews for Under Lock & Skeleton Key

[murderbydeath · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I have enjoyed Gigi Pandian’s work ever since I first picked up a Jaya Jones mystery, but it’s always been a hard-won enjoyment. There’s just something about her writing that I can’t quite put my finger on, whether it’s characterisations, or tone, I don’t know. Usually, by the mid-way point I’m over it and enjoying the story. This one was more of a struggle from beginning to end.Some stream of consciousness thoughts: I love the premise of secret passageways, hidden rooms … who doesn’t? I’m not so much a fan of the stage magician stuff. I love magic and illusions, just not the usually seedy backstage stuff. I found the ‘curse’ in the Raj family a non-starter; I just didn’t buy into it from the start and the drama Pandian tried to build out of it just continued to fall flat. I like the cross-over of characters that takes place between this series and Jaya Jones and I liked most of the new characters too. The ‘tension’ between the two BFF’s also felt manufactured. Basically, whenever Pandian tried to drum up drama in the story, it backfired (for me). I thoroughly enjoyed the veiled references to gargoyle’s (Adrian!), and the introduction of an escape-artist bunny called Abra was a nice change of pace as a series mascot.The plot was very well done, if maybe a tad … I don’t know; I just know when the denouement came I felt nothing. Not surprise, not annoyance, not disbelief. Just … nothing. But it was well crafted, and I had no hint of where things were going. Her use of a magician’s misdirection in the plot was a tad heavy handed, but really only in retrospect.Overall, it’s not a bad mystery, even though I’m making it sound like it might be. This is, I think, Pandian’s first mainstream, big-publisher book, and perhaps I feel like she tried a tad too hard, but in spite of that, I will gladly read the second book in the series.

[ellenh_28 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I didn't realize this was a cozy or a beginning book in a series when I picked it up. While the characters are interesting and should play out in a series, I thought there was maybe too much going on in the story to do it justice as someone else suggested. But it set up for these topics to be developed further in the series. The twists kept me interested as did the settings and characters, but I probably won't do anymore of the series.

[maydacat_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This first book in a new series has a lot happening, so pay attention so you don’t get lost. But if you do, there is bound to be a secret staircase or a hidden room, and you’ll be able to find your way out. Just don’t trip over the dead body on your way out. Tempest says magic acts should tell a story, and hers does. When a new show trick goes awry, with almost deadly results, her career as a magician seems to be over. Now back home, she is contemplating her next move, maybe joining her dad’s construction company which specializes in secret rooms and hidden places. However, when a dead body falls out of a wall undergoing renovations, Tempest is stunned to see her stage double. Everyone fears that that Tempest was the intended victims, and that the old family curse is about to claim another. There is quite a mix of characters, cultures, careers, and secrets in this novel of magic and mayhem, and there are more twists than a spiral staircase. But if you are looking for an enchanting tale, this one may be just the ticket. Just don’t forget your skeleton key - it may come in handy.

[bookappeal · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I didn't realize this was a cozy immediately and was hoping for a quirky murder mystery. Parts of the story are well-written but the author mashes together too many background elements to do any of them justice - architecture, locking systems, story-telling, Scottish culture, Indian culture, stage magic, vegan dishes, classic mystery novels, the paranormal, romance. For a cozy, it's probably fine. But it was not the well-plotted, secretive, quirky mystery the cover art would have readers believe.

[kathl33n-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was enjoyable on so many levels! The characters were great with a couple of very interesting magicians, the family history was interesting through India and Scotland, the mystery was a classic locked room mystery - sort of... ;) plus the author brought in the influence of some of the great mystery writers. Completely enjoyable. A cozy mystery to be highly recommended!

[hcnewton · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.---WHAT'S UNDER LOCK & SKELETON KEY ABOUT?Tempest Raj was an illusionist whose star was on the rise—until a new illusion went awry during a performance. We don't get a lot of details, but it was bad—injuring people and property. Tempest herself might have died. Her career did.Her career in tatters, she goes back home to lick her wounds and decide her next steps. Magic's all she's known—it's a family business and has been for generations, but her grandparents and father never wanted her to go into it in the first place, and are hoping that she won't return to it.Instead, they're hoping she'll join the family business—Secret Staircase Construction. The company makes things like secret staircases, hidden rooms, and treehouses that you can double as residences. Tempest stops by their worksite one day when a large sack is found in the existing wall—inside that sack is a body. Not just anybody, but Tempest's stage double.The questions that leap to mind are: Who killed her? How did the body get in the wall (it's a move worthy of her father's or Tempest's skills)? Why hide it there? Was it a case of mistaken identity—was that supposed to be Tempest? The police land on a quick answer, but Tempest doesn't buy it.So Tempest looks into things on her own, while she tries to come to terms with her life, rebuild some friendships she abandoned when she left home, and deal with some other personal stuff that we don't have time to get into.ILLUSIONIST AS DETECTIVEA few years ago, didn't ABC have a series where a stage magician acted as a police/FBI consultant? Sort of a Mentalist/Castle/Instinct thing. I'm pretty sure I watched an episode of it and resented the time lost.That said, reading this makes me think they were onto something with the Magician-turned-Detective. The way that Tempest thought about some of the aspects of this work because of her background/career is perfect for this kind of thing. She's better equipped to tackle investigative work than a lot of amateur sleuths.OH, THE FOOD...So, Tempest's grandfather is spending most of his retirement cooking (or at least that seems to be pretty much what he does). He moved from India to Scotland as a teen and only moved to California a few years before the novel. His food seems to be a combination of traditional Indian flavors and Scottish dishes.Really, all I know about Scottish cuisine comes from So I Married an Axe Murderer, and I have a beginner's appreciation for Indian food, but, boy howdy the food in Under Lock & Skeleton Key sounds great. The descriptions of all the food Grandpa Ash puts together just kept making me hungry. Thankfully, there are a couple of recipes at the end of the book that will help with the cravings the text induced (and more on the author's website).SO, WHAT DID I THINK ABOUT UNDER LOCK & SKELETON KEY?The character work—not just with Tempest, but all the characters she comes into contact with--is the best part of the book, I want to spend more time with these people and to get to know them better (even the killer!). They're a great batch of personalities, backgrounds, and interests—a cast unlike any series I can think of.The book as a whole is like a course in classic mysteries (think early 20th Century), especially in the vein of locked room/closed circle mysteries. And that's before one character actually starts lecturing Tempest in classic mystery structure (I loved that section of the book and would've willingly suspended the action for a little longer for that section to be 2-3x as long as it was).I'm not entirely certain that the mystery was as good as the writing and characterization would lead the reader to expect, and the solution was a little bit of a letdown. The reveal of that solution, on the other hand, was exactly what I wanted. Everything else about the novel more than makes up for the slight disappointment I experienced.I see this is the first of a series, but it feels like a stand-alone to me. Also—how often can you find a body on the premises of a remodel? How many times can an author get away with these characters coming across a murder that's magic-adjacent? I really don't think I care. I'll buy whatever weak excuse Pandian can come up with for at least another one or two of these.I'd recommend this for die-hard mystery readers or even those who only occasionally pick one up--the premise and characters for this novel/series are fresh, intriguing, and entertaining.

[ftbooklover · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Magician Tempest Raj has returned home in disgrace after her last trick during in her show in Las Vegas almost killed her. Then she was accused of performing a dangerous trick for the glory she might earn from it. Even though Tempest is innocent, she doesn't have it in her to try and prove it, so she becomes a consultant for her father's company, Secret Staircase Construction, which creates hidden rooms and unique spaces. However, on her first project, the dead body of her assistant, Cassidy, who worked with Tempest on her Las Vegas show is found sealed in an old wall that hasn't been disturbed for many years. Cassidy's death raises questions of who killed her and if her death is related to a curse that has followed Tempest's family for generations.Under Lock & Skeleton Key is an interesting mystery with lots of complicated clues and suspects - too many to follow throughout the story. In addition, so much information is provided for the reader that has nothing to do with the mystery that it slows the pace of the book and makes it difficult to keep all of the details straight. Also, character development is minimal making it even tougher to separate motives and evidence connected to them. Even though the plot does have many weaknesses, there are also parts of the story that shine. The hidden rooms, secret passages, magic tricks, and classic mysteries all stand out as strengths of this novel. Overall, Under Lock & Skeleton Key has a unique premise with ideas that get a bit muddled in the execution.

[kris_anderson-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Under Lock & Skeleton Key by Gigi Pandian is the debut of A Secret Staircase Mysteries. This is a multicultural cozy mystery. We get to meet Tempest Raj, an illusionist along with her grandparents, father, and best friend (plus a cast of secondary characters). Tempest has an interesting and colorful family. I enjoyed learning about Tempest and meeting the Raj clan. Her mother disappeared five years prior during an act. I have to wonder what happened to her. I hope we find out in the future (could it be part of the family curse). There are hidden rooms, secret staircases, illusions, magic, and plenty of mouthwatering food in this cozy mystery. There is even a secret library. I love that Tempest’s bedroom is hidden in her home. There are plenty of secret spaces in the Raj families unique dwelling (or should I say dwellings). Tempest and her best friend, Ivy grew up reading mysteries. The author mentions some of my childhood favorites. The whodunit has some clever parts. I was curious how a killer could get a dead body in a hidden space that has seemingly not been opened in decades. Tempest did a good job at investigating the crime. The killer, though, was easily identified. The reveal was a little bit confusing. I had to reread the ending to capture all the different bits. There is quite a bit of repetition in the story. I wish it had been eliminated and the book would have been a better length. There are times when I felt the story is aimed at a younger audience (Tempest is in her mid-20s). This was a lighthearted, fun cozy mystery that has many great elements. It will be interesting to see what designs Tempest comes up with for Secret Staircase Construction. Under Lock & Skeleton Key is magical tale with secret staircases, a dead doppelganger, a centuries old curse, a missing mother, a curious key, mouthwatering morsels, hypnotizing illusions, and a surprising missive.

[kmartin802_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I have very mixed feelings about this story. There were quite a few positives including the strong relationships among Tempest Raj and her family. The setting was great. I really enjoyed all the various puzzles that were part of Tempest's family home. I enjoyed the loving descriptions of all the various foods prepared by Tempest's grandfather. Vegans will be glad that the book includes recipes.I also enjoyed all the references to Golden Age mysteries and magicians. The Locked Room Library is a place I would love to visit. There were also a number of things that I didn't especially enjoy. I'm all for a twisty plot but this one was a bit over-the-top for me. Misdirection upon misdirection made the plot confusing. I also had some problems with the keeping the large numbers of cast straight. I felt like I had entered on book 2 of a series where all these people had been introduced previously. The basic story seems to be that magician Tempest Raj has come back home after her career in Las Vegas was sabotaged by her assistant Cassidy. She nearly died in a stunt gone wrong. She lost all her money and her career. Now, it looks like her problems have followed her home when the body of that assistant is found in a secret room in what is the latest project of her father's Secret Staircase company.Tempest wants to figure out the trick of the locked room and, incidentally, who murdered Cassidy. Did someone mistake Cassidy for Tempest? Is this another incidence of the Raj family curse that has killed the oldest child in each of five generations?Fans of magic-infused and twisty mysteries will enjoy this one.

[maref_17 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another fine story with memorable characters in an fabulous setting from Ms. Pandian. It pulled me in right from the start and held on to me until the end. I'm already tapping my toes waiting for the next installment. So delightfully entertaining.

[jfe16 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Magician Tempest Raj returns home to Hidden Creek, California after a disastrous accident puts an end to her Las Vegas show. Her hope of salvaging her reputation and rebuilding her career hits a major snag with the discovery of the body of her doppelgänger assistant from her stage show hidden within a wall. Was Tempest actually the intended target of a murderer?Unsettled, Tempest sets out to find some answers. How did Cassidy’s body get inside the wall? Is Tempest fated to become the unwitting victim of the family curse, the one that says the eldest child in the family dies through magic? And did the curse play a part in her mother’s long-ago disappearance?Can Tempest, surrounded by a family determined to protect her, find the answers?=========This Secret Staircase Mystery hits all the right notes. Secret Staircase Construction, a business owned by Tempest’s father, creates hidden rooms for clients; here the locked room story receives a fresh twist with the inclusion of magic within the telling of the tale. Secret rooms, hidden staircases, treehouse homes . . . the distinctive setting is well-drawn, believable, and fascinating.With readers pulled into the telling of the tale from the outset, the unfolding narrative pays homage to mystery authors, both classic and present, while the unique story keeps the pages turning. And recipes are included so that readers can recreate the mouth-watering dishes Tempest’s grandfather whips up throughout the story. [Cardamom cookies, please.]Strong, nuanced characters populate the narrative; Tempest’s quirky, compassionate family is delightful and a perfect counterpoint to Tempest’s spirited nature. The plot offers several surprises as the unfolding story reveals the truth while leaving a question or two for readers to ponder, especially as it relates to Tempest’s mother. The denouement is perfect and is sure to please readers.First in a series, this unique and enchanting “gothic cozy” is sure to be a reader favorite.Highly recommended.I received a free copy of this eBook from St. Martin’s Press, Minotaur Books and NetGalley#UnderLock&SkeletonKey #NetGalley

[jetangen4571 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

murder, murder-investigation, illusionists, curse, cultural-heritage, family-dynamics, friendship, secrets, California, recipes, sabotage, small-business, small-town*****The Secret Staircase is a niche construction company run by Tempest's father born in India (motherborn in Scotland disappeared five years ago). Tempest Raj was highly paid as an illusionist/magician in Las Vegas until an illusion gone wrong nearly killed her and destroyed the venue. Now she is back home to her father, grandparents, and friends in their very unusual home. It's a tree house! She was told that she lives under a curse and that her mother was a Selkie. All she knows is that the day that she went to the new job site with her dad she met a lonely little boy and also found the body of her recent stunt double. Unravelling the mysteries is a real challenge and there are so many red herrings and... But no spoilers! It's a great story written with full homage to many of the old masters of the locked room genre! Can't wait to get my own copy (probably an audio so it doesn't walk away).I requested and received a free temporary ebook copy from St Martin's Press/Minotaur via NetGalley. Thank you!