Log

Brindlewood Bay is a creation of Jason Cordova and Gauntlet Publishing. This publication is not affiliated with Jason Cordova or Gauntlet Publishing.

Murder Mavens

Edna Bridgewater (R.S.'s Maven)

[Placeholder. This section will contain details about you learned throughout the game. Many of these will come from scenes where you use the Crown moves.]

Anita Clue-Bojangles (J.S.'s Maven)

Doris Day (L.D.'s Maven)

[Placeholder. This section will contain details about you learned throughout the game. Many of these will come from scenes where you use the Crown moves.]

Esther Nightingale (R.L.'s Maven)

[Placeholder. This section will contain details about you learned throughout the game. Many of these will come from scenes where you use the Crown moves.]

Episode 1: Dad Overboard

The title sequence of the show exhibits scenes of our heroines in their day-to-day life in Brindlewood Bay. Anita is lounging about, sipping on wine. Esther is painting her cats, RBG and Oprah. Doris is seen ordering caterers around at a charity event. Edna is innocently sitting in her sex scene, unaware of its true nature, peacefully knitting away.

After the title sequence, the camera turns to the top floor of The Candlelight Booksellers, where the girls can be found holding their weekly meeting of the Murder Mavens mystery book club. As the camera pans around the loft where the meeting is held, we see how each Maven has made this space "their own." Anita has added a mini-fridge, stocked to the brim with interesting wine varietals. Esther has added several crystals as well as sage, hoping to offer an aura of protection to their sacred meeting grounds. Strewn about the room we see the various highlighters and reading glasses the practically-minded Edna brought to the meeting. Finally, all around the room, are several rewards and commendations given to Doris, set upon the walls with pride.

Just as their meeting is ending, the Mavens are approached by Brindlewood County's chief law enforcement officer, Sheriff Wyman Dalrymple. He tells them that, earlier today, a wealthy financier from Boston, Albert Krause, was dragged out of the bay, dead. Mr. Krause and his family were on a yachting vacation and their boat is presently anchored a quarter mile from shore. The surviving Krauses—wife Allison, eldest daughter Sara, son David, and youngest daughter Emily—assert Mr. Krause was drunk and simply fell overboard. Sheriff Dalrymple suspects foul play but if he can't produce evidence to that effect soon, he'll be forced to let the family take Albert back to Boston. The body is currently being held in a cold storage at the fish market by a man named Etienne Beauregard—sometimes Mike—until the matter can be sorted out. Moreover, if they wanted to head to the Krause's yacht to meet the family, its captain was at the marina and was advised that the Mavens might be on their way over. He would be willing to take them to the ship.

A tinge of recognition hit Doris upon hearing the name "David." Doris remembered David Krause. She had previously become acquainted with him at one of her charity events. After discussing the matter for a moment, the Mavens decided to head to the fish market to inspect the body for foul play. Esther was the only Maven excited by the prospect; she frequented the fish market often for cat snacks. The other gals were less than happy with the choice, finding the fish market to be too crowded, too chaotic, and, frankly, too smelly.

The Mavens arrived at the fish market, walking among the crowd in search of Etienne. Well, until a fishmonger rolled an ice-packed cart past them. It was a cornucopia of the sea: black sea, bluefish, mussels, crabs, and more importantly, an awful stench. Esther kept up the search but the others lingered on the margins, so that they weren't as enmeshed in the chaos.

Eventually, Esther encountered Etienne, who was in the midst of a performance for the locals and was easily recognizable from his excitedly French-accented presentation of the "Chicken of the Sea." Esther informed Etienne that she and her companions had been sent by Sheriff Dalrymple to inspect the body. Etienne escorted Esther to the back of the fish market, a private area that was only accessible to vendors. Etienne pointed to his stall, and then dropped the French accent. "The name's Mike, by the way. The French thing is just for the tourists." Etienne also provided Esther with a blood-soaked rag, stating that it had also been found on Albert's body.

Esther, realizing she was now alone in a restricted area, peeked out of a door leading to the back of the fish market. She spotted the rest of the girls and then beckoned them to the back. As they approached the restricted area, the Mavens saw a pair of grizzled, salt-encrusted locals sneer at a dewy social media influencer making a video. "Hi, guys!"

As they entered, an eerie feeling washed over the Mavens. They couldn't quite put their finger on it, but they felt like they were being watched. The Mavens walked over to the body. Anita grabbed a nearby broom and began poking the body's torso and moving its appendages. However, at one point the broom handle punctured the cadaver, suggesting that the body might be more decomposed than previously anticipated. The others rummaged through Albert's clothes. After noticing a strange tattoo on Albert, Doris was able to find a debt collection letter regarding David. It seems that David owed quite a bit of money and Albert was notified because he was a co-signer on the debt. Doris tucked the letter away and looked at the tattoo again. She swore it had changed when she wasn't looking. Finally, while examining the body, the Mavens also discovered bullet wounds on the side of the torso.

From this, the Mavens surmised the following: Albert had not drunkenly fallen off the yacht; he had been murdered. Somebody, in an attempt to hide the damage in case the body was found, dressed Albert in new clothes after he had been shot, as there were no puncture wounds in the suit. Moreover, Albert's death had likely not been recent, as the flesh was soft and easy to tear.

Suddenly, the sound of a gun being cocked, broke the conversation. The Mavens turned and saw a masked figure pointing a revolver at them. Their voice was also masked, though by a voice disguiser. "I'm afraid I must ask you girls to stop this investigation immediately."

Anita reeled back her Chanel handbag and swung it at their aggressor's face with a force frankly unbecoming for an elderly woman. Nonetheless, the bag made contact with the perpetrator's jaw, staggering the individual and making them drop the revolver. Anita immediately picked up the revolver and demanded that the perpetrator back down. Clutching the (now) slightly unseated mask to their face, the stranger fled away from the Mavens, further into the restricted areas of the fish market.

Anita checked the revolver.: unloaded. "I can't believe we fell for the oldest trick in the book!" shouted Doris. 

After regaining their composure, the Mavens believed it was time to look into the most plausible suspects: the family. The Mavens decided to meet with the contact Sheriff Dalrymple advised them of, Captain Curly. When they arrived at the marina, they saw a small child wailing in anguish as they watched their ice cream cone melt on the boardwalk. The Mavens found Captain Curly, who then took them to the yacht. On the ride over to the yacht, Captain Curly informed the Mavens that he had not seen Albert in about a week or so, more or less confirming that Albert's death had likely not been recent but within the last week. Captain Curly also said he had recently overheard Allison and David arguing on The Regal Lady, but he couldn't quite hear what they were arguing about.

When they arrived on The Regal Lady, it became abundantly clear just how ridiculously wealthy the Krauses were. The yacht was to be the locale of the 4th Annual Warriors Ball fundraiser in Boston next week and all the accoutrements let the Mavens know these people had more money than they knew what to do with: a tiger. caviar, and several diamond chandeliers.

Doris immediately searched for David to confront him. Given his avant-garde fashion sense, he was relatively easy to spot. David did not appreciate the implications Doris was putting on the table. David admitted that he owed a large amount of money related to his art gallery business. He also said that his father had recently cut him out of the will, which he admitted was suspicious. However, he still denied the murder.

Esther approached Allison directly, who also revealed that she had not seen Albert for about a week. However, she stated this was not unusual, as they had an open marriage. She presented a pile of receipts for extravagant purchases, claiming that they were for Albert's lovers, not her. Allison then continued preparing for her upcoming fundraiser. Esther went on searching the halls of the yacht. From around the corner, she heard a voice say, "You and your friends are on the right track. Two players, not one." Esther whipped her head around, scanning for the voice, but nobody could be seen.

While snooping around other areas of the yacht, Edna came across an expensive diamond earring, its mate missing, in Albert's bedroom. As she was peering at the jewelry, she began to hear a growling, repetitive noise, like some machine. She began following the noise but eventually came to a grated area where she could peer below. It was very dark, but she believed she made out the outline of some figures, chanting below.

Anita decided to take a different, less direct approach. She donned a servant's uniform and approached Andrew, the butler, and tried inquiring about Albert's death. "Yes, I would hope that we would all be aware of Mr. Krause's death. Now, go do your job and clean up the vase in Mr. Krause's study." Before Anita could say anything else, Andrew left to attend to his duties. Anita used the opportunity as "permission" to enter Albert's office, where she discovered that the vase in question actually had blood on it. But that wasn't the most peculiar thing. There was also a fish, dead, with strange purple ooze seeping from its beady, black eyes.

At this point, the Mavens reconvened in the dining room of the yacht. They shared their information and concluded the following:

The Mavens looked around the table at each other, with a glint in their eyes. It was time. They gathered the Krause family, Captain Curly, and all the servants on board into the dining area. They ran through their interactions, slamming their evidence down on the table, pointing fingers, boldly and directly explaining their theory. The crowd stood in quiet contemplation and the room's gaze turned to Allison and David.

Allison and David looked at each other and then bolted for the door. Ever willing to play with cats, Esther took out a handful of cat toys from her bag and pulled her arm back. Her eyes scanned the pair's trajectory, her brain crunched some visual calculus, and her muscles released like the tension on a trebuchet. The pitch was beautiful, landing just ahead of the fugitives. Unable to avert disaster, they slipped on the toys and tumbled to the ground, where others on the yacht quickly crowded and apprehended the culprits. Credits roll.

After the credits, the camera returns to the beach. This time, it's the middle of the night, with the moon high in the sky. Hooded figures, wearing the same masks as the aggressor from the fish market, begin chanting. The moonlight reflects on their masks, causing them glow white, as they begin chanting strange words. At first, the chanting is under their breath, but grows louder and louder. In the distance, a large shadowy shape rising from the ocean, silhouetted by the moon.

Episode 2: The GBBBO (The Great Brindlewood Bay Bake-Off)