The special occasion is the 70th birthday party for bestselling British children’s author Dame Eleanor Kingman. But the weekend will end in disaster with at least one unplanned death. Being surrounded by family, close friends and colleagues makes for an interesting whodunit in Sarah Vaughan’s latest novel, the cleverly titled BASED ON A TRUE STORY.

The prologue shows us the moment that the body is found, its head smashed against the rocks just off the nearby beach. A female shines a light on the face of the deceased with neither identity revealed at that time. The book begins on a Thursday, just two days prior to the party at Eleanor’s manor house on the cliffs. A very innocent yet telling incident occurs at a book signing when a boy points at Eleanor accusingly and states, “You make everything up. You’re lying. You’re not meant to lie. Lying’s naughty.” If only he realized that the biggest lie Eleanor ever told would come back to haunt her just hours later.

"Being surrounded by family, close friends and colleagues makes for an interesting whodunit... There is plenty to keep readers buzzing as Sarah Vaughan attempts to outsmart you from jump street."

The next day, Eleanor receives emails that start off eerie and get worse with each new message. The mysterious sender accuses Eleanor of being an impostor and threatens to expose her. But she has no idea who this person could be. If she had to draw up a list of potential suspects in her lifetime, it would be quite lengthy.

Chapters are told from the perspectives of those who are at the birthday celebration: Eleanor’s daughters --- Gilly, Rachel and Delia; Rachel’s husband, Tom, a physician who owes a lot of money in gambling debts; Eleanor's current and former literary agents; her illustrator, who feels slighted by how little she gets paid for each book; her ex-husband, Michael, who is not wanted there; and a few surprise guests. There is a lot of resentment from Delia, a recovering addict who does not have the best relationship with Gilly or Rachel and a tenuous one at best with Eleanor. There is much to pick at here, and Vaughan keeps the details flooding in before the big reveal.

When Delia catches Rachel, who acts as her mother’s accountant, siphoning off 50,000 pounds to make a small dent in what Tom owes his bookie, the ensuing confrontation does not go well. Further complicating matters is that a television crew is there filming the festivities, although Eleanor does not recall ever agreeing to this. When the novel jumps back in time to 1969, we get to witness the darkest event of Eleanor’s life that she thought she had put behind her forever.

There is plenty to keep readers buzzing as Sarah Vaughan attempts to outsmart you from jump street. BASED ON A TRUE STORY is about the people who create fictional mysteries and questions just how much of their own lives might be the impetus for their work.