Toward the end of April 2012, I will be inviting twelve friends and family members to join me for a night of mystery and intrigue as we are plunged head first into the middle of a murder plot. The year will be 1942, and each of us will take on a character who has been invited to dine at the Official Residence of the Mayor of Cassablanca. The would-be guest of honor -  Frances' greatest mime artist, will unfortunately be unable to attend the dinner party due to his untimely demise.

These are the details provided on the back of the box of the murder mystery dinner party I will shortly be purchasing from amazon.com. I have hosted two murder mystery dinner parties in the past, and attended one other as a guest. I think my enthusiasm comes from the mixture of good food (which may or may not tie into the theme of the murder mystery) and the suspense of not knowing who is the guilty party until just before desert. Not even the muderer will be told that they are guilty until the very last minute, in order to feed the suspense.

I will really enjoy using this murder mystery experience as a spring board to allow me to explore the links between murder and food in literature. And I say 'literature' loosely - I intend to make reference not just to books, but to films and TV also. 

I'm expecting a range of topics to be raised and brushed over, although the most prominent of these will most likely be cannibalism and animal rights. I think that Freud will inevitably play a part also.