It never rains but it pours

by Carola

Since December, only one month has passed without one of my Daisy Dalrymple mysteries staging a reappearance in one form or another. First came four new audiobooks, the 8th through 11th in the series. Last month it was a reissue of the second, The Winter Garden Mystery, in trade paperback, over 20 years after it first came out in hardcover--and with brand new art. These are some of the covers it's had over the years:

Yes, THREE German editions!

The latest, coming out in the UK on June 2nd, is the paperback edition of Daisy's most recent adventure, Superfluous Women.  (It won't be out in the US in paperback till September.)

So--NOTHING coming out in July or August? Unless the proposed Russian translations of the first three in the series unexpectedly materialize.

Then another 2 months until the fourth Cornish mystery, Buried in the Country, makes its first appearance in hardcover and Kindle--in both the US and UK--in December.

What a year!

Audio Bones

 by Carola

The official release date of the audio version of my 8th Daisy Dalrymple mystery was yesterday, though I heard at least a week ago from people who had already bought it!

Be that as it may, the Apatosaurus is back--scientists have even agreed to restore its old name, Brontosaurus, the name by which Daisy would have called it when she saw the vast skeleton at London's Natural History Museum. 

 

But it was amidst the smashed bones of a Pareiasaurus skeleton that Daisy found the body of the most-disliked curator in the museum...

                                             
I had a lot of help with research from the Archivist at the museum. He answered all my questions, supplied a plan of the building, and could have told me the names of the cleaners who went in at night to polish the glass cases in Daisy's time, had I wanted them. He even gave me a tour of the areas closed to the public, the research rooms, the backstairs, and the basement.

Quite apart from the displays, it's a fascinating building, well worth a visit just for the architecture.


http://www.nhm.ac.uk/

http://www.amazon.com/Rattle-His-Bones-Dalrymple-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B004XJ5MNO/












Daisy books now available in Audio:
Death at Wentwater Court,
 The Winter Garden Mystery,
 Requiem for a Mezzo,
 Murder on the Flying Scotsman,
 Damsel in Distress,
 Dead in the Water,
 Styx and Stones,
Rattle His Bones,
 Mistletoe and Murder,
 and Fall of a Philanderer.

Real people--by request

by Carola

I had an interesting meeting at Art and the Vineyard (a local outdoor art & wine show) yesterday.

Several years ago, I was asked to give a character in my next book the name of the person who bid highest at an auction in aid of the Eugene Opera (disclosure: I'm a classical music fan but don't care for opera). The winning bid was $800, a woman who want her husband's name used. Turned out his name was Polish, which made for complications, but I got him into Valley of the Shadow, my 3rd Cornish mystery, as a WWII Polish refugee-- If you've read the book, you may have wondered where Skipper Tom Kulick came from! (I had asked about him and learned he was in the US Coast Guard).
 

Yesterday, the Kulicks came to the Oregon Authors booth to see me, They were very happy with the way I wrote Tom in, brought copies to be signed, and asked if I'd be willing to attend a lunch for 12 opera supporters for this year's fund-raising. I'm still not keen on opera, but what could I say? I'll do anything for a free lunch (well, almost anything...)
 
Hope they can find 12 people willing to pay to have lunch with me!

Similarly, someone once paid $500 at a library supporters auction to have me put her sister (deceased) in a book. I asked for information about her and discovered that she had played a brass instrument and loved brass band music. Her name seemed to me more American than English, so I wrote her character as an American visiting England on her honeymoon, in A Colourful Death, the second Cornish mystery.

Nick Gresham, the artist neighbour of my protagonist, Eleanor Trewynn, meets the young couple while listening to and sketching a band playing "Land of Hope and Glory," at Horse Guards' Parade in London. They commission him to paint a picture of the band. Returning to Cornwall, and finding himself chief suspect in a murder case, he keeps humming snatches of the tune as he works out ideas for his painting.


The sister of the bride--so to speak--was thrilled that I'd woven the love of brass music into the story.

 

The only other time I've done something like this was a whole family, whom I put for free into A Mourning Wedding, one of the Daisy Dalrymple mysteries.  It turned out their last name, Walsdorf, is from Luxembourg. It was an interesting challenge to fit them into a book set in England in 1923.

I made them a family of poor relations, a refugee from World War I, when the Germans invaded Luxembourg, who had married an Englishwoman. Given the xenophobic feelings of many of the English at that period, they made a great addition to the cast of suspects!

Three books in 4 months!

by Carola

March:
 Minotaur reissued the first Daisy Dalrymple mystery (England 1920s) in trade paperback, with new artwork to match the latter half of the series.

 This is exciting in more than one way. I love the work of the artist who has been doing my covers since the 12th of the series, Die Laughing, so it's great to have the match for Death at Wentwater Court. It's wonderful to have Daisy's first adventure once more available to readers who prefer print. And, with any luck, it means they will continue to reissue the rest of those that were published in mass market paperback by Kensington after the original hardcover from Minotaur. There are already plans for the second to reappear in March 2016.

May:
The 21st book in the series came out in trade paperback (hardcover publication was 2013). This may be my absolute favourite of all Bradley Clark's covers to date.

 June:
On the 9th of June my NEW Daisy mystery comes out. Need I say that I love the cover? It's had great reviews, too, from Kirkus, Booklist, Library Journal, Publishers Weekly. (I can't help but wonder how many people choose their reading based on reviews and how many on the art!)

With three books to sign, I'm heading for West Coast mystery bookstores. I'll be at

Mystery Ink, Huntingdon Beach, June 14th at 2pm
Mysterious Galaxy, San Diego, June 19th at 7:30 pm
Seattle Mystery Bookshop, June 27th at Noon

These books and the rest of the series can be ordered from any of the above (If you hurry you can request a signed copy!), or any indie bookstore or, of course, Amazon (who say they have the books in the correct order, but don't you believe it!).

20 years later...

by Carola

My first mystery just reissued after 20 years (and 21 more in the series). Read an excerpt here http://historicalfictionexcerpts.blogspot.com/2015/03/death-at-wentwater-court-reissued.html

Heirs of the Body--out this week

by Carola

The 21st book in my Daisy Dalrymple series comes out in a few days (UK 6th December, US 10th December) just in time for the holidays.

Set in 1927: Daisy's cousin, the present Lord Dalrymple, was not brought up to the job, and he's just realised, approaching his fiftieth birthday, he has no idea who is his heir. Advertising in newspapers worldwide brings a slew of candidates from all over the Empire and all walks of life. His lawyer, with Daisy's assistance, winnows the possible heirs down to four.

But none can provide adequate proof of legitimate descent in the male line. In fact, one of them is missing--whether temporarily or permanently, his wife (or widow) isn't sure.

While awaiting clarification, Lord Dalrymple invites them to Fairacres to celebrate his birthday. Also present are his known family in England, including Daisy and her husband, DCI Fletcher of Scotland Yard, and their children.

When a string of mysterious accidents is followed by the death of one of the would-be heirs, it begins to look as if someone is out to nobble the competition...

Fairacres, Daisy's childhood home, is in Worcestershire, on the banks of the beautiful River Severn.










Read an excerpt at

  http://historicalfictionexcerpts.blogspot.com/2013/12/heirs-of-body.html

Heirs of the Body can be ordered from

http://www.amazon.com/Heirs-Body-Dalrymple

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/heirs-of-the-body-carola-dunn 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Heirs-Body-Dalrymple 

http://www.waterstones.com/waterstonesweb/products/carola+dunn/heirs+of+the+body 

Or better still, support independent mystery booksellers

http://www.seattlemystery.com/  (I'll be signing December 14th at noon)
http://www.mystgalaxy.com/ (San Diego signing January 9th at 7 pm)
http://www.mysteryink.com/ (Huntington Beach, signing Jan. 11 noon)
http://www.bookem.com/ (S. Pasadena, signing Jan. 11 at 3 pm)