Dorothy L. Sayers is back!

Last week I received a box of books from Harper Paperbacks. I receive a lot of boxes of books every week but these were special - these weren't just any books, these were newly re-released Dorothy L. Sayers books.

The grand dame of mysteries. The spirit behind the eponymous Dorothy-L mystery fiction listserve. 

The four titles follow Lord Peter Wimsey, a proper English aristocrat and sleuth, and Harriet Vane, the astute mystery novelist whom Lord Wimsey is hell-bent on marrying. 

The good folks at Harper Paperbacks enlisted Elizabeth George to write new forwards and they will be available for purchase October 16. Plus they have beautiful new covers!

“One of the greatest mystery story writers of this century.”

—Los Angeles Times

Bourbon Street Books Presents

Dorothy L. Sayers’

Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery Series

With an introduction by Elizabeth George

HarperCollins Publishers is proud to reissue STRONG POISON, HAVE HIS CARCASE, GAUDY NIGHT, and BUSMAN’S HONEYMOON (Bourbon Street Books/Harper Paperbacks/HarperCollins Publishers; October 16, 2012; Paperback; $14.99 each), four Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries by Dorothy L. Sayers, published as part of the new Bourbon Street Books line. This spell-binding series includes:

·         STRONG POISON — Mystery novelist Harriet Vane knew all about poisons, and when her fiancé died in the manner prescribed in one of her books, a jury of her peers had a hangman’s noose in mind. But Lord Peter Wimsey was determined to find her innocent—as determined as he was to make her his wife.

 

·         HAVE HIS CARCASE — The mystery writer Harriet Vane, recovering from an unhappy love affair and its aftermath, seeks solace on a barren beach—deserted but for the body of a bearded young man with his throat cut. With the appearance of her dear friend Lord Peter Wimsey, she finds a reason for detective pursuit—as only the two of them can pursue it.

·         GAUDY NIGHT — When Harriet Vane attends her Oxford reunion, known as the “Gaudy,” the prim academic setting is haunted by a rash of bizarre pranks: scrawled obscenities, burnt effigies and poison-pen letters—including one that says, “Ask your boyfriend with the title if he likes arsenic in his soup.” Harriet finds herself ensnared in a nightmare of romance and terror, with only the tiniest shreds of clues to challenge her powers of detection, and those of her paramour, Lord Peter Wimsey.

·         BUSMAN’S HONEYMOON — Murder is hardly the best way for Lord Peter Wimsey and his bride, the famous mystery writer Harriet Vane, to start their honeymoon. It all begins when the former owner of their newly acquired estate is found quite nastily dead in the cellar. What Lord Peter had hoped would be a very private and romantic stay in the country soon turns into a most baffling case: the deceased has not a spot of blood on his smashed skull and not a pence less than six hundred pounds in his pocket.

Packaged with stunning new designs and accompanied by an introduction by contemporary mystery stalwart, Elizabeth George, these new editions are sure to captivate Sayers’ legion of fans and mystery novices alike. These four titles stand apart from Sayers’ renowned oeuvre as magna opera, and the quintessential gentleman detective, Lord Peter Wimsey, is at his finest.

About the Author

Often called the greatest detective novelist of the Golden Age, Dorothy L. Sayers was born in 1893. She was one of the first women to be awarded a degree by Oxford University and later became a copywriter at an ad agency. In 1923 she published her first novel featuring the aristocratic detective Lord Peter Wimsey, who became one of the world’s most popular fictional heroes. She died in 1957.

You can preorder through Amazon.com

Gaudy Night: A Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery with Harriet Vane

Have His Carcase: A Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery with Harriet Vane

Busman's Honeymoon: A Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery with Harriet Vane

Strong Poison: A Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery with Harriet Vane

or your favorite bookseller. 

Win PEACHES FOR FATHER FRANCIS by Joanne Harris

The bestselling author of Chocolat and The Girl with No Shadow returns to Lansquenet in this enchanting new novel

                                          

PEACHES FOR FATHER FRANCIS

 By Joanne Harris

*Advance Praise for PEACHES FOR FATHER FRANCIS*

“Harris’s skill at vibrantly depicting the charm and eccentricity of rural French life is at the heart of this delightful novel…Harris has used this story as a plea for tolerance and understanding, but her message is not the least pedantic. Fans of the first two books will delight in becoming reacquainted with Vianne, her dashing man, Roux, and her clever daughters.”—Library Journal

 

* UK Praise *

“Like Chocolat, this book is a feast for the senses. Every page of the book is steeped in scents, colours and tastes, without ever tipping into the pretentious or showy.  The writing is seductive and engaging throughout; and the magic, too, is intrinsic without ever being soppy or embarrassing. What is magic (or religion), after all, if not an ability to understand the human heart? Peaches for Father Francis is a wonderful return to form for Harris.”—Literary Review

“Absorbing and atmospheric...Joanne bravely tackles religious differences head-on but very sensitively. It's expressive, rich, vibrant and even shocking in parts.”—Heat Magazine

“A delightful jumble of the sensuous sights, sounds and smells the author describes so well.”—Glamour

Anyone who has read Joanne Harris’ best-seller Chocolat will be familiar with the deliciously warm character of Vianne Rocher. In Harris’ latest novel, PEACHES FOR FATHER FRANCIS (Viking; Strict On Sale: October 2, 2012; $26.95; ISBN: 978-0-670-02636-4), it’s eight years later and Vianne receives a letter from beyond the grave from her friend Armande, summoning her back from her life on a houseboat in Paris to the quaint village of Lansquenet where she used to run her chocolate shop.

Upon returning with her daughters Anouk and Rosette, Vianne discovers that everything and nothing has changed in the small village. Her adversary, Father Francis Reynaud, still feels persecuted and misunderstood—only this time he needs Vianne’s help. Her one-time best friend, Josephine, still has an ambiguous relationship with Vianne’s lover Roux, and, unbeknownst to Vianne, has an eight-year-old son born just days after Rosette. And Lansquenet itself has changed with the arrival of a large number of Moroccans. The cultural mix is welcomed by some and resented by others.

Ultimately, Vianne is left to unravel the mystery of newcomer Inés Bencharki, who is part of the new Muslim community and is stirring up things. Inés insists on dressing in the traditional full black veil, under which “she seems as impervious to hostility as she is to gossip, scandal or offers of friendship.” Tensions between these two communities reach a fever pitch and it’s up to Vianne to rescue Father Francis and to discover what’s really going on in Lansquenet before it’s too late.

About the Author:

Joanne Harris  is the author of the Whitbread Award-shortlisted Chocolat, which was made into an Oscar-nominated feature film, and eleven other bestselling novels.   She is published world-wide, in approximately 50 countries, and is the winner of several international and UK awards.  She is an Honorary Fellow at St Catharine’s College, Cambridge and lives with her husband in Yorkshire .

I am delighted to be able to offer one lucky reader copies of both Peaches for Father Francis and Chocolat along with peach truffles! To enter, send an email to contest@gmail.com, with “Peaches for Father Francis” as the subject. Make sure to include your name and mailing address in the US only. This contest is open to all adults over 18 years of age. One entry per email address, please. Your email will not be shared or sold to anyone.

All entries, including names, email addresses and mailing addresses, will be purged after winner is notified. This contest ends October 15, 2012. Good luck!

Win Homegrown in Florida!

Homegrown in Florida

Edited by William McKeen

 “Sparkles with all the colors of our childhood, like the Florida sun setting over the Gulf. A surprising cross-section of thirty-four talented writers, poets, politi­cians, and entertainers transport us to a state where anything was possible, where memories take on a life of their own and have lasting consequences.”— Victor DiGenti, author of the Windrusher series

“Brings back a world in which kids played outside unsupervised, when grand­mothers wore pearls and smelled of talcum powder and cooked hot breakfasts, and when a mother might spend Sunday morning immersed in the Miami Herald but felt it her duty to have grace said at the dinner table.”—Joy Wallace Dickinson, author of Remembering Orlando

Florida can seem like a child’s dream of paradise: endless sunny days, trips to the beach to swim and build sandcastles, bike riding without a jacket in the middle of January, and magical themeparks only a short drive away. But what was life really like for those who grew up here?

During a recent reunion, writers Bill McKeen, Tim Dorsey, and Jeff Klinkenberg found themselves lamenting that so many of their childhood memories were fading away. For them, and for many, Florida is not just a place people go to, it’s where they come from.

That can mean many things to many people, as the stellar cast of writers, journalists, and musicians eloquently reveal in Homegrown in Florida. This utterly satisfying and powerful anthology aims at the heart of the glories of childhood and the pain of growing up. Both a celebration of the exotic, untamed wilderness of a youth filled with moss-draped oaks and citrus fields, evergreen winters and palmetto fronds, and a reminder that innocence often gave way to experience as bike paths became private developments, and swimming holes were paved over by interstates, Home­grown in Florida is filled with tears and laughter alike.

Featuring contributions from Carl Hiaasen, Tom Petty, Zora Neale Hurston, Michael Connelly, and many more, this is a book for every child of old Florida, and every child at heart.

William McKeen is the author of nine books, including Mile Marker Zero, Outlaw Journalist, Highway 61, and Rock and Roll Is Here to Stay. He teaches at Boston University, where he chairs the Department of Journalism.

To win your own copy of Homegrown in Florida, send an email to contest@gmail.com, with “Homegrown in Florida” as the subject. Make sure to include your name and mailing address in the US only. This contest is open to all adults over 18 years of age. One entry per email address, please. Your email will not be shared or sold to anyone.

All entries, including names, email addresses and mailing addresses, will be purged after winner is notified. This contest ends October 10, 2012. Good luck!