Featured Books for April

[becke_davis]

The Mystery book club welcomes Rosemary Harris as she joins the converation about her latest book The Big Dirt Nap. The club will also readThe Thirty-Nine Steps by John Buchan.

Rosemary Harris, who visited our board last year when we featured her debut book, Pushing Up Daisies, is back with the second book in this series.  We had a lot of fun when Rosemary joined us before, so please give her a hearty welcome!

Our second feature is a classic, John Buchan's The Thirty-Nine Steps.  There is an equally classic Hitchock movie that was based on this book, although the plot isn't exactly the same.

I hope you'll join us to visit with Rosemary and to discuss these very different books!

The Big Dirt Nap  

The Thirty-Nine Steps  

[RosemaryH]

Hi Becke,

So nice to be back! And I'm in such good company - I haven't read 39 Steps in ages but I will get right on it! I've been touring - CA, AZ, IL, IN, VA and of course Ohio. In fact I'll be heading back to Ohio in May.

The Big Dirt Nap was reallt supposed to be book three in the Dirty Business series. In the original book two, I sent Paula Holliday out of town to the Philadelphia Flower Show, but i really started to miss my secondary characters - who couldn't very well all go to Philly with Paula!

Once again, I was inspired but something I saw in the newspaper about a little boy who was living with mother on a reservation in CT. The tribe is lobbying for federal recognition and I thought..hmmm... there may be a mystery there.

I'm so glad you liked it...I had a lot of fun writing it. Be back soon!

Rosemary

www.rosemaryharris.com

[becke_davis]

Rosemary -- Does this mean that book 3 is already completed? I'm looking forward to it!

[RosemaryH]

I'm finishing up book three right now...it's called Deadhead and should be out next spring. The fourth book has a working title of Pest Management, but my editor didn't love the title so that may change.

[jenforbus]

Hi Rosemary!  Since I just finished asking you a slew of questions for my blog interview, I don't have any just yet to ask, but I wanted to stop by and show a little love anyway.  I'm also going to lurk and maybe find some more great tidbits...like the info on the new books!  Yea! 

So glad to see you here!  Have a great time!

--Jen Forbus

[jenforbus]

Alright!  I'm eating my words already.  I didn't see an event scheduled in Ohio in May.  Where will you be?

[RosemaryH]

I'll be heading back to Ohio for an event at the Chagrin Falls library (near Parma, I believe) Monday, May 18 at 2pm (don't have address yet) and I'll be at Foul Play - yikes, can I say that? - in Westerville on Tuesday, May 19 at 7pm. Of course, I'd will be stopping in to all of the B&Ns as I did in March to say hello. If there's a B&N near you that does events, call the Community Relations Manager and ask for me to visit their store, I can easily add a day to my trip ;-)

[jenforbus]

I DO have one:  Crocker Park in Westlake!  I just sent an e-mail to contact the appropriate person!  I'm crossing my fingers!

[Beth_Groundwat…]

Hi Rosemary,

I'm currently reading your book, Pushing Up Daisies, which was nominated for the Best First Novel Agatha Award. I'm enjoying it!

[Joanna_Campbel…]

Hi, Rosemary--

I'm excited about having you visit our Killer Hobbies blog (http://killerhobbies.blogspot.com) on Monday, April 13, and telling us more about your first book Pushing Up Daisies! Until then, happy digging in the dirt!

Joanna Campbell Slan

Author of the Agatha nominee for Best First Novel--Paper, Scissors, Death

[Hank_Phillippi…]

Hey Rosemary!

Lovely to see you here. The Big Dirt Nap is such a hoot--it's an original and intelligent mystery wrapped in a really fun read. And your covers are gorgeous..are they meant to be the Picasso cover, and then the Matisse cover?

You do so many visits to libraries and stores..when do you have time to write? 

Congratulations on the Agatha nomination!

Hank

Hank Phillippi Ryan

http://www.hankphillippiryan.com

[becke_davis]

Just a note to everyone -- be sure to check out the other threads about Rosemary's books, too.

[RosemaryH]

Thanks guys,

All my pals are here! I've met so many great people in the mystery community...it really is a fun job sometimes!

Hi Hank (Agatha winner last year for best first novel for Prime Time which is being rereleased very soon) The first cover came about when I was asked - it almost never happens - what i thought I'd like to see on the cover. I said "how about a skeletal arm offering a bunch of fading flowers..you know, like the Picasso flowers." And poof, next thing I knew there it was! Who knew I had such power?? The St Martins art department has worked very hard on my covers. After Picasso, the Matisse was a little bit of an inside joke - if people recognized it, fine, if they didn't, that was okay too it was an edgier cover than you'd find on most traditional mysterties and I liked that.

Who knows about future books..could be Edward Hopper, although with a title like Deadhead the next book could wind up with a picture of of The Grateful Dead skelton on it!