Part of being an author is learning how to keep quiet about exciting news. Some of it I’m allowed to let people know a bit about – like the cover and title reveal for book 5 (it’s going to be called Mistletoe and Murder, it’s coming on October 20th this year, and you can see the cover HERE) – and some I have to keep absolutely secret.
So I can only now tell you that I’ve been keeping a very big secret for a VERY long time – because I’m allowed to let it out at last!
I know that a lot of you are already fans of Siobhan Dowd’s The London Eye Mystery, a story about a boy called Ted whose cousin Salim mysteriously goes missing while riding the London Eye. It’s a book that I recommend all the time, and it’s coming up to its 10th anniversary next year. Siobhan was an absolutely brilliant writer, and when she wrote The London Eye Mystery she always meant to write its sequel. Tragically, she died before she could begin it, and her Trust has been looking for an author to carry on Ted’s amazing story ever since. And last year … they asked if I’d like to do it!
Ted is very different to Hazel (for starters, he’s from 2007, not 1935!), but he’s a brilliant detective and a wonderful narrator – if you haven’t already, go read The London Eye Mystery. I think you’ll love it! I’m such a big fan that I recently took a trip on the London Eye myself with a certain mysterious book …
The Guggenheim Mystery (that’s its name) is going to be a book about a mystery, just like The London Eye Mystery – but it feels as though it’s already a mystery in itself. All I have to go on are the three words of the title, and from those I have to guess what Siobhan might have been imagining, and where she wanted to take the characters she created in The London Eye Mystery. It’s an honour, and I’m so excited to sit down and take on the challenge of creating a brand new New York mystery story. But it’s also a big responsibility. I know I need to get this book right – Siobhan is a huge act to follow, and I’m going to do my best to create something that I think she’d be happy with. I’m going to be working very hard on the manuscript over the next few months – keep checking back here, and on my Twitter and Instagram, for my progress!
The Guggenheim Mystery will be published in August 2017, 10 years after The London Eye Mystery was first released. Murder Most Unladylike 6 will be out in the winter of 2017 – but if you think you won’t be able to wait until then, we’ve got you covered! A lot of you have been asking when the short stories I’ve been writing will be available in a book, and I’m delighted to say that the answer is: April 2017! We are creating the first ever Murder Most Unladylike bumper book, featuring the three short stories I’ve already written (Lavinia’s Missing Tie, Blue Violet and Deepdean Vampire), two BRAND NEW short stories, and loads of puzzles, activities, recipes, quizzes and much more. It should satisfy even the most ardent Deepdean fan! It’s going to be called Cream Buns and Crime, and I’ll be working on it this autumn.
I’ve got a busy six months ahead of me, and I can’t wait to get started!
