Robin Stevens's Blog, page 51

Mistletoe and Murder – the Audiobook!

I’m hard at work on the second draft of The Guggenheim Mystery (more on that soon, I promise!), but yesterday I got to take a break for the most exciting reason.

Some of you have been asking about a Mistletoe and Murder audiobook, and I can now confirm that it is definitely happening. It’ll be released on the 14th of December (in time for Christmas!), and this week it’s being recorded in a special studio in Puffin Towers – and I got to go along to listen in!

The book is being read by an actor who I absolutely love, Katie Leung (Potter fans will recognise her as Cho Chang!). Katie read Jolly Foul Play beautifully, so I’m delighted to have her back for Mistletoe and Murder. When I went in yesterday she was reading the moment the murderer is revealed, and it was just as exciting as I’d imagined when I was writing it. Needless to say, Katie is a wonderful person as well as an excellent actor, and I’m so pleased to have her reading Hazel’s words.

Below is a picture of me and Katie in the (super glam) editing studio. As you can see, I was very happy to be there!

Mistletoe and Murder is a Metro Top Book for Young Minds!

Mistletoe and Murder began the week on a high – it was featured as one of the Metro‘s Top Books for Young Minds.

From Imogen Russell Williams’ review: ‘Deftly touching on contemporary prejudice, Stevens sets her readers a superb puzzle in this splendidly seasonal detective story.’

Thank you Imogen – and hooray for the Detective Society!

 

 

Mistletoe and Murder is one of the Telegraph’s Top 50 Books of 2016!

It seems like someone at the Telegraph must be a Mistletoe and Murder fan!

On Saturday I was astonished to see that Mistletoe and Murder was in the Telegraph‘s Top 50 – not of children’s books, but of all books released this year. It was one of five (along with Beetle Boy by MG Leonard, I’ll Wait, Mr Panda by Steven Lenton, The Secret of Nightingale Wood by Lucy Strange and The Power of Dark by Robin Jarvis). I never get tired of saying that a good children’s book is just a good book, without an upper age limit, and I’m delighted that the Telegraph support that idea.

The review is lovely: ‘Schoolgirl high-jinks abound in this whodunit for children, set in Thirties Cambridge. There’s a whiff of Agatha Christie as chums Daisy and Hazel must hunt down a killer.’

But even MORE lovely was the surprise I got when we bought the paper: Mistletoe and Murder‘s cover was featured on the FRONT page!

My book in the news! Telegraph, 26th November 2016

And finally, I got to see Mistletoe and Murder one more time as part of a lovely interview with blogger and Detective Society member Mango Bubbles. He’s snuck it in as part of the towering book pile he’s been photographed with (as well as Mystery and Mayhem – thank you Mango!). If you haven’t heard of Mango or his website, go check it out – he’s doing a brilliant thing, and he’s always looking for new young reviewers. I know lots of my Detective Society members would love to join in!

Mistletoe and Murder is a Times children’s book of the year!

It’s been an exciting weekend for Mistletoe and Murder! On Saturday, it was chosen as one of The Times‘s children’s books of the year. I’m absolutely delighted to see it featured next to the lovely Reeves & McIntyre and Piers Torday, as well as so many other great authors – it’s a real honour, and I couldn’t be prouder!

(Thanks to Alex O’Connell at The Times for featuring it, and to my mother for running out and buying two copies so that she could take this picture!)

The Detective Society and the US Election

My tour week wasn’t just important for me. It was the week of the US general election, which Donald Trump won. I spoke to enough of you that week – and since – to know that it’s something you are thinking about and worrying about, and I’d like to say two things to all Detective Society members who have been wondering exactly what they should do now.

Be kind. Donald Trump won because he and his supporters have forgotten how to be kind to anyone who does not look or think like them. We can’t make Donald Trump be kind, but we can help balance out the universe by being kind ourselves. And that doesn’t just mean being nice to your friends and family. It means being properly, thoughtfully good to everyone you meet. My detectives know that where you are from, or what you look like, has nothing to do with how much you deserve to be protected. So I want you to go out into the world and be as brave, smart and questioning as the Detective Society and the Junior Pinkertons. If someone tells you something, think hard about it to make sure it is true. If someone is being cruel to someone else, speak up and stop them. It’s important to keep yourself safe – this is something that Hazel, in particular, understands well – so if you’re not sure what to do, speak to an adult that you trust. But you are all Detective Society Members, and Detective Society members are kind to everyone above all else.


But remember that it’s not all down to you. If you are Daisy and Hazel’s age, or younger, you are already capable of great things. I do not doubt that for a moment. But what you don’t have yet (which is immensely frustrating) is much power. You can make the world a better place, and you are already doing that, but you can’t completely fix it yet. Remember that sometimes the Detective Society and the Junior Pinkertons need to ask for help to apprehend the criminals, and there’s no shame in that. And remember that for every Donald Trump out there, there is an Uncle Felix and a Miss Livedon and an Inspector Priestley and a me. Our main job is to protect you, and we are going to do that until the day that you are grown up, when you really can begin to fix this world of ours.

You have every right to be upset – you should be upset, because Donald Trump is an extremely unkind person – but most people are not like him. Life is an incredible adventure, and all adventures have difficult parts as well as good ones. And we really are all very lucky to be alive in 2016. Hazel and Daisy would love it here. Now it’s up to us to make sure that the future gets even better.

Murder Most Unladylike will be published in Japan!

Murder Most Unladylike has just sold in its EIGHTH overseas territory! Now, I usually keep these posts quite brief. But this has to be my favourite foreign rights story to tell …

As some of you may know, I went to Japan a few months ago. It was amazing! Japan is incredible, and it is also (this delighted me) incredibly bookish. But what I noticed was how very different Japanese books are from English ones. It’s amazing how much doesn’t translate, even when you have the words for it. I knew that we had been trying to sell Murder Most Unladylike in Japan, but it hadn’t quite happened, and I finally understood why. I realised that there were some places that Hazel and Daisy might not go.

Here is a picture of me in Tokyo with an owl.

I came back from Japan, and I decided to take my friend to a Japanese restaurant so she could try takoyaki. She asked me about Japan, and then about whether the book would ever sell in Japan, and I explained that it probably wouldn’t, because the market was tough, and a book about kids solving murder was a bit weird.

And then I checked my phone (still in the Japanese restaurant), and saw an email from my agent (who was also, at the time, IN JAPAN on holiday) that basically said: WE SOLD YOUR BOOKS IN JAPAN!

Which is how I found out that Murder Most Unladylike and Arsenic for Tea have sold in Japan to Hara Shobo. It’s all down to the amazing work of my agent Gemma Cooper and top agent of them all Jenny Bent, who worked with our Japanese co-agents Japan UNI Agency to do the deal. I am so grateful to them all, and over the moon at the thought that my books will be in bookshops in such a wonderful country. My books wouldn’t be in your hands – or anyone’s – without years of hard work from all of these people.

Mistletoe and Murder in schools!

Last week was a pretty incredible one for me and my books. Over five days I visited ten schools and spoke to over 3,000 children. I signed over a thousand books (my arm still hurts a little) and spoke for ten hours (my throat is still sore). But it was absolutely worth it: everywhere I went I was impressed with the intelligence, thoughtfulness and kindness of the kids and teachers I met, and I came away prouder than ever that I am allowed to do my weird, incredible, fantastic job.

Below are some of the highlights from my trip, which began in Salisbury on the 7th and ended in Newcastle on the 11th. For even more amazing pictures, check out my Instagram account, and if you see yourself or your friends in these photos, say hello!

Day 1: SALISBURY. Godolphin School and Leehurst Swan.

First stop was Godolphin – and wonderful Jo from Waterstones Salisbury had made me a MMU Christmas tree!

With pupils at Leehurst Swan. I don’t know if anyone in the audience noticed, but during this talk my shoe fell apart …

Day 2: SOUTHAMPTON AND WATERLOOVILLE. Freegrounds Junior and Purbrook Junior.

What a lot of people at Freegrounds Junior! I’m glad I matched my ourfit to their uniforms.

With pupils at Freegrounds Junior

At Purbrook Junior, librarian Mrs Wiltshire had set up a proper Christmas bunbreak for us!

My favourite silly picture with awesome Purbrook Junior pupils

Day 3: WOLVERHAMPTON AND WALSALL. Wolverhampton Grammar School and Butts Primary.

Wolverhampton Grammar School was the biggest hall yet – I even got my own parking space!

With girls from Queen Marys at Butts Primary

At Butts Primary there’s a library with a book throne. I got to sit on it!

Day 4: PRESTON. Penwortham Girls School and Our Ladies Catholic School.

I answer questions at Penwortham Girls

Taking a quick cake break in Booths – I found a new bag!

We’re in the middle of creating our own murder mystery at Our Ladies Catholic School

My hotel had its very own Christmas stag!

Day 5: STOCKTON AND NEWCASTLE. North Shore Academy and Gosforth Central Middle School.

Hello from North Shore Academy!

My lovely Year 7 fans at Gosforth Central Middle School made me a poster!

Ending the tour on a high – 400 year 6s at Gosforth!

What a tour! Thank you again to everyone who helped me out – my Puffin chaperones who looked after me, Authors Aloud who put it together, the booksellers and librarians and teachers who ran every event and of course my wonderful audiences! I’m an exhausted author but a very happy one.

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Mistletoe and Murder has been launched in London!

The great Mistletoe and Murder tour has begun!

On Sunday 30th October I visited Trafalgar Square Waterstones, a store that has loved and supported my books since Murder Most Unladylike launched there in 2014. They’re a brilliant shop, and I always feel so glad to do an event with them. And, of course, since this is a Christmas book, we had particular fun planning the bunbreak …

There was a great turn-out for my reading – it was lovely to see so many familiar faces.

And then it was signing time! These detectives were planning their own murder mystery as they queued …

I’m always so pleased to see Deepdean pupils in the queue!

And how lovely is this hand-drawn card?

I set my guests a challenge while they waited: to create and draw their own festive murder mystery cover. There were some STRONG entries – my favourite was MINCED UP, by Solene, which I didn’t get the chance to take a picture of (but trust me, it was impressive) – below are a few of my other favourite entries.

IT WENT OFF WITH A BANG! by Aiza

THE CHIMNEY POT CHOKING by Philippa and Helen (proving that you are never too old to join the Detective Society)

KILLER AT CHRISTMAS by Sophie (what a tag line!)

MINCE PIE PUZZLE by Amelie

Thank you to everyone who came! If you’re coming to another event on the tour, please let me know – and if I’m not coming to your area, I’m sorry! I do try to get to as many parts of the country as possible, but of course I’m not quite as good as Santa Claus. Look out for future tours, when I’ll be trying to go to new places as well as old favourites, and let me know if you’d like a visit from me. I always love hearing where I have fans!

 

Mistletoe and Murder on tour!

Christmas is here! Mistletoe and Murder is out in the UK and Ireland, and can be found both online and in stores.

I’m going to be touring English schools in November (if I’m coming to yours, you’ll know all about it!), and I’m also going to be visiting lots of bookstores so that I can meet as many of you as possible. Below is the full list of my public events (so far – more December dates may be added!) – I hope you’ll be able to come to one!

30th October, 3pm: Mistletoe and Murder‘s London launch at Waterstones Trafalgar Square (NB: this is the one on Trafalgar Square – not the Covent Garden branch who hosted last time). I’ll be signing copies of all of my books, reading from Mistletoe and Murder and serving a mince pie bunbreak! This is a free event, but you need to book tickets beforehand, so please do contact the store.

5th November, 3pm: Mistletoe and Murder‘s Cambridge launch at Waterstones Cambridge. Again, I’ll be signing copies of all of my books, reading from Mistletoe and Murder and serving a mince pie bunbreak! This is a free event – please contact the store for details.

12th November, 11am: Mistletoe and Murder signing at Waterstones Newcastle. This is a brand NEW event – I know I’ve got fans in the north, and I didn’t want to miss you out! Please contact the store for details.

25th November, 5pm: I’ll be signing copies of my books at Sevenoaks Bookshop as part of their late-night shopping evening. Please contact the store on enquiries@sevenoaksbookshop.co.uk for details.

27th November, 2:30pm: I’m back in Cambridge for their Winter Festival! This is a paid-for ticketed talk with a signing at the end – please visit the website to book tickets.

3rd December, 2pm: I’ll be signing books in Oxford as part of Blackwell’s Family Day. This is one of my favourite bookstores – I worked there while I was writing Murder Most Unladylike – so this is a very special Christmas event for me!

It’s CHRISTMAS for Mistletoe and Murder!

The day is finally here! Mistletoe and Murder is available RIGHT NOW in all good bookstores in the UK and Ireland – Waterstones, WH Smith, Blackwell’s, Foyles, Eason’s and Amazon all have it in stock, and you can go out and buy it TODAY!

I’m already seeing your pictures of it out in the world – below is its FIRST official sighting on a table in Waterstones Canterbury! Please do send me more – either of the book, of you reading the book, or (best!) you reading the book WITH A BUNBREAK.

Mistletoe and Murder in the wild!

I can’t wait for you to discover my Cambridge Christmas, with Hazel, Daisy, Alexander and George. It’s a book I’m particularly proud of, and I hope you love it just as much.

Merry Christmas, Detective Society members!