Robin Stevens's Blog, page 59

Booklist starred review for Poison is Not Polite

Happy 2016! I’ve just found out that my year is off to a great start – Poison is Not Polite, the US edition of Arsenic for Tea, has been given its first review, and it’s a star from Booklist!

They say:

‘After getting off to a good start in Murder is Bad Manners, Stevens perfects her take on the British murder mystery in the second book in the Wells & Wong series. Daisy Wells has brought boarding-school friend (and co-member of the Detective’s Society) Hazel Wong to Fallingford, her family’s estate, complete with mazes, libraries, lords, and ladies. It’s Daisy’s birthday and a lavish tea is planned with visits from two other school chums. But there are other visitors, including the nefarious Mr. Curtis, who seems as enamored of the family antiques as he is of Daisy’s mother. From the first pages, we learn something dreadful happens to Mr. Curtis, and as the book progresses, readers will be enthralled with the what, why, and how—all issues that the Detective’s Society unravel through cleverness and sleuthing skill. Not so long ago, detailed accounts of murders in middle-grade mysteries was rarely done. Here, though, Mr. Curtis lies moldering in a guest room after a violent poisoning, while the game is afoot all over the house, which has been cut off by a flood. Though Stevens handles the mystery element to perfection (the house diagrams are a nice touch, too), what really shines is the depiction of her characters, especially bossy, egocentric Daisy, and loyal, smart Hazel, always aware that she is “other.” A smashing good time.’ – Ilene Cooper, Booklist

The End of an Era – All Change for 2016!

I’ve got some big news to share about me and my books!

I’ve always been clear that I loved my editorial day job. I’ve been trying to keep the two strands of my life working together, but over the last few months, I’ve realised that even with the best will in the world (and my relentless optimism), something needed to change.

I want to make the Murder Most Unladylike books the best they can be, and I want to get out there and meet more of you, my lovely readers, and to do both of those things I need to take a step back from my editorial work and focus on my writing for a while.

Therefore, I recently made the very difficult decision to leave my position as Assistant Editor at Egmont. From the middle of December I’ll no longer be with the company – my office will become my computer, and I’ll be working as a full-time author!

I’m immensely sad about stepping down from my job – Egmont have been wonderful employers, and I’ve had a fantastic time being part of the fiction team. I’m going to miss everyone I work with hugely! But I know that this is the right decision, and the right time to take it.

If you’d like to get in contact with me from 9th December, please use the email redbreastedbird@gmail.com, or send me post via my publishers, at

Robin Stevens c/o Puffin Publicity, Penguin Books

80 Strand, London

WC2R 0LR

If you’re a school, a book store or a library, this means that from the beginning of next year I’ll be much more available to visit you! I can tour more than I could before, and hopefully get to a lot more of the country, as many of you have been requesting. If you would like to enquire about my availability, please email me and my publicist Harriet (hvenn@penguinrandomhouse.co.uk), as we’ll be coordinating my 2016 schedule together. Of course, I’ll also be working hard on the fifth book in the Murder Most Unladylike series as well – I have a feeling I won’t be any less busy than I am now!

There are exciting times ahead for me and my books. After Christmas I’ll be able to share some more news that I’m very excited about – I can’t do it yet, but watch this space. I think you’re going to be very pleased!

Murder Most Unladylike at the Oxfordshire Book Awards 2015!

On Thursday, I visited Oxford High School for the Oxfordshire Book Awards 2015. I grew up in Oxford, and went to primary school at an Oxford school, the Dragon (yes, really, that is its name), so I am beyond honoured that Murder Most Unladylike was chosen as the 2015 winner of the Primary Novel award, voted for entirely by Oxfordshire children.

I was in excellent company, too – the picture book award was won by Sue Heap and Teresa Heapy’s Very Little Red Riding Hood, and the secondary novel award went to Marcus Sedgwick’s She is Not Invisible, with Jo Cotterill’s Looking at the Stars highly commended. Marcus couldn’t attend (for the very good reason that he now lives in another country), but Jo, Sue and Teresa were all there. And we all got cakes!

My beautiful Murder Most Unladylike cake!

I was very excited

Winners with our winning cakes!

The presentation ceremony was wonderful – representatives from the voting schools were there (as well as my parents, my special guests for the day), and we all had a chance to talk about our books and take questions from the kids. Reviews of each of the books were read out on stage (an amazing surprise) – I have to especially thank Isobelle and Neil for their incredibly kind words about Murder Most Unladylike.

My view from the stage. Hello Oxford!

We were all presented with the most beautiful award trophies, as well as flowers – I felt like a very lucky author. Afterwards all of the authors signed our books and talked to the kids – it was such an honour to meet them all, and I had a brilliant time. And, of course, we all had a very delicious bunbreak!

My award!

Me with my award – photo by Sally Poyton

Signing books – photo by Carterton CC Library

Thank you, Oxfordshire!

All change for Murder Most Unladylike Book 4!

I have some very exciting news to share with you today.

First, Murder Most Unladylike Book 4 has a beautiful cover! I can now exclusively reveal that it is YELLOW, it has FIREWORKS and I love it. It’s going to pop on shelves just as strongly as the first three books do, and I can’t wait to actually see it in stores. I’m working hard on the edits for it, and it’s currently scheduled to arrive with UK readers in late March 2016.

But that’s not the only update I have to give you. As we were working on the cover, it became clear that the original title we chose was just too long to fit – the words were very difficult to read! So we decided to go back to the drawing board, and come up with something snappier, that my illustrator Nina could really get her teeth into – and the winner was . . .

JOLLY FOUL PLAY

Henceforth, therefore, Murder Most Unladylike Book 4 will be known as Jolly Foul Play – and you can see its gorgeous cover below! I hope you’ll agree with me that this is totally brilliant, and very much in keeping with the other three books.

 

And if you’d like a little reminder as to the plot, this is what I can currently tell you:

It’s a new year at Deepdean – Daisy & Hazel are now in the fourth form. The school has a whole new group of mistresses . . . and a new Head Girl and Prefects. But these Big Girls are certainly not good eggs – they rule the school by bullying all of the younger years, and each other.

By the beginning of November, tensions are running high, and it’s hardly a surprise when, after the fireworks display at Deepdean’s Bonfire Night Celebrations, Head Girl Elizabeth Hurst is found dead. She’s been hit on the head by a heavy object. But who could have done it? And what does the murder have to do with the secrets that are suddenly being discovered on pieces of paper all round the school? One thing’s for sure . . . sparks will fly.

I’m so excited to share Jolly Foul Play with you all (as soon as I’ve finished it!) and I hope you’ll love Daisy and Hazel’s fourth adventure!

But although it’s still six months away, you can pre-order the book NOW from Amazon. So what are you waiting for? Go go go!

Hong Kong Young Post review of Arsenic For Tea

John Millen from the Hong Kong Young Post has given Arsenic for Tea an absolutely fantastic review!

He says: ‘Stevens’ Wells & Wong Mysteries offer a great deal of retro reading pleasure … as irresistible and entertaining as the first. Just the thing to devour with a pot of tea and a plate of scones.’

Announcement – the Murder Most Unladylike Mysteries have been optioned for TV and film!

When I was first writing Murder Most Unladylike I happened to watch ITV’s Cat Among the Pigeons. It’s Christie’s boarding school murder, and in this adaptation there’s a character called Hsui Tai. She’s played by , and seeing her added to the story gave me shivers. I’d been imagining Hazel as the main character of my own boarding school mystery, and now I was seeing a character at a TV boarding school who could be Hazel. I already knew that I wasn’t doing anything anachronistic in making my protagonist Chinese, but Cat Among the Pigeons made me see how much sense my decision made. That’s the power of TV – it makes possibilities real.

Katie Leung in ITV’s Cat Among the Pigeons

That was back in 2013. Now it’s 2015, and today I have the absolute pleasure of announcing that my books, and my characters, are one step closer to one day appearing as a TV show themselves.

The TV and film rights to the Murder Most Unladylike Mysteries have been optioned by Pilot Media and Salt Beef TV, who will be co-producing the project. The deal was done by my fantastic TV agent, Emily Hayward Whitlock, who’s working for me and Gemma Cooper (my agent for the books themselves).

My celebratory #bunbreak!

What this means, in case you haven’t heard this term before – I hadn’t – is that Pilot and Salt Beef have bought the rights to try to turn the series into a show – they will now work to find financial backing, distributors, writers and actors, which is extremely difficult to do, and explains why most things that are optioned never actually become TV shows or films. So we’re not there yet – this is just the beginning. Now we have to wait, and let Pilot and Salt Beef work their magic – I might be the author of the books, but this is something that I have absolutely no control over, which is slightly nervewracking.

But I do know that Pilot and Salt Beef are the perfect people to buy the rights – the entire deal came about because Dan from Pilot’s 9 year old daughter read Murder Most Unladylike and told him how much she liked it. It doesn’t get much better than that, and Dan and Jeremy keep on proving that they have some serious passion for the series. If anyone can make this happen, they can.

While we wait to hear more, I’ve been having a great time fancasting. I’m particularly fond of the idea of Benedict Cumberbatch as Uncle Felix, and Ben Whishaw as The One. Who would you cast? Any and all ideas below, or on Twitter – but no spoilers, please!

As I said, we’re not there yet. But we’re off to a great start.

Shelf Awareness reviews Murder is Bad Manners

A lovely review of Murder is Bad Manners in Shelf Awareness!

“Hong Kong transplant Hazel Wong serves as Watson to Daisy Wells’ Sherlock Holmes in this debut middle-grade mystery series set in 1934 at Deepdean School for Girls. After Hazel finds the body of Miss Bell, the science teacher, it suddenly disappears, setting the Wells and Wong Detective Society on the case. Hazel narrates the story through her casebook, revealing that she is the more analytical of the pair. There are plenty of red herrings and wrong turns, but in the end Wells and Wong solve the case and leave readers eager to read more of their appealing tales.”

Bookzone4Boys review of First Class Murder

Daisy and Hazel may both be female, but (I’m just reminding adults of what children know already) the series is absolutely just as much written for boys as it is for girls. So I’m particularly pleased to have this brilliant review of First Class Murder from Darren at Bookzone4Boys. He says:

‘Historical mystery stories suddenly seem to be in vogue as far as middle grade children’s books are concerned . . . However, in my opinion, there is one person who is well ahead of the pack in the race to be crowned queen/king of kidlit mystery writing, and that is Robin Stevens.

Robin’s Murder Most Unladylike, the first book in her Wells & Wong Mystery series, was one of my favourite books of 2014. The second book, Arsenic For Tea, made a very early bid for a 2015 top spot, and that has now been usurped by the third, and best in the series so far, First Class Murder. Robin Stevens doesn’t just write outstanding mystery stories, her writing is among the very best for middle grade readers in the UK this year.

For this third book, Stevens has taken on her greatest challenge to date by setting her mystery on the Orient Express in 1935, only a year after the original release date of the great Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express. However, the author has met this challenge with seemingly consummate ease, and has produced a mystery story that will keep young readers guessing until the dramatic denouement.’

Read the whole review here – it’s amazing, possibly my favourite so far. Thank you Darren!

Guardian Website review of First Class Murder

Guardian children’s books site member BookieCookie has written a lovely review of First Class Murder. My favourite extract:

‘I am extremely glad that I rushed out to buy this book on the day of its publication because it kept me hooked the whole way through, and although I thought I knew who the murderer was, there was a massive twist in the story that I was not expecting. I love the way that Robin Stevens has written this book, because it has short chapters which keep the action fast paced, and you never know more information than the girls, so you work out the clues at the same time that they do. . . To sum up the case for First Class Murder: I loved it and would recommend it to anyone who loves the challenge of unravelling a good mystery.’

The whole lovely thing can be found here!

School Library Connection reviews Murder is Bad Manners

School Library Connection has reviewed Murder is Bad Manners! They say:

‘Set in England in 1934, this book takes readers on a delightful romp through the halls of a girls’ boarding school. Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong, age 13, have established the Wells & Wong Detective Agency and are looking for a case to solve when Hazel comes upon the body of their science teacher . . . Stevens deftly uses familiar stereotypes to create individuals who are engaging and likeable. Beneath the mystery and adventure, the author explores themes of friendship, independence, and personal identity that concern pre-adolescent girls. This book, the first in a series, is a “jolly good read” . . . Recommended’ –  Marney Welmers, Educational Reviewer, Marana USD, Tucson, Arizona