Appreciations

I did a dangerous thing yesterday–I peeked at my reviews on amazon. What drew my attention was A Vigil of Spies, never published in the US, but with ten reviews on amazon dot com–and discovered they are all 5-star reviews. My dear fans. What can I say? My steadfast fans. Seeking out the two books in the series never published in the US and paying the higher import price, then letting me know how much you enjoyed them in such a public way. Thank you. You are the wind in my sails. Believe it. A perfect discovery as I dive into the 11th Owen Archer.

And while I’m on the topic of appreciation, I want to say how much I love my Italian publisher, Piemme. They give me exquisite covers, and for The King’s Mistress paid me the compliment of insisting that my own name appear on the cover, not Emma’s. I had to laugh–they even remembered to remove the joke in the acknowledgments where Emma thanks Candace for sharing her (my) research. I can’t say enough wonderful things about Piemme–they treat me so well, and they are courteous in a time when that’s so rare–when cutting a bit more of the manuscript of The King’s Mistress they sent me a detailed list with page references and asked that I approve each cut. And they did exactly as I asked. They have published all my books–10 Owen Archers, 3 Margaret Kerrs, The King’s Mistress, and they’ve patiently asked each year about A Triple Knot–this month I sent the pre-copyedit ms to my agent to pass on to them at their request.

Writing is quite a solitary occupation, and the publishing business is in such turmoil it can be easy to wonder whether anyone cares. You do, and I am so grateful.

Thinking about this, I took the time to post a (very brief) review of a book I’d just read and enjoyed on goodreads. Actually Emma did; Candace doesn’t yet have a goodreads account. The book is Days in the History of Silence by Merethe Lindstrom. Emma’s brief review: “A quietly chilling, powerful study of a marriage damaged by secrets.” A friend had loaned it to me, warning me that although she loved it, her book club had hated it and the discussion had fizzled. She was frustrated and hoped that as a writer I’d have more to say. My stream of consciousness report to her yesterday has sent her back to the book to see all that I saw. It seems a simple book, but it’s not. Not at all.

And now to quit this loosely themed post and return to York!