Dru Ann's website is a wonderful potpourri of book lover's delights. Her "Day in the Life" section lets authors give backstory on their book's characters. She asked me to write one and, of course, Erin Coleridge, the main character of Death & Sensibility (second in the series) and Pride, Prejudice and Poison, was the ideal subject. Dru's website also has reviews, cover reveals, and much more.Click below to go to the website's home page. Click here to see a "Day in the Life" of Erin Coleridge.
"As Jean Anouilh said, “Life is very nice, but it lacks form. It’s the aim of art to give it some.” Normally I would agree wholeheartedly, but events on that summer night long ago unfolded in an arc so purely and beautifully structured that I couldn’t see any room for improvement. I actually wrote about that night shortly afterwards, and my ten year old version appeared in my school’s literary magazine, such as it was. I wish I had a copy, but the squirrels in my father’s attic devoured a lot of my early literary efforts, including a trunk of original narrative cartoons." ~~ Carole in the story's introduction
The Jerry Jazz Musician website is a treasure trove of art, poetry, writing and music. Its eclectic collection of contributors ensures you'll find something fascinating. You can get there by clicking the logo.
To read the story, "Uncle Evil Eye" on their website, click here.
I'm thrilled that Cleopatra's Dagger was nominated for an Edgar Award® by the Mystery Writers of America in the "Best Paperback Original" category. For seventy-seven years, the Annual Edgar Allan Poe® Awards have honored the best in mystery fiction, non-fiction and television materials that were published or produced. Many thanks to all my wonderful readers and fans, and deepest gratitude to MWA for including me in this august group of nominees! It is indeed an honor.
“’Strings Attached’ might be the smartest play on a current New York stage. Excellent acting. Alexa Kelly’s direction is smooth; her blocking is outstanding.” – Philip Dorian, Scene on Stage
“A thinker, romantic drama with a bit of light comedy thrown in. Entertaining. Solid performances. I found the allegory of love and science endearing.”
– Tim Leininger, One Man’s Opinion
"Buggé’s dialogue is constantly interesting among the three leads. She subtly reveals character and emotions even when they argue scientific theories."
Joel Benjamin, TheatreScene.net
“You don’t have to be a nerd to enjoy this production.” – Michelle Willens, Straus News
Edinburgh Dusk: the 2nd Ian Hamilton Mystery
I love the Big Thrill because the interviews with the book's authors give great insight into how they form the characters, It gives you wonderful insights into the author's origins of their characters and plots are developed. For instance, how much does geography and its redidents play into the story? The interviews help you understand how the author's life and experience fold into their writing.
While we are on the subject, if you fancy yourself a mystery writer, or aspire to create your own story, I suggest visiting The Big Thrill. It's the web presence for The International Thriller Writers, a society of authors, both fiction and nonfiction, who write books broadly classified as “thrillers.” They have a variety of events throughout the year including workshops, conferences, and other resources. Simply put, learn from the experts! Click here to read the interview.
Here's your chance to see the Mystery Writers of America's
Edgar Allan Poe Awards ceremony
Ahmad is a wonderful ambassador for the arts. He's been working for years to capture the wisdom of artists, writers, musicians, activists and more. Always a great conversation with a very thoughtful person. Want to hear it? Click below to go to his SoundCloud page with our discussion.
The Strings Attached run went well and the reviews are good. Deepest thanks to our awesome director, cast, designers and crew for amazing work – I feel lucky to have worked with a true dream team.
To see an interview with The Big Thrill for Edinburgh Midnight, and read about a bit of the rationale behind the series, Click here to read the article.
A feature in the July '20 issue is my interview with Charlie Cochrane for Pride, Prejudic & Poison. She is quite familiar with Austen fans as she lives near Winchester which made the interview that much more fun. Click on their logo above to see the article and the rest of the issue. Click here to read the article.
An Interview with Ahmad Ali
Edinburgh Midnight
The third book in the Ian Hamilton mystery series
Mystery Writer's Panel Video
For those of you striving to write your own mysteries, a helpful guide from experts is here! Mystery Writers of America has released "How to Write a Mystery: A Handbook from Mystery Writers of America", an instructional book with many super tips, techniques, and ideas from accomplished mystery writers.
Previous Interviews in The Big Thrill
As the body count rises and public panic takes hold, Hamilton and Doyle delve into the seedy underbelly of the city, where nothing is as it seems, no one is immune to murder, and even trusted friends can be enemies in disguise.
Honoring Artists: Winners of the
Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest
I was honored to be a panelist in The Mystery Writers of America panel discussion in October. It was fascinating! My fellow mystery writers and I – bestselling authors Suzanne Chazin, Matt Farrell, and Chris Knopf – discussed how CSI and other TV shows have made forensics sexy.
As a new century approaches, Edinburgh is a city divided. The wealthy residents of New Town live in comfort, while Old Town’s cobblestone streets are clotted with criminals, prostitution, and poverty.
Detective Inspector Ian Hamilton is no stranger to Edinburgh’s darkest crimes. Scarred by the mysterious fire that killed his parents, he faces his toughest case yet when a young man is found strangled in Holyrood Park.
With little evidence aside from a strange playing card found on the body, Hamilton engages the help of his aunt, a gifted photographer, and George Pearson, a librarian with a shared interest in the criminal mind. But the body count is rising. As newspapers spin tales of the “Holyrood Strangler,” panic sets in across the city. And with each victim, the murderer is getting closer to Hamilton, the one man who dares to stop him.
Want more
Jane Austen Society Mysteries?
Here is book one in the series.
Writers! Help is here!
"The author paints a deliciously sensuous portrait of late 19th-century Edinburgh in this darkly atmospheric story peopled with vivid, quirky characters, from Ian’s spirited Aunt Lillian (a loving light in his life) to the story’s unfortunate victims and the ruthless killer always lurking just out of sight. One of the book’s many pleasures is accompanying the perpetrator as his murders unfold, all leading to the final dramatic scene between the 'Holyrood Strangler' and Ian, who is the ultimate prey. I’m looking forward to reading the next book in this entertaining, beautifully written series. Highly recommended." — The Historical Novel Society
Carole Buggé of New York City is the tenth recipient of the Jerry Jazz Musician New Short Fiction Award, announced and published the first of November, 2005. They are honoring all fifty winners this year.
"Uncle Evil Eye occupies a unique place in my writing. All the rest of my short fiction is precisely that – fiction – but I wrote Uncle Evil Eye shortly after my father’s death, as a kind of tribute, and with his sudden death serving as a frame device for the story, everything happened exactly as I relate it.
Death & Sensibility
Interview in The Big Thrill
Bookstore owner Erin Coleridge seeks the scoundrel who silenced a conference's keynote speaker in Elizabeth Blake's second charming Jane Austen Society mystery.
When the quaint English town of York hosts a Jane Austen Society conference, bookseller Erin Coleridge is glad to get out of Kirkbymoorside for a while--until featured speaker Barry Wolf suddenly perishes from what appears to be a heart attack.
Erin is suspicious, since Barry had no history of heart disease. But who did him in? To further complicate things, matters of the heart are putting Erin off her guard.
Need help with story ideas, character development, plot, pacing, and other important aspects of your writing? You'll find excellent guidance from the successful authors in the guide. I was honored to be chosen as a contributor (she said with some blushing modesty.) It's available now, and it's a wonderful guide for any aspiring mystery writer! Click a button below to get it at your favorite bookseller.
The new Jane Austen Society Mystery audiobook is available now!
I am available to appear at your book club meeting to talk with you about any of my works that you may be discussing. Granted, this is generally in the New York area, but I do make appearances across the country, so please inquire if you are interested. Thank you!
A wicked Scottish winter has just begun when pioneering female physician Sophia Jex-Blake calls on Detective Inspector Ian Hamilton to investigate the suspicious death of one of her patients — a railroad lineman savagely beaten in a church courtyard during a blackout.
The most provocative aspect of the case doesn’t escape Hamilton: the married victim’s numerous sexual transgressions.
Now, for the first time since the unexplained fire that killed his parents, Hamilton enters the Royal Infirmary to gain the insights of brilliant medical student Arthur Conan Doyle. Then a second poisoning occurs—this time, a prominent banker who died in the bed of a prostitute. It appears that someone is making Edinburgh’s more promiscuous citizens pay for their sins.
Edinburgh Twilight, the first of
The Ian Hamilton Mysteries by Carole Lawrence
Detective Ian Hamilton returns to the darkening shadows of nineteenth-century Scotland to track a killer on a profane mission of revenge.
If you'd like to know more about Cleopatra's Dagger, there's a lovely review on the website, Girl Who Reads. Just click the link below to read it.
New media for Pride, Prejudice & Poison
with Shelly Workinger at her blog,
Available Now on Amazon
Managed by Frank Goad, ThinkingOnIt.com
Spiritualism has captured the public’s imagination. Séances are all the rage, and Detective Ian Hamilton’s otherwise sensible aunt Lillian is not immune to their allure. But for Ian, indulging her superstitions has its limits. When members of Lillian’s circle of séance friends begin turning up dead, Ian doesn’t need a medium to tell him these aren’t freak accidents.
With the help of his friend Arthur Conan Doyle, Ian investigates, and he is soon drawn into a dark world of believers and tricksters, and a puzzling series of murders with no pattern, no motive, and no end in sight.
Most alarming, the crimes conjure up the ghosts of Ian’s own past, including the mysterious deaths of his parents, which have haunted him for years. As two cases converge, science collides with the uncanny, and Ian must confront truths that are more disturbing than he could ever have imagined.
Shelly is a wonderful host and an accomplished author who understands the craft of writing.
I was invited to be a guest blogger for her. Click the banner above to see her post!
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See the Mystery Writers of America 2023 Edgar Awards Livestream
On April 27, 2023, the Mystery Writers of America held the 77th annual Edgar Allan Poe Awards in a ceremony at the New York Marriott Marquis Times Square.
To see the livestream video of the event, click here.
Erin Coleridge’s used bookstore in Kirkbymoorside, North Yorkshire, England is a meeting place for the villagers and, in particular, for the local Jane Austen Society. At the Society’s monthly meeting, matters come to a head between the old guard and its young turks. After the meeting breaks for tea, persuasion gives way to murder―with extreme prejudice―when president Sylvia Pemberthy falls dead to the floor. Poisoned? Presumably…but by whom? And was Sylvia the only target?
Handsome―but shy―Detective Inspector Peter Hadley and charismatic Sergeant Rashid Jarral arrive at the scene. The long suspect list includes Sylvia’s lover Kurt Becker and his tightly wound wife Suzanne. Or, perhaps, the killer was Sylvia’s own cuckolded husband, Jerome. Among the many Society members who may have had her in their sights is dashing Jonathan Alder, who was heard having a royal battle of words with the late president the night before.
Then, when Jonathan Alder narrowly avoids becoming the next victim after imbibing poisoned beer, Farnsworth (the town’s “cat lady”) persuades a seriously time-crunched Erin to help DI Hadley. But the killer is more devious than anyone imagines.
Perfect for fans of Laura Levine and Stephanie Barron, Elizabeth Blake’s Jane Austen Society mystery debut is a mirthfully morbid merger of manners and murder. In this Austen-tatious debut, antiquarian bookstore proprietor Erin Coleridge uses her sense and sensibility to deduce who killed the president of the local Jane Austen Society.
"A journalist in nineteenth-century New York matches wits with a serial killer in a gripping thriller by the prizewinning author of the Ian Hamilton Mysteries."
New York, 1880. Elizabeth van den Broek is the only female reporter at the Herald, the city’s most popular newspaper. Then she and her bohemian friend Carlotta Ackerman find a woman’s body wrapped like a mummy in a freshly dug hole in Central Park—the intended site of an obelisk called Cleopatra’s Needle. The macabre discovery takes Elizabeth away from the society pages to follow an investigation into New York City’s darkest shadows. (Click on the cover image to go to Amazon.)
'“Death & Sensibility” is a fast, fun cozy mystery bordering on the edge of proper cozy etiquette as you can just feel C.E. itching to burst forth! If you don’t know what I mean….check out all the reviews below."
– Tracyreaderdad
Both Detective Inspector Peter Hemming and schoolteacher Jonathan Alder have made gestures of romantic interest. DI Hemming tries to persuade Erin that her entanglement in the murder investigation is far from sensible, but his entreaties come to naught. Dauntlessly, Erin joins forces with Kirkbymoorside's cat lady, Farnsworth, to ferret out the guilty party.
Order now by clicking on the button below to go to your preferred bookseller. An Audible version is available, too.
“Lawrence introduces a new character-based series set in 1880s New York City. The complex, intrepid feminist heroine bodes well for future installments.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Lawrence skillfully weaves social issues of the time into her story, and her characters depict the wide range of people making up the melting pot of the city and the challenges faced during the era. Narrator Kate Rudd presents a no-nonsense Elizabeth, along with many varieties of people involved in the mystery.” —Library Journal
"Elizabeth is just the barrier-busting heroine one enjoys rooting for." —Historical Novels Review
Lawrence makes New York City come alive with numerous colorful details…Fans of Victoria Thompson’s Gaslight mysteries will hope for a sequel.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
— A Day in the Life —
Erin Coleridge of Death & Sensibility