A Signing Marathon, BBC History and Shedunnit podcasts, and a LoveReading review

Last week I had the fascinating experience of signing in excess of one thousand special copies of Miss Winter in the Library with a Knife - by far the biggest signing I've ever undertaken in one go. These books are destined for independent UK bookshops and the production values are terrific, with great endpapers and lovely sprayed edges. The marathon signing took place at the huge hi-tech Hachette warehouse in Didcot, an extraordinary enterprise which handles a couple of million books a week.

There is a noticeboard bearing photos of authors who have done signings there - including three members of the Detection Club, I saw - as well as a 'leader board' recording the speediest authors when it comes to signing. I didn't aim for speed because I wanted the signatures to be nicer than a mere scrawl. And the signing was the perfect opportunity for me to use a very special pen for the first time.

This is the Conway Stewart Detection Club pen - a limited edition, mine is #1, and was a lovely birthday present from Mrs Edwards - and it bears the names of all the Presidents of the Club as well as the founder members. So it was quite an occasion and I really enjoyed the whole experience.

I've done a podcast about crime fiction with BBC History and you can listen to it via these links:

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/history-extra-podcast/id256580326?i=1000724036418

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2X0aergy9rnj7YGskVT0DW?si=b4096367fe054a21

HistoryExtra website (subscription needed): https://www.historyextra.com/membership/crime-fiction-history-podcast-martin-edwards/  

I've also done a podcast about Cluefinders for Shedunnit, the great show hosted by Caroline Crampton, and you can listen to it here: https://www.shedunnitshow.com/thecluefinder/

I'm looking forward to next week's launch of the book and in the meantime I'm delighted that the novel has just received a 'Star Review' from LoveReading. This is what they have to say:

'So, so wonderfully entertaining! Over the Christmas period, six members of staff from the Midwinter Trust, host and challenge six people linked to the literary crime world, to solve the murder of a fictional crime writer. Award-winning author Martin Edwards has oh-so successfully turned his masterly hand to his first festive mystery. Step right if you are an avid armchair sleuth, as you really can catch the clues here and try to solve them as you read. From the rules of the game, to the invitation, a player’s journal, letters, news articles, and maps, there is a whole host of information, as well as the novel itself to tune into and become absorbed by. I stuck by the strategy tip within the first few pages, and crowed with delight whenever my hunches played out, I will admit to missing certain clues too! This is effectively a locked room mystery, as the Midwinter Trust hamlet is snowed in, and the sense of place is immense. The characters stamp themselves onto the page, I got to know all twelve of them quickly, and didn’t have to stop to check who was who as I was reading. The plot itself is fabulously twisty, and I loved how it evolved as I read. The inclusion of the Cluefinder at the end of the novel was most sporting! This will make a super gift for a crime-fiction lover, and joins our LoveReading Star Books. Vivid and compelling, Miss Winter in the Library with a Knife is an absolute blast of a Christmas mystery, highly recommended.'