‘Tis the Season to be Jolly. Jolly busy for most of us, and I’m no exception. The new novel, my last hurrah, was just published in Britain and America and is getting plenty of attention.
In the Daily Telegraph, Jake Kerridge picked it as one of The Best Crime Books of 2024. "More soothing were those novels in which orthodox detectives put the world to rights, epitomised by Peter Lovesey's Against the Grain (Sphere, £21.99), in which Inspector Peter Diamond conducts an amateur murder investigation while on holiday in rural Somerset; regrettably, Lovesey is retiring, too, and the sharpness of eye and style that give an edge to his delicious entertainments will be missed."
Joan Smith in the Sunday Times: "Peter Lovesey's first crime novel was published in 1970. introducing an entertaining series set in Victorian London. He is one of the last survivors of a stellar generation that included P D James, Reginald Hill and Ruth Rendell and he has now, aged 88, written his last novel. . . (Diamond's) wily investigation of a probable miscarriage of justice is a fitting end to his creator's long career."
Myles McWeeney in the Irish Independent: "A smart and witty farewell to a much-loved character in crime fiction."
Carol Westron in Mystery People: "A compelling and positive farewell to one of the most iconic fictional detectives of the last thirty years. A page-turner which I whole-heartedly recommend."
Martin Edwards in Do You Write Under Your Own Name? "I'm delighted to say that this story shows Diamond at his best. The sense of fun that Peter Lovesey must have had in writing this novel is palpable . . . Great entertainment, strongly recommended."
Barbara Peters of the Poisoned Pen bookshop also interviewed me about my career and our chat can be seen on YouTube:
Or heard as a Podcast: https://poisonedpen.podbean.com/e/peter-lovesey-discusses-against-the-grain-a-peter-diamond-mystery/
Not Done Yet
Some lovely messages have come in from readers asking if this book is really the end. Well, it is and it isn’t. It’s the last of the Peter Diamond series, but my irrepressible editor at Soho Press, Juliet Grames, discovered that a book I wrote in 1983, called Keystone, was overdue for a reprint. It’s a chase story from the days when Hollywood was fun. A hapless Brit is recruited by Mack Sennett as one of his Keystone Cops and has to solve a crime and rescue the gorgeous Amber Honeybee. It will now appear in a new US edition early in 2025.
Not Done Yet (2)
Also next year, a clutch of new Lovesey short stories will appear. The venerable Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, published monthly since 1941, will reach issue 1,000 in January, and my contribution is “The Ellery Queen Job”. Another significant landmark is that my old friend Simon Brett will be able to call himself an octogenarian from October and the Detection Club is marking the occasion with a collection called Playing Dead. My contribution is “Just a Minute,” inspired by the long-running radio show Simon produced when he was a long way short of eighty. In addition, Maxim Jakubowski will publish a collection inspired by a legendary film director, entitled Looking for Hitchcock. Mine is “Killing Hitch”. Lastly (I hope not finally), I wrote one called “Magic Moments” for another themed anthology, What the World Needs Now, that Martin Edwards has compiled in which each writer uses the title of a song by Burt Bacharach – who wrote so many that I was spoilt for choice.
Not Done Yet (3)
I’m delighted to reveal that in 2025 Allison & Busby will publish a Best of Peter Lovesey collection of my short stories from my entire output of more than fifty years. Getting old isn’t fun, but it has compensations.
THANKSGIVING
The last week in November brought a visit from three of the American side of our family: our son-in-law, Nigel (who took the picture at the top), granddaughter Kim (who took the one below) and Tim, who is Kim’s partner. They were on their way back to Heathrow after visiting a flooded South Wales to see Nigel’s father, Ron. Their trip coincided with Thanksgiving, the traditional start to the festive season in America, so I ordered a turkey.
On the morning of their arrival, I had a trip of my own, caught my foot on my own damned gate stop – an iron thing sticking up between the bricks – and fell heavily. Nothing broke. I was still able to cook the turkey, but when the team heard what had happened, they decided to remove the hazard. Here they are at work, Nigel the foreman and Tim wielding the pickaxe, watched by the bruised and grateful overseer. Giving thanks.
Seasonal greetings to my loyal readers across the world, with every good wish for the new year.
And TAKE CARE!!!
