I was in NY last night for the Edgars - my first time at that ceremony. Great fun to see so many male writers dressed as penguins, and so many female writers looking so smashing. Laura Lippman, to name one, was a knockout. Likewise Sara Paretsky, this year's Grand Master, who gave a first-rate speech that made me extremely proud to be a female in this business.

The list of Edgar winners is at http://www.theedgars.com/nominees.html. Congratulations to them all, winners and nominees.

Up at 5 a.m. to see the Royal Wedding (research)! My guess at the dress wasn't  too far off except for the veil (see sketch below).

Soon on my way to attend the Malice Domestic awards dinner tonight. Here is the list of nominees: http://www.malicedomestic.org/agathaawards.html. Looking at this list I realize how many of these authors deserve to win an Agatha - it seems an especially tight race this year.

But after tonight, all this Cinderella glamor stops and it's time to put on the jeans and go back to work on the second Max Tudor novel.

Some of my more talented designer friends were discussing what Kate Middleton's wedding dress might look like. Here's my best guess: Long sleeves, long embroidered and beaded bodice, tulle skirt, medieval in appearance.

Kate seems to have gained 20 pounds but that's only because I can't draw.

I can't wait to see if I got any of this right.

Good news! They've moved up the launch date for WICKED AUTUMN by 2 weeks, to Sept. 13.

So that's the cover sorted, and the book description, and after a few adjustments, WICKED AUTUMN is now available at Amazon.com for pre-order:
http://www.amazon.com/Wicked-Autumn-Max-Tudor-Novel/dp/0312646976/

It's up there with some truly lovely endorsements from Deborah Crombie, Margaret Maron, Louise Penny, and Julia Spencer-Fleming, but the one from Charles Todd didn't make it up there yet, an oversight Amazon is working to correct. So for now, I'm adding it here on my site.

It is a very big deal to ask another author to take time away from his or her busy schedule, and amazingly generous of that author to agree to read your book, much less give it a thumbs up. So thank you so very much, Charles Todd, for having this to say about WICKED AUTUMN:

"G. M. Malliet has brought the village cozy into the 21st century—where else could the Vicar be retired from MI5? Written with dry humor and a wickedly accurate portrait of the modern English village, WICKED AUTUMN is a refreshing and fun read for everyone who loves a really good murder."
~~ Charles Todd, NY Times Best-selling author of the Inspector Ian Rutledge Series

And thank you, all of you gracious authors.