Myers, Amy 1938–

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Myers, Amy 1938–

(Alice Carr, Laura Daniels, Harriet Hudson)

PERSONAL:

Born August 3, 1938, in Kent, England; daughter of Albert Edward (an electrical contractor) and Grace Violet Howlett; married James K. Myers, 1976. Ethnicity: "English/Caucasian." Education: University of Reading, B.A., 1959. Politics: "Variable." Religion: Church of England. Hobbies and other interests: Country walking, theater history, "thinking up new plots."

ADDRESSES:

Home—Kent, England. Agent—Dorian Literary Agency, Upper Thornhill, 27 Church Rd, St. Marychurch, Torquay, South Devon TQ1 4QY, England.

CAREER:

Writer. William Kimber and Co. Ltd. (publisher), London, England, director, 1960-88; novelist, 1988—.

MEMBER:

European Association of Planned Giving, Crime Writers Association, Romantic Novelists Association, Society for Theatre Research.

WRITINGS:

CRIME NOVELS

Murder in Pug's Parlour, Malvern Publishing (Worcestershire, England), 1986, revised edition, Headline (London, England), 1989, Avon (New York, NY), 1992.

Murder in the Limelight, Malvern Publishing (Worcestershire, England), 1986, Avon (New York, NY), 1992.

Murder at Plum's, Headline (London, England), 1990, Avon (New York, NY), 1993.

Murder at the Masque, Headline (London, England), 1991, Avon (New York, NY), 1993.

Murder Makes an Entrée, Headline (London, England), 1992, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1996.

Murder under the Kissing Bough, Headline (London, England), 1993.

Murder in the Smokehouse, Headline (London, England), 1994, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1997.

Murder in the Music Hall, Headline (London, England), 1995.

Murder in the Motor Stable, Headline (London, England), 1996.

Murder with Majesty, Severn House Publishers (Sutton, Surrey, England), 1999.

Murder in the Queen's Boudoir, Severn House Publishers (Sutton, Surrey, England), 2000.

The Wickenham Murders, Severn House Publishers (Sutton, Surrey, England), 2004.

Murder in Hell's Corner, Severn House Publishers (Sutton, Surrey, England), 2006.

Murder in Friday Street, Severn House Publishers (Sutton, Surrey, England), 2006.

Murder and the Golden Goblet, Severn House Publishers (Sutton, Surrey, England), 2007.

Tom Wasp and the Murdered Stunner, Five Star (Waterville, ME), 2007.

Myers's crime novels have also been published in Germany.

NOVELS; UNDER PSEUDONYM HARRIET HUDSON

Look for Me by Moonlight, Headline (London, England), 1989.

When Nightingales Sang, Headline (London, England), 1990.

The Sun in Glory, Headline (London, England), 1991.

The Wooing of Katie May, Headline (London, England), 1992.

The Girl from Gadsby's, Headline (London, England), 1996.

Into the Sunlight, Severn House Publishers (New York, NY), 1996.

Not in Our Stars, Severn House Publishers (New York, NY), 1998.

Winter Roses, Severn House Publishers (New York, NY), 1999.

The Songs of Spring, Severn House Publishers (New York, NY), 2000.

To My Own Desire, Severn House Publishers (New York, NY), 2000.

Quinn, Severn House Publishers (New York, NY), 2001.

Tomorrow's Garden, Severn House Publishers (Sutton, Surrey, England), 2002.

Here Comes the Sun, Severn House Publishers (New York, NY), 2003.

Catching the Sunlight, Severn House Publishers (Sutton, Surrey, England), 2003.

The Windy Hill, Severn House Publishers (Sutton, Surrey, England), 2004.

The Stationmaster's Daughter, Severn House Publishers (Sutton, Surrey, England), 2005.

Applemere Summer, Severn House Publishers (Sutton, Surrey, England), 2005.

OTHER

(Editor) Ghost Stories, Volumes 1-4, William Kimber (England), Volume 5, Robert Hale (England), 1991.

(With Jean Cockett) Lenham and Boughton Malherbe in Old Photographs, Meresborough Books (England), 1991, revised edition, privately printed, 1998.

(Under pseudonym Laura Daniels) Pleasant Vices (novel), Headline (London, England), 1994.

(Under pseudonym Laura Daniels) The Lakenham Folly (novel), Headline (London, England), 1995.

(Under pseudonym Alice Carr) The Last Summer (novel), Orion (London, England), 1996.

(Under pseudonym Alice Carr) Dark Harvest (novel), Orion (London, England), 1997.

(Under pseudonym Harriet Hudson) Murder Most 'Orrible (short stories), Crippen & Landru (New York, NY), 2003.

Also author of the short story collection Murder 'Orrible Murder, Crippen & Landru. Work represented in anthologies, including The Fourth Book of After Midnight Stories, Kimber, 1988, and The Fifth Book of After Midnight Stories, Hale, 1991. Contributor of short stories to periodicals, including Ellery Queen.

SIDELIGHTS:

Amy Myers told CA: "I started out with the intention of changing the world, but have found that what I'm best at is telling stories. So that's what I do—and as the world will always need stories, that satisfies me and I enjoy it.

"The first influence on my writing was working my way as a child through my parents' bookshelves, including the forbidden territory. The second was the ‘Golden Age’ crime writers, an influence that remains with me, though I adapt it to our modern age.

"My writing process is, in one word, tortuous. I usually begin a novel in longhand, put it into the computer, rewrite it in longhand, put it into the computer again, and then revise, revise, revise. I plot, say, sixty percent of the novel before I begin, including the beginning and the end, and the remaining part works itself out as I go along.

"My early married life in Paris gave me the idea of using a French master cook as a detective, and my love of history gave me the Victorian/Edwardian setting for my crime novels. My love of history, together with editing historical nonfiction and fiction in my publishing career, led to my women's fiction novels. In particular, a present of two Victorian photographs from an author whose theatrical memoirs I edited led to a great interest in theater history."

Myers is the author of numerous crime and mystery novels and short stories written under her own name and under pseudonyms, most notably Harriet Hudson. In Murder Makes an Entrée, the author, writing under her own name, features Auguste Didier, a French chef whose meal for a local meeting of the Society of Literary Lionizers appears to be responsible for the death of the society's chairman. Teaming up with his friend, Scotland Yard's Inspector Egbert Rose, Auguste sets out to find the murderer and is surprised to discover a plethora of potential suspects within the society itself. A Publishers Weekly contributor noted that Murder Makes an Entrée is "rife with Dickensian puns and references."

The Wickenham Murders, published in 2004, finds former policeman Peter Marsh in a wheelchair investigating historic unsolved crimes with his daughter, Georgia, and then writing books about them. In the novel, Peter and Georgia are investigating the discovery of a skeleton near Wickenham, a village that hosts an eight-decade feud between the Todds and Proctors. The feud resulted from Davy Todd being hung for the murder of Amy Proctor in 1929. Emily Melton, writing in Booklist, referred to the mystery as "an atmospheric village mystery with enough unexpected twists to keep readers fully engaged." Library Journal's Rex E. Klett noted the "fascinating subject matter, cozy … characters, and tempting prose."

Murder in Hell's Corner finds Peter and Georgia interested in the 1970s murder of World War II hero Patrick Fairfax, a Spitfire pilot. As their investigation continues, author Jack Hardcastle, who wrote several books about the Spitfire pilots' exploits and especially those of Patrick, is also murdered. The investigation then leads to an unraveling of Patrick's reputation and a shocking discovery. "The convoluted tale … keeps you guessing while providing intriguing insights into the Battle of Britain," wrote a Kirkus Reviews contributor.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, September 15, 2004, Emily Melton, review of The Wickenham Murders, p. 214.

Kirkus Reviews, November 1, 2006, review of Murder in Hell's Corner, p. 1104.

Library Journal, August 1, 1996, Rex E. Klett, review of Murder Makes an Entrée, p. 118; November 1, 2004, Rex E. Klett, review of The Wickenham Murders, p. 58.

Publishers Weekly, July 22, 1996, review of Murder Makes an Entrée, p. 230.