Churchill's Reaction to Reported Gay Scandal

Winston Churchill's reaction to a reported gay scandal: "Makes you proud to be British, doesn't it?"

Read the full story, narrated by the magnificent Stephen Fry, here. 

Winning the Barry Award, and Remembering Barry Gordon

Thank you so much to Deadly Pleasures Mystery Magazine for awarding Mr. Churchill's Secretary the  Barry Award for Best Paperback Original at Bouchercon 2013 in Albany on September 19th.

I didn't have the privilege of knowing Mr. Barry Gordon, but from the esteem the mystery writing community holds him in, I can only imagine what a kind and generous person he must have been.

It's a true honor to accept this award in his name.

SNEAK PEEK: The Cover of The Prime Minister's Secret Agent, Maggie Hope Mystery #4!

The cover art for The Prime Minister's Secret Agent is by amazing illustrator Mick Wiggins, who has created the art for all the Maggie Hope novels. Check out his fabulous website here. (In awe of his talents, as I can barely manage stick figures....)

The setting is Arisaig House, a manor house on the coast of Western Scotland, which was a SOE spy training camp during World War II. Now it's a Bed and Breakfast, and I was privledged to stay there last January, to do research. Here's a photo of the outside of the house:

The Prime Minister's Secret Agent is scheduled for release in June of 2014.

Announcing Maggie Hope Books #5 and #6!

Thrilled to announce that Maggie Hope will continue her adventures, begun in Mr. Churchill's Secretary, with as-yet-untitled books #5 and #6!

Thank you, Levine-Greenberg Literary Agency and Random House!

(Sesame Street's "Queen of Six" to celebrate....)

Nominated for Two Macavity Awards — Holy Jellicle Cats!

See the list of this year's nominees here, including the marvelous Daniel Friedman (Don't Ever Get Old) — we share one very proud literary agent, Victoria Skurnick at the Levine Greenberg Literary Agency!

(Of course, now have the T.S. Eliot/Andrew Lloyd Webber song, Macavity the Mystery Cat, stuck in my head....)

Maggie Hope's a Cover Girl!

Thank you Mystery Scene Magazine and Oline Cogdill for the sneak preview!

Mr. Churchill's Secretary Nominated for a Barry Award!

Thrilled to announce that MR. CHURCHILL'S SECRETARY has been nominated for a Barry Award, given by Deadly Pleasures Mystery Magazine.

The award is named in honor of the late mystery reviewer Barry Gardiner. From the Deadly Pleasures web site:

In 1997, the editorial staff of Deadly Pleasures decided that since one of the magazine's stated goals was to search out and report on the best works being published in the field of crime fiction each year, it would be a natural fit to present awards for excellence. Then came the dilemma of what to name the award. At the time all associated with the magazine were still reeling from the untimely death of Barry Gardner, who was arguably the best fan reviewer on the planet, so it was decided to name the award after him so as to keep his memory alive (not unlike what Bouchercon and its Anthony awards have done for writer/critic Anthony Boucher, who also suffered an untimely and early death). 

First Review of HIS MAJESTY'S HOPE

This. This is why I write.

"[MacNeal] doesn’t shy away from showing humanity at its most flawed.  There is love and desperation all through this story, and I adored every moment of it, even as I sat on the edge of my seat, worried for the characters who had become real to me."

Read the full review by Rebecca Lane Beittel here. 

Thank you again, Oprah!

Thank you, Oprah.com for selecting Princess Elizabeth's Spy as one of your "7 Compulsively Readable Mysteries (for the Crazy-Smart Reader)!

Honored to be in such amazing company.

Mr. Churchill's Secretary Nominated for a Dilys Award!

Delighted to say that Mr. Churchill's Secretary has been nominated by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association as the mystery title of the year independent mystery booksellers love hand-selling.

Holy cats!

Thank you!

Mr. Churchill's Secretary Nominated for an Edgar Award!

Delighted to announce that Mr. Churchill's Secretary has been nominated for an Edgar Award, in the category of "Best First Novel by an American Author"!

The Edgars (formally known as the Edgar Allan Poe Awards) are awarded each year by the Mystery Writers of America, for distinguished work in the mystery genre: novels, television, and motion pictures. 

This year's ceremony will be on Thursday, May 2, 2013 at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York City. Dress is "dress to kill."

I'm humbled and honored to be in such distinguished company. 

Oprah Loves Maggie

Oprah.com has named Princess Elizabeth's Spy "Book of the Week" and an "unputdownable mystery."

With deft, empathic prose, author MacNeal creates a wholly engrossing portrait of a coming-of-age woman under fire. Whether you read Mr. Churchill's Secretary, the first installment in this series, or you're just making Miss Hope's acquaintance, she'll draw you in from the first page. By the end, you'll be her loyal subject, ready to follow her wherever she goes—especially through the pages of a third installment.

Read more: http://www.oprah.com/book/Princess-Elizabeths-Spy-by-Susan-Elia-MacNeal#ixzz2DWcB046T

Princess Elizabeth's Spy also made the New York Times Trade Paperback Bestseller list and will be translated into Chinese! 

Keep Calm and Have Faith

I recently learned from the wonderful blog World War II in Color about Faith, the Church Cat of St. Augustine's in London, who was awarded a medal for bravery during the Battle of Britain, for shielding her kitten during the Blitz. JR at World War II in Color says it better than I ever could:

"This is Faith, church cat at Church of England (Episcopalean) Church of St Augustine's and St Faith's, Watling Street, London. She was awarded the Dicken Medal in Silver, and a silver medal from the Greenwich Village Humane Society of New York, for her her courage in sheltering her kitten (Panda - he was black and white) in a hidey-hole in the rectory basement, to which she had retreated from her more comfortable position upstairs, in the course of a severe bombing raid on the night of 9 September, 1940. The church and rectory were, basically, battered and burned to destruction by the Luftwaffe, but Faith continued to shield her kitten, under a heap of smouldering rubble, until rescued by her human friends the following day. Shortly afterwards, the remainder of the church fell down, destroying her position of refuge. Faith resumed her life as church cat, dying peacefully some years later on her mat in front of an ecclesiastical fireplace. The kitten, Panda, went on to a successful career as resident cat in a care home. Yes, I know - this will seem silly to many In Here. But consider. Apart from the fact that it is true, Faith's story became widely known in London at the time, and must have contributed to the morale of many hard-pressed Londoners. Her courage and endurance reflected something that Londoners hoped to find in themselves - and generally did. I am a cat person, by the way ... Best regards, JR."

"O.M.G., Mr. Churchill!"

Not only is the expression O.M.G. over 100 years old, but it's one Winston Churchill knew.

In a letter dated 9/9/17 Lord Fisher wrote to the Right Hon. Winston Churchill: "I hear a new order of Knighthood is on the tapis — O.M.G! (Oh! My God!). Shower it on the Admiralty!"

Just goes to show — sometimes language that sounds modern really, like, isn't.

His Majesty's Hope: A Maggie Hope Mystery #3

And here it is — The cover for His Majesty's Hope, to be published in the spring of 2013!

(This is the entire painting, which will wrap around both covers.)

Super Winston!

From True Comics, Issue #1, April 1, 1941

Happy V.E. Day!

Happy V.E. Day! 


Our friend posted this picture of his father on V.E. Day by the Arc de Triomphe today to celebrate — he's the soldier on the far left and served under Patton. 


Now his son, our friend Charles Rivkin, is revisiting the same spot today, as the U.S. Ambassador to France.

Mr. Churchill's Daffodils

From a friend in Manhattan who gardens — Winston Churchill daffodils. Apparently, they smell as wonderful as they look.

Author Accessories

LOVE this!

Keep Calm and Read On

I was introduced to this amazing photograph by James R. Benn, a fellow World War II novelist and author of the Billy Boyle World War II series, and a new novel, Souvenir. 

Isn't it amazing? According to Jim, it's a bombed library at Holland House, Kensington, London, 1940.