About
Here in the heart of England, in one of the old hunting shires, our small, idyllic village is listed for conservation protection and is a much desired location. We still have a church, shop garage, and school, which is very rare these days, and we know how lucky we are!
Peaceful, tranquil life, you might think? For some, maybe. But villages can be hotbeds of intrigue, violent feuds and dangerous gossips, all of it fermenting away under the surface. A perfect setting, then, for my feisty detective, Lois, to indulge her love of snooping, as well as running an efficient cleaning service.
‘New Brooms, We Sweep Cleaner!’ is Lois’s motto, though not everyone knows that in reluctant association with her loyal admirer, Inspector Hunter Cowgill, she aims to sweep away crime along with the dust from her locality.
Lois forbids gossip amongst her team, but should any of them spot suspicious goings-on in houses they are cleaning, then naturally it is their duty to report it to the boss. It is, after all, quite usual for a beady-eyed cleaner to take a glance at correspondence and confidential papers left lying around by a trusting householder. And telephone conversations are always worth a surreptitious listening ear ….
With all the days of the week complete, from Murder on Monday to Sorrow on Sunday, I am now embarking on a new series. Lois Meade and family will still be there, as will many of the same village characters, but with new plots and new incomers to stir up the mix. The first of the new series is Warning at One was published in November 2008, by Berkley Prime Crime. The next book is ‘Tragedy at Two’, to be published December 2009.
Publications
- You and Your Handicapped Child
- Looking Back at Popular Entertainment, 1901-1939
Buy Ann Purser`s books in your local booksellers and at all on-line retailers, including Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk, and Barnes & Noble.com.
Contact Ann Purser through David Higham Associates or directly by clicking here.
Member of the Crime Writers’ Association
11 Responses to “About”
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I’m sure you’ve been asked this before but will Lois Meade have another adventure? I did enjoy your new book is another in the near future?? Thanks for writing such an enjoyable read.
Meg
Many thanks, Meg, for your nice message. Yes, there is another Lois adventure scheduled for December this year (useful Xmas present!), and after that two more are planned. Though Derek tries, there`s no keeping our Lois out of the action.
Regards – Ann P
I love your Lois Meade stories! There is something in your stories that transports me to England and puts me in the middle of the action. Please keep up the good work, and I look forward to your future book releases in America.
Thanks, Chris, for your nice message! We live in the middle of England, in what is known as the Rose of the Shires, and feel that we are truly the real England. Around here, there are many relics of the Civil War, and the Battle of Naseby took place just up the road from us. It must all seem very small beer compared to your American Civil War! But it is still a very vivid period in our history.
Lois is off on another adventure in December in Threats at Three, and meanwhile one of the characters who has been through all the books, Ivy Beasley, stars in her own Enquiry Agency in The Hangman`s Row Enquiry, now out in paperback. Ivy, now in a Suffolk luxury retirement home, is stirring things up satisfactorily! Regars – Ann
Hello Ann
I hope you don’t mind me emailing you as I am going to be rather cheeky and ask you for a favour. (I didn’t get an MBE for being afraid to ask for things!) . As part of encouraging more people to use the Library, I am planning a day of competitions during the summer holidays, and it would be lovely to have some signed copies of novels to give away as prizes. Would there be any chance of you donating one please? There would be a special display of all the authors’ books during August, and your details would be mentioned in our leaflet.
You probably get loads of requests, so I am just grateful if you can take the time to read this email.
Thank you.
Jenny
It was wonderful to find your Lois Meade series. I started with Murder on Monday, and was charmed by the characters and picture of village life. I purchased one after the other of your lovely books. Imagine my dismay when I got to the book on “Saturday.”
Because of the gratuitous violence in what I thought was a “cozy mystery”, I could not finish the book. I am a true animal lover, and was deeply disappointed to find such hideous descriptions of animal cruelty.
LInda Nesbitt,
Virginia, USA
Thanks for yours, Linda. Yours is not the first message I have had about cruelty to animals, and I must defend myself. At the time I wrote this book, there was a campaign in this country against wilful cruelty and neglect of pet animals. This included pictures of such dreadful cruelty and really moved a lot people. Made them sit up and take notice.
As an animal lover myself, I did not consciously include the cruelty to the dogs, but it occurred logically the plot and was not gratuitous, but part of the make up of those characters. I am sorry if this upset people, but sadly such things do occur. Not cozy, I agree, but I do hope you`ll keep reading. Ann P
At the moment, I have six little hens and a cockerel, a cairn terrier, a fourteen-year-old goldfish and a garden full of wild birds. In my time, I have had geese, ducks, guinea fowl, donkeys, rabbits, guinea pigs and hamsters. All have survived to a ripe old age.
I am a reviewer for Two Lips Reviews website. I posted a review of The Hangman’s Row Enquiry. You can read it at http://www.twolipsreviews.com/content, under the print category. I enjoyed your book and plan on reading more of Ivy Beasley. Thank you for allowing me to review Ivy’s first mystery.
Thanks for your review, Sheila! I am so glad you liked Hangman`s Row. I was particularly pleased that you recognised that true love is not just for the young! Watch our for the Measby Murder Mystery, with Ivy, in due course. A.
I am loving the Hangman’s Row Enquiry. Will there be more? I hope so. Thanks!!!
Hi, Erin – yes, the good news is that the second in the Ivy Beasley series is in the pipeline! Look out for The Measby Murder Enquiry soon. All the best – Ann