Spanish Dagger (China Bayles Series #15), China Bayles Series, Susan Wittig Albert, Book

Synopsis

Between the herb shop, the catering business, and a weekend paper-making class, China Bayles has her work cut out for her. And now China's half-brother is opening up old wounds, trying to investigate their father's supposedly accidental death, and her husband is taking on the case-meaning she's just bound to get involved.

To put the unsavory business out of her mind, she's gathering supplies for making paper. But in a patch of yucca plants, she finds a body-cause of death unknown. Many residents of Pecan Springs live seemingly simple lives that hide complex and dangerous pasts, and it appears the victim was one of them. Now, while unraveling secrets that hit close to home, China must set the record straight-and find a killer.

Publishers Weekly

Violent crime and long-buried intrigue disrupt the peace of Pecan Springs, Tex., home of herb shop owner China Bayles, in the piquant 16th entry in Albert's southwestern cozy series (after 2006's Bleeding Hearts). China's pleasant routines are first disrupted by the travails of her business partner, Ruby, who's apparently been stood up by her unreliable boyfriend, an ex-narc. Then China's recently discovered half brother, Miles Danforth, an attorney, insists on reopening the ice-cold case of their father's death in a car accident 16 years earlier. Miles has uncovered correspondence that their father feared for his life before he died, and recruits the help of China's husband, Mike McQuaid, a former Houston homicide detective turned PI. But China faces a much warmer corpse when she and her friend Carole discover a bloody body by the railroad tracks where they go to gather yucca. Albert's fans will savor recipes such as Texas tarragon vinegar and lemon-mint tea concentrate, plus botanical trivia. (Apr.) Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.

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Biography

One of the book world's most respected authorities on herbs and their uses, Susan Wittig Albert is beloved by fans the world over for her mystery series starring herb-growing sleuth China Bayles -- as well as the Victorian Mysteries series she coauthors with husband Bill, under the pen name Robin Paige.

More About the Author

Customer Reviews

Reader Rating:
Ratings: 4Reviews: 4

Spanish Dagger (China Bayles Series #15)by Anonymous

Reader Rating:

April 15, 2008: This was the first China Bayles I read, and it fulfilled every expectation I have for a great mystery novel: good characters memorable setting and atmosphere and a serious plot that engages the reader all the way through. You will also learn a lot about yucca as you try to figure out the connections between Ruby, her (ex) boyfriend, Lucita, Sheila and drugs, police corruption and murder. There is also an intriguing subplot taking us through China's complicated relationship with her mother/father/half-brother. You will love the people of Pecan Springs and Texas hill country. Ms. Albert is one of those rare writers who crafts her series books to work as stand-alone novels, and this book worked just fine as a stand-alone. I loved it enough to want to return to Pecan Springs again and again. I'm a big fan of Ms. Albert's 'Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter,' and am now equally enthusiastic about the China Bayles series. Let's hope there are many, many more books to come from this talented writer. This is a very good way to spend $7.99, and way more satisfying than what's playing at the box office!

Spanish Dagger (China Bayles Series #15)by Anonymous

Reader Rating:

October 14, 2007: The China Bayles series is alive and well, to the delight of this fan. Susan Wittig Albert always offers the reader a beautifully crafted story along with a wealth of information about plants. The little world of Pecan Springs is a home away from home. Ms. Albert sets herself a challenge, which she acknowledges in the Note to the Reader at the beginning of SPANISH DAGGER, by interweaving and overlapping the stories in the series. This challenge is compounded by the first person narrative, but nothing could be more effective than the way in which China Bayles fills the reader in on the backstory. This is often a weak area in a series, but beautifully done in SPANISH DAGGER, as in all the China Bayles mysteries. A first-time reader will be effortlessly acquainted with the main characters and the continuing plots. China's investigative pursuits are woven into the story quite plausibly, another challenge with amateur sleuths. While it's true that the reader has to suspend incredulity at so many murder victims falling at China's feet, Ms. Albert somehow makes it easy. The everyday doings of Pecan Springs form a backdrop to the complex and sometimes hidden relationships that reach from the shop owner next door (Ruby Wilcox) outward to the police chief (Sheila Dawson) and beyond to big-city police and agency corruption. The social issues threaded into the story are clearly there to further the story -- from drug running to a parent's dementia to gossiping townspeople. All part of the package in Pecan Springs! China Bayles and the other main characters are well-rounded and continue to evolve, with the secondary players also springing to life. Characterization is one of the strong suits of this series. It's hard to go wrong with a few pets, too, and the Rotti Rambo is a worthy companion to the squirrel-chasing basset hound Howard Cosell, and the seventeen-pound Khat on whose clock 'it's always five minutes past time to eat.' Anyone familiar with Susan Wittig Albert's work knows that she treats her craft and the reader with great respect. I recommend SPANISH DAGGER as another example of a great read from this versatile author.

Fact File

Name:
Susan Wittig Albert

Also Known As:
Robin Paige

Date of Birth:
1940

Place of Birth:
Danville, Illinois

Education:
Ph.D., University of California at Berkeley

Biography

Susan Wittig Albert grew up on a farm in Illinois and earned her Ph.D. at the University of California at Berkeley. A former professor of English and a university administrator and vice president, she now lives with her husband, Bill, in the country outside of Austin, Texas. In addition to the China Bayles mysteries, she writes the Victorian Mysteries series, along with her husband, under the pseudonym of Robin Paige.

Author biography courtesy of Penguin Books, LTD.

Good to Know

In our exclusive interview with Albert, she revealed some fun facts about herself:

"My first job was selling ladies' undies at Woolworth's for 35 cents an hour in Danville, Illinois."

I learned to garden from my mother, who thought that the most important thing you did every spring was to plant the potatoes. I learned to read from my father, who never planted a potato in his life. Somehow, I managed to create a life and make a living between these two extremes. Happily, I haven't had to go back to selling undies. Not yet, anyway."

"I love living in the country with Bill, two black Labs, and a black cat. I'd rather read a book or write one than do just about anything else in the world, except maybe for gardening and sitting in a bathtub full of hot, hot water and bubbles. Or knitting, spinning, weaving, dyeing -- I'm a fiber-arts fanatic."

"You can find out what I'm doing today (or what I did yesterday) by checking out my web log, at susanalbert.blogspot.com (but there's no web cam, so don't look for me in the bathtub). I have three kids, seven grandkids (at last count) and -- gasp -- a great-grandson (yes, it's true. I was a child bride)."

Feature Interview

In the summer of 2004, we asked authors featured in Meet the Writers to give us a list of their all-time favorite summer reads, and tell us what makes them just right for the season. Here's what Susan Wittig Albert had to say:

What makes a good summer read? For most of us, summer is time for a vacation, time to take off for the beach or head to the mountains, and summer reading is traditionally light and fun. So what better reading than books set in places you'd like to visit -- especially when they have a woman's touch? All in paperback, of course, so you won't have to weep if you accidentally drop your book into the pool.

Alaska: Death Trap by Sue Henry

Arkansas: Arkansas Traveler by Earlene Fowler

Colorado: The Grilling Season by Diane Mott Davidson

Florida: Flashback by Nevada Barr

Georgia: To Live and Die in Dixie by Kathy Hogan Trocheck

Nevada (Las Vegas, of course!) Cat with an Emerald Eye by Carole Nelson Douglas

North Carolina: Slow Dollar by Margaret Maron

South Caroline: Engaged to Die by Carolyn Hart

Virginia: The Tail of the Tip-Off by Rita Mae Brown

Wyoming: The Shadow Dancer by Margaret Coel

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In the fall of 2003, Susan Wittig Albert took some time to talk with us about some of her favorite books, authors, and interests:

What was the book that most influenced your life or your career as a writer -- and why?
Oh, golly. I started reading when I was 4, and you expect me to remember one? Well, Nancy Drew mysteries, maybe? When I was 12, if you'd asked me who I'd like to be when I grew up, I would've said Carolyn Keene. But hey, it happened! It took a while (ran into some detours along the way), but I in 1985, I was invited to join the Nancy stable and become one of the Carolyn Keenes. I thought the heavens had opened and all the writing gods were smiling down on me.

What are your favorite books and authors, and what makes them special to you?

Stephen King's Salem's Lot, because it showed me how to shift points of view from one character to another, seamlessly, effectively, and suspensefully. I admire the deft way in which King turns ordinary life into something extraordinarily other, astonishingly evil. What a talent.

Sue Grafton's mysteries, because they demonstrate that it is possible (although definitely not easy, and not necessarily recommended) to write a long-running series in first person.

Rex Stout's mysteries (when I was a kid), because I loved smart-mouth Archie Goodwin and went around trying to mimic him, to my mother's dismay. She was trying to teach me to be a lady.

John D. McDonald, because I was smitten with Travis McGee in 1964, when Deep Blue Goodbye appeared (in �64, I was smitten with life and living). I also admire the first-person narration, very wryly self-ironic, and the great use of dialogue. Never could figure out why Robert Redford didn't make a Trav movie. Wouldn't that have been something?

The Nine Tailors, by Dorothy L. Sayers, because of her skill in managing setting and mood, color and emotion. (I read this at least once a year, just to taste it again.)

The Franchise Affair, by Josephine Tey, because of the book's taut suspense. Classic, magnificent -- I wouldn't change a word of it.

I devoured John le Carr�'s work in the �70s: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is still a favorite, for its complex intrigue.

I admire Elizabeth George's American grasp of Brit language and culture -- love her smooth style, too. A writer's writer, in my opinion.

I enjoy Sheila Radley's British village mysteries -- quirky characters, strong settings.

What are some of your favorite films, and what makes them unforgettable to you? ?
I adore any film with Robert Redford in it. Otherwise, I don't bother.

What types of music do you like? Is there any particular kind you like to listen to when you're writing?
We're lucky enough to get KMFA, from Austin, Texas, which plays classical music all day long, no commercials. I like classical music because there aren't any lyrics to distract me.

If you had a book club, what would it be reading -- and why?
My China Bayles books, because...well, guess! And besides, they're good. And fun. If it was a history book club, we'd be reading the Robin Paige Victorian Mysteries (same reasons).

What are your favorite kinds of books to give -- and get -- as gifts?
My books (see above). If I'm on the receiving end, please send me Stephen King's latest.

Do you have any special writing rituals? For example, what do you have on your desk when you're writing?
No rituals, I just write. On my desk? Post-its, used dental floss, nail clippers, a broken pencil, yesterday's crackers, this morning's coffee, and the cat.

What are you working on now?
The next Robin Paige mystery, which I write with my husband, Bill. It's called Death at Blenheim Palace. Next up, the second book in my new Beatrix Potter series. After that, the next China, then another Robin Paige, then.... Yes, I know. But writing is my life. If I weren't doing this, they'd probably have to lock me up somewhere.

Many writers are hardly "overnight success" stories. How long did it take for you to get where you are today? Any rejection-slip horror stories or inspirational anecdotes?
I started out in 1984 writing young adult books -- romances, mysteries -- some of them with my husband. I did that through 1990, when I wrote (and sold) a nonfiction book about women's work lives. Started the China Bayles series that same year, and was lucky enough to sell a three-book contract right away. Bill wanted to continue to write together, so we started the Robin Paige series in 1994. I've always felt that you have to bring some talent, a lot of work, and a pot-load of stubborn determination to the table -- then you have to wait for luck to strike. In my case, I found a wonderful editor (Natalee Rosenstein at Berkley) and have been with her ever since.

If you could choose one new writer to be "discovered," who would it be -- and why?
My son. Why do you think?

What tips or advice do you have for writers still looking to be discovered? ?
Read, read, read. Write, write, write. Then hope for luck.

From the Publisher

Between the herb shop, the catering business, and a weekend paper-making class, China Bayles has her work cut out for her. And now China's half-brother is opening up old wounds, trying to investigate their father's supposedly accidental death, and her husband is taking on the case-meaning she's just bound to get involved.

To put the unsavory business out of her mind, she's gathering supplies for making paper. But in a patch of yucca plants, she finds a body-cause of death unknown. Many residents of Pecan Springs live seemingly simple lives that hide complex and dangerous pasts, and it appears the victim was one of them. Now, while unraveling secrets that hit close to home, China must set the record straight-and find a killer.

Publishers Weekly

Violent crime and long-buried intrigue disrupt the peace of Pecan Springs, Tex., home of herb shop owner China Bayles, in the piquant 16th entry in Albert's southwestern cozy series (after 2006's Bleeding Hearts). China's pleasant routines are first disrupted by the travails of her business partner, Ruby, who's apparently been stood up by her unreliable boyfriend, an ex-narc. Then China's recently discovered half brother, Miles Danforth, an attorney, insists on reopening the ice-cold case of their father's death in a car accident 16 years earlier. Miles has uncovered correspondence that their father feared for his life before he died, and recruits the help of China's husband, Mike McQuaid, a former Houston homicide detective turned PI. But China faces a much warmer corpse when she and her friend Carole discover a bloody body by the railroad tracks where they go to gather yucca. Albert's fans will savor recipes such as Texas tarragon vinegar and lemon-mint tea concentrate, plus botanical trivia. (Apr.) Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

Kirkus Reviews

An herbalist and a Rottweiler solve a series of crimes. While picking yucca leaves for a papermaking workshop, China Bayles, herbalist, businesswoman and lawyer, discovers the body of Colin Fowler, local business owner, possible undercover cop and former love of China's best friend, Ruby Wilcox. Ruby, who's off in Fredericksburg moving her demented mother to assisted living, begs China to look into the death and take care of Colin's Rottweiler. Everywhere China goes, she crosses the path of a big blond guy whose looks mark him as a cop. Her pal, the police chief, warns China off, but all the clues seem to come her way. With her ex-cop p.i. husband out of town working on a cold case for her half-brother, involving the death of her father, China feels free to take chances with the blond guy, who may be a member of a regional Drug Task Force, a group with a bad reputation when it comes to corruption. He's hunting for drugs, and he claims Colin was dealing. Colin had recently received calls from Lucita, bookkeeper at nearby Sonoma Nursery, presumably about some potted plants in Colin's yard. But when Lucita is the next victim and Rambo the Rottweiler sniffs out cocaine in the pots, China realizes she may be in big trouble. Albert's 16th (after Bleeding Hearts, 2006, etc.) complements the obligatory herbal lore and recipes with one of her best mysteries to date.

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Product Details

ISBN: 0425220885
ISBN-13: 9780425220887
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 304pp
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Pub. Date: April 2008
Edition Description: Reprint
Sales Rank: 4,825
Series: China Bayles Series, #15

Spanish Dagger (China Bayles Series #15) by Susan Wittig Albert

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Synopsis

Publishers Weekly

Biography

Customer Reviews

Spanish Dagger (China Bayles Series #15)by Anonymous

Spanish Dagger (China Bayles Series #15)by Anonymous

Fact File

Biography

Good to Know

Feature Interview

From the Publisher

Publishers Weekly

Library Journal

Kirkus Reviews

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