My first book, The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend, was published in Sweden the autumn of 2013. It is currently sold to 25 countries and might already or soon be available in a bookstore near you. On this page you’ll find some information about me and my book and things I do when I should be writing a book.
My brand new murder mystery series is OUT in the US, and it really is the most extraordinary feeling! I’ve always said that the best thing about being a writer is that it’s a socially acceptable way to have imaginary friends as an adult. I spend years talking to the characters in my head, getting to know their hopes and fears and many, many quirks. And then, one magical day they’re out there for everyone to get to know. So publishing a book is a little bit like having imaginary friends that other people suddenly exists for other people, too. Suddenly I’m not alone knowing Berit Gardner and DCI Ian Ahmed and the rather strange inhabitants of run-down village Great Diddling.
It’s a glorious feeling. There’s nothing like it in the world as hearing other people talk about your imaginary friends as if they’re real for them too.
Now, having your book published in another country is an even better feeling. Your characters are out there exploring the world, and you are at home, cheering them on. There’s only one catch: it’s much more difficult to sneak around bookstores to see your book out there in the wild.
That’s the first thing I do when my books are published in Sweden. I visit all the bookshops I can, and try to sorts of just wander, very naturally, not at all suspiciously, trying to see if my book is there and if it is, how amazing it looks surrounded by other great books. There’s no more beautiful sight than your brand new book in a beautiful bookshop-setting.
So I was wondering if I could ask you a favor: if you live in the US, and visit a bookshop, and you should happen to see my book there – could you take a picture of it and send it to me? You can find me on Instagram, @katarinabivald, or email me: katarina@katarinabivald.se, or comment here on the website
Let’s see what Berit and the rest are up to!
Ps. If you are planning on buying the book, as always, consider buying it from your favorite independent bookshop. And if you’ve read it an liked it, consider leaving a review somewhere where booklovers meet (although if you read it and hated it, you should probably consider leaving a word of warning there as well)
What people are saying about The Murders in Great Diddling:
“With its focus on books and book lovers, eccentric villagers and frauds, this first mystery from the author of The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend is a delightful traditional, filled with fascinating characters. Those who escape to Louise Penny’s Three Pines might want to check out Great Diddling.” ― Library Journal, Starred Review
“This quirky, twisty, quintessentially British cozy is frothy and funny with a hint of dark and menacing.” ― Booklist
“On the charming side of humorous and self-consciously charming.” ― Kirkus Reviews
The first book in my new murder mystery series starring writer and amateur sleuth Berit Gardner. Out in English on August 14
The best stories are the ones we didn’t know needed to be told
The small, rundown village of Great Diddling is full of stories—author Berit Gardner can feel it. The way the villagers avoid outsiders, the furtive stares and whispers in the presence of newcomers… Berit can sense the edge of a story waiting to be unraveled, and she’s just the person to do it. In fact, with a book deadline looming over her and no manuscript (not even the idea for a manuscript, truth be told), Berit doesn’t just want this story. She needs it.
Then, while attending a village tea party, Berit becomes part of the action herself. An explosion in the library of the village’s grand manor kills a local man, and the resulting investigation and influx of outsiders sends the quiet, rundown community into chaos. The residents of Great Diddling, each one more eccentric and interesting than any character Berit could have invented, rewrite their own narrative and transform the death of one of their own from a tragedy into a new beginning. Taking advantage of Great Diddling’s new notoriety, the villagers band together to start a book and murder festival designed to bring desperately-needed tourists to their town. What they couldn’t have predicted is how the new story they’ve begun to tell will change all their lives forever.
Uplifting, charming, and laugh-out-loud funny, The Murders in Great Diddling by New York Times bestselling author Katarina Bivald is a celebration of the life-changing magic of books and the people who love them.
The Pine Creek Motel has seen better days. Henny would call it charming, but she’s always seen the best in things. Like now, when she’s just met an untimely end crossing the road. She’s not going to let a tiny thing like death stop her from living fully–not when her friends and family need her the most.
After the funeral is over, her body is buried, and the last casserole dish is empty, Henny is still around. She’s not sure why, but she realizes she has one last opportunity to help her friends discover the happiness they once knew before they lose the motel and cabins they’ve cherished for years.
“Hopeful, heartening, and humane, this is the novel I needed to read right now.”–J. Ryan Stradal, author of The Lager Queen of Minnesota and Kitchens of the Great Midwest
“Remarkable…unquestionably a page-turner and full of wisdom. A brave, unusual book, which powerfully portrays friendship and love.” –Felicity Hayes-McCoy, author of The Library at the Edge of the World
Once you let a book into your life, the most unexpected things can happen…
Broken Wheel, Iowa, has never seen anyone like Sara, who traveled all the way from Sweden just to meet her book-loving pen pal. When she arrives, however, she finds Amy’s funeral guests just leaving. The residents of Broken Wheel are happy to look after their bewildered visitor — not much else to do in a small town that’s almost beyond repair. They just never imagined that she’d start a bookstore. Or that books could bring them together – and change everything.
There’s a book for every person … and a person for every book.
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