A JUST DEFIANCE Swedish publication tour and UK launch

Published by Portobello on 3 March,  A JUST DEFIANCE is Peter Harris's brilliant insider account of the trial of four young ANC soldiers charged with a series of political murders in Pretoria, South Africa, in 1987.  

Peter is on tour in Stockholm for the book's Swedish publication by Leopard. On Friday 4 March he will be appearing at the Mitchell Library with Kevin Bloom at Glasgow's Aye Write! Festival, discussing the state of the nation in South Africa now.

Peter will appear on Start the Week with Andrew Marr at 9 am on BBC Radio 4 on Monday 7 March.

A JUST DEFIANCE will then have its official launch at an evening event at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London next Monday 7 March.

Date: Monday 7th March, 6.30pm

Venue: Brunei Suite, SOAS, Thornhaugh St, London WC1H0XG

Speakers: Peter Harris (Author of 'A Just Defiance')

Respondent: Rt. Hon Peter Hain MP (Prominent anti apartheid activist and former government minister)

Chair: Richard Dowden (Director of the Royal African Society)

Event description:
1987, Pretoria four young black men have just been arrested for a horrific string of political murders. There's no doubt that they're guilty of everything they're accused of - and more. But in a society driven by brutal repression and racial tensions, are they assassins or freedom fighters? Peter Harris is the lawyer called upon to defend them. In gripping prose, Harris intercuts the story of their trial with flashbacks to the squad's operations to reveal a campaign planned with coldblooded brilliance and carried out with deadly efficiency. The theme of political justification of violence runs through the book.

The discussion will be followed by a drinks reception. Please RSVP for all RAS events at RSVP@royalafricansociety.org

Do also click here to read a summary of the book, written by the author himself.

A JUST DEFIANCE  was first published under the title IN A DIFFERENT TIME by Umuzi in South Africa in 2008, where it won the country's premier non-fiction prizes. Leopard are publishing in Sweden and a film deal is under negotiation.

PRAISE for A JUST DEFIANCE

Winner of the SA Sunday Times Literary Alan Paton Non-Fiction Prize 2009
Shortlisted for the University of Johannesburg Debut Prize 2008/9
Shortlisted for the Booksellers' Choice Award 2009.

'A dark chapter in our history brilliantly brought to light.' -- Ivan Vladislavic, author of PORTRAIT WITH KEYS and THE RESTLESS SUPERMARKET

'Only Peter Harris could tell our story the way it really happened.' -- Jabu Masina, MK commander

'IN A DIFFERENT TIME Peter Harris's wonderful book about a trial of four A.N.C. activists during the apartheid years. It's at once scrupulously written, heartbreaking and powerful. And it stayed with me - stays with me - the way all great books should.' -- Alexandra Fuller, author of DON'T LET'S GO TO THE DOGS TONIGHT, 'Paper Cuts' blog in New York Times

'IN A DIFFERENT TIME is the most wonderfully good book about South Africa I have read in a decade…This isn't a book review, however. It is a plea to buy and read it. I absolutely promise you'll enjoy every page…[The book] is one of those rare creations that helps make one isolated but hitherto divisive experience a new patch of common ground  for us all.' -- Peter Bruce, editor, Business Day

30 NIGHTS IN AMSTERDAM launched in South Africa and sold in Holland & Latvia

In tandem with a re-issue of his earlier novels LEAP YEAR and ANCESTRAL VOICES, Penguin South Africa have just published Etienne van Heerden's new novel 30 NIGHTS IN AMSTERDAM. The book was launched on 17 February with an event at Kalk Bay Books in Cape Town, attended by many prominent literary figures, including award-winning translators Leon de Kock (who is the translator of van Heerden's forthcoming IN LOVE'S PLACE) and Michiel Heyns (translator of 30 NIGHTS IN AMSTERDAM).

Etienne van Heerden's 30 NIGHTS IN AMSTERDAM, which won the University of Johannesburg Award, 2008, the WA Hofmeyr Award for Afrikaans literature 2009 and the M-Net Literary Awards 2009, was first published in Afrikaans by Tafelberg in 2008. Translation rights have been sold to Podium in Holland and to Jumava in Latvia.

 Dutch publisher Joost Nijsen of Podium says:

‘30 NIGHTS IN AMSTERDAM combines all qualities one might demand of contemporary literature of international importance. The writing is amazing and Zan is a classic character, one to fall in love with. It's a wonderful, moving, poignant story and thanks to the ingenious plot, gradually revealing many striking family secrets, it's also a real page-turner. Finally, this novel succeeds in showing the big picture through a specific human story. 30 NIGHTS IN AMSTERDAM is not only a story about family disintegration, but also a mirror of the cultural and political developments in recent South African history, interwoven with the scenes set in Amsterdam.’

Fiona Snyckers has featured the book and discussed the process of translation with Etienne van Heerden in The Times in South Africa, calling it already 'a modern classic.'

PRAISE for Etienne van Heerden

'As writers like Marquez gave a rich artistic depth to South America - and Alasdair Gray defined the imaginative landscape of Scotland in Lanark - so van Heerden has created an 'artistic map' of South Africa.' -- Mark Stanton, The Scotsman

'His exploration of personal relations and private lives under the pressure of historical and political forces makes him an eloquent witness of profound social change.' -- Andre Brink

'He combines popular readability with literary excellence and profound issues in a manner accomplished by few writers of any nationality.' -- Shaun de Waal, Mail and Guardian

'30 NIGHTS IN AMSTERDAM is one of van Heerden's most satisfying novels yet. In literary terms it is a skilful novel, and moreover an enticing and compelling story…here van Heerden shines as a storyteller…van Heerden effectively deploys details of the Dutch anti-apartheid movement. I am also impressed by the perspective on Europe developed here. He examines Europe, and specifically Amsterdam, from the perspective of the post-colonial subjects, the mass of buskers, beggars, pickpockets and immigrants who grasp their chance at survival there, and give a new energy to European cities…Henk and Tante Zan, as Afrikaners in Europe, are also postcolonial subjects, and with this perspective van Heerden adds something new to the depiction of the relationship between being Afrikaans and Europe in Afrikaans literature, and to his continuing musing on place and identity…Tante Zan's exuberant, mocking, often vulgar narratives, written in the first person, are the highlight of the novel, and one of the highlights of van Heerden's oeuvre…One of van Heerden's most satisfying novels yet…an intense, energetic novel by an important South African writer. It will fuel reflection his work, but will also please the reader in search of a good story for the summer holidays. Buy it, read it: you won't be sorry.' -- Desmond Painter, Die Burger

Two more Craig Russell books optioned by Tivoli Film for ARD

Following the success of WOLFSFAHRTE, adapted from BROTHER GRIMM by screenwriter Daniel Martin Eckhart and starring Peter Lohmeyer in the title role, BLOOD EAGLE and ETERNAL will be produced for the German television network.

Both titles are taken from the enormously popular series of crime novels featuring murder squad policeman Jan Fabel, which are bestsellers in Germany and published in over 20 languages. Craig is a former police officer who has viewed a murder scene, interviewed murderers, seen the inside of prisons and knows how police officers interact with each other and the public. Shortlisted by the Crime Writer's Association for the 2007 Duncan Lawrie Dagger. Shortlisted for crime writing awards in France and Germany. Recipient of the highly prestigious Polizeistern - the Police Star - presented by the Chief of Police and the Hamburg government's Interior Minister.

BLOOD EAGLE is the first book in the series. Someone is carrying out a sequence of particularly gruesome murders in contemporary Hamburg, styled in the same manner as the ancient Viking 'Blood Eagle' sacrifices: a living victim is dismembered by tearing out their lungs and spreading them in the shape of an eagle so that the sacrifice's spirit could fly to Odin. When the German secret police seem to be involved, Fabel finds a number of influential figures begin to be linked to the murders. Will he be able to reveal the truth or will those with something to hide succeed in silencing him?

The suspense continues in ETERNAL when two high profile victims, a former left-wing radical turned environmental campaigner and a geneticist researching the possibility of inherited memory, are found murdered: both have been scalped. Forensic tests reveal that single red hairs at each scene belong to neither victim, but were from the same head - 20 years earlier. The victims' pasts begin to emerge, but Fabel and his team are working against the clock, caught in a web of intrigue, obsession and revenge that seems to span 16 centuries. He must discover the crucial link between an ancient mummified body, a long-disbanded terrorist group and a killer who believes he is reincarnated to exact revenge on those who betrayed him in a previous life.

Daniel Martin Eckhart will once again write the screenplay.

DASH: Bitch of the Year launch and Daily Mail splash

Andrew Dilger's wonderful warm-hearted memoir DASH: Bitch of the Year was launched last weekend at a special evening event (sponsored by Burgess pet care!) in the same venue where Andrew and his wife married, with Dash the retired racing greyhound as the ring-bearer. Sales have been steadily climbing, with DASH in the Top 500 on Amazon this weekend after the Daily Mail featured the duo in a big spread -  including a gorgeous photo of Dash, which is sure to win even more hearts.

Click through to Andrew's blog to read more about how Dash herself handled the limelight.

You can follow news of Dash on Twitter too on @andrewdilger

German rights are sold to Weltbild, who publish later this year.

PRAISE for DASH

'I fell in love with 'Dash' in this thoroughly enjoyable book by Andrew Dilger. It's funny, moving and I highly recommend it. Hopefully this story will encourage more people to adopt a retired greyhound. It also highlights the wonderful work done by the Retired Greyhound Trust.' -- Twiggy Lawson

'A heart-warming thoroughly enjoyable romp - a must for all dog lovers, everyone contemplating dog ownership and everyone contemplating marriage. I loved it and now want to know what happens next!' -- Barbara Erskine

'DASH is a true romance - the entrancing story of a man's love for a woman and of how a retired racing greyhound captured both their hearts.' -- Hilary Johnson, Authors' Advisory Service

'Andrew Dilger's story is a brave and, at times, brutally honest account of what it's like to be a pet owner and how we humans often fail these beautiful animals despite the best of intentions. As a life-long fan of rescue dogs it's great to read a story that so eloquently shows what wonderful companions they can be. Yes, there are always up and downs with any pet, but Dash's story proves once again that the love you get from a rescue dog makes that up ten-fold.' -- Emma Milne, TV Vet and Author of THE TRUTH ABOUT CATS AND DOGS

Barbara Erskine’s ghostly talk at the Tower of London

Barbara Erskine and Alison Weir gave an illustrated talk on ghosts at the Tower of London on Thursday 24 February. There was a huge turn-out with 200 tickets being sold out within hours of being offered on the Royal Palaces website. The talk recounted historical events that have happened at the Tower and their ghostly implications. The eerie evening atmosphere was intensified by large church candles on all the window ledges, low lights and red tinged lights on the speakers.  

One of the Tower's Beefeaters told how he had first heard about Barbara Erskine many years ago when he was serving in the Falklands. He was listening to the radio during the Falklands War and heard the word 'Hay' leap out at him.  He comes from Hay in Wales and it was a review of LADY OF HAY. He got hold of the book, read it and has been a firm fan ever since!

Barbara signed books for fans for 40 minutes after the talk, while waiters served wine and canapes.  Walking out through the ancient floodlit buildings, under a starry sky, it was impossible not to imagine the ghosts there still.

LADY OF HAY celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. It has been constantly in print ever since it was first published in 1986 and HarperCollins have reissued an anniversary edition with an extra chapter that brings the story up to date. Barbara's latest novel, TIME'S LEGACY, was published in paperback by HarperCollins in February.

Praise for Barbara Erskine:
'The author's storytelling talent is undeniable. Barbara Erskine can make us feel the cold, smell the filth and experience some of the fear of the power of evil men.' -- The Times