Aldo book 5 arrives!

Let the promo frenzy begin...

Welcome to the free newsletter of David (D. V.) Bishop, author of the Cesare Aldo historical thrillers set in Renaissance Italy. This time: what it’s like the month your novel is published.

Nervous excitement ahoy

We’re into June so it is now publication month for Carnival of Lies, my fifth Cesare Aldo historical thriller. The book will officially go on sale Thursday June 26^th in hardback, audiobook and ebook, but you can pre-order it now via this link. I have several events ahead of publication day where early copies should be available.

I submitted the manuscript for Carnival of Lies on June 24th last year, so publication day will be 367 days on from then. That’s about the usual length of time, but it seems to have been longer. I started sharing the novel very early, such was my excitement about Aldo’s new adventure in Renaissance Venice. I can’t wait for you to read it!

My author copies turned up this week, underlining how close publication is. A box of ten hardbacks arrived, prompting an unboxing video (see below). The books look gorgeous, with a stunning cover by designer Neil Lang; the team at Pan Macmillan have certainly done Aldo proud. Now, it’s time to get out and sell the book.

This means I’ll dashing round the UK for much of June talking about Carnival of Lies and historical fiction. That starts at London’s Capital Crime festival on Friday June 13^th when I’m appearing on the Making History Human (10.35am) at Capital Crime in London with Mel Pennant, S. J. Parris and participating moderator Clare Whitfield.

On Monday June 16^th I’m back north of the border for a shared event with fellow author Kate Foster called From Scotland to Italy: Historical Fiction (7.15pm) in Dunbar, hosted by the wonderful Night Owl Books. Then it’s back to England on Wednesday June 25^th for an event in Stockport with the amazing Serenity Booksellers.

There will be other events including pop-up signings at different bookshops, which I’ll do my best to mention here. This newsletter will be promo-heavy for a few weeks, but these days one of my author’s jobs is getting people excited about books and reading. I’m really proud of Carnival of Lies and want to shout about it – so I will.

Shortlisted for two Daggers

Amid the pre-publication excitement, there was exciting news about last year’s Cesare Aldo novel A Divine Fury. The Crime Writer’s Association announced the shortlists for its celebrated Dagger Awards last week, and A Divine Fury has been shortlisted for not one but two of them - the Historical Dagger, and the prestigious Gold Dagger!

I was chuffed to have made the longlists for both prizes, but being shortlisted for each of these Daggers is amazing. My second Aldo novel The Darkest Sin about murder in a Renaissance Florence convent won the 2023 Historical Dagger. A Divine Fury is about exorcisms and serial killings, so religion and crime seem a successful combination.

Being shortlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger is such an honour. The list of winners is an international Who’s Who of crime writing: Chris Whitaker, M W Craven, Steve Cavanagh, Jane Harper, Mick Heron, Bellinda Bauer, Ann Cleeves, Sara Paretsky, Minette Walters, Henning Mankell, James Lee Burke, Ian Rankin – you get the idea!

I have zero expectations of winning when the prizes are announced in London on July 3^rd. I’ll be there anyway as I’m presenting the Publisher’s Dagger award, and will for whoever does take away the Historical and Gold Dagger. It is a fun night out and my one chance of the year to put on a dinner suit (most writers don’t get out much).

Working towards Aldo book six

In the midst of celebrating last year’s Aldo novel and promoting this year’s Aldo novel, I am also busy writing – you guessed it – next year’s Aldo novel. I was away on holiday last week, but still got up by 6am each day to write (see below). Thanks to some concentrated effort, the draft manuscript has now reached the end of act four.

Since getting home I have edited act four by reading the chapters out loud to myself and marking up a physical copy. The changes have been put into the Word document files, and I updated my spreadsheet of plot events to keep track of everything that has happened so far. My next step is mapping out the final act so drafting of that can start.

After a bumpy April, I have caught up and am now back on schedule to deliver a draft by early July. All things being equal, the sixth Aldo novel should be out next summer, probably in June 2026. I’m hoping to see a draft cover design soon, and a title has been agreed with my publisher Pan Macmillan – that will be revealed in a future newsletter.

Once Aldo six is delivered, I am out of contract. Whether Pan Macmillan want more depends on sales, so consider yourself nudged to pre-order Carnival of Lies. I’d love to keep writing historical thrillers set in Renaissance Italy, and you can help with that. Share your favourite Aldo novel with a friend. Word of mouth makes all the difference!

Just before I go…

If you’re near Glasgow this Thursday (June 5^th), I’m appearing at Waterstones Argyle Street to chair the 7pm launch for The Malt Whisky Murders by Natalie Jayne Clark. She was highly commended at the Bloody Scotland Pitch Perfect contest two years ago, and now her debut novel is being published – a brilliant achievement!

I read an early copy of The Malt Whisky Murders last Christmas, loving the story and its characters. Having been a Pitch Perfect contestant myself back in 2018, I was delighted at being asked to chair the event this Thursday. Do come along if you can, it should be a fun night and The Malt Whisky Murders is a great read.

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