Perfection, non? This is the UK/World edition so if you’re an Australian or New Zealand reader, this is the cover you’ll see in November when it’s released by Walker Books Australia.

Also, plans are taking shape for an actual, real-world, come-see-me-face-to-face-if-you-dare launch party. The details?

Wednesday, September 29

7 pm

Novel Idea Books

156 Princess St, Kingston, Ontario

(click here for a map)

Shall I see you there?

Then, Booksmuggler Thea reviews Body, calling it “another winning, impeccably well-written historical mystery”. Huzzah!

Thanks so much for joining me on this blog tour. Regularly scheduled blogging returns on Thursday, when I continue my English adventures. See you then!

Cecilia also reviews Body. It’s a great review but it, too, contains spoilers for Spy. It’s a cruel world out there for innocent readers.

I’ll see you tomorrow for more Notorious Victorians!

Fortunately, it’s not all about me. The Body at the Tower blog tour is at Steph Su Reads today, where I guest-post about Notorious Victorian Joseph Merrick – aka the Elephant Man – and the way he used celebrity as a survival strategy. His is a tragic but also smart and fascinating story.

Steph then reviews Body: “damn if the pages didn’t nearly catch on fire…” *evil cackle from smug author*

There is no real-world launch party today, but stay in touch: I’m planning an online launch party in September. Details to follow.

And now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to celebrate.

Mariah also reviews Body. As she warns, you’re in for “slight spoilers for first book. And possibly some fangirling.”

I’ll see you tomorrow – which is, by the way, the OFFICIAL PUB DATE for Body! – at Steph Su Reads with part 2 of Victorian Celebrities.

I’m going to have patchy internet access for the next few days, but the blog tour rolls on. Do check in at GreenBeanTeenQueen on Wednesday for my essay on Notorious Victorian activist Annie Besant and Sarah’s review of Body.

On Thursday, I’ll be talking about Charles Darwin as a Reluctant Revolutionary at Cornucopia of Reviews. There, Lizzy also gives Body a glowing review. Yay!

Friday’s guest post is about women’s rights campaigner Lady Caroline Norton, over at Reading in Color. Ari’s review is a beautiful one, but beware – it contains minor spoilers for Spy.

I’ll post next week from Vancouver, when the blog tour continues with four more Notorious Victorians and an interview. Can’t wait!

Kristi at the Story Siren also reviews Body, giving it 5 stars! She praises its “Spectacular characters… superb writing… awesome storyline. It’s easy to read, fun and just plain ole’ entertaining. I can’t wait for another adventure with Mary in book three!” I’m thrilled to hear it.

I’m also chatting with Sara at the Hiding Spot, where we discuss favourite scenes, novels, and words. Right now, mine’s “quiddity”. What’s yours?

Context: When James Easton goes to India, he catches a severe case of malaria. On the voyage home, still just recovering from his illness, he becomes acquainted with Jeremy and Sybil Alleyn, a brother-and-sister duo who were raised in India. Sadly, Body became very long and one of the things I had to cut was the Alleyns’s appearance. I do, however, have high hopes for them. This won’t be the last time you see them.

There’s nothing spoiler-ish here, so you can read with impunity. When you’re done with this scene, read the official excerpts from the finished novel, if you haven’t already!

Click here for the deleted scene from The Body at the Tower

Click here for an excerpt from Body

Download the prologue & first chapter from Candlewick Press

Joanne missed her best-friend-from-high-school’s wedding by 7 days. Eek!

Steph almost missed a transatlantic flight by 24 hrs.

Mary, Penny, and Christie have missed doctor’s appointments by pretty wide margins.

Ari’s family was 4 hours late to an event they thought was the next day (which makes them early, kind of…)

Lizzy was late to a grad school interview. (She got in anyway – yay!) Love the detail about driving for an extra 2.5 hours on Earth Day.

Tara was 2 hours late to her own wedding reception and blames her husband’s wardrobe malfunction. (Oh, sure…)

Sanjana missed an international flight by a good few hours, while idling in a coffee shop. Ouch.

Spav was 2 hours late for a flight because of a snowstorm – in Madrid!

BrittLit and Barbara keep it simple: just oversleep.

Sarah took a major detour to the starting line of a cross-country race – that’s a great image.

And there’s Rebs, who missed the contest deadline by 24 hrs, which is kind of awesome in itself.

But my favourite tardy story here is Griffin’s, who managed a tour of 2 countries and 3 states in a snowstorm, yet never quite made it to his meeting. As he says, “we spent almost two full days driving, never reached our destination and became a cautionary tale for others”. Now THAT’s epic.

The randomly drawn winner is Steph Burgis. Yes, she’s a friend. But I promise: her number came out of the random generator. Congratulations, Griffin and Steph – an ARC of The Body at the Tower is on its way to each of you.

And shame on us all.

Are you always running late? I try very hard to be punctual but occasionally, bad planning and fate get the better of me. I once missed a flight out of Paris because the journey to Charles de Gaulle took 3 hours, instead of the planned 1.5. (A lovely airline employee took pity on my idiocy and put me on the next flight.) Another time, I was 60 minutes late meeting friends in Victoria, BC because I missed my ferry (I didn’t have a cell phone then; amazingly, my friends waited around the cafe for a whole hour and we met up). And then I nearly missed the ferry back, because we were having dinner and talking too much to watch the clock. Yikes. Reading this over, I sound like a pretty feckless person. But I try, I really try.

So when I was researching The Body at the Tower, I felt a mingled sense of amusement and outrage when I read that the reconstruction of the Palace of Westminster (where the Houses of Commons and Lords sit, and the site of Big Ben) ran a full quarter-century late! That’s so late it’s almost fabulous. Almost.

And that’s the theme for my new contest. To enter to win one of two ARCs of The Body at the Tower (published August 10), just leave a comment answering this question:

What’s the most shamefully, ridiculously late you’ve ever been?

or, if you’re one of those sickening, effortlessly on-time people: What’s the silliest excuse anyone’s ever given for being late to meet you?

Rules:

You may have extra entries for sharing via your blog, Twitter, or Facebook accounts (1 extra per network).

Contest closes June 30. June 15. Can’t wait to give these away!

One winner will be randomly drawn. The other ARC will go to the commenter whose reply makes me gasp aloud.

Good luck, everyone!