Edith Maxwell (author)

Not to be confused with Edith Maxwell, the American murderer.
Edith Maxwell
Born (1952-11-02) November 2, 1952 (age 71)
Pasadena, California, U.S.
EducationUniversity of California, Irvine (BA)
Indiana University (PhD)
OccupationNovelist
Years active2012–present

Edith Maxwell (born November 2, 1952) is an Agatha Award-winning American mystery author also currently writing as Maddie Day.[1] She writes cozy, traditional, and historical mysteries set in the United States.

Biography[edit]

Maxwell was born in Pasadena and grew up in the Los Angeles suburb of Temple City with two older sisters and a younger brother. Her father taught high school and her mother was a Girl Scout leader and a real estate appraiser. Maxwell was an exchange student with AFS Intercultural Programs in Brazil for a year in 1970. She holds a BA (linguistics, 1974) from University of California, Irvine, and a PhD[2] (linguistics, 1981) from Indiana University.

Prior to writing fiction full time, she worked as an auto mechanic, taught conversational English in Japan and independent childbirth classes in Massachusetts, owned and operated a small certified-organic farm, wrote free-lance articles, and most recently produced software documentation for several hi-tech companies in the Boston area. Besides Brazil and Japan she has also lived in Mali and Burkina Faso.[3]

Authorial career[edit]

Maxwell’s first published fiction was in the Pasadena Star-News, where she won a children’s fiction contest in 1961.[4] Her first published short story as an adult was in 1996, and her first novel appeared in 2012. She is a lifetime member of Sisters in Crime and served as President of the New England chapter for two years. She is also a member of Mystery Writers of America, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and the Historical Novel Society. She has been a full-time mystery author since 2013. Maxwell has two dozen mystery novels and a novella in print with more in process.[citation needed]

Maxwell decided to write cozy mysteries because "I don’t want to read noir or nail-biter thrillers. Our world is scary and messy enough. When I’m finished reading a book, I don’t want to feel worse about society. That’s what I write, too."[5]

Bibliography[edit]

Local Foods Mysteries (as Edith Maxwell)[edit]

  • A Tine to Live, a Tine to Die June 2013[6] Kensington
  • ‘Til Dirt Do Us Part June 2014 Kensington
  • Farmed and Dangerous May 2015 Kensington
  • Murder Most Fowl May 2016 Kensington
  • Mulch Ado About Murder May 2017 Kensington

Country Store Mysteries (as Maddie Day)[edit]

  • Flipped for Murder October 2015 Kensington[1]
  • Grilled for Murder May 2016 Kensington [1]
  • When the Grits Hit the Fan March 2017 Kensington
  • Biscuits and Slashed Browns January 2018 Kensington
  • Death Over Easy July 2018 Kensington
  • Strangled Eggs and Ham July 2019 Kensington
  • Christmas Cocoa Murder Sept 2019 Kensington
  • Nacho Average Murder July 2020 Kensington[7]
  • Candy Slain Murder Sept 2020 Kensington

Cozy Capers Book Group Mysteries (as Maddie Day)[edit]

  • Murder on Cape Cod December 2018 Kensington
  • Murder at the Taffy Shop March 2020 Kensington

Quaker Midwife Mysteries (as Edith Maxwell)[edit]

  • Delivering the Truth April 2016 Midnight Ink
  • Called to Justice April 2017 Midnight Ink[8]
  • Turning the Tide April 2018 Midnight Ink
  • Charity’s Burden April 2019 Midnight Ink[9][10]
  • Judge Thee Not September 2019 Beyond the Page
  • Taken Too Soon September 2020 Beyond the Page[5]

Lauren Rousseau Mysteries (as Tace Baker)[edit]

  • Speaking of Murder September 2012 Barking Rain, reissued in 2020 by Beyond the Page
  • Bluffing is Murder November 2014 Barking Rain, reissued in 2020 by Beyond the Page

Awards and recognition[edit]

  • 2014 Agatha Award nomination for Best Short Story, “Just Desserts for Johnny”[11]
  • 2015 Agatha Award nomination for Best Short Story, “A Questionable Death”
  • 2016 Agatha Award nomination for Best Historical Novel, Delivering the Truth[12]
  • 2017 Agatha Award nomination for Best Historical Novel for Called to Justice[13]
  • 2018 Agatha Award nomination for Best Historical Novel, Turning the Tide
  • 2019 Agatha Award winner for Best Historical Novel, Charity's Burden[14]
  • 2016 Macavity Award (Sue Feder Historical Mystery Award) nomination, Delivering the Truth
  • 2019 Macavity Award (Sue Feder Historical Mystery Award) nomination, Charity's Burden
  • 2016 Agatha Award nomination for Best Short Story, “The Mayor and the Midwife”
  • 2013 Honorable Mention in the Al Blanchard Short Crime Fiction contest, “Breaking the Silence”

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Baskin, Kara (26 April 2016). "Six authors who share a passion for murder". The Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. p. G7. Retrieved 10 August 2019.
  2. ^ Date, Terry (10 April 2019). "Mystery with local history: Amesbury author to host double launch party with fellow writer". Newburyport Daily News. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  3. ^ Maxwell, Edith (2 March 2018). "Divination of Death by Edith Maxwell". Map Your Mystery. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
  4. ^ Maxwell, Edith (31 March 2020). "Edith, Tace, Maddie, and 20 Mysteries". Wicked Authors. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
  5. ^ a b Briana-Gartner, Joanne (4 September 2020). "New Murder Mystery Set In West Falmouth". The Enterprise. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
  6. ^ "Edith Maxwell Books in Order". Books in Order. 14 July 2016. Retrieved 4 August 2019.
  7. ^ "Food Cozy Mysteries: The Books Serving Up Recipes With A Side Of Murder". WGBH.com. 31 July 2020. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
  8. ^ "Called to Justice". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  9. ^ Valeri, John (9 April 2019). "Q&A with Edith Maxwell, Author of Charity's Burden". Criminal Element. Retrieved 4 August 2019.
  10. ^ "Charity's Burden". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  11. ^ "Amesbury author Edith Maxwell nominated for Agatha mystery award". Newburyport Daily News. 5 March 2015. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  12. ^ Topping, Grace (22 March 2017). "An Interview With Edith Maxwell". Writers Who Kill. Retrieved 4 August 2019.
  13. ^ "Announcing 2017's Agatha Award Nominees". Criminal Element. 26 January 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  14. ^ Cogdill, Oline. "2020 Agatha Award Winners". Mystery Scene Magazine. Retrieved 24 November 2020.

External links[edit]

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