Betty Rowlands Explained

Betty Rowlands
Birth Name:Kathleen Elizabeth Howard
Birth Date:6 October 1923
Birth Place:Letchworth Garden City
Death Date:29 July 2020
Death Place:Bristol, England
Occupation:Writer
Nationality:British
Genre:Crime fiction
Relatives:Sir Ebenezer Howard (grandfather)

Betty Rowlands (6 October 1923 – 29 July 2020) was a writer of cosy crime mystery novels set in the Cotswolds and Gloucestershire.

Personal life

Born in Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire, to parents Arthur and Kathleen Beatrice Howard (née Brockelbank),[1] her grandfather was Sir Ebenezer Howard, founder of the garden city movement and the first garden city, Letchworth, in 1903. Rowlands had two half brothers from her father's first marriage and the family moved to Bromley, Kent when she was young.

During the Second World War, working at the General Post Office Engineering Department, Betty met her first husband, Bert Jenner and married in 1942. They had three children. They divorced in 1957 and Rowlands married Len Rowlands in 1966, moving to Brimpsfield, Gloucestershire, in 1971.[2]

Writing career

Rowlands began writing seriously when she moved to the Cotswolds and joined local writing groups. At the same time she began teaching adults English as a second language. A number of her early short stories were read on the BBC in the late 1970s and in 1988 she won the Sunday Express / Veuve Clicquot Crime Short Story of the Year Award.

Her first novel was A Little Gentle Sleuthing, published in 1990, when Rowlands was in her late 60s. Her last novel was published in 2014, at the age of 90. She was a member of the Crime Writers' Association.[3]

Bibliography

Melissa Craig series

  1. A Little Gentle Sleuthing (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1990).[4] Republished as Murder at Hawthorn Cottage (Bookouture, 2018).[5]
  2. Finishing Touch (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1991).[6] Republished as Murder in the Morning (Bookouture, 2018).[7]
  3. Over the Edge (Hodder and Stoughton, 1992).[8] Republished as Murder on the Clifftops (Bookouture, 2018).[9]
  4. Exhaustive Enquiries (Hodder and Stoughton, 1993).[10] Republished as Murder at the Manor Hotel (Bookouture, 2018).[11]
  5. Malice Poetic (Hodder and Stoughton, 1995).[12] Republished as Murder on a Winter Afternoon (Bookouture, 2018).[13]
  6. Deadly Legacy (Hodder and Stoughton, 1995).[14] Republished as Murder in the Orchard (Bookouture, 2019).
  7. Smiling at Death (Hodder and Stoughton, 1996).[15] Republished as Murder at Larkfield Barn (Bookouture, 2019).
  8. The Cherry Pickers (Hodder and Stoughton, 1998).[16] Republished as Murder in Langley Woods (Bookouture, 2019).[17]
  9. The Man at the Window (Hodder and Stoughton, 2000).[18] Republished as Murder at Benbury Brook (Bookouture, 2019).
  10. The Fourth Suspect (Hodder and Stoughton, 2001).[19] Republished as Murder at the Old House (Bookouture, 2019).[20]
  11. No Laughing Matter (Hodder and Stoughton, 2003).[21] Republished as Murder in the Dining Room (Bookouture, 2019).
  12. Sweet Venom (Hodder and Stoughton, 2004).[22] Republished as Murder in a Country Garden (Bookouture, 2019).[23]

Sukey Reynolds Series

  1. An Inconsiderate Death (Severn House Publishers, 1997). Republished as Death at Hazel House (Bookouture, 2019).[24]
  2. Death at Dearley Manor (Severn House Publishers, 1998).[25] Also (Bookouture, 2019).[26]
  3. Copycat (Severn House Publishers, 1999).[27] Republished as Death at Beacon Cottage (Bookouture, 2019).[28]
  4. Touch Me Not (Severn House Publishers, 2001).[29] Republished as Death at Burwell Farm (Bookouture, 2019).[30]
  5. Dirty Work (Severn House Publishers, 2003).[31] Republished as Death at Ivy House (Bookouture, 2019).[32]
  6. Deadly Obsession (Severn House Publishers, 2004).[33] Republished as Death on a Summer Morning (Bookouture, 2019).[34]
  7. Party to Murder (Severn House Publishers, 2005).[35] Republished as Death under the Apple Tree (Bookouture, 2019).[36]
  8. Alpha, Beta, Gamma... Dead (Severn House Publishers, 2007).[37] Republished as Death at The Mariners Hotel (Bookouture, 2019).[38]
  9. Smokescreen (Severn House Publishers, 2008).[39] Republished as Death at the Library (Bookouture, 2019).[40]
  10. A Fool There Was (Severn House Publishers, 2009).[41] Republished as Death on Clevedon Beach (Bookouture, 2019).[42]
  11. Miss Minchin Dies (Severn House Publishers, 2010).[43] Republished as Death in the Village (Bookouture, 2019).[44]
  12. Unnatural Wastage (Severn House Publishers, 2012).[45] Republished as Death as Sycamore House (Bookouture, 2019).[46]
  13. The Scent of Death (Severn House Publishers, 2014).[47] Republished as Death at Sandy Bay (Bookouture, 2019).[48]

Standalone novels

Hive of Bees (Severn House Publishers, 1996).[49]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Entry for "Kathleen E Howard," in England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916-2007, General Register Office; United Kingdom; Reference: Volume 3a, Page 1156 (database online). Provo, UT: 2008. Citing General Register Office; United Kingdom; England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916-2007. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
  2. Gloucestershire Live obituary: Janet Hughes, 'Tributes to Cotswold author dubbed the "Queen of Cosy Crime" with murder mystery novels set in Gloucestershire', Gloucestershire Live, 21 August 2020 15:58. Published in print in the Gloucestershire Echo, 27 August 2020 p. 11 News. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
  3. Web site: The Crime Writers' Association. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20160516195905/http://thecwa.co.uk/betty-rowlands/ . 16 May 2016 . 30 January 2021. thecwa.co.uk.
  4. Book: Rowlands, Betty. A little gentle sleuthing.. 1990. Hodder and Stoughton. 978-0-340-52233-2. English. 20798401.
  5. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Murder at Hawthorn cottage. 2018. Bookouture. 978-1-78681-609-2. London. English. 1101330399.
  6. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Finishing touch. 1991. Hodder & Stoughton. 978-0-340-54397-9. London. English. 26158693.
  7. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Murder in the morning. 2018. Bookouture . 978-1-78681-659-7. English. 1054368062.
  8. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Over the edge.. 1992. Hodder & Stoughton. 978-0-340-56411-0. English. 27067983.
  9. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Murder on the clifftops. 2018. Bookouture . 978-1-78681-661-0. English. 1059320592.
  10. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Exhaustive enquiries. 1993. Hodder & Stoughton. 978-0-340-58320-3. London. English. 28889228.
  11. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Murder at the Manor hotel. 2018. Bookouture. 978-1-78681-663-4. London. English. 1159064649.
  12. Book: Rowlands. Betty. Malice poetic. Hodder and Stoughton. 1995. Hodder and Stoughton. 978-0-340-62804-1. London. English. 946353669.
  13. Book: ROWLANDS, BETTY. MURDER ON A WINTER AFTERNOON.. 2018. BOOKOUTURE. 978-1-78681-776-1. Place of publication not identified. English. 1148880043.
  14. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Deadly legacy: a Melissa Craig mystery. 1995. Hodder & Stoughton. 978-0-340-64729-5. London. English. 892430912.
  15. Web site: Search Results Library Hub. 2021-01-31. discover.libraryhub.jisc.ac.uk.
  16. Book: Rowlands, Betty. The cherry pickers.. 1998. 978-0-340-70840-8. Hodder & Stoughton; London. English. 861895508.
  17. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Murder in Langley Woods. 2019. Bookouture . 978-1-78681-780-8. English. 1084557100.
  18. Book: Rowlands, Betty. The man at the window. 2000. Hodder & Stoughton. 978-0-340-75078-0. London. English. 973621363.
  19. Book: Rowlands, Betty. The fourth suspect. 2001. Hodder & Stoughton. 978-0-340-75080-3. London. English. 59580166.
  20. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Murder at the old house. 2019. Bookouture. 978-1-78681-867-6. London. English. 1123154697.
  21. Web site: Search Results Library Hub. 2021-01-31. discover.libraryhub.jisc.ac.uk.
  22. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Sweet venom. 2004. Hodder & Stoughton. 978-0-340-82681-2. London. English. 56450886.
  23. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Murder in a country garden. 2019. Bookouture . 978-1-78681-871-3. English. 1090475407.
  24. Book: Rowlands, Betty. An inconsiderate death. 1997. Severn House. 978-0-7278-5233-5. Sutton, Surrey. English. 37764582.
  25. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Death at Dearley Manor. 1998. Severn House. 978-0-7278-5381-3. Sutton. English. 39875970.
  26. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Death at Dearley Manor. 2019. Bookouture . 978-1-78681-989-5. English. 1104855787.
  27. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Copycat.. 1999. Sutton. 978-0-7278-5499-5. Severn House. English. 861900895.
  28. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Death at Beacon Cottage. 2019. Bookouture . 978-1-78681-991-8. English. 1106088508.
  29. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Touch me not. 2001. Severn House. 978-0-7278-5602-9. Sutton. English. 45336952.
  30. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Death at Burwell Farm. 2019. Bookouture . 978-1-78681-993-2. English. 1106068587.
  31. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Dirty work. 2003. Severn House. 978-0-7278-5974-7. Sutton. English. 52532139.
  32. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Death at Ivy House. 2019. Bookouture . 978-1-83888-048-4. English. 1107515931.
  33. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Deadly obsession. 2004. Severn House. 978-0-7278-6151-1. Sutton, Surrey; New York. English. 56649874.
  34. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Death on a summer morning. 2019. Bookouture . 978-1-83888-050-7. English. 1108522587.
  35. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Party to murder. 2005. Severn House. 978-0-7278-6304-1. Sutton. English. 62760086.
  36. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Death under the apple tree. 2019. Bookouture . 978-1-83888-056-9. English. 1112129565.
  37. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Alpha, beta, gamma ... dead. 2007. Severn House. 978-0-7278-6467-3. Sutton. English. 74523603.
  38. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Death at the Mariners Hotel. 2019. Bookouture . 978-1-83888-058-3. English. 1112897482.
  39. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Smokescreen: [a Sukey Reynolds mystery|date=2008|publisher=Severn House|isbn=978-0-7278-6669-1|location=Surrey, Eng.|language=English|oclc=861657671].
  40. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Death at the library. 2019. Bookouture . 978-1-83888-084-2. English. 1119984148.
  41. Book: Rowlands, Betty. A fool there was. 2009. Severn House. 978-0-7278-6786-5. Sutton. English. 316426515.
  42. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Death on Clevedon Beach. 2019. Bookouture . 978-1-83888-086-6. English. 1119747218.
  43. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Miss Minchin dies.. 2010. Severn House. 978-0-7278-6990-6. Surrey, UK. English. 808057713.
  44. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Death in the village. 2019. 978-1-83888-088-0. English. 1119780065.
  45. Book: Rowlands, Betty. Unnatural wastage: a Sukey Reynolds mystery. 2012. Severn House. 978-0-7278-8214-1. Suttey, England. English. 948819851.
  46. Book: ROWLANDS, BETTY. DEATH AT SYCAMORE HOUSE.. 2019. BOOKOUTURE. 978-1-83888-189-4. Place of publication not identified. English. 1128195518.
  47. Book: Rowlands, Betty. The scent of death.. 2014. Severn House. 978-0-7278-8391-9. Surrey, UK. English. 889825199.
  48. Book: ROWLANDS, BETTY. DEATH AT SANDY BAY: an absolutely unputdownable cozy mystery novel.. 2019. BOOKOUTURE. 978-1-83888-191-7. Place of publication not identified. English. 1130643940.
  49. Book: Rowlands, Betty. A hive of bees. 1996. Severn House. 978-0-7278-5182-6. Sutton. English. 60310358.

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