Fiona Mountain's new historical novel, Lady of the Butterflies, based on the life of pioneering butterfly collector Lady Eleanor Glanville, is to be published in the UK by Preface, a new imprint of Random House, in July 2009, and by Putnam in the US in 2010.

Fiona Mountain has signed a three book deal with Preface. Lady of the Butterflies will be followed by another novel set during the seventeenth century, at the court of King Charles I and Queen Henrietta Maria.

Fiona Mountain's historical mysteries, Pale as the Dead and Bloodline have been optioned by Leonard Goldberg's Mandy Films Inc.

Leonard Goldberg has long been considered one of the entertainment industry's most talented, successful and creative executives and producers of feature films and television series. In partnership with Aaron Spelling, he was also responsible for some of the most influential and popular series in television history, including Charlie's Angels, Hart to Hart, Starsky & Hutch and The Rookies. Under his own banner he produced the successful feature films, Sleeping With The Enemy, Double Jeopardy and Charlie's Angels. He and his production company, Mandy Films, Inc. are currently associated with Paramount, 20th Century Fox and Columbia.

'Bloodline' will be produced by Darren Reagan, who has also optioned Fiona Mountain's historical novel, 'Isabella', which tells the haunting love story at the heart of the Mutiny on the Bounty.'

The winner of this year's Mary Higgins Clark Award, part of the Mystery Writer's of America's annual Edgar Allan Poe Awards® (the "Edgars®") is Fiona Mountain's Bloodline.

The Edgars® are named after MWA's_patron saint, Edgar Allan Poe, and are awarded to authors of distinguished work in various categories of the genre.
In recognition of their 25 year partnership in crime with best-selling author Mary Higgins Clark, Simon and Schuster has sponsored an award in her name to be given annually for ten years, starting in 2001. The announcement of this unique award honoring the Queen of Suspense was made at the 55th Annual Edgar Allan Poe Awards®, where Ms. Clark was inducted as a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America.

Nominated books are chosen from those sent to the MWA Edgar Awards® Committees for Best Novel, Best First Novel, and Best Paperback Novel. The winner is selected by a special MWA committee for the book most closely written in the Mary Higgins Clark tradition.