Dorothy Dunnett

Dorothy Dunnett (August 25, 1923-November 9, 2001) was a Scottish historical novelist. She is best known for her six-part series about Francis Crawford of Lymond, which she followed with the eight-part prequel The House of Niccolò. She considered the two to form a single fourteen-volume series. She also wrote a novel about the real Macbeth called King Hereafter (1982), and a series of mystery novels centred around Johnson Johnson, a portrait painter/spy.

She was a leading light in the Scottish arts world, and a renaissance woman in more ways than one. She had a keen interest in opera, was a professional portrait painter, was a trustee of the National Library of Scotland, a Board Member of the Edinburgh International Book Festival, a trustee of the Scottish War Memorial, and a non-executive Director of Scottish Television. In 1992 she was awarded an OBE for her services to literature.

Dorothy Dunnett was married to Sir Alastair Dunnett, editor of The Scotsman - Scotland's most famous and respected newspaper.

Dorothy Dunnett died in November 2001, in Edinburgh.

Contents

1 The Lymond Chronicles 2 The House of Niccolò 3 The Johnson Johnson series 4 Fans and Gatherings 1 External Sites

The Lymond Chronicles

This series, set in sixteenth-century Scotland, features the Scottish nobleman Francis Crawford of Lymond. The meticulously-researched series takes place in a wide variety of locations, including France, the Ottoman Empire, Malta, and Russia.

1. The Game of Kings (1961)
2. Queen's Play (1964)
3. The Disorderly Knights (1966)
4. Pawn in Frankincense (1969)
5. The Ringed Castle (1971)
6. Checkmate (1975)

The House of Niccolò

Set in mid-fifteenth century Europe, the protagonist of this series is Nicholas de Fleury (Niccolò). The story of Nicholas's rise takes place during the European Renaissance. As with Dunnett's earlier series, it features a number of real historical characters.

1. Niccolò Rising (1986)
2. Spring of the Ram (1987)
3. Race of Scorpions (1989)
4. Scales of Gold (1991)
5. The Unicorn Hunt (1993)
6. To Lie with Lions (1995)
7. Caprice and Rondo (1997)
8. Gemini (2000)

The Johnson Johnson series

In the Johnson Johnson series, the date of publication is not the same as the book's order in the series. It gets more confusing, since each book is set in the time it is written. The Dolly of the title refers to Johnson Johnson's yacht.

1. Dolly & the Bird of Paradise (later retitled Tropical Issue) (1983)
2. Dolly & the Singing Bird (later retitled Rum Affair) (aka The Photogenic Soprano) (1968)
3. Dolly & the Cookie Bird (later retitled Ibiza Surprise) (aka Murder in the Round) (1970)
4. Dolly & the Doctor Bird (later retitled Operation Nassau) (aka Match for a Murderer) (1971)
5. Dolly & the Starry Bird (later retitled Roman Nights) (aka Murder in Focus) (1973)
6. Dolly & the Nanny Bird (later retitled Split Code) (1976)
7. Send a Fax to the Kasbah (published in the UK as Moroccan Traffic) (1992)

Fans and Gatherings

Dorothy Dunnett has a devoted and active fan base, with Gatherings held in Edinburgh in 1990, 1994 and 2000 - with over 300 people in attendance. Similar events were held in Boston and in Philadelphia. Smaller gatherings have been held in Dublin (2001) and New Orleans (2003) since her death, and another is planned for Malta (October 2005). Fans in the UK meet annually or two-yearly in various places including Rye, Lincoln, Oxford and at the formal meeting of the Dorothy Dunnett Readers' Association each spring in Scotland. Occasional meetings are held in Australia, Canada and the USA as well. Several internet email discussion groups exist, the largest of which is the Marzipan group on Yahoogroups.

External Sites

• Random House site on Dorothy Dunnett (http://www.randomhouse.com/vintage/dunnett/)
• New York Times obituary (http://www.nytimes.com/2001/11/13/obituaries/13DUNN.html?ex=1055476800&en=e89fa9db66703a17&ei=5070)
• Dorothy Dunnett Readers' Association (http://www.dorothydunnett.org)
• Bill Marshall's Dunnett Site (http://www.dorothydunnett.co.uk)