Catherine Aird
Encyclopedia
Catherine Aird is the pseudonym
of novelist Kinn Hamilton McIntosh. She is the author of more than twenty crime fiction
novel
s and several collections
of short stories
. Her witty, literate, and deftly plotted novels straddle the "cozy" and "police procedural" genres and are somewhat similar in flavor to those of Martha Grimes
, Caroline Graham
, M C Beaton
, Margaret Yorke
, and Pauline Bell.
, Yorkshire
in England. She attended the Waverley School and Greenhead High School, both in Huddersfield. As a young adult, she was bedridden due to a serious illness. Upon recovery, she worked as practice manager and dispenser for her father's medical practice in Sturry. Her first novel, The Religious Body, was published in 1966.
Aird served as Chair of the Crime Writers' Association
from 1990-91. She has been awarded an honorary M. A. from the University of Kent and the Crime Writers' Association 'Golden Handcuffs' Award for lifetime achievement. She also has been made a Member of the Order of the British Empire
for her services to the Girl Guides
. She lives in the village of Sturry, near Canterbury, Kent and is active in village life.
Aird is best known for her successful Chronicles of Calleshire, a series of crime novels set in the fictional County of Calleshire, England
, and featuring Detective Chief Inspector C.D. Sloan of the Berebury CID Department
, and his assistant, Detective Constable Crosby. She has also written and edited a series of village histories, and is an editor
and contributing author on works regarding other writers and the art of writing.
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
of novelist Kinn Hamilton McIntosh. She is the author of more than twenty crime fiction
Crime fiction
Crime fiction is the literary genre that fictionalizes crimes, their detection, criminals and their motives. It is usually distinguished from mainstream fiction and other genres such as science fiction or historical fiction, but boundaries can be, and indeed are, blurred...
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
s and several collections
Anthology
An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...
of short stories
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
. Her witty, literate, and deftly plotted novels straddle the "cozy" and "police procedural" genres and are somewhat similar in flavor to those of Martha Grimes
Martha Grimes
Martha Grimes is an American author of detective fiction.She was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to William Dermit Grimes, Pittsburgh's city solicitor, and to June Dunnington, who owned the Mountain Lake Hotel in Western Maryland where Martha and her brother spent much of their childhood. Grimes...
, Caroline Graham
Caroline Graham
Caroline Graham is an English playwright, screenwriter and novelist.Graham was born in Nuneaton, studied with the Open University, and received a degree in writing for the theatre from the University of Birmingham. Her first published book was Fire Dance, a romance novel...
, M C Beaton
Marion Chesney
Marion Chesney is a popular and prolific author. She has written numerous successful historical romance novels under her own name, including the Travelling Matchmaker and Daughters of Mannerling series. Using the pseudonym M. C...
, Margaret Yorke
Margaret Yorke
Margaret Yorke is an English crime fiction writer, real name Margaret Beda Nicholson .-Life and work:Born in Compton, Surrey, she spent her childhood in Dublin, moving to England in 1937. During World War II she worked as a hospital librarian, then at eighteen she joined the WRNS as a driver...
, and Pauline Bell.
Biography
Aird was born in HuddersfieldHuddersfield
Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....
, Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
in England. She attended the Waverley School and Greenhead High School, both in Huddersfield. As a young adult, she was bedridden due to a serious illness. Upon recovery, she worked as practice manager and dispenser for her father's medical practice in Sturry. Her first novel, The Religious Body, was published in 1966.
Aird served as Chair of the Crime Writers' Association
Crime Writers' Association
The Crime Writers Association is a writers' association in the United Kingdom. Founded by John Creasey in 1953, it is currently chaired by Peter James and claims 450+ members....
from 1990-91. She has been awarded an honorary M. A. from the University of Kent and the Crime Writers' Association 'Golden Handcuffs' Award for lifetime achievement. She also has been made a Member of the Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
for her services to the Girl Guides
Girl Guides
A Guide, Girl Guide or Girl Scout is a member of a section of some Guiding organisations who is between the ages of 10 and 14. Age limits are different in each organisation. It is the female-centred equivalent of the Scouts. The term Girl Scout is used in the United States and several East Asian...
. She lives in the village of Sturry, near Canterbury, Kent and is active in village life.
Aird is best known for her successful Chronicles of Calleshire, a series of crime novels set in the fictional County of Calleshire, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and featuring Detective Chief Inspector C.D. Sloan of the Berebury CID Department
Criminal Investigation Department
The Crime Investigation Department is the branch of all Territorial police forces within the British Police and many other Commonwealth police forces, to which plain clothes detectives belong. It is thus distinct from the Uniformed Branch and the Special Branch.The Metropolitan Police Service CID,...
, and his assistant, Detective Constable Crosby. She has also written and edited a series of village histories, and is an editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
and contributing author on works regarding other writers and the art of writing.
Novels
- The Religious Body (1966)
- A Most Contagious Game (1967)
- Henrietta Who (1968)
- The Complete Steel (1969)
- A Late Phoenix (1970)
- His Burial Too (1973)
- Slight Mourning (1975)
- Parting Breath (1977)
- Some Die Eloquent (1979)
- Passing Strange (1980)
- Last Respects (1982)
- Harm's Way (1984)
- A Dead Liberty (1986)
- The Body Politic (1990)
- A Going Concern (1993)
- Injury Time (1994)
- After Effects (1996)
- Stiff News (1998)
- Little Knell (2001)
- Amendment of Life (2002)
- Chapter and Hearse (2003)
- A Hole in One (2005)
- Losing Ground (2007)
- Past Tense (2010)
Collections
- The Catherine Aird Collection (1993)
- The Second Catherine Aird Collection (1994)
- The Third Catherine Aird Collection (1997)
Short stories
- Grave Import (1996)
- Like To Die (1997)
- Handsel Monday (1998)
- The Man Who Rowed for the Shore (1998)
- Gold Frankincemse and Murder (2000)
- Cold Comfort (2001)
Non-fiction
- The Oxford Companion to Crime and Mystery Writing (1999)
- Mystery Voices: Interviews with British Crime Writers (1991)