FS tightens up the thumbscrews....

Just when I was determined to buy no more Folio books until renewal time (and late at that), I get an e-mail about a new set of four of Dorothy Sayer's Peter Wimsey books including Whose Body? and Busman's Holiday, and baiting the hook with a 20% discount AND a $10 voucher if ordered before April 10. Most cruel--Torquemada has nothing on the folks at the Folio Society.

The binding design on the new set is rather bland compared to the older 5 volume set which resembled the Wodehouse boxed sets with the full color, wraparound illustrations on the bindings. The illustrator is Natacha Ledwidge, who also did that set--although I didn't like her work on The Towers of Trebizond, her style is better suited for Wimsey.

I don't know if I can hold out....

FS should coordinate better the different channels available to members. The Sayers collection has been advertised for several days in the webpage, in fact, since the very day that Mrs. Dalloway was announced. Today, I get the same email sent to you, Django, offering the very same books.

Hm yeah since it is new I very much doubt there would be any further discount at the upcoming sale as well.

However it is interesting that the voucher has to be used before April 10, I guess perhaps a hint as to when the sale will start?

I got the voucher as well...there goes my spring sale money! I've been meaning to pick up The Monk for a while now, and while I'm ordering I may as well get some Dickens. I don't own any FS Dickens and that seems like something that needs to be addressed.

I also saw the set on the website and as I have the first set I was immediately interested. I planned to wait and hope to get it in a sale next year as the first set ended up both on sale and I believe as a renewal gift. However if I also get the $10 voucher plus the 20% off I probably will take the offer.

I did not even know that there was a previous set published.
*sigh* There went my resolve not to buy anything before the sale

If you think the e-mail is tempting wait until you get the brochure. I've been trying to talk myself out of getting this set ever since I saw it on the site last week. It's already made its way into my basket but that little voice in the back of my mind keeps saying "no, no, no". And then yesterday the brochure shows up in my mail and my resolve is rapidly disappearing. I don't have the previous set but I picked up Strong Poison on sale a few years back. To make matters worse I just realized that one of the books in the set deals with Wimsey's honeymoon with the women he met in Strong Poison. Now, doesn't that just scream "Buy me, we need to be together"? Like LucasTrask, if I get that e-mail with the $10 voucher I'll probably go for it. Oh, and thanks for mentioning the previous set (she says sarcastically), which I now find myself desperately longing for. ;-)

I decided to bite on The Rose with the $10 voucher since it's already 30% off. I know it's not a Folio, but I've still been wanting it. For everything else, I'm waiting for the Spring sale.

Edit: Wrong Touchstone

7>
haniwitch, before you read about the honeymoon try to read Gaudy Night. It deals at length with the relationship of Wimsey and Harriet, Wimsey's "final proposal", and Harriet's acceptance.

#9
Actually I haven't even read Strong Poison yet. FS books go directly onto bookshelves in my house (much less danger to the books there with three dogs and three cats) instead of on the usual To Read Piles which means I frequently forget that I haven't read them (and yes, sometimes I forget I even bought them). Right now I'm still working my way through the Paddington books and the first of the Mapp & Lucia set.

And--Hey! I'm trying to resist temptation and not buy any books at all and here you are lining up more. We really have to change the group name to FS Enablers. ;-)

Haniwitch: Are you using the collections feature yet? I use it to create a virtual to-read pile. It's much safer from the dogs and cats and the oblivious family member who uses the stack as a beer coaster. I created a to-read (or was it one of the standard ones) collection and everytime I buy a new book it usually gets added to that collection and then it goes to it's home in one of the many bookshelves scattered through my house. Then when I'm ready to start something new, I pull up the collection in cover view and all my options are right there to be chosen from. Currently at 88 titles, that would be a dangerous physical stack.

The first FS five book set included:
Strong Poison
Have His Carcase
Murder Must Advertise
The Nine Tailors
Gaudy Night

The two FS sets include 9 of the 11 Lord Peter Wimsey novels written by Sayers, leaving the novels Clouds of Witness and The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club, along with Lord Peter, which collects all the Lord Peter short stories, still remaining to be published by FS (one can hope).

Three of the Harriet Vane novels were in the first set, with the final one in the new set. The four Harriet Vane novels are:
Strong Poison
Have His Carcase
Gaudy Night
Busman's Honeymoon

The first set includes Have His Carcase, and Gaudy Night, which chronicle the turbulent course of Wimsey and Harriet's romance after meeting in Strong Poison, as well as two of my other favorites: Murder Must Advertise and The Nine Tailors.

In the new set set, Harriet and Wimsey go on a Busman's Holiday concluding the story of their relationship. It is disappointing that they didn't include Clouds of Witness, the best look we get at Wimsey's family and his sometimes strained relations with them.

Lucas, you're a faster typist!

I just wish FS would reprint the first set, which I missed out on. Then I would definitely go for the new one. I badly need to improve on my 1970s paperbacks, at least one of which fell apart the first time I read it. It's now a loose-leaf file, rather than a book!

#12, 13
You're driving me crazy. :-) I'm trying to cut down on my FS addiction and you're sending me to the used book market for even more. The Spring Sale hasn't even arrived yet and I'm dying to place an order (okay you two aren't entirely to blame for that; if the brochure hadn't arrived I wouldn't be so badly tempted). I can't even find the time to read the books I've already spent money on and you're coming up with more reasons to part with my hard-earned cash. Must resist temptation. (Closes eyes and tries to move away from the computer)

I loved the Lord Peter Wimsey books and have been meaning to get the earlier set (although I'm undecided about the colourful covers) and now I read that there's a new set (with different titles) coming. My heart is rejoicing while my bank account is crying.

I hope the Folio Society decide to release the remaining titles. I think Clouds of Witness is definitely worthy of publishing.

>16 haniwitch:

haniwitch, when have you ever resisted temptation?

I say, save yourself the three or four days' stress and just click the buy button. We all know you're going to do it in the end, anyway. :)

I do think their choices in the Sayers sets have been a bit odd: why include three of the Harriet Vane books in the first set, and leave out Busman's Honeymoon? I'd like to have it in a matching edition to the others, not in a different cover.

And why, oh why include Five Red Herrings in the new set, and not Clouds of Witness? Clouds of Witness was gripping from beginning to end, while Five Red Herrings was pretty dull by Sayers standards.

When I got home yesterday and checked my inbox I had the FS email about the new offerings with $10 voucher offer. It took me about 2 minutes to order the set... At least FS let me spread it out over three months.

Django, while I was composing my post I kept thinking someone else would beat me to it.

haniwitch, I don't mean to tempt you, just offer more information about what Lord Peter Wimsey titles FS has published. All it did was make me want the new set even more.

My wife and I found Lord Peter through watching the BBC productions on DVD. We had not seen them or heard of the books, but my wife enjoys mysteries and period ones are among her favorites.

EveleenM wrote:
I do think their choices in the Sayers sets have been a bit odd: why include three of the Harriet Vane books in the first set, and leave out Busman's Honeymoon? I'd like to have it in a matching edition to the others, not in a different cover.

And why, oh why include Five Red Herrings in the new set, and not Clouds of Witness? Clouds of Witness was gripping from beginning to end, while Five Red Herrings was pretty dull by Sayers standards.

I agree that it is odd, but maybe FS thought the five they published in the first set were the strongest of the series. FS tends to publish only a few of a writer’s work, usually the better known and better thought of titles. Many of us here have voiced our dislike of this practice and that we would prefer FS to publish complete series of our favorite authors.

I also don't see why the second set didn't include the remaining six novels, unless FS is considering putting out a third set with the final two novels and all the short stories. As for the second set not having full colour wrap around cover art, that is different from the way FS did the Wodehouse sets. Maybe it was a cost issue, negative feedback on the first set, a combination of both, or something completely different…

>20 LucasTrask: I don't mean to tempt you, just offer more information about what Lord Peter Wimsey titles FS has published. All it did was make me want the new set even more.

Excuses, excuses :))

OK - old set - ordered... the resolve not to buy books for at least 10 days in a row went out of the window again but oh well. Now trying very hard to resist the new one.

#11
jveezer, I can barely add books to my library let alone use any of the features. Actually my To Read Piles aren’t true piles because if I left piles of books around the house my sister and nephew would kill me. The books are actually stacked up horizontally in front of other books on various out-of-the-way shelves in the house (usually the basement). The pile I think I will read first is located inside a stereo stand where the speaker would normally sit.

And I’ll have you know that my animals so far are not a threat to my books. None of this generation of the dogs has even thought to use any as chew toys (but one of my previous dogs actually ate a library book) and my cats look forward to the arrival of FS packages. Okay, so the cats really just want the boxes but it was pretty funny to see them all sitting in front of the latest Big White Bag, which unfortunately did not have a box as the two books that came were in a wraparound like Amazon uses.

#18
beatlemoon, I can at least pretend to resist. Actually I’m going to wait a little longer just to see if I get an e-mail with the extra $10 voucher. Every little bit helps. Especially as it looks like I will be looking for and probably buying the older set as well. After all, it doesn’t make sense to have only two of the Harriet Vane novels. Now if I could only find the time to read even one of my many purchases. Oh well, when retirement finally arrives (not for a very long while though) at least I’ll have a few busy years just catching up on my reading.

Haniwitch please make sure those books in the basement (or anywhere for that matter) are silverfish safe.

Let me just update this group on the "Big White Bag Mystery" of yore. I found out that my local post office was actually opening the bags, getting the FS boxes out for delivery and keeping the bags. When other devotees reported that they were receiving the bag and I told so to my postwoman, the great big white bag snatching ceased, and now I'm the proud owner of several. The bags are ideal for collecting garden debris.

>25 drasvola:

Hahahahahahahahahahaha - that's hilarious! The mail personnel were stealing the Big White Bags!

> 26

Well, you see, beatlemoon, they probably thought they were helping me out by reducing my volume of trash disposal... This is a rural area with frequent high winds and an incredible amount of leaves, twigs and other agricultural matter that need to be picked up. The Big White Bags are perfect for the job! I just empty them into larger street containers (bins?) and recycle.

>27 drasvola:
Maybe they were doing it because stacking the box in the trucks they use for delivery is much easier than dealing with the bags... And as it is considered mailing material for the air-travel, they were just removing it..

I used to get some similar bags from US senders when I was still back home - my post office would open them to put all my mail in one bag so it is easier for pickup... :)

> 28

I didn't get any kind of explanation. FS shipments now arrive inside a plastic bag while before my remarks to the postwoman I just got the boxes. I do agree that it is a quirky, funny anecdote... which I wanted to share because some time back we discussed the matter in other threads.

OP: Just when I was determined to buy no more Folio books until renewal time (and late at that), I get an e-mail about a new set of four of Dorothy Sayer's Peter Wimsey books including Whose Body? and Busman's Holiday.....I don't know if I can hold out....
I didn't ! I've been umming and aaghing about the first Wimsey for ages, but as soon as this came up, I decided. I've now bought an excellent set (from Ardis, at a good price too compared to others that have been available recently), and ordered the new ones. Complete sucker for them!