Eugene Mirman talks with Wesley Stace about his book Charles Jessold, Considered as a Murderer

Read an excerpt from the first chapter here: http://bit.ly/dFSRFl. You can also connect with Wesley on Facebook: http://on.fb.me/fkvhBX and on Twitter: http://bit.ly/esV1qJ.

Watch this video to see Eugene Mirman interview Wesley Stace, also known as musician John Wesley Harding, on his historical crime novel, Charles Jessold, Considered as a Murderer. In this author interview, Stace argues for the value of books, refuses to give away his novel's surprise ending, and more.

This historical crime fiction book takes place in England in 1923. A gentleman critic named Leslie Shepherd tells the macabre story of a gifted young composer, Charles Jessold. On the eve of his revolutionary new opera's premiere, Jessold murders his wife and her lover, and then commits suicide in a scenario that strangely echoes the plot of his opera---which Shepherd has helped to write.

This ambitiously intricate novel is set against a turbulent moment in 20th century music history, when atonal sounds first reverberated through the concert halls of Europe, just as the continent readied itself for war. What if Jessold's opera was not only a betrayal of Shepherd, but of England as well?

Learn more about the book Charles Jessold, Considered as a Murderer at http://us.macmillan.com/charlesjessold

Learn more about author Wesley Stace at http://us.macmillan.com/author/wesleystace

"Wesley Stace's tale of music and murder is a baroque intellectual thriller, wittily erudite and psychologically astute." —Alex Ross, author of The Rest Is Noise

"This is one of the few novels I have read that is truly musical. Wesley Stace is a brilliant and intensely original writer and this is his most unusual book yet." —Audrey Niffenegger, author of The Time Traveler's Wife

For more from Picador, please visit http://www.youtube.com/picadorusa and connect with us on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/picadorusa) and Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/picadorusa).

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• author interview
• crime novel
• 20th century music
• literary

[MusicJew158]

Actually Eugene Mirman is a comedian and is being completely sarcastic and goofy. He doesn't actually like Ayn Rand and hate other books.

[gabixler]

What a sad commentary on this interviewer...but Laurie King recommends! Check it out, I'm going to!

[hkirkpatrick3]

"Why did you even BOTHER??"

[LesliePB]

OK! I will buy the book!