{{Short description|British writer (born 1940)}} {{infobox person | name = Susan Moody | birth_name = Susan Elizabeth Horwood | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1940|1|18|df=yes}} | birth_place = [[Oxford]], England | other_names = Susannah James; <br> Susan Madison <br>([[pen names]]) | occupation = Writer | years_active = | spouse = {{plainlist| * {{marriage|Walter Bertsch|1961|1971|end=d.}} * {{marriage|John Moody|1972||end=div.}} * {{marriage|[[John Dalgleish Donaldson|John Donaldson]]|2001|2026|end=d.}} }} | children = 3 }}
'''Susan Moody''' {{Post-nominals|country=GBR|size=90%|FCIL}} (born 18 January 1940), is the principal [[pen name]] of '''Susan Elizabeth Horwood''', an English novelist best known for her [[Thriller (genre)|suspense]] [[novel]]s.
After marrying her third husband, [[Professor]] [[John Dalgleish Donaldson]], at [[Oxford]] on 5 September 2001, she became [[stepmother]] of his four children, including [[Queen Mary of Denmark|Mary, Queen of Denmark]].<ref>[https://www.burkespeerage.com/royal_families.php www.burkespeerage.com]</ref> She lives in [[Hobart]], [[Tasmania]], [[Australia]].
==Biography== The daughter of Professor Frederick Chesney Horwood (1904–1990) and Ursula ''née'' Wheeler-Robinson (1908–1989), daughter of [[H. Wheeler Robinson|the Revd Henry Wheeler-Robinson <small>DD</small>]], she grew up in Oxford, attending [[Headington School]]. She then lived in France where she met her first husband, Professor Walter Frank Bertsch (died 1971), whom she married in 1961. They moved to [[Tennessee]] where she lived for 10 years and had two sons, before returning to Britain. She married secondly in 1972, Dr John Moody, having one son. She then studied with the [[Open University]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]] 1978).
In 1983, Moody published her first novel, ''A Distant Shore'', and one other historical novel under the pen name '''Susannah James''' before she turned to the genre of crime and suspense literature. More recently, she has also used the pen name '''Susan Madison'''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://literature.britishcouncil.org/writer/susan-moody|title = Susan Moody - Literature}}</ref>
Moody is a former Chairwoman of the [[Crime Writers' Association]] and has served as World President of the International Association of Crime Writers.<ref>[https://www.crimewritersna.org/ www.crimewritersna.org]</ref> She has been elected to the prestigious [[Detection Club]] and as a [[Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Linguists]] (FCIL). Having led numerous courses on writing crime fiction, she continues to tutor creative writing courses in England, [[France]], Australia, and [[Denmark]].
==Bibliography== Amateur detective Penny is a beautiful 6-ft black photographer, daughter of a UN Ambassador. *''Penny Black'' (1984) (#56 among [[The Top 100 Crime Novels of All Time]]) *''Penny Dreadful'' (1984) *''Penny Post'' (1985) *''Penny Royal'' (1986) *''Penny Wise'' (1988) *''Penny Pinching'' (1989) *''Penny Saving'' (1993).
===Cassie Swann series=== Cassie Swann is an expert [[contract bridge|bridge]] player in England. * ''Takeout Double'' (Also published as: ''Death Takes a Hand'') (1993) * ''Grand Slam'' (1994) * ''King of Hearts'' (1995) * ''Doubled in Spades'' (1996) * ''Sacrifice Bid'' (1997) * ''Dummy Hand'' (1998).
===Stand Alones=== *''Playing With Fire''; ''([[Mosaic]]'', USA). *''Hush-a-bye'' *''House of Moons'' *''[[Misselthwaite Manor|Misselthwaite]]'' : a sequel to [[Frances Hodgson Burnett]]'s novel ''[[The Secret Garden]]''; ''([[Return to the Secret Garden]]'', USA). *''Falling Angel'' *''The Italian Garden'' *''The Colour of Hope'' *''Touching The Sky'' *''Letters From Kirsten'' (Denmark) *''Losing Nicola'' *''Dancing in the Dark''.
===Other=== *''A Distant Shore'', an historical novel set in the royal harem of Istanbul. *''Lucia's Legacy'', an historical novel set in Spain in the 1800s. *''Love Over Gold'', the novelisation of the [[Nescafé]] [[Gold Blend couple]] advertisements. *''Hatchards Crime Companion: The top 100 crime novels of all time selected by The Crime Writers Association'', edited by Susan Moody.
===Short stories=== Moody has written a number of well-received [[short stories]] which have appeared in many anthologies.
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *{{British council|id=susan-moody|name=Susan Moody}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Moody, Susan}} [[Category:1940 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Writers from Oxford]] [[Category:Writers from Tennessee]] [[Category:People educated at Headington School]] [[Category:Alumni of the Open University]] [[Category:Fellows of the Chartered Institute of Linguists]] [[Category:British women novelists]] [[Category:British women mystery writers]] [[Category:English crime fiction writers]] [[Category:English mystery writers]] [[Category:English emigrants to Australia]]