From Laurie R King

I got this from Laurie King one of my favorite authors and wanted to share it with you...

"Fifteen years ago (hard to believe!) The Beekeeper's Apprentice was published, and a minor cult was born. This April, The Language of Bees will come out, ninth in the Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes series. (You can pre-order this title from The Poisoned Pen where Laurie will sign)

So to celebrate a pair of bee-books, we're declaring this spring:

Fifteen Weeks of Bees
February through May 22, 2009.

Here's a news release on the celebration.

During the Fifteen Weeks, there will be all sorts of contests, prizes and other things going on--the Russellscape on the home page is truly great. Two young fans are running a YouTube contest and Mary Russell herself is not only blogging but Twittering as well, in addition there's a fund-raiser for Heifer International and... .

Everyone is already having a lot of fun with it. I'd really appreciate it if you'd help build the (ahem) buzz by passing this on to libraries or friends or anyone you can think of. And don't hesitate to get in touch if we can answer any questions. "

Laurie will be at The Poisoned Pen Bookstore on Tuesday, February 17 at 7 pm with another store favorite, Dana Stabenow as we launch Dana's new book Whisper to the Blood, Kate Shugak #16 and host a live webcast!