Dorothy Dunnett

Lady Dorothy changed the way I think about the world and the people in it with her Lymond books, as well as brought many hours of pleasure and excitement into my own world. These are lifetime gifts for which no one can be sufficiently grateful. Her books are works of mystery, art, play, scholarship, and, ultimately, generosity. I will think of her always. I hope that her family will accept our sincere condolences for our great and their greater loss.

She was the best author I have ever read - her writing comes back to me many times, in thoughts and deeds. No one author has affected me more.

I first read "The Lymond Chronicles" as a teenager, and Dorothy Dunnett was a much needed teacher who helped me to see outside of myself. She taught me that people are more complex and human than what I judged them to be, and that life is more terrifying, more exhilarating, more beautiful, and deeper than I'd ever hoped. She will always be a teacher. I'm honored that I've had the privilege of learning from her books.

Dorothy's books have inspired me; to research, to write and to travel. I have just booked my first trip to Scotland with the aim of seeing some of the places Lymond and Nicholas called home. Thankyou Dorothy your writing will live wherever your readers are.

There are tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat, but I rejoice that Dorothy is back with her beloved husband. I've been reading her books since I first discovered "Checkmate" in 1976, and she's absolutely the best. Thanks for letting us know.

for almost 30 years the lymond chronicles have provided me with endless pleasure - lady dunnett's storytelling majesty was matched only by her glorious usage of the english language. i am sick to my stomach to know that her voice has been stilled. no lymond book #7? no book #9 of the house of niccolo? no followup to king hereafter? no more johnson johnson? fegs. many condolences to her family.

Like so many others who have written here, I was enthralled by Dorothy Dunnett's world and words for more than 30 years. She is one of the few writers whose works I can read over and over and find new delights in each rereading. I have been immensely grateful to the friend who loaned me The Game of Kings all those years ago, and I will miss her with all my heart.

I finished Gemini last Wednesday and went searching the web to find an address so that I could send my thanks to Dorothy Dunnett for a year of pleasure and excitement reading Niccolo for the first time. I was devastated to discover the news. My thanks to her and my sincere condolences to her family. What a great lady and what a great legacy.

For over 20 years I was in intermittent correspondence with Dorothy - questions about Lymond; Following the Lymond Trail in the Scottish borders (how my children were bored, and Dorothy replied her sons were bored "doing" the chateaux for Queen's Play !) Then I followed the Lymond Rooftop race in Blois, which Dorothy told me fans were doing, but naturally, on terra firma! I wrote to Dorothy about the exact moves of the living chess game in Pawn. I loved my Lymond books, which are annotated so much, they are falling to bits - so then I requested all the hardbacks, which were given to me at various Christmases by my family - but the final ending in Checkmate.....I had to buy that book the minute it was in the shops, to read cover to cover, to find the real solutions - What a surprise. Then I was so happy Dorothy told me she was writing the Niccolo series.....my husband and I went to Venice, and followed Niccolo's trail there. We weren't able to go to Bruges until 2 years ago, and our hotel was right near Spangherts Street which we walked down every day; I saw and photographed the White Bear at the end of Spangherts Street; I photgraphed everything, picturing Niccolo and all his friends - and enemies, there. I pictured Niccolo on the Crane; and of course, I visited the Adorne Anselm house and the wonderful tiny chapel with his tomb. We even went to the "Wedding Banquet" of Margaret of York, and Charles the Bold! Wonderful. For the 4 days we were inside the surrounding canals of Bruges, I lived in another age, that of the 1460's on onwards. We visited Mechlen and saw Margaret Of Austria's wonderful Palace...and her statue. Oh, how we shall miss all these so real characaters, which Dorothy in her brilliance, made alive. And how wonderful to find the Lymond connenction on the last page of the last Niccolo book. I met Dorothy at long last, in Winchester, October 1989,at a book signing for Race of Scorpians - and cherish a photo of us together. It was there she reminded me we had been corresponding for over 20 years.We shall all miss her so very much - THE best historical writer. Our sympathies lie with her sons, over the death of their dear mother, not so long after Alistair.

"...lightsome from birth to death as the froth of the sea, and leaving no more behind us....." Not so......

I weep for the loss of such a wonderful woman. My deepest sympathy to her family and friends for this great loss. Her presence in this world was a blessing. I will always be thankful for what she brought to my life. Thank you Dorothy. God bless.

I was captured by Mrs. Dunnett's Lymond Chronicles in January of this year, and spent the happiest two months of my reading life in that captivity. I regret her passing, but she has left behind a world, based on history, detailed, dark yet glittering, with a hero who is more real than most people living. It is as fine a legacy as any one person could wish to leave behind.

Dear Dunnett Family, Your mother's work, specifically the Lymond series (I enjoyed the House of Niccolo last year) helped me to pull myself out of the depression September 11 left in my life. Each day as I ride the train into the city I lose myself in Lymond's world and I'm already worrrying about it being over. The news of your mother's passing filled me with such a vaccum that I can not put it into words. I'm so sorry for your loss. Please accept my condolences and accept the thanks that were due to your mother. Kathy Mavrikakis (NYC)

What sad news we received today; Dorothy Dunnett has stopped writing. Our deepest sympathies to her family and friends for their enormous loss. For 20 years we've told all our friends about this amazing writer. Her characters, complexity, wit, and emotional depth have never been equaled. Her writing has moved us like no other. We share the sorrow expressed here by so many.

As a bookseller, I fell under the spell of Dorothy Dunnett's Lymond series back in the 1970s and remain an ardent fan, recommending her books to customers who invariably come back for more. I am devastated by the news of her death - perhaps we all thought she would go on forever writing her wonderful books. There is certainly no other author who compares.

I'm a sportswriter for a paper in San Francisco and I only wish that someday I can vaguely approach the brilliance that Dorothy demonstrated in volumes upon volumes of work. She was a spectacular writer who will be greatly missed.

In two days I leave to visit the disorderly knights and I will, of course, be taking Dorothy with me, I like to savour the books insitu. Saddened though I am by her death I can't help but feel that she is now re-united with her Lymond and we should be happy for them both.

I heard the sad news of Dorothy's death 3 weeks ago and was devastated. I felt as though I had lost a friend as well as the best author I had ever read. But as time goes on I realise that we haven't lost Dorothy completely. All her readers and friends will continue to meet and discuss all of her wonderful work and she will live on through Lymond, Nicholas and Johnson to continue entrancing people the world over. I was priviledged to meet Dorothy twice over this last year and am very glad that I was able to thank her for years of delightful and fascinating reading. No other author on my bookshelf has been so well-read, no other author has been so much enjoyed. My sympathy to her family at such a sad time. My thoughts are with you all, and with Dorothy. Much love.

Like so many others, I discovered Dorothy Dunnett's novels as a teenager, and have read them over and over in the thirty-odd years since then. On the day that 'Checkmate' was published I was waiting outside the bookshop before it opened, and went back to my room at college,read the book straight through and then started it again! I have never found another author who has given me so much pleasure over the years; I know I will continue to read her books for the rest of my life. My deepest sympathies to all Dorothy Dunnett's family and friends.

Lady Dunnett's incredible talent for writing has given me countless hours of reading pleasure. I hope her journey was a peaceful one.

I never met Dorothy Dunnett although I have read and re-read all her books, both the historical novels and the Dolly sereis many times. Every time I read something of hers I find something new, a detail I overlooked before or a sidelight on history which I had never considered. She has been a constant source of pleasure and a companion through many trials and tribulations. I will sorely miss her work. My sympathies go to all her family and friends and I share their loss.

Dorothy Dunnett has been my absolute favourite writer since I discovered her books some 15 years ago. Her books have meant to me so much more than a very good story. The way she linked history, wit, fun, romance, travel descriptions, and "je ne sais pas quoi" is inimitable. I had the pleasure and honour to meet her once and she was so gracious and witty than I forgot to tell her how much I admired her. I think, however, she could tell. Through her, I met a lot of other Dunnett lovers, who have become friends. I was in Ireland a few weeks ago with them and we had a very moving session which ended with raising a wee drum to her memory. Although I was too distressed to write earlier, my thoughts have been with her family and close friends. May she rest in peace.

I look forward to encouraging my children to reading Dorothy's books when they grow up. They are only babies now but her books will have as much appeal and value in fifteen years time as they do now. Her work is ageless. Such genius. Such a loss. I can only be grateful for the pleasure her work has given me and still gives me and will go on giving me.

That's literature. Now Mrs. Dunnett continues her marvellous work together with the greatest authors. God bless her.

I first read Game of Kings when I was 17 and stayed up all night, unable to put it down it was so entrancing. It is as good on the hundredth reading as the first. For the delight Mrs Dunnett's books have afforded me over the last 25 years heartfelt thanks. You are gone but your work will live on. No other writers has yet come close.

Dorothy Dunnett has been my favorite author since the '60's when I first read The Game of Kings. Her works are the only books I read and reread - and she has quite literally spoiled my taste for lesser historical fiction. I had the great pleasure to hear her read in Oak Park IL last year. By chance I was reading The Game of Kings for the 6th time when I heard of her death from my eldest daughter, another Dunnett afficiando. I send my condolences to her family and my heartfelt thanks for hours of reading pleasure. Virginia Hignstone

I have read Dorothy Dunnett's books for some 35 years with great pleasure, which was never diminished upon rereading. I never found any writer to match the depth, complexity and vividness she brought to her work. Lacking husband or children I have often felt compelled to read passages aloud to my cats for the sheer pleasure of letting the words loose from the page. I am greatly saddened that there will be no more, but am very greatful for that with which we have.

My deepest sympathy to Ninian, Mungo and their families. I have only just heard the very sad news upon receiving the latest edition of "Whispering Gallery." Dorothy Dunnett has been such a part of my life for the last 25 years that I feel as if I have lost a personal friend. May she rest in peace.

I am still at a loss for words. Dorothy's books have been a delight and an inspiration to me for years. Even though I never met her it feels like I've lost a friend. My mother died of cancer exactly a year ago in November. Re-reading Dorothy's books over and over again helped me tremendously during this time of sadness. My deepest sympathy and my heartfelt condolences are with her family for the loss you have suffered.

For twelve years I portrayed a 16th century noblewoman at the Renaissance Pleasure Faire in Southern California. For twelve years I read the Lymond chronicles each year, in toto, as part of my preparation for that portrayal. I owe Dorothy Dunnett a debt of gratitude for her inspiration that I can never pay back—not only because she is no longer with us, but because one cannot pay back that sort of gift: one can only pay it forward, and I will strive to do so. I grieve for the loss experienced by her family and friends, but I rejoice for the fact that the world was privileged to hold her and her great, generous talent for so long.

I heard an interview with Lady Dunnett over a year ago on NPR. I found her fascinating. She seemed so warm and friendly. I started reading the Lymond Chronicles. They are tremendous. I look forward to reading all of her works. I am saddened to hear of her demise. I know she was a tremendous writer. I feel very fortunate that I discovered her writings.

I have read and re-read anything and everything that Dorothy Dunnett ever wrote and my most prized possession is my signed copy of 'Gemini'. She was a magnificent author who transports me to another world in her writing. I have found nobody to touch her. I am shocked and saddened to learn of her death and would like to add my condolences to the many thousands that must already have been received.

I discovered Lady Dunnett's work in Wordsmith, a great bookshop in Harvard Square. Luckily, the Lymond series were displayed face out. I found out about Dunnettwork from Tovah Hollander, who is still missed. Dorothy Dunnett leaves behind a body of work that has created a large, welcoming and prolific online community that will continue to discuss and debate her work in the years to come.

We are all diminished by Dorothy's going, but she has left us a treasured legacy - books which have given, and will continue to give so much pleasure to so many, both now and in the future. To misquote Shakespeare, we will not see her like again. We do hope that in time there will be a Memorial Service for Dorothy, so that we can celebrate her life, and her gifts to us all.

I came to DD's two great series late, I had read her mysteries and enjoyed them, but it wasn't until I heard her speak and Adelaide Writers Week in 2000 that I read the Lymond series and am presently reading the Nicolo series. I am totaly overwhelmed by her immense knowledge, her researching abilities and the just sheer magnitude of her imagination. She will be missed, but thank God she was here to give us her stories.

If granted a wish for personal use it would be to write with a talent as awesome as DD's. She has left a magnificent legacy to the world.To her world-wide fans, her friends and especially her family, deepest sympathy, we all share the loss.

No other author has ever made me work so hard, or rewarded me half as richly for doing so. My deepest sympathy to her family.

Dorothy Dunnett shall always remain my favourite author. Her books challenged me as a reader. I laughed, cried, swore, and sighed reading them. I'd often quail at the hardships she put her characters through, but admired her deep and relentless perception that, as in life, people must traverse great trials in order to realize what they are capable of becoming. Though I shall greatly miss reading new Dunnett novels, I feel, somehow, that by finishing her last great work with the Niccolo series, Dorothy herself created a fitting epitaph by which we can remember her. She was a truly great writer.

I was introduced to Dorothy's books two years ago and a whole new world opened up to me through her rich characterization and engrossing plots. Two incidents I wish to note: one the rediscovery of an original edition of King Hereafter in my grandmother's books, and two, meeting Dorothy herself in October 2000 in Oak Park, IL. Both of these mean so much to me and I can only imagine how you, her family and friends, are dealing with a much greater loss. My sympathies and gratitude ...

My introduction to Dorothy's books was when I was on holiday in Bath about 20 years ago. It was a hot day, I had a long walk back to my hotel, so I bought a copy of King Hereafter. Then I went into the Roman Baths and took a tray of lemon tea on to the terrace above the baths - and started on the book. That was it. Fortunately I was then able to read the rest in sequence, which opened up a new world to me and brought history to life. Thank you, Dorothy.

I first read Dorothy Dunnett's Lymond series 10 years ago at the urging of a friend. Prior to that, although I had seen the books on the shelves of shops and libraries, I had failed to buy or borrow them. How wrong I was to overlook them for all those years. I devoured the Lymond series over the course of a month, and became a devoted Dorothy fan as a result. I have also read and waited impatiently for the completion of the Niccolo series which I also enjoyed immensely. It is very sad that Dorothy Dunnett has passed away, but she will live forever in the minds and hearts of her readers.

I came across my first Dunnett-novel (1st book in the Lymond series in German) at the age of 16, when I hated history in school. It opened my eyes to seeing the individual persons behind the sheer dates of history. I thank her for making me see a new universe... Elisabeth

I have just finished listening to a repeat of an interview with Dorothy Dunnett on ABC Classic FM, streamed over the Internet. I did not know of her works until hearing the interview, but in the interview, conducted by Maragaret Throsby, she came across as a wonderfully warm, interesting and interested person. I look frward to discovering her works in the near future.

Dorothy's books fired a young girl's imagination enough to give her fuel for a lifetime career in period costume. The woman thanks her from the bottom of her heart. Thank you.

I would like to express my deepest sympathy to Dorothy's family and close friends. I want them to know that their grief is shared by people, like myself, who didn't know Dorothy except in the most casual of ways. She was one of those people that once you met her, you could never forget her. I remember her introducing herself in Edinburgh as "Dorothy, not Mrs Dunnett or Lady Dunnett, but Dorothy." Thus, she immediately invited a roomful of strangers to be her friend. I only met Dorothy only three occasions, The Edinburgh Book Festival, the Edinburgh Gathering and the Philadelphia Gathering. I was enchanted by her grace, her humor and her love of life. When she spoke to you, she made you feel as if you were the most important person she ever met. After meeting her, I remember thinking that she was a person I would love to have as a personal friend. That wasn't possible, but she had that sort of charisma that drew you to her. So tonight, as I find myself overwhelmed by grief at her loss, I remember, not the author of the best books I have ever read, but the woman herself. Dorothy, not Mrs Dunnett, or Lady Dunnett, but Dorothy, a loving, beautiful person who has left us much too soon. And somehow, even though she touched my life so fleetingly, I feel as if I have lost someone very dear to me. I want to end this note with a quote from Checkmate which expresses very accurately my feelings about Dorothy. I have taken the liberty of altering the verb tenses and changing the masculine in this quote to the feminine: "For her, the gateway has opened and the loss is ours to bear…No one, once they had met her could remain the same… ..Every day she lived mattered. She belonged to life. It should have been allowed her." Thank you, Dorothy for the 30 years of reading pleasure you have given me. And, more importantly, for the mark you have made on my life. You will not be forgotten. May God's comfort touch each of us as we deal with our sense of loss…

My life was enriched by her books. Lady Dunnett will be missed by many. My sincere condolences to her family and friends

My sincere condolences to Lady Dunnett's family. I am so sad that she is no longer here but so grateful for the countless hours of pleasure her books have brought me. Her family must be so proud of the literary legacy she has left behind her. She was truly gifted and has enriched the lives of many with that gift. God bless and keep her.

We, here in Australia, were told of Dorothy Dunnett`s passing yesterday on our national FM radio station. I felt just as I have on completing a reading of one of her magical series - full of sadness but so glad to have read them. We were today treated to a replay of the interview made last year, and it was again like reading her books- you got some much more out of them a second (or tenth) time. I was lucky to meet her last year, and I told her that I also paint and that my family come from Dunfermline. Quick as a rapier, she replied with - "perhaps you will also be in the `Notable daughters of Dunfermline` book also". What a wonderful thought - but it won`t happen as I`m not nearly as talented as she was. The world has been enriched by her presence and my condolences to her family. Pam

Special wishes to you all at this sad time. Thanking you for sharing your amazing mother with us. She has given me and many others so much joy over the years and I am certain will continue to do so for centuries to come.

I was saddened to hear the news of Dorothy Dunnett's death. She will be missed by many, but what a wonderful legacy she has left us. Just open one of books and be transported to another world, another time.

I have only met Dorothy Dunnett through the shimmering worlds she created with words. My life has been richer because of her. Thank you for whom she was beloved personally, for sharing her with us all, and for allowing us to express our grief and her importance to us her readers. For thirty years I have relished her poetry, her imagination, her painstakingly constructed historical canvas, her characters so brilliantly drawn. Our loss is heartfelt and great at her death. But she left so very much for the world to cherish and enjoy.

To say that Lady Dunnett changed my life is a huge understatement. She changed the way I look at life, at people, at history, at other cultures and religions. She made it possible to meet many wonderful, warm and caring Dunnett people, who have become my friends, who introduced me to other friends and other authors that I have enjoyed. She opened doors that I would never have opened on my own. As Philippa thought of Francis at the end of Checkmate when she thought he had died: "Men throughout Scotland and over the narrow seas who lived different lives, because they had known him. No one, once they had met him, could remain the same." "...the light, charming voice which had drawn her from her warm home...and had taken her through deeper seas and over crests more steep than her spirit alone would ever have striven to conquer." So many words from that scene fit Dorothy herself. I was so lucky to have read her books, to have met her on occasion, to have received some correspondence from her, and to be influenced by her wonderful, tolerant view of the world. Her books have the place of honor in my library and always will. She has been and will always be my favorite author of all time. I did not live close to her geographically, but my world feels somehow out of balance and out of tune, tilted wrong. My deepest sympathy is extended to all of you who love her.

Sincere sympathy to Lady Dunnett's sons and grandchildren. What a wonderful worldwide legacy of words she has bequeathed to all her avid readers.

My condolences to the family and all the friends and readers of the most superb writer of historical fiction of this day and age, Dorothy Dunnett. That clever mind is stilled but she lives on in her wonderful characters and the ineluctable world of her imagination that she gifted to all of us in her books...which can be read and reread eternally without failure to enchant. Thank you Dorothy and goodnight....flora das flores.

My sincere condolences to the family of Dorothy Dunnett. Surely she is a legend as the creator of the most wonderful historical novels ever written! I have had the pleasure of introducing them to several friends. They have given me hours and hours of pleasure, becoming thoroughly involved with the characters. When a book finished it was so sad to leave them all. Even re-reading one finds something, some nuance that has been missed, and can enjoy and be involved all over again! I treasure a CD from the ABC interview she gave with Margaret Throsby, and through listening to her speak, with her choice of music I felt I knew her a little.

Goodbye Dorothy, the woman who made us all dream. You will be sorely missed.

My deepest condolences to Dorothy's family. She was a wonderful writer who brought history to life with her brilliantly researched novels.She will be sorely missed by everyone who ever read her books.

Dorothy, thanks for having transported us through time and space in Samarcanda, Cyprus, Florence, Bruges, Edinburgh, Timbuctu. Thanks for having enriched our lives and dreams with your tales. With deepest condolences, Manfredi Bargioni

Thank you, Dorothy. You enriched the world, and made a difference.

I offer my sincere condolences to the family and friends of Dorothy Dunnett on the loss of one who understood and practised the art of living to the fullest. The world is poorer for losing her, but much the richer for having had her among us.

Dorothy Dunnett's wonderful characters have been my constant companions for many years as I read and reread all of her books. On each reread, I find something new to think about and somehow no other author seems to quite satisfy. She has widened my horizons in traveling with Lymond and Nicholas. Her quotations and references to myths, scripture, the Koran and literature which predated the 15th and 16th centuries has led me to further research. Her history is always accurate and she makes you feel that you have truly entered the world of her characters. I feel so fortunate that I was able to meet her when she was in Virginia in September 2000. What a delightful and interesting lady! God bless her and keep her. God make His face to shine upon her. God give her peace both now and evermore.

Approximately every other Christmas for over 30 years my mother and I would buy each other the latest Dorothy Dunnet. We would each buy our own and then find it almost impossible to wait for Christmas Day so that we could start devouring the next instalment. Though I had already appreciated that that the magic Christmas Dunnet anticipation had gone for ever it was stil enormous shock to read of her death. I wish to add my sympathy and condolences to the rich layers of all the others. I wrote to her once as the only book I had taken on a 3 year world trip was Pawn in Frankincense and of course she replied, gently chiding me to 'get a life!' and perhaps consider doing other things with my time-of course I did, but I have returned to her novels year after year, to marvel at the erudition, giggle at the humour and weep at the desolation of loss and the realities of life. I did meet her at a book signing in Leeds Waterstones, a magical evening, in which she charmed us, read us a chapter and had a kind word to say to each and every one of us. That year, that night I bought both my mother's and my signed Christmas presents together, cherished possessions. Paradoxically I will not miss her because I will always be able to take the books off the shelf and immerse myself again in her familiar world. Thank you Dorothy.

No single person has had such a profound effect on my life as Dorothy Dunnett. I found "The Game of Kings" in 1961 at the tender age of 13 and was captivated by the most fabulous hero ever created. Over the following years as each new book came out it became more and more important that I meet the woman who was having such an influence on my life. I wrote the publisher who passed on my letter and I got a very gracious response from Dorothy. We started a correspondence. In 1973 I flew to Edinburgh to meet her. It was the beginning of many meetings to come. I even sold all my belongings in 1975 and moved to London. It was a very hard time. I moved back to Texas. But I remain a Anglophile forever. After my abortive attempt to "become" a Brit I tried to find a life again in the US. I married and had a son (Alexander after Alec Guthrie) and in 1994 I returned for The Gathering in Edinburgh. There I met Tevia and all the gang who started "DunnetWorks". And Dorothy who I had not seen for 20 years, she remembered. I am so glad that I attended the last Gathering in Philadelphia, 2000. I had a feeling that it would be the last time I would ever see her but not that it would happen so soon. I will never forget her. She was the most generous person. Always ready with a response. Her letters were wonderful. My visits in her home will always be cherished memories. Though I never met her sons I have a few delightful stories about them. She will live forever through her wonderful stories and the heroic characters she created. And she will live through all of us who will continue to discuss and read her books and try to spread the word to anyone who will listen. God bless you, Dorothy Dunnett, the world is a better place because of you.

My special 'reading sofa' became special because that's where I spent a winter reading the Chronicles. My special 'reading mug' I bought in Edinburgh, chasing down some glimpses of the world she created for me. Dorothy Dunnett sent me off on amazing journeys - in my mind, and with my backpack. And there are journeys I'll have yet, because she fuelled my imagination with her writing. A speedy journey to those who loved you, from those who admire you.

My husband, Walter, died in February 2001, and this summer I wrote Lady Dunnett to tell her that, although I miss him deeply, I was carrying on and enjoying life. She wrote back in September with words applicable to her own death: "You will find, a great loss does in time have a liberating effect. After that, everything else falls into proportion, and you don't really grudge what happens. You've got a lot to give carrying on your own life, and also adding in what you learned living with Walter. We all expect a lot of you. So there." All I have to do is substitute "Lady Dunnett" for Walter, and I realize that my best memorial to Dorothy is to make more of my life than I would have had I never known her or read her work. A challenging goal, but I shall try. njs

Months after finishing Gemini my mind returns to the complex characters and story line woven by an incredible author. This morning I visited Dunnett websites to discover what other readers thought of the conclusion to The House of Niccolo Series and was very saddened to learn of Dorothy Dunnett's death earlier this month. I have read through these Condolences with tears in my eyes and would like to add my own to her family, friends and fans. This amazing lady has had an influence on people across the world and will continue to do so as we read and reread her wonderful tales.

For thirty-nine years Dorothy's books have been part of my life. An enriching experience every time there was a new one published, and each time I re-read them - always noticing somthing new however many times I did so. I recall the nail-biting wait for the next volume - and then the pleasure at meeting her characters again in another set of adventures! However, it was not just the books themselves - but the inspiration she gave me - and us - to investigate further. After reading the story - it stimulated some to try to find her sources and then find out even more about the places and events she described. The reading of her books gave extra pleasure in looking at things like Renaissance and Celtic art, in hearing and playing music of those periods, in holiday and "Gathering" destinations, and in all sorts of widening of experience of things as diverse as dowsing to quizzes. Dorothy, you have left us such a legacy of pleasure for the future. Thankyou for sharing your fun, quick mind, imagination, and detailed research with us. You have also - and indeed sometimes I think one of the most valuable legacies you have left us - given us the chance of friendship with people of like-mind from all over the world. "Dunnett people" are special. They think and feel the same way and are interested in similar things. My deepest condolences to your family. I feel privileged to have known you. R.I.P.

Friday, November 23, 2001 To the family, friends and many fans of Dorothy Dunnett worldwide, my heartfelt sympathy. I had nurtured a dream that, once my children were away at university, I might take a year to write in Scotland. Edinburgh's a cosy city, I thought. Perhaps I might even meet Dorothy Dunnett. How do I describe the impact her work has had on me? I read the Lymond books, curled up near the woodstove during a frigid Canadian winter, my infant son asleep beside me. My husband (a non-reader) would come home, and I would have to hurry around to make supper, while I told him in my own inadequate words of the fascinating, brilliant, irresistible world inhabited by Francis Crawford. Eighteen months later, I remember breathlessly recounting to my husband, as we strolled the shore of the Atlantic Ocean, what Lymond was getting up to. (I think I was reading Pawn in Frankincense by then). Now my son is seventeen, and alas, my marriage is long since ended. When my former husband came to pick up the children tonight, my first words to him were "I'm so sad. Dorothy Dunnett has died. Do you remember?" And right away he said, "Cornflower blue eyes." If I ever meet my other half, as I believe Dorothy Dunnett did in her husband, he may not be Francis Crawford, but I just know he will be a Dorothy Dunnett reader. Thank you Dorothy, for the gift of your words. Barbara Bell

Trying to find some library books to take on holiday to Malta in 1983 I again picked up Disorderly Knights; still thinking that it looked like hard work I decided to give it a try as it might fit in well with my destination. If it wasn't for me well, I had three other books. Can you imagine how wonderful it was reading that brilliant writing in the place in which it is set. Getting home I started to read the rest of the books and of course found that I didn't need to be in the right place to visualise the story. The writing did that spectacularly well for me. I feel as though I have lost some one close. I am so very sad. No more anticipatory visits to the bookshop for the next volume. No more opening the crisp new pages to see what conundrums and puzzles I will have to unravel and trying not to go straight to the end to find out the answers.(I don't think I ever managed that one).The only consolation I have is in 14 books lying on my shelves whispering to me to pick them up again for the umpteenth time. I know I will do this and will, as ever, discover something new. This is the only obituary an author needs. Dorothy you will be missed.

I always hoped to meet Dorothy some day but never had the opportunity. I wrote to her over the years and she very kindly responded, giving me encouragement with my own writing in so friendly and kind a manner I felt as though I knew her as a friend. Her Lymond books remain among that short list of books which have profoundly affected me and I love them above all historical fiction. I send my condolences to her family. I hope it is a comfort to know that through her writing she has a huge wider family of people all over the world who also loved her.

I haven't felt able to write before, but after spending the last week in Dublin with friends, all of whom I have met through Dorothy, I would like to add my deep regret at her passing. We celebrated her life and work and raised a wee dram to her. She has given us all so much, and will be with us forever through her work. I had the privilege of being invited to her home for lunch after the Edinburgh Gathering of 2000. She was gracious and kind, and made us feel so welcome. During the 30+ years I have been reading her books, she has become part of my life. I will never forget her. My condolences to her family and all those whose life she brightened.

In a train on the way to the Edinburgh 2000 Gathering last July I started to worry. I had never met Dorothy before, but her books had been a lovely important part of my life for the last 9 years. What if I didn't like her when I met her? With that fantastic intellect she might be a haughty prima donna. Would that alter my enjoyment of her work? Of course, as you all know, I needn't have worried. DD appeared suddenly at the welcome reception and started asking my friend and I about where we had travelled from. She was so kind and charming and there are photos of me and my friend, Yvonne, with huge speechless smiles of enjoyment on our faces as she spoke to us. The whole weekend and our encounters with Dorothy, both in person and when she was giving her talks, were such a totally positive and wonderful time. I came away a bigger fan than ever, not only of DD's books but of her attitude to life. She had suffered tremendous personal loss with the death of her husband, Alistair, yet still retained an infectious joie de vivre. She gave so much and now we are all reeling with the loss. It's over a week since I found out and I am still emotional when I read or talk about her. I went into a book shop on Wednesday and, as usual, looked at the Dunnett shelf as I passed. This time it was different. The first of many sad firsts. The image I can't get out of my head is of all those "ghosts" who, I like to imagine, would have attended her funeral - Archie, Phillipa, Kate, Gelis, amongst others, with Francis and Nicholas as almost invisible pall-bearers. God go with you, Dorothy. Thank you for everything.

At first with Bill Marshall's note, I was too stunned to write. Have had time to reflect on the years my first Game of Kings paperback has been with me and my girls--and how wonderful it was to be able to have it to turn to when we lived in a remote area of Siskiyou County here in far northern California--miles and miles from any library-- Of course the collection has grown and each volume has had its own special group of vividly drawn characters and situations that satisfy on so many levels. Our sympathy to the family.

I just heard the sad news about Dorothy this evening from my mother, another Dunnett fan. It's so hard to take in because she was one of those people you feel will always be there, just as her books are always there to give delight, stimulate thought and evoke such powerful emotions. I feel so fortunate to have met Dorothy twice. It's comforting to see from the messages below that there are countless others who share in what can only be described as a huge loss -- to her sons and grandchildren, to her fans, and to her beloved Scotland. She has gone into the light.

It is still difficult for me to accept that Dorothy Dunnett is gone. I cannot think of anyone who was more alive, who loved life and people and who transformed others with her joie de vivre so well as Dorothy. She has had a tremendous impact on my life. Not only did I fall in love with Thorfinn and Lymond and other unforgettable characters whom she created out of her infinitely fertile imagination, but through Dorothy I was able to meet so many of her readers from all over the world whom I now call friends, and because of Dorothy we have continued to get together and will do so in the future. Her writing has changed me by enabling me to see the world in a new light: no longer could I be content to accept stereotypical views of anyone when Dorothy had explained the intricate variations in so many cultures the world over. And her personality has changed me by encouraging me to strive for excellence and to give more of myself so as to follow her example. Although I could never hope to duplicate them, the sparkle of her personality and the brilliance of her wit continue to shine in my memory. It is so hard to believe that someone who so epitomized the joy of life could be gone. I am so thankful that I was able to talk with her on several occasions and that my husband and I had the opportunity to have dinner with her and that I told her how much she had changed my life. To Dorothy’s family and close friends I offer my deepest sympathies. “Your cause of sorrow must not be measured by [her] worth, for then it hath no end.” I know that we, her readers, took much of her time away from you, and I apologize for that, and I thank you for all that you gave up for us. We are all blessed to have known her. The world is a poorer place without Dorothy Dunnett, but I know she would want us to remember her only with joy, and so, for her sake, I will try. But right now it is very hard because I truly miss her.

I have been reading Dorothy Dunnett's books for well over 20 years, not just for the hugely enjoyable stories and wonderful characters, but with fascination and admiration for the huge amount of knowledge and resarch in them. Although I read and loved the Lymond and Niccolo series, King Hereafter eventually became my personal favourite, with its wonderful picture of 11th century Scotland and its bold Macbeth/Thorfinn theory. Even my husband read that one! I've lost someone who gave me so much pleasure, for which I'll always be grateful. My deepest condolences to her family and friends.

I was devastated to hear the sad news about Dorothy Dunnett yesterday.I was privileged to meet her several times.She always went out of her way to remember some detail about you and to make you feel important despite the fact that she came into contact with so many people. Her genius, her modesty and her unaffectedness were a rare combination. She will always remain my favourite and beloved author. My deepest condolences to all her family. Avril Brodey

When I held my first daughter shortly after giving birth and told her about the many wonderful things she had to look forward to, I was thinking specifically about the deep pleasure I got from reading Dorothy Dunnett's books. I love books and I have many favorite authors, but Dorothy Dunnett stands out even amoung my favorites. I've been known to beg people to read her books, and I got many thanks after they did. My sincerest condolences to her family and friends.

My 'Lymond' books have been constant companions for 25 years - the first unpacked after every move, pride of place on the shelves. Over the years, they've been joined by King Hereafter and 'Niccolo'. Each one of them offers something new with every reading. Dorothy Dunnett's books have been to me amusing, informative and always intriguing friend; warm, well-loved companion; challenging teacher. Dorothy Dunnett has created a legacy that ensures she will be always respected and remembered with great affection. The 'treasure house' of her mind was breathtaking. My sincere condolences to her family.

My deepest condolences to the family. She has brought me much joy and exitement. The world is poorer for her passing.

It has taken me over a week to send this message because everytime I have sat down at the keyboard to write something I've been unable to put into words what Dorothy Dunnett means to me.I stil cannot, except to say that she has been my favourite and most loved author for 25 years, the one I have turned to in troubled times as well as when I just want to read for pleasure. I've lost count of the number of times I've read Checkmate, it will always be my most cherished book, closely followed by King Hereafter. Her books have enriched my life beyond measure. My sincere sympathy to her sons, how fortunate you were to have such a mother! My sympathy also to the the rest of her family and loved ones.

I just re-read "The Game of Kings" -- as I have been re-reading it for about 30 years. The magic kicked in and I couldn't put it down. Thank you so much, Lady Dunnett.

I was so distressed to hear of the death of Lady Dunnett. The appreciation in the Boston Globe said it all so beautifully. She took you to another place and time with her writing. In October of 1989, I was wandering through the Montgomery County, MD, library, and I picked up a book called The Game of Kings. I opened it, read the first sentence, "Lymond is back", and I was hooked. Six months and six volumes later I emgerged from the 16th century to find myself still in bethesda, MD, still with three childdren, a husband, and a dog and two cats who all wondered where I had been. THANK YOU, Lady Dunnett, for creating the kind of characters and worlds where one can learn, be challenged, enthralled, and entertained. "We shall not see her kind again" God grant you rest, and your family, peace.

I never met her - that is my loss. I think of her sons and grandchildren - may they be comforted just a little. by this barrage of words from those who were lucky to be born with The Dunnett Gene. If a person has The Dunnett Gene you are entrapped for life in a world of superb fiction. If you are unlucky and do not have it, then there can be no true explanation of why Dunnett People meet and laugh and love. Even more so at The O'Spit. Bill Marshall flew in on Friday after attending her funeral, because he just couldn't think of anywhere in the world he would rather be, than amongst Dunnett friends. I felt the same. May we remember her for the rest of our lives, and feel grateful that we have so much still to talk about. May she Rest in Peace.

I am deeply shocked and saddened at this news. Lady Dunnett's books have been a big part of my life for the past 25 years. I know my sister and mother, who I introduced to the books, will join me in sending my deepest sympathy to her family.

On the 2 occasions I had the privilege to meet Dorothy Dunnett she had the ability to make a briefly encountered stranger feel like a loved friend. The warmth she radiated is a treasured memory. Lady Dunnett has given me years of reading pleasure, and been indirectly responsible for wonderful journeys in Britain, Europe and New Zealand, and for the joys of meeting kindred spirits in fellow readers. She is sadly missed, but the legacy of her writing will ensure that she is remembered with joy and gratitude.

It is a great sorrow to me to learn that Lady Dunnett has died. She was my favorite author and I feel as if I have lost a great friend. Lady Dunnett's books gave me countless hours of enjoyment and escape into her novels. The obituary from the Boston Globe expressed my feelings. The writer spoke of his mother reading the books during his father's illness and getting much diversion from all the books. Last year, we were very fortunate to hear and meet Lady Dunnett when she toured the USA with a stop at a local bookstore. It was such a joy to see her in person. Although she told the audiance that she wouldn't write another book, I kept hoping she would. I was first introduced to the Lymond series when our library posted a reading guide for a book group to discuss the series. I never did find the reading group, but I found the books on the library shelf... the old copies in hardback. And I have found none to compare with the enjoyment I received from the books. Please extend my sympathy to Lady Dunnett's family. I will miss her greatly.

How can I be anything other than sad? For me, Lady Dunnett has been the standard-bearer of the best of fiction writing and I will selfishly miss her, knowing we'll have no further treats from her. My deepest sympathies go to Lady Dunnett's family and friends. If it is hard for me, I can only imagine how difficult it is for those who knew her, knew her beauty and joy and shared in her love. Dorothy Dunnett has comforted me when I needed a place to escape from the problems of life. Her stories aren't pretty, but life isn't pretty. But her stories are alive and, because of her amazing talent, she will remain alive for me forever.

My condolences to Lady Dunnet's family as I contemplate the death of my own parent from pancreatic cancer. I have spent countless hours enthralled by Dunnett novels. I thank the extended Dunnett family for lending us those hours she might have spent with you.

Although I had the pleasure of meeting Dorothy once, it would be presumptuous of me to say that I knew her. Nevertheless, I do believe that she was a shining example of someone who lived life to the fullest. I am sorry that she is gone, but most of all I am grateful that she lived. And that she shared her magnificent talents with the rest of us. For nearly 25 years now, I have been reading and rereading her work. I first read Game of Kings when I was 13 years old. I have grown and changed a great deal since then. The fact that I continue to find all of her books to be fresh and complex and exciting after all of this time is a testament to Dorothy's phenomenal skill as an author. I am struggling to type this while holding my restless baby daughter on my lap. I hope someday to be able to share Dorothy's work with her, and with her sister. And most of all, I hope to raise both my daughters to follow their dreams and utilize their talents and live life to the fullest the way Dorothy did.

Years ago, when I was a teenager, my grandmother said of the Lymond books, "They leave you breathless!" And she was right. Dorothy Dunnett's novels have been leaving me breathless for years. I reread her works every few years, and they never fail to challenge and enchant. My shock and sadness at hearing of her death is tempered only by my feelings of gratitude for her brilliant, fascinating, and unforgettable works which could only have been written by a great soul. Thank you Ms. Dunnett. God bless you and your family!

I would like simply to add my own condolences and to say simply that I will pray for Lady Dunnett and her family. Her work has given me hours and hours of pleasure and puzzlement. I would have liked to have thanked her personally for her scholarship, her love of Scotland, and her wonderful ability to tell a story. All of those qualities inspired and delighted me -- and will continue to do so, I believe.

I felt personally bereaved on learning about Dorothy Dunnett's death. even though I have never met her. By chance I discovered The Ringed Castle in a second-hand bookshop some 15 years ago, and was hooked. By and by I found the remaining books in the Lymond Chronicle, and they and The House of Niccolo, King Hereafter and the Johnson Johnson books have given me hours of pleasure during the years. It is fascinating to see how Dorothy Dunnett has taken a small incident in history and spun her story around it. Her knowledge was immense. My interest in history has certainly not become less after reading her books. Please extend my sympathy to Dorothy Dunnet's family in due time.

I was shocked and saddened by the news last week of Dorothy's sudden death. I have been unable to stop thinking about her and all my prayers are with her family and friends at this difficult time. Their loss is so much greater than mine; I only met her once, at the Edinburgh Gathering last year, but her books have been part of me for 25 years. Thank you, Bill, for giving me the opportunity to express my great indebtedness to her and my love and admiration. Her wonderful, poetic writing style, her wit and humour and her scholarship illuminate everything she has written, and in addition she has gifted me a great love of Scotland and its literature. My life has been greatly enriched thereby. God grant quiet rest.

I only discovered the works of Dorothy Dunnett in September and am a third through the House of Niccolo series. I wish to add my very sincere condolances to her family to whom her great achievements must be, in time some consolation to them.

For Lady Dunnett's family deepest sympathy. Thirty years ago, a fractious teenager at boarding school, I was given a copy of PiF. The shock of reading a book that felt so right was almost physical and I remember then thinking that I should write to Dorothy Dunnett but all I could think of was to say thank you which seemed too little and it never got done. So for all your books and for the difference they made, thank you.

All of her readers felt Dorothy to be a friend and those of us lucky enough to meet her knew her to be a best friend, almost family, she seemed to know us so well. How she relished teasing us! The news of her death came as a shock, especially as she had been on my mind a lot during the previous week because Denise Gannon and I had been planning our next Dunnett Day. We hope the Day will still be as full of joy as usual, a Day to keep Dorothy alive in our hearts. Two things have been going around in my mind. The first is a quote from Checkmate, a quote that I have carried in my memory and in my purse from the day that I first read it: "More than your death I fear mine, because you would be left here to mourn for me." The second is something Dorothy said in Edinburgh: "If the theory of a circle of souls is true then there is a soul out there I would dearly love to meet again." She wept, we all wept. She is somewhere with that soul now and we have all that she created for us. My last meeting with her was in her house after the Edinburgh Gathering. She greeted my husband with open arms and a cry of "Oh good, a man!" and then she accidently drank his glass of wine but she made up for it by constantly refilling his glass. He fell in love! We assumed she would be tired after the hectic weekend and thought we should leave at the end of the afternoon but she would not let us go. She showed us around her home and study and entertained us well into the evening, not from politeness but from the sheer pleasure of hospitality. I rejoice in her life and I mourn for my dearest friend. My thoughts are with her family, her colleagues who bore the burden of knowledge before us and with all the readers around the world who have lost this wonderful woman.

I first met Francis Crawford of Lymond in my final year at school, when I took down the "Games of Kings" from a shelf in The Stirling's Library in Glasgow, I can still remember the shelf, one of those low ones underneath the huge windows! That was in 1963, the rest of Dorothy Dunnett's books followed me through my career at roughly 2 year intervals, "The Queen's Play" half way through Glasgow University and "Checkmate", flown to the Far East, courtesy of Porteous, the Glasgow Bookshop, next to the Stirling's Library, and read in one straight session in my bedroom on the south side of Hong Kong Island. Niccolo went travelling throughout China and Indo-China and both of them will all be in pride of place in my Sarawak retirement bookshelves, where they will be read and re-read and hopefully finally fully understood. Though I only wish I had Francis's and Niccolo's gift of "Tongues" on my travels! Dorothy - Thank you for the years of pleasure past and the years of pleasure to come. Ian McKinnon

I was introduced to Francis by a dear friend (thank-you Nadia) about 7 years ago and was immediately hooked! This was what historical fiction was supposed to be - interesting, lively, fun, deep and with a hero who was so real (he had foibles!) but was so loveable. While reading GoK there were so many times that I wanted to shake Francis Crawford - hard. Then came Nicholas - I didn't love him immediately, (he suffered because he wasn't Francis) but I grew to appreciate him and he became another of my heroes. I've since re-read all these 14 books again and again - and on every page I find something new. These books are a true delight - just like the lady herself. My husband who doesn't usually re-read anything is working his way through Niccolo again after re-reading Francis. I've introduced friends to my special books and they've also become fans. Nadia and I had the very good fortune to go to Adelaide last year and meet Dorothy. She bought us a drink at the Hilton Hotel in Adelaide and we spent the afternoon with other friends in her company - on the way back to Melbourne we smiled like schoolgirls. So while we are saddened by her passing we look back to Adelaide and smile and are thankful that we knew her. Vale Dorothy.

I first read Dorothy Dunnet's books back in 1967, she has been with me since then, it does not seem possible that she is gone. I read about her passing with deep saddness. Her style and humour is so very rare. I hope her two sons and the rest of her family will get some comfort from reading this condolence book, and know that their mother is going to be missed by many people from around the world and from all walks of life.

It has been rare in my experience to pass a book on the shelf at a bookstore and swear that my name was being called. But this is what happended to me with Dorothy Dunnett's books. Three times, at least, I walked by the Lymond Chronicles, picked up Game of Kings, and put it down. Lymond would not let me be until he had won me over. If the first line of the Game of Kings had me hooked, it was the humor, wit, and scope of the books that kept me going until I'd read them straight through. She will be missed greatly, but we will have her still in her wonderful work.

I discovered the wonders of Dorothy Dunnett in the early '70s, when our local library displayed Disorderly Knights. After speeding through 3 pages, I stopped, went back to the beginning, and did what I never do - read every single word. Since then I've haunted the library, and more recently, the local bookstore, for each installment of Lymond and Nick. When Caprice and Rondo appeared, I quickly realized I'd missed something, and found that To Lie With Lions had not gotten to our area. Interlibrary loan worked its magic, then a friend who had been transferred to England searched bookstores there, sending a copy to my husband as my Christmas gift that year. It was truly all I wanted! I've taken copies of the books with me where-ever I've gone, and they have been my constant companions in good times and bad. When I learned of her death, we had just returned from a weekend vacation in VA, where I had finished my ?th re-read of Spring of the Ram. She will remain alive in our hearts and minds, and her influence will be immeasurable for generations to come. Our All Souls Day service was postponed to last week, and I held her in my thoughts throughout. Her family and friends were blessed to know her and I join my condolences to those of all her admirers. May she rest in peace.

I switched on BBC Radio 5 by accident tonight and heard the writer of Nicolo series referred to in the past tense and I knew. My heart sank for selfish reasons. Reading the comments of condolence I learnt another thing. Dorothy Dunnett is alive and will continue to live everytime we friends re-read her novels and a new reader discovers the pleasure of her writing and research. I discovered her in 1975 and she destroyed all my ignorant prejudices about romantic historical fiction. I never knew her but her vibrant humerous witty clever voice is in my head. She is a brilliant star.

To Lady Dunnetts family and friends my deepest condolances at this sad time. I accidently stumbled upon PinF in 1974, the sixth and last choice of library selections when I was far from home and feeling rather home sick. I was hooked and there has not been a month since when I have not dipped into the well of joy which is to read DD. My life has been blessed and enriched through her books and the friendhips made with fellow readers. Thank you Dorothy

Requiem Lady Dorothy Halliday Dunnett 1923 - 2001

O, she doth teach the torches to burn bright!

We light our tiny candles
nourish their growth if we can
protect them from darkness too great for their strength
join with other travelers.
But if one light, more luminous than the rest,
illuminating subtle, intricate, dangerous paths
leading always to the eternal, untarnished altar
goes out from among our pilgrim throng to greater mystery
how, then, can we travel on?
Our lesser lights flicker, falter and dim
we stumble and weep, the path obscured.
Cold to our bones, we mourn that radiant, stellar life
whom the teaching stars, from their heaven, had blessed
in whose presence we, too, burned more bright.

Sherri Rose-Walker
Pacifica, California November 12, 2001

With a sad heart I'm writing in response to the news about Dorothy. She was such an extraordinary woman. Her light will shine in the hearts of millions of us who enjoyed her works. Those who were able to enjoy her personal appearances were touched beyond compare. I know your loss is made more extreme due to your devotion and assistance in so many aspects of her career. Our sympathy goes out to you, and all of her family and friends we can only reach through your good graces. To read Dorothy is to come to love her, for her deviousness and comedy, for her candor, for her intensity, for her incredible research, for her dedication to her standards and ideals. She was a light to follow in these dark times. Our lives are greater for her time here, and lessened by her passing. You indicated in your newsletter that you are posting communications on your web-site. Sherri Rose-Walker, my wife, a popular poet here on the coast of California, and a devout Dorothy fan, has written a requiem poem for Dorothy. Dorothy's effervescence may no longer be among us, but her spirit and the power of her wit and intellect will never be lost. Those of us in the Dorothy Dunnett Admiration Society will long cherish her work and life, and pass it along to the future generations. Please, continue to keep us informed of the events that take place in and around the Dunnett landscape. We know there will be situations and events that we will only know from you. Thank you for ALL your efforts to inform and amuse us fans. We feel closer to her through you. Our warmest and deepest regards, Bob Walker and Sherri Rose-Walker

I was so saddened when I heard the news about Dorothy's passing. The books speak for themselves - or would do if her many, many readers did not derive so much pleasure from unravelling them - but my abiding memory is of the lady herself. She was so generous with her time and whenever we met, at Gatherings, talks or book signings, would always remember us and stop to talk. And, of course, she inspired so many of us to emulate her travels in our own small way and follow in the footsteps of Lymond or Niccolo. All my thought are with her family at this sad time.

In 1974, I picked up Game of Kings, and was hooked from the first page. And in 2000, I opened Gemini, and knew I would never have this delicious pleasure again -- the first page of a new Dorothy Dunnett book. That is when I began to mourn the loss of this intelligent, wickedly devious novelist. Hers are the only books which I can read anywhere, anytime, and in any state of mind. Dorothy saw me through sickness, exams, divorce, long airline waits, and many lunch hours and I cheerfully passed on the books to anyone I thought would enjoy them -- with a glint in my eye since I KNEW that I was 'hooking' another reader for life. I actually drove the car while reading Checkmate at the same time -- I was in the midst of one of THOSE scenes (the Library scene, I believe), and COULD NOT put the book down to go pick up my husband from his class. As I contemplated Dorothy's passing, I realized that she would be meeting her dear Alistair and I prayed that Lymond, Niccolo and all her characters (those that made it to Heaven!) would be there too. My sympathy to Lady Dunnett's family, as well as to all her readers.

I was introduced to the Lymond Chronicles and DD's exquisite imagination fairly late on, about 10 years ago, by my brother who loaned me 'Game of Kings'. "You'll enjoy this," he said. My family were always voracious readers and I devoured books. I'm a fast reader, and like most fast readers don't cover each word, but take in sentences, even paragraphs in a glance. 'Game of Kings' was a struggle and I abandoned it for a while. "Try again", my brother encouraged. So I did. I slowed down and savoured it and found nuances and subtleties I had missed in my headlong dash to read it the first time. I was then hooked, of course. Lymond as Don Luis had me roaring with laughter as did Lord Grey'th wonderful thcenes with hith lithp - "Ith there no word in English wanting an Eth?" Priceless. Magnificent set pieces - Francis and Richard's sword fight at Flaw Valleys. Poignancy - with Richard slowly coming to the realisation that his younger brother wasn't what he seemed and his determination to save his life. Tears then, of course. And there's Phillipa. The story of an ugly duckling changing to a swan brought us one of fictions's most enduring heroines. They were so well matched and I couldn't wait for Checkmate. When I got towards the end, excitement rising as I anticipated Lymond meeting Phillipa once more, I came to … "At pointblank range there was no possibility of missing. He aimed into the fair, weary, rancourless face, and then at the heart, and both balls found their mark and brough death in the end, not with the sweet ambiguity of an arrow but with the finality which frees the earth at once of body and soul, and all that was good or bad in either." The shock I felt on reading this was so absolute, I couldn't read further. In fact I was sure I'd misread it, that DD hadn't really killed Lymond that I couldn't bring myself to read on. I went back a couple of pages and re-read them slowly so I would pick up the clue that he wasn't, couldn't be dead. It must have been all of 10 minutes before I dared continue. I felt exactly the same way yesterday on reading of DD's death. I hadn't known until then. I went into the Random House site for something else and saw the announcement. I immediately came to this site for confirmation, my sense of disbelief so strong I had to come here, to Dorothy's home. And because this is real life and not fiction there was no Archie to say, "My dear, look up." The expressions of grief and loss here mirror my own exactly. Dorothy Dunnett has given us a legacy of extraordinary writing and for that we are all the richer. She will never be forgotten. To her close family I give my heartfelt condolences and to her world-wide family of readers I join you in celebrating her extraordinary talent and her gift to us.

My heartfelt condolences to the family of Lady Dunnett. I first read her as a teenager in the 1960's and since then have eagerly anticipated the publication of each new work. She re-affirmed the values of love, duty and responsibility; but never preached. Fifteenth and sixteeth century history was opened up with unparalleled depictions of the movers and shakers of those times. The disadvantage of this was that her intelligence, wit, scholarship and sense of fun actually spoiled me for any other contemporary author (with the possible exception of Robertson Davies). It was Lymond and Niccolo who saw me safely through a recent, long period of cancer treatment and my gratitude to her for this is boundless. I felt her love for the world and for all of us, thank you,

Annie is an ardent reader of numerous books by many authors, Dorothy Dunnett's novel's are the only one's that I became aware of the special interest taken by readers world wide; accompanying Annie to meetings of other fans in and around Melbourne we were priviliged to meet, dine, listen to her and talk with her on her melbourne visit in March 2000, I would like to comment on her Animated presentation of various writings, her warm and interesting personality. For me, every time Annie reads one of her books, I will remember a lovely lady who inspired many lives with her writings. Our sympathy goes out to her family.

My deepest symathy to Lady Dunnett's family on the death of your mother. I have known her through her books for 25 years, but I met her only briefly last year. She has left us a monumental body of literature that will be read and loved for generations to come. We, her readers, grieve for her loss as if she were our own, but she was not. She was yours. I know that if ever she were asked what her greatest legacy would be, she would have answered, unhesitatingly, my children. God Bless.

Thanks to Lady Dunnett I can enjoy the most marvellous books and characters, and have met online so many wonderful people. My heartfelt condolences to her family on their loss. The pleasure she has given through her books will never die.

It's given to a very few to truly enrich the culture of their own and future ages. Dorothy Dunnett is one such. A light passes from our world with her death.

I met Francis Crawford as a teenager when 'Queen's Play was given to me, and walked into a world of beauty and delight and passion. The power of Dorothy Dunnett's language and the magnificence of her creations have been both joy and consolation through all the years since. To her family and friends, the greatest sympathy - but oh how much I envy you!

It was with great sadness that I learned of Ms. Dunnett's passing. My condolences to her family. She was one of those magical authors who I would recommend to friends who would then also fall under her spell. She will be missed.

I wish to add my condolences , Lady Dunnett`s characters have peopled my imagination since I discovered The Game of Kings as a teenager in the 60s .

My deepest condolences to the family. The world is poorer for her passing.

" 'God is great, God has called her... She has won the Truth: she is in Paradise. In the night does she see the sun, and in the darkness does she see light. When God decreeth a matter, it is not for man to deny him.' 'I would have said farewell,' Nicholas said. 'The loss is yours and not hers,' said the Arab" Thank you Abul Ismail. Thank you Dorothy

To think I put down her GAME OF KINGS at least three times, never getting past the first chapter, until one day I tried again and was hooked, of course. There must be a special place in Heaven for a writer who has given so much pleasure to so many avid readers over the years. I am glad to have met her last year at GATHERING 2000 and will remember her every time I read her books again. May all of our notes give some comfort to her family. She was a truly great lady.

I would like to add my condolences, both to Dorothy's family and friends, and us too: her dedicated fans. Some us got to meet her; I was one who never did, and I've regretted it ever since I missed my one opportunity. I have been a Dunnett fan since the early '80s, when a friend thrust the entire stack of the Lymond Chronicles into my hands, and said, "Read this." I did, virtually non-stop, and ever since I have been amongst the many who constantly harassed bookstores with the question, "Anything new by Dorothy Dunnett?" I have read and re-read the Lymond Chronicles, the House of Niccolo, the Johnson Johnson series, I read "King Hereafter" twice, even though it wasn't my favorite. We've lost someone so many have treasured deeply, whether or not we knew her personally. What an impact she's had - reading other people's condolence postings brings it home. She created such an astonishing body of work with her magnificent prose, and we don't have anybody to take her place. I join with all her family, friends, and fans in mourning her. - Jocelyn

My deepest sympathy to all of you. I have grown up with Dorothy Dunnett books having discovered Francis at 18 over 20 years ago. Not only are the books constant companions but they have led me to a new world of friendships as I Chat to different reader on the Net. I have a treasured photo of myself and Dorothy taken last year, not that I could say anyhting despite her warmth I was so in awe of her. She gave the world so much.

I wish to express my condolences to Dorothy Dunnett's relatives and friends. I have read all of her books and enjoyed them thoroughly. I have learned so much about history and so many new words! Several months ago I learned that Dorothy was to visit Atlanta and I was really looking forward to hearing her speak on writing but it was cancelled due to the illness leading to her death.

Dorothy Dunnett was an enchantress. I fell under her spell from the moment I first met her in Washington, D.C., during her 1997 book tour for the newly-published Vintage trade paperback editions of the Lymond Chronicle. Ah, but that's not quite accurate; as I had really come under her spell seven years earlier, when I had been loaned a set of the Lymond Chronicle - and was hooked from the first sentence. Never have I met a person who personified more totally the term joie de vivre. Her entrance into a room would fill the place with an almost palpable radiance. She was clearly so delighted to be with the people who had read her books. Each successive time I was fortunate enough to be around her - in Edinburgh in 2000 and then Philadelphia only two months later, and then Washington, D.C., again a few days after that - I basked anew in her warmth, wit, knowledge and sense of fun. I had been so looking forward to having yet another chance to listen to her, and joke with her, on her planned book tour to the United States just two months ago. I had motel, rental car and plane reservations made far in advance. I couldn't wait to see her face when I, "The Virginian", showed up in Florida - both in Miami and again the next day in Sarasota! She, the "Honorary Naxette," had decided in Philadelphia that maybe the Naxettes should be re-named the "Sandrettes." Because of time constraints, at that meeting a limit was imposed of two books per person for her to sign. I had cajoled anyone who was standing in line with only one book to add one of my own. After a while, Dorothy looked up with that wonderful twinkle in her eyes and inquired, "Is everyone here named Sandra?" And when I told her that I had an entire bookcase devoted to copies of every edition of her books that I could lay my hands on, she asked me if I'd send her a photograph of it - which I did. Her response - so typical - was, "Your photograph is indeed stunning. I feel I've been thoughtless - if I'd written far fewer books, you wouldn't have had to go to quite so much trouble." And she wrote, too, of her delight in getting my feather boa - "her final piece of 'Naxette' equipment." Now", she said, "I feel legitimate." What a woman. Thank you, God, for having given us such a rare treasure. My deepest sympathy to her family and close friends. May you take comfort in knowing what joy she brought us. Sandra Speiden/Violante, Princess of Naxos

I have been reading the Niccolo series to my son, daughter, husband and brother-in-law for months now, and had started the second chapter of Race of Scorpions when I got the news. The five of us just stared at each other. Then I just took a deep breath and read another chapter. Her works have breathed life into dull history. Every chapter prompts a discussion about how many of the institutions we take for granted came into being, and how many of the evils we see in the world today have their roots in a history that Dorothy Dunnett could make more real than anything I've ever seen on television. Worlds open up. My daughter is fascinated by the character of Katelina, and feels her anger and disappointment personally. My son takes an interest in all matters martial, and the menfolks have many long discussions about when various weapons and ship designs were introduced. I myself am rendered inarticulate by her descriptions, which are better than anything I have encountered in a lifetime of ardent reading. For her family I feel deep sympathy. It would have been horrible for us all, especially her and her family, to lose her without the chance to say goodbye. But worse, I feel, would have been to lose her slowly to a debilitating illness. I think all of us are saddened by the knowledge that we will not have the gift of her wit and physical presence and the delightful anticipation of her next novel. But when I put that against her contributions to her country and literature, I think of the blessings instead. May the Creator ease the grief of her family in their loss.

I found her by accident, almost. A friend of a friend sent me the first volume of the Lymond Chronicles and I was hooked. Apart from the excitement of the characters, all of them, from Lymond to Nicholas, and the extraordinary historical research, I think what made me such a fan was the sheer lyrical beauty of her prose. It was magical and fabulous and I feel selfish in saying how much I shall miss her.

Twenty-three years ago I was transported into a world of courts and castles. With each rereading Dorothy Dunnett manages to steal my breath away. I was shattered to here of her passing. The litterary world has lost a great genius. My condolences to her family. She will remain for me one of the greatest historical fictional writers of all time. Maria Giorgio-Stokdal

My deepest sympathies to Lady Dunnett's family. Scotland (and the rest of the world) has lost a great novelist who did indeed make 'the whole world to hang in the air'. Parva domus, magna quies.

My sincerest condolences to Lady Dunnett's family. I was always going to write and say how much I enjoyed the books and to own up that Lymond was one of only two fictional characters I'd ever believed in, and alas, never did.

I was introduced to Dorothy Dunnett by a friend in the 1970's and have been an admirer of her work ever since: her fantastic historical research, strong women characters and perception of gender, class, world events are breathtaking. I feel a real loss and my condolences to her family and friends.

My mother introduced me to DD many years ago and I have not looked back, Lymond, Nicholas, Thorfinn and Johnson Johnson have continued to captivate me from that day to this. I have reread these books more often than any other, My condolences to Dorothy's family and close friends, the world has lost its greatest author.

Every human being is unique and irreplaceable. Dorothy Dunnett lived a life rich in family, friendship, contributions to the welfare of her community and country, music, art, and literature. Through her books she extended those gifts to a worldwide community. I owe to her not only the pleasure of her novels, but also much of the interest of trips to Bruges, Venice, Edinburgh, and Orkney, the serendipity of coming upon a bust of Catherine Corner in a museum in Detroit, the fun of E2K and the Nikado, and contacts with many Dunnett-loving friends. She is gone, but we have her books--to paraphrase Auden on Yeats, "The current of her feeling failed: she became her admirers./ . . . / The words of a dead woman / Are modified in the guts of the living."

I am deeply grieved by the death of our beloved Lady Dunnett. The world is poorer now, but is so much richer for her life, her marvelous work, her creative genius. I am reminded of Philippa's devastation when she thinks Lymond is dead, but then remembers how his life had changed lives, and realizes that she must carry out his goals and ideals. Of course, Lymond was not dead, and we must accept that there will be no more splendid books from Lady Dunnett. But we have all been changed by her works, and we will never forget her. We join with her family in mourning her death, but with them, we rejoice and give thanks for her life.

I first read the Lymond series this past spring and summer, and I have to say that they captured me in a way no wor