Category Archives: Books

Seasonal Musing and some Exciting News

by thehistoryinterpreter

Sorry for the long silence dear readers. It certainly hasn’t been because I have been idle. Although I am continuing to stay at home, I have been around the world virtually, Zooming into homes across the planet. I am pleased to announce that I have enough support to continue to present my ‘History Interpreter Online’ series of Zoom family and social history talks. This is deliberately a small group so we maintain a friendly, chatty atmosphere but we do have room for a few more, either as occasional visitors or ‘season ticket’ holders.

I’ll start with the exciting news. I have had the great honour of being awarded a certificate of achievement by the Society of Genealogists. These are awarded annually ‘in recognition of efforts and activities that have made some exceptional contribution to genealogy to the benefit of anyone wishing to study family history’. I know I am in some very illustrious company, so it did come as a bit of a shock. The precise citation is, ‘For long-term services to family and local history and encouraging the involvement of young people in history and heritage.’ The ‘long-term’ bit makes me feel very old but I suppose I have been seriously researching my family for 43 years so I guess it is justified! I am looking forward to the face-to-face presentation, which can hopefully take place in August next year.

Despite the ‘long-term’ research I have managed to add 9x 10x and 11x great grandparents to a branch of my tree this week so there’s always something new to discover.

Of course, it is impossible to ignore the fact that, in general, things have been on the gloomy side. Christmas, as expected, will be different this year. I had planned to visit the descendants right at the end of the school holidays, giving family members who are in school as much time as possible to develop any nasties they may have picked up. The freedom that we have to visit for five days around Christmas Day itself just doesn’t work for me, especially as we would have a 600 mile round trip to make and the world and his wife will all be travelling on the same days. It is a very long way to go to wave to your nearest and dearest from the other side of a chilly field, which is what it would mean if we went in early January. Although I would go to the ends of the earth to see my family, my head says that, having been so careful for nine months, it would be stupid to be reckless now. So, I will, regretfully, continue with my ‘just because I can doesn’t mean I should’ stance and make the most of what technology will allow.

It is, of course, that time of year when not just visiting but also seasonal gift giving is in our thoughts. Many of us are unable or unwilling to visit shops in person at the moment, so we are seeking other alternatives. Living, as I do, a distance from a shopping centre, relying largely on online shopping is the norm, although I do love the atmosphere of the shops at this time of year. I usually try to find a garden centre with displays of decorations. I am planning a swift visit to acquire a Christmas Tree but shan’t be lingering any longer than necessary. The added consideration this year is that gift purchases will need to be sent directly to the recipients or be easily postable. I am hoping to patronise as many small independent online shops and sellers as I can. If I was more talented, I would be hand-making gifts. I am also hoping that folk may want to relieve me of a few more books. I am happy to gift wrap these and send them straight to the recipient if you are looking for gift ideas. My fictional offerings are described here and for non-fiction you need to look here. I don’t charge for postage to the UK. Or you could gift a season ticket to my talks!

Zero progress on a potential new novel I’m afraid. My writing has been devoted to finishing a new course for Pharos and an article for Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine, due out next year.

The next thing to look forward to will be getting the historic decorations out of the loft.

Historical Novels – some thoughts

by thehistoryinterpreter

Next week I am co-hosting a themed #Devonbookhour on Twitter, when we will be focussing on historical novels, with a special emphasis on those set in Devon and/or written by Devon writers. This begs several questions. Firstly, what constitutes an historical novel? There are probably as many definitions as there are readers of this genre. Clearly some proportion of the book has to be set in the past but how much of the book and how far in the past? Time-slip or dual time-line novels are popular; I’ve written one!  I do class mine as an historical novel and in my case 75% is set in the 1600s, with the remainder in a somewhat alternative version of 2020. My own opinion and I know that others will disagree, is that more than half needs to historical for it to be an historical novel. What then is history? The Historical Novel Society stipulate that books for review should be set at least fifty years ago. I think most of us struggle to accept anything that is within our lifetimes as ‘historical’; I am just coming around to considering books set in the 1960s and 1970s, that were written more recently, as historical. There are of course many books that are set in what is now the past but are emphatically not historical novels because they were contemporary when they were written.

Historical novels come in many guises and all are valid in their own way. There are those that seem to have been written as historical novels in order to justify the swashbuckling pirate type and a woman in a corset on the cover. Sometimes there is little evidence of historical research and the plot, frequently a romance, would have worked equally well in the present. I am not intending to be disparaging here, this is a hugely popular and highly marketable, version of the historical novel, even though it would not be my personal preference.

Then there are the immaculately researched historical novels, where the historical setting is intrinsic to the plot. This category can be sub-divided into those that feature famous people, frequently royalty and those whose main characters are purely fictional. In this respect, my own books are in a minority, as they tell the true stories of real but little-known people.

Why do people read historical fiction? Is it to learn more about the past in a digestible way, or is it because they are fascinated by history, or both? My own love of historical fiction and history blossomed concurrently. I can tell you exactly when my historical novel journey began and it did not grow out of reading children’s historical novels; I came to the likes of Rosemary Sutcliff and Cynthia Harnett as an adult. At the age of eleven I watched the film of Dragonwyck, probably on a wet Sunday afternoon, on a flickering black and white TV. I would probably struggle to sit through it now but somehow it spoke to me. I was already an avid reader, consuming up to five books a day in the school holidays. It was a diet of Enid Blyton, Malcolm Saville, Monica Dickens, Elinor M Brent-Dyer, Enid Blyton, Ruby Ferguson, The Pullen-Thompson sisters and yet more Enid Blyton? I have no idea how I realised that Dragonwyck was a book but realise I did and I quickly worked my way though Anya Seton’s entire output. I do still reread these. I then turned to Jean Plaidy. I have kept a shelf full of her books but I haven’t read one for decades. Then Norah Lofts, Cynthia Harrod-Eagles, Daphne du Maurier R.F. Delderfield and Susan Howatch were added to the repertoire. Next, inspired by the first Poldark series (despite the obvious attractions of Aiden Turner – he of the unrealistic scything – I never got into the remake) I read Winston Graham’s novels. It was fortunate that I latched on to such prolific authors. By the time I reached adulthood, I was eagerly awaiting the yearly offerings from E.V. Thompson, followed by Lindsey Davis and Susanna Gregory. I am a bit of a sucker for series, where I can follow the characters from book to book. I was looking forward to more from Ariana Franklin, when sadly, she died. You will also find Barbara Erskine and Phillippa Gregory’s non-royal fiction on my shelves.

In preparation for the Twitter event, I have looked at several ‘Best Historical Novels’ lists and these rarely contain my favourites, several of whom are now considered to be a bit outdated. Here are three such lists and from their combined suggestions I’ve probably only read a dozen.

http://www.listmuse.com/best-historical-novels-time.php

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/blog/50-best-works-revisionist-history-speculative-history-historical-fiction/

https://www.panmacmillan.com/blogs/history/best-historical-fiction-books

I have attempted my own list of authors, rather than specific titles, below. Some rate a place for nostalgic reasons, rather than as a reflection of my current reading habits. I don’t go for a particular time period, my favourites span 2000 years. Although I am happy to read a book set in wartime, I am not so keen on books that focus on the battlefront. The geographical setting is also an attraction for me. I do enjoy reading about places I’ve been. I tend to favour books set in Britain, particular the west country, which is probably why I have read so few on the ‘best’ lists. Strangely, some of the best known and highly revered historical novelists do not feature on my list. I promise I have tried the likes of Hilary Mantel and C J Sansom but just couldn’t get into them. It sounds slightly ridiculous but it is partly their sheer size. Not that I mind the lots of pages thing but I tend to read in bed and believe me you do not want Wolf Hall landing on your nose when you doze off. Perhaps I should try them again as ebooks.

I have yet not mentioned the output of my many author friends, some of whom will be less widely known but whose new books I eagerly await. I do enjoy genealogical fiction and my own Sins as Red as Scarlet has a nod to this. Although these tend to fit better into the genre of crime novels, some have considerable historical content. I have already written about several of my favourites. In fact, if you check my blog archives for December 2016, I singled out an historical novelist for each day of advent.

So here are some authors whose books I have enjoyed, as well as those mentioned above. I have made no attempt at ranking here (I have gone for alphabetical order). I am sure I will have missed some, so sincere apologies if I have offended you by not giving you a mention. It may not be because I didn’t enjoy your book!

Piers Alexander

Rebecca Alexander

Kate Braithwaite

Ruth Downie

Stacey Halls

Paul Marriner

Wendy Percival

Sara Read

Liz Shakespeare

Reay Tannahill

M J Trow

Beth Underdown

Join us on Twitter on Monday 9 November 8.00pm for #Devonbookhour (except it will be an hour and a half!).

Family Stories: some books to get you thinking

by thehistoryinterpreter

Sometimes I review books on my blog. This is one of those occasions. I would like to introduce you to two offerings from The Genealogical Publishing Company, in Maryland.

The first is Roots for Kids: finding your family stories by Susan Provost Beller (2020). I am passionate about involving young people in exploring their history and heritage and I was intrigued to see what this 68 page book had to offer. I even managed to get past the use of the word ‘Kids’ in the title, which I must confess does tend to set my teeth on edge but that does not detract from the content. The author, very sensibly, focusses on family stories, rather than formal genealogy. The book is written by a US author, which means that some of the activities are not so appropriate elsewhere, or need ‘translating’. For example, there is an assumption that the reader will have immigrant ancestors within the genealogical timeframe, which is less likely in a European context. This might mean that it is not an ideal gift to a young person from outside the US but nonetheless there are some excellent suggestions that are universal. For the British reader, it is probably a book to be used as a source of activities for adults to present to a child. The book is enhanced by black and white drawings.

There are suggestions for ways to approach older relatives, a section on surnames and hints for organising information. Despite the rather steep £14.78 UK price tag, this book would be very useful for adults working with young people and hoping to introduce them to genealogy, through the medium of family stories. It is probably best suited to the 8-12 age range.

The other book is a substantial volume by J Michael Cleverley, entitled Family Stories and how I found mine. I always recommend that my ‘Writing up your family History’ students read family histories by others, in order to see what they feel might work for them. This book would be particularly useful as it adopts a rather different approach. The author has obviously carried out an enormous amount of research into both his own family and the broader historical context. Spanning 900 years, the author recounts his own family story, setting it firmly within the broader history of the time. Unlike many family histories, the author tends to focus first on the broader history and then introduce the appropriate family story, rather than the more common approach of beginning with the family. This makes this family history a bit different and works very well.

The intrinsic family story is obviously of greatest interest to those who share this ancestry but it is definitely worth a read to find out about the background, which has a broader appeal and as a good example of how a family history might be approached.

The book is accompanied by outline family trees, giving names only. These were a little faint and would have benefited from including some dates and place names. The book includes an impressive bibliography, detailed endnotes and an index; all valuable additions to a family history. Again, this volume attracts a hefty price tag, £36.39, something for a family history society library perhaps.

I was given free copies of these books in return for a frank review.

Family History Excitements and Jumping on the Scottish Bandwagon

by thehistoryinterpreter

My book launch two weeks ago seems to belong in the dim and distant past now. It went very well thank you, with 120 Zooming in. Thanks go to Devon Family History Society for hosting. The book is selling steadily and I am starting to get some lovely feedback. If anyone could face popping a teeny review on the dreaded Amazon I’d be grateful, as this open doors to other reviews. You don’t have to have bought the book from Amazon, you just have to have bought something from them. Reviews elsewhere are also welcome of course. In case you’ve missed all this book news and if so where have you been? details are here.

Plenty of news in the Family History world. 2021 is going to be exciting. Rootstech, for which I am an Ambassador once again, is to be virtual and free. This really is a chance to embrace the Rootstech experience without going to Salt Lake City. 25-27 February are the dates to save and you can register now. I am also proud to be joining my down under friends as a speaker for the Family History Down Under conference in March. This too is a virtual event, with a great international line-up.

Then those of us who have done Ancestry DNA tests had our ethnicity estimates updated. These are of course just that – estimates but it seems that the whole world is now Scottish, not just me. My own estimate changed very little, 5% moved from England to Scotland but there are many reports of increased Scottishness appearing in people’s estimates. See here for my take on ethnicity estimates.

On the subject of Scotland, I still haven’t added any ‘born in Scotland’ ancestors to my tree. It looks likely but I am waiting for more supporting evidence. Really exciting news though. After more than forty years of searching, I have found that my great great grandparents did get married after all – sort of. In preparation for heading north, I reviewed my Northumbrian ancestry for the nth time. This branch is the one that gets stuck first. I am pretty sure who my 3x great grandparents are, I just need more evidence (a bit of a theme you’ll notice). For those who’d like all the details of this sorry search, I’ve written about it before. My great great grandparents, John Hogg and Elizabeth Pearson, were not married in the 1851 census and apparently married by the time their daughter was born in March 1854. Despite four decades of not finding the marriage, I am always optimistic so I tried again. This time though a glimmer of hope. Family Search led me to a notice in the Newcastle Chronicle recording a marriage of Mr John Hogg and Miss Elizabeth Pearson on the 13th April 1853. The names and date were right but was this my great great grandparents? They were not of the class to put a notice in the newspaper and they were in the Morpeth area not Newcastle. Finding the actual article was a challenge. It didn’t show up in a newspaper search on FindmyPast; I had to look for the individual newspaper and then find the page. The column was one of those in a margin, so distortion meant that it was not picked up by OCR. The snippet made it clear that this was the right couple as both were ‘of Espley’, a small Northumbrian hamlet where I knew they were living in 1854. Helpfully, it gave the place of marriage ‘Lamberton’. A quick google revealed that this was not the breakthrough I had been hoping for. Lamberton Toll was the location for Scottish irregular marriages; a less well-known Gretna Green. I suspect they travelled there because he was 23 years her senior, with children as old as his new wife and she had already had two illegitimate children. Perhaps that was why they put the notice in the paper,because they didn’t have an official certificate. It was an odd paper to choose though, why not pick a Morpeth paper, which was their nearest town? Some records of Lamberton Toll marriages do survive, sadly not for 1853 though, all that there is is an index. So there is my hope of confirming John’s father’s name gone (I was so hoping that it was Robert). The only faint chink in the brick wall is that John’s first marriage is also missing, was that another irregular marriage?

The moral of the story is don’t give up. At least I have a date and a place for the marriage if not the vital father’s name. The next post may come from the wilds of ancestral Northumberland, might just sneak in a quick trip to Lamberton!

Lamberton Toll

Book Launches, Boats and a side dressing of Crime

by thehistoryinterpreter

Busy, busy, busy. It has not all been work though. I spent a week going out with half my family; some weird activity that I’ve not done since March. This involved a spectacular face-plant (mine) on the football field, building sandcastles in the drizzle (effective for social distancing) and watching an excited boy catch his first fish. This particular expedition did involve running the gauntlet of a crowd of irresponsible idiots who clearly felt that being on holiday entitled them to abandon any concept of COVID awareness but we survived. Although it was lovely to see the sea, I am still much more comfortable staying at home and have no great longing for meals out, the pub or the hairdressers. I did get Martha to hack a bit off my hair while she was here but I could have managed without. It went like this – a little more off this side to even it up, oh now a some more off that side, oh and a bit off just here but she did a good job.

DSCF4414.JPG

This week it has been full on book marketing. Only three days until the big day and the excitement is mounting. Devon Family History Society have kindly offered to host my launch talk, when I will be describing how I researched the story of a seventeenth century town and its inhabitants, in order to write Sins as Red as Scarlet. This means spaces at the talk are available, so contact me now if you want the secret code to attend via Zoom. Those on the Devon Family History Society virtual talks mailing list will get the link automatically. Not only does Sins as Red as Scarlet greet an unsuspecting public on that day but an audio book version of Barefoot on the Cobbles becomes available too. Thanks to the lovely folk of Circle of Spears who have done a brilliant job. I seem to have cracked uploading to Amazon so Kindle versions of Sins as Red as Scarlet can be pre-ordered now and print-on-demand paperbacks for those outside the UK are in the pipeline. You will be able to order UK paperback versions but please don’t. Come to me instead, you’ll get a better quality, signed copy and I’ll pay the UK postage. Or go to a bookshop or my lovely publisher.

There are other exciting things on the horizon. On 5th and 6th of September, I am joining other local authors for two days of talks about various aspects of crime. My session will focus on the C17th but there are sessions that will appeal to lovers of history, folklore, literature, psychology, vampires, Agatha Christie and much more. At £5 for a ticket to listen to as many of the sessions as you choose, that can’t be bad.

I will also be giving two presentations for the Institute for Heraldic and Genealogical Studies in early September. The seventeenth century again and one-place studies in the C19th. Places are limited on these so book early etc. etc..

As for the autumn, wait and see!

The Day the Books Came

by thehistoryinterpreter

Two and a half years ago, as the writing of Barefoot on the Cobbles came to an end, I had a glimmer in what passes for my brain of what I would do next. The idea wove, spun and developed, taking itself off in its own direction and then it was now. I have given birth to Sins as Red as Scarlet. Large pantechnicon fails to take note of the ‘on no account use your sat-nav’ directions. It causes chaos negotiating the narrow track to get itself where it should have been in the first place. It blocks the road while a pallet is deposited on the roadside (we don’t have pavements). It unloads 64 boxes. A nice little queue of cars is building up behind. Crowds are gathering. Nothing this exciting has happened in my village all lock-down. Time for the lorry to move off and oh dear, there is a hay-bale laden tractor coming in the opposite direction. Cue pantechnicon .v. tractor stand off. Tractor wins. The lorry and all the cars behind it have to do the reversing thing. Lorry comes very close to reversing into the car immediately behind it. Unfortunately I had put my camera down ready to heft boxes before all the tractoring so there is no photographic evidence.

My settee is now eighteen inches from the wall, I have a teetering pile in the kitchen. I am wondering how many I can ship out before my family visit. I suppose piles of boxes would make a good social distancing barrier. Now it is all systems go for launch day. Take a look at my previous post for details of how to join in. In the meantime, if anyone would like to order a copy or ten, you know where I am.

Book Launches, Blogs, Being Online and Breaking Free

by thehistoryinterpreter

Sorry for the long silence. It isn’t that nothing much has been happening, rather that life has been hectic, mostly in a virtual way. Firstly I need to say that this blog has been listed in the top 100 Genealogy blogs site. So, thank you to the compilers for that. Do go and check out the other great blogs on that list.  I am at number 131, so not sure how that works (maybe it is a bit like the ‘100’ years’ war) but I am grateful for the mention, especially as I ramble on about things as well as genealogy. I also have no idea who moved North Devon to New Brunswick – it wan’t me.

I’ve been Zooming away across the globe, chatting family history to anyone who will listen, including a great session with my ‘down-under’ genealogy friends from Talking Family History and several sessions both as speaker and as host for Devon Family History Society, including a breaking down brick walls session for a bumper audience of close to 200. Bit of a shame therefore that my magic wand appeared to have gone awol but we did make some inroads into a few tricky genealogical problems. My own history interpreter sessions are being well received. These continue through to the end of the year and there’s plenty of opportunities to join in the fun, so do take a look what’s on the programme.

I’ve also left home, not once but twice. For someone who hadn’t even been for a walk or to a shop since mid-March, it did feel a bit odd. Two trips of 300 miles each way with the caravan, so effectively taking our own room, in order to sit at a social distance from the two twigs on my family tree. Definitely worth it though and it is surprising what fun you can have from the opposite ends of a garden.

On the book front, what I hope are the final edits on a school text book that I was commissioned to write are done. Now it is all systems go for the appearance of Sins as Red as Scarlet in 32 days’ time. I am expecting about 40 boxes of the same to be deposited on my driveway any day now. The troops are assembled read to lug them into the house. Where they are going once I get them in the house, is a logistical problem of mammoth proportions that is still to be resolved. I also have to make space for potential socially distanced visitors. Maybe we can use boxes of books as a barrier. People have been very kind and relieved me of copies of my other books in a last-ditch attempt to make more room but ………. .

I have been writing the talk for launch day – 29 August. You are welcome to come and join me as I describe the family, social and local history research that underpins Sins as Red as Scarlet. Here I am reading a few extracts on cover/title reveal day. To be in the virtual audience on 29 August, 2pm British Summer Time, you just need to contact me and a few days beforehand, I will let you have the link to the Zoom presentation. There is also an offer available for those who pre-order the book.

3d and Kindle

And there’s more. If all goes to plan, the audio book of Barefoot on the Cobbles produced by the awesome Circle of Spears Team will also be available from 29 August. Plenty of excitement here therefore although I now have to bite the bullet and try to remember how to upload the file for those who might want to order a Sins ebook, or to order from outside the UK. As usual, I issue a plea for those in the UK to order directly from me, my publisher or an independent book shop. Not only do you get a better quality book, rather than print on demand but it helps reduce my pile.

In other matters, I have discovered how difficult it is to  Zoom quiz when your other team members have Whats App and you don’t and despite living in the C17th, I am hazier about English Civil War battles than I should be. Fortunately, this did not feature in the above mentioned text book. I’d much rather concentrate on all the lovely social history than the political stuff.

Today is the Day! – cover and title reveal

by thehistoryinterpreter

Ladies and Gentlemen – I give you Sins as Red as Scarlet.

3d and Kindle

This amazing cover has been designed by Devon artist, Robin Paul of The Branch Line.

Now some of you will want to know more about the novel. Details can be found on it’s dedicated page on this website, along with information about the special offers that are available to those who pre-order. I am pleased to announce that there will be an accompanying CD thanks to Dan Britton. You can come along and listen to me reading short extracts on Facebook Live at 11am (technology permitting). You can also book to attend the free Zoom talk about the research behind the book, that I will be giving on launch day, 29 August, at 2,00pm BST. Please contact me for details of how to register. If this email address bounces, or if you do not get a reply within 48 hours, please keep trying, or use an alternative email address.

Book & Kindle publicity (2)

Mostly about going Virtual – Isolation day 93

by thehistoryinterpreter

With all the awfulness that is going on at the moment, I am sure this should be a deep and meaningful commentary on current affairs. It isn’t. Not because I don’t feel strongly about things. Not because I don’t care. I am an historian. I should have something to say. Not least about what some claim is the erasing of our history. Indeed I do have thoughts and opinions, it is just that they are not yet fully formed and putting them into words requires more emotional energy that I have at the moment. So I am sorry if this seems a bit like I am burying my head in the sand and ignoring world events but just for now, I am retreating back into the everyday, whilst I process everything.

There haven’t been many posts lately because, to be honest, most things are just jogging along in much the same way as they have for the past few weeks. The weather has turned a bit and the garden has reached a plateau. Plenty of baby blue tits to watch but not much else to report. So far, the relaxing of lockdown restrictions has not made any difference to my life, so I remain here in my own little world, making contact online. I have been invited to do several online presentations and have attended a lovely school reunion and several Devon Family History Society meetings. I took part in Crediton Literary Festival, talking about Remember Then, which was fun and there is also a YouTube video of me, with a very croaky hay fever voice, reading from Barefoot on the Cobbles. I will be reading for Exeter Authors’ Coffee Time Sessions on Thursday at 12. I have decided to run my own series of family/social/local history lectures, as well as provide a four week continuation of the family history course that I ran for Crediton library. There are still spaces if anyone is interested in any of these.

Tomorrow is the cover/title reveal for novel #2; so anyone who has been waiting for more news will learn more of what it contains. I am attempting to read some extracts from the book at 11am via Facebook Live. That’s another whole new learning curve. Now to create my ‘set’, which so far involves some red material, a sprig of bay and a noose …….hmmmm.

Capture

This Time it is all About the Books (includes offers and free stuff)

by thehistoryinterpreter

So, the excitement is mounting as the publication date (29 August) for my latest novel creeps nearer. Well, let’s be honest here, I am excited; maybe one or two of you are too. As face-to-face marketing opportunities have now dwindled to zero, I am climbing some steep learning curves in order to do some online promotion. You will also see offers for some of my other books flitter across social media. I really do need to make some space.

Firstly, the new book is all set for its cover/title reveal on 15 June. Watch this space and my Facebook and Twitter accounts to join in the fun. I shall also be guesting on some other blogs and will be sharing the links to these. If I can work out how to do it, there will be Facebook Live stuff on the day, so look out for that if you are one of my Facebook friends – and if you aren’t, why not? 😊. Hopefully, if I can work out how to turn myself into a social media influencer (whatever that is), I will be telling you about the book and I may even be reading some teeny tiny extracts. So far, the cover looks like this. And, no, the title is not ‘Redacted’, as one of my friends suggested, although it would have been a cool marketing ploy.

SinsAsRedAsScarlet-REDACTED-2

On the subject of the cover, it has been designed by the incredibly talented Robin Paul from The Branch Line. Robin created an amazing cover from my vague suggestions and scribbles that were the first ‘art’ I had produced since failing art O level not once but twice.

Hopefully, by 15 June, I will have set up a pre-ordering system (another learning curve), even if it only consists of ‘email me and I’ll send details of how to pre-order’. The first 200 people who pay for a copy of **** ** *** ** ******* (see there’s a clue) by midnight on 28 August 2020 (British Summer Time) will get a free copy of Coffers, Clysters, Comfrey and Coifs: the lives of our seventeenth century ancestors (RRP £12.95). These will be sent postage free to a UK address. Please note that this offer is only open to those who pre-order directly from me, or from my publishers Blue Poppy Publishing. Both books will be signed. I am sorry that it is difficult to provide an attractive offer for my overseas readers. In all honesty, I can’t pretend that it is financially sensible for you to order directly from me. If you are outside the UK and really want a signed copy from me I am happy to provide details of postage costs. All purchasers of **** ** *** ** ******* will be able to buy the CD of the same redacted name, at the reduced price of £3 (RRP £4), providing that the CD is pre-ordered at the same time as the book. The CD includes Dan Britton’s evocative companion song to the novel and two other tracks by Dan, on a similar theme. I am working on another goody for all pre-orderers but I need to make sure that what I have in mind is something that I can deliver first.

What else am I able to offer you? Well, if you are very quick, there is still time to register for the free talks at tomorrow’s (6 June) Crediton Literary Festival. See my previous blog post for details. During my talk, I will be revealing out a code, giving UK listeners an opportunity to obtain a discount on my book Remember Then; memories of 1946-1969 and how to write your own, the subject of my talk.

But wait, as my friend Michelle would say, there’s more. I now have my own supply of my new booklet 10 Steps to a One-Place Study. So, if you want a signed copy and to avoid putting money into the hands of the multi-nationals, you know where to come. £5.90 including UK postage.

And yet more. In honour of Mayflower400, whose commemorations are sadly but inevitably, having to be postponed, I have another offer available on Coffers, Clysters, Comfrey and Coifs: the lives of our seventeenth century ancestors. This book is a reflection of life in Britain at the time that the Mayflower left our shores. A copy of this book can be purchased for £2 plus postage and packing. That is a total of just £5 for this book to be sent to a UK address, please get in touch for estimates for postage elsewhere. Alternatively, if you order either Remember Then or Enquire Within directly from me at full price, you can order a copy of Coffers Clysters for just £1 more. These offers are open from 15 June up to and including 3 October 2020, or while stock last. I stress that these offers are only available to those ordering directly from me. Contact me for details of how to pay.

Sorry that this is a bit of an advert. Normal service will be resumed soon.