Shrewsbury (Photo essay)
If you follow me on Twitter, you’ll have seen that Tammy and I spent a couple of days in Shrewsbury last week. It’s somewhere that we have been meaning to visit for years and we have finally got round to it. Like so many people, I was attracted to the place by reading...
Journal of the Covid Years: good times at home, but concern for friends away
My beloved's journal continues, though how long we'll keep up these weekly posts is uncertain. It's a difficult time to catch the mood of. On the one hand, we are enjoying long country walks with our son and his new bubble but, on the other, friends trapped abroad and...
The siege of Cawnpore
Last week I outlined the historical background to the siege of Cawnpore, as described in the second of my John Williamson novels, Cawnpore. The siege ran from 6th to 25th June 1857, so last Monday was the 165th anniversary of its start. General Wheeler, the officer...
Journal of the Covid Years: Ups & Downs
Every Thursday I post an excerpt from my wife’s journal written two years earlier. Two years ago this week, there were signs of life returning to normal, but also intense nervousness amongst those who thought it was too soon. The Second Wave was just a vague...
India, 1857
This is the time of year when my thoughts turn to Cawnpore and the events of 1857. Although the British had been establishing themselves in India for some time before 1757, the battle of Plassey is often seen as a turning point, marking the beginning of British rule...
Journal of the Covid Years: BBQs and Politics
Finally we are allowed to sit down for a meal with our family -- provided we eat it outside. The other big news of the week was the growth of the Black Lives Matter movement. Despite (or maybe because of) the restrictions, the killing of George Floyd became something...
Three short reviews
My book reviews are usually quite long. (The last one I did ended up being an extended discussion of the life and times of Henrietta Howard.) Lately, though, I’ve read a few books that I’d like to share my enthusiasm for without going on at length. So here are three...
If your MP were a werewolf, would you really notice?
I had wanted to write a story about a werewolf since people started asking me for a sequel to Something Wicked. That book had started from the idea that if vampires lived among us, they would probably dance tango. I know so many tango dancers I have never seen in daylight that it seemed entirely credible and from that point the whole story just sort of took off. But where would you find a werewolf? What sort of person could turn into a creature that rips open the throats of innocent people who are foolish enough to be out on the night of a full moon?
Journal of the Covid Years: Comings and Goings
I think this is the longest of my beloved's posts so far. The rules were being relaxed but everyone was trying to work out exactly what was and wasn't allowed. Our son stuck strictly by the letter of the law, refusing to see both of his parents at once, which did not...
Gothenburg
If you follow me on Twitter, you’ll know that I’ve just spent three days in Gothenburg.
What’s it like?
Read on and find out.