Thriller writer, archaeologist and traveller
As part of the launch of the Agents of Room Z series, I enjoyed a transatlantic chat with Verena Main Rose as part of her Hystery Chronicles; Sunday Tea with V podcast series. Among other accomplishments, Verena is a major force behind Malice Domestic. The podcast can be downloaded here: https://tinyurl.com/Twith-V-podcast We talk about how... Continue Reading →
https://videopress.com/v/3bD411Qh?resizeToParent=true&cover=true&preloadContent=metadata&useAverageColor=true 1936, the king and his mistress are in danger and the fascists make their bid for power. Now available to pre-order on Amazon and free to review on Netgalley.
It was hard to believe the coincidence. I wanted an obscure, slightly silly but real English name for a character in Blackshirt Conspiracy. Much was my surprise when I bought a copy of Dorothy L. Sayer’s The Nine Tailors in a second-hand bookshop this weekend, and noticed she had made the same choice 90 years... Continue Reading →
The Eboracum Festival is an annual event held in York, and features an author tent replete with authors of Roman themed novels and textbooks. Our encampment was pitched in front of the Multangular Tower that marks the NW corner of the defences of the Roman fortress. A Centurion makes the Prize Draw with Roma Nova... Continue Reading →
‘Will they or won’t they?’ is a popular question for avid followers of long-running book or television series. It arose in reviews of Elly Griffith’s most recent and ‘final’ Ruth Galloway novel – will our hero get together with Nelson in the end? It was a source of continual debate as to whether the sexual... Continue Reading →
Shetland Noir was a hoot; three full days of panels, seminars and interviews capped by a party, a ceilidh and a quiz. It was only the second time the event had been staged, the most northerly of British crime writing festivals. The venue was the Mareel arts centre, slap on the waterfront at Lerwick where... Continue Reading →
Don't we all want to travel the world, discover ancient treasures and punch Nazis? Archaeology may make a great backdrop to serial-style Boy's Own adventures or schlocky horror, with archaeologists portrayed either as action heroes or crusty academics, but it can also inspire more serious fiction. Archaeology is the perfect field for fictional adventures and... Continue Reading →
May has seen a swift change of hats from thriller writer to archaeologist and traveller. And then back again. Quite literally, as my trusty leather packer hat is an essential piece of kit for two weeks in the sun. It folds into a suitcase and is tough enough to be thrown onto the dusty ground... Continue Reading →
The trowel holds an almost mystical status in archaeology. Old hands saunter onto site with this precious symbol of office sticking out of the back pocket of their jeans, while new diggers wield their shiny new ones with pride. Critics of archaeology can resort to the use of brushes and trowels as metaphor for working... Continue Reading →
Writing Non-Fiction #2 Everyone has a book inside them, the cliché goes – and wits will say that in most cases it should stay there. Take a look at the week’s top ten book listings in your Sunday newspaper, or online. Quite a few are by people who are not primarily writers; they made their... Continue Reading →
If you aspire to be a published writer yet find the path to becoming a novelist a tricky one, it is worth considering that there is much more non-fiction published than fiction. Manuals, educational books, guidebooks, popular science, hobbies, lifestyle, business and craft books fill the shelves of the bookshops. Narrative history, travel books, biographies... Continue Reading →
Writing is not very photogenic. Between the cover reveals and the book signings there are mornings tapping at the computer and afternoons quietly reading research books, all punctuated by country walks to work out this scene or that and simply stretch my back. Before this year's conference season and travel season begins, here are a... Continue Reading →
Blackshirt Masquerade is historical fiction, so required a fair amount of research before it could be plotted, and then top-up research whilst drafts were in progress. It is set in 1935 when Hugh Clifton is persuaded by MI5 to infiltrate Sir Oswald Mosley's British Union of Fascists. Much of the action and intrigue takes place... Continue Reading →
Guernsey-based distributor Blue Ormer are now carrying stock of books written or edited by me about Guernsey, plus some to which I'm an editor or contributor. Most were previously difficult to obtain off-island barring occasional re-sellers on Amazon. The address for Blue Ormer's Guernsey history page is here. Discover more The Story of Guernsey in... Continue Reading →
It was a busy week in Guernsey. A Brush With Life - the Art of Peter le Vasseur was published in the UK at the end of July by Lutterworth Press. It had already been available for pre-order on Amazon but we decided to initially play it low key in Peter's home island of Guernsey... Continue Reading →
Back in 2019 I was surprised and flattered when Guernsey-based artist Peter Le Vasseur asked me to write a book about his life and work. It has been a rewarding exercise but did not follow the path expected at the outset. Firstly, I left Guernsey to live in England at the end of that year.... Continue Reading →
‘Department Z? That sounds very mysterious.’ ‘Intelligence section,’ Parker said. ‘We identify threats and hunt down traitors.’ ‘Traitors? And what happens to them?’ Although Blackshirt Masquerade is fiction, Department Z really existed. The British Union of Fascists was established in late 1932 by Sir Oswald Mosley and grew rapidly in both support and ambition over... Continue Reading →
I was pleased by Windy Tree’s five-star review of Blackshirt Masquerade, which catches the essence of what I intended to write. “I liked this a lot...it was a pleasure to read...I have seen it listed as a 'historical mystery' elsewhere, and it certainly is historical, with espionage (MI5) and a good dash of detectiveness thrown... Continue Reading →
Blackshirt Masquerade is the first of a series of novels set in 1930s Britain under the shadow of fascism. Perhaps this is not the right time to read about dark episodes in our past, but perhaps this might be exactly the right time to re-learn the lesson of the chaos and suffering that a man... Continue Reading →
Twenty-five short mysteries by members of the Crime Writer's Association lie in wait in the new anthology Music of the Night edited by Martin Edwards. As the title suggests each story has a musical theme, spanning different genres and settings. It is a great privilege to appear in such a starry line-up of authors. The... Continue Reading →
Announcement of publishing deal for 'A Brush With Life'
All Jason Monaghan books that are available as ebooks are now listed on Bookbub. This American site is worth joining is you are an avid consumer of ebooks, crime or otherwise. They routinely post pre-publication deals and book giveaways to subscribers, and its free to join. Why not join Bookbub and follow Jason Monaghan's page?... Continue Reading →
I love a good epic – and some epics aren’t that good but I’ll watch them anyway. Ancient Rome has long been the inspiration for big-budget movies and television series. I say ‘inspiration’ because scriptwriters have no qualms over dodging hard historical fact to scurry down alleyways of their own. The costume department is often... Continue Reading →
You can now order all the Jeffery Flint archaeological thrillers at once. Follow Flint and his colleagues on their adventures in this five-book deal from Lume books, available to buy on Amazon or to read through Kindle Unlimited. Find out more.
I’m happy to announce that I’ve signed a three-book deal with US publisher Level Best Books for my new thriller series. In 1935, a disgraced British army officer is recruited by MI5 to penetrate the British Union of Fascists. A twist of fate turns him into an unwitting hero of the movement, trapping him in... Continue Reading →
So begins an epigram by Robert Loius Stephenson, which goes on to lament that he may as well have copied the entire work. Choosing a title for your lovingly crafted book can be a problem. You make a list, cross out alternatives one by one, ask your friends, your partner and your agent – and... Continue Reading →
I write mysteries, not police procedurals. Jeffrey Flint, the amateur sleuth of my first series, is an archaeologist so as a writer I must address the challenge of keeping the police out of my plots. If there is an unusual murder in modern Britain it is headline news and the full might of the regional... Continue Reading →
I have that English love of Greece. Coming from chilly Yorkshire, the idea of bathing in the sea, then spending a warm summer evening eating moussaka washed down with cheap retsina is simply magical. Especially now, when the highlight of my month had been driving two miles through the slush to the local garage to... Continue Reading →
The world is not as it should be, it is not the world we want to see, and it is not the world we used to know. Over the past sixty years, concern over Green issues have moved from the hippie fringe to become mainstream. While scientists and campaigners look forward to a better future,... Continue Reading →
A piece of good news to start 2021 with. I have signed a deal with Lume Books to republish the five Jeffrey Flint archaeology thrillers as ebooks. These were originally published by Severn House in the days before ebooks were even dreamed about. I'm sure indeed that Flint would disapprove of ebooks. His adventures take... Continue Reading →
This week should have seen the publication of my latest book, ‘Occupation to Liberation’. It would have been launched at the Guernsey Literary Festival, now sadly cancelled, and the launch was one of the 75 events to celebrate 75 years of freedom organised by Visit Guernsey. Although the UK is celebrating VE day this week... Continue Reading →
My latest project is a thriller series set against the rise of fascism in the 1930s. My last novel was Glint of Light on Broken Glass which all in all took three years to research and write, with one of those years being absorbed by getting the detail of 1913-1919 correct. I was helped by... Continue Reading →
Whilst working on a new thriller, and editing the one I 'finished' earlier, I have a new project to keep me out of mischief. I'm teaming up with artist Peter Le Vasseur to produce a book on his life and work. In particular the book will feature Peter's later works with ecological and conservation themes.... Continue Reading →
Even when there is not a coronation, I hang out the flags this time each year. During the pandemic, home-made bunting had to suffice, strung across the windows to the mystification of neighbours. Possibly they were too polite to ask whether I’d just joined the Brexit Party. Last year, a dog walker finally posed the... Continue Reading →