Thriller writer, archaeologist and traveller
"Don't judge a book by its cover" is a widely ignored cliché, as many book buyers do just that. In general the advice is (1) ensure the book looks like the kind of book it is supposed to be and (2) in the modern age make sure it works as a website thumbnail. My publishers... Continue Reading →
There have been over 100 novels set on the island of Guernsey. Most of them miss one of the key features of the island - its language. They are written for the main part by off-islanders, from Britain or most famously from America. Any novel set before 1950 must however confront the question of what... Continue Reading →
A pair of spectacles tumbles into a rock-pool. A trivial incident echoes down the years, disturbing the lives of George, Artie and Edith. So the new novel has a title. To my friends this has been 'The Book With No Name' for the past two years. Informally we called it 'Glint', and the early titles... Continue Reading →
For the past few months I've been editing a book written by a colleague. Wrecked, Guernsey Shipwrecks, is the work of Patrick Martin. When Patrick was working at Fort Grey Shipwreck Museum he asked if he could write a book about the wrecks on display. This seemed an ideal opportunity to publish some of the... Continue Reading →
Back in 1985, the divers departed leaving me with occasional volunteers to record the timbers. Some had been planned in position on the seabed, which was fortunate in the case of one keel timber - the largest on the ship- which vanished overnight and was never seen again. We think it was dragged out into... Continue Reading →
I'll be posting a fair few bulletins about Guernsey's Roman ship over the next couple of years, but I thought this time I'd look back to the very beginning. During the winter 1984/85 I was working on my PhD research on North Kent Roman pottery. For much of that time I was huddled over a paraffin... Continue Reading →