Summer's here and so is the ...

... Live at the Libraries Festival in Harrogate, Knaresborough, Bilton, and Ripon.  Read on for more details ...

The Live at the Libraries Festival runs from August 13th to the 15th, and the full programme is being finalised as you read this post!  But, this is an event that I will be involved in, and I can tell you a little more about it even though I can't yet release the full details.

The festival runs across three days, and there are events planned for all four sites - Harrogate, Knaresborough, Bilton, and Ripon.  We have panels and workshops, and we are covering more than just crime, as we did last July.  This time around, we have events for poets, writing for children, and my favourite genre of crime.  So please do keep checking with your library to see what's coming up, meanwhile, here's some advance information about the content of the crime events.

Wednesday, August 13th

What I can tell you today is that we have a Just A Minute event for the audience to ask the panel of authors questions, but each writer only has one minute to give a reply.

I will be hosting an event about Creating A Villain.  No matter what the crime there is always a baddie in the story somewhere, and some of those villains come back again and again - just like Flambeau of the Father Brown books or Moriarty of the Holmes stories. Speaking as a writer myself, I can also tell you that creating a villain can be fun. Afterall, the likes of Moriarty and Flambeau are just the kind of characters that everyone loves to hate.  There will also be three other authors helping out with what I think will be a really fun and interactive session.  Full details will be released soon.

Ever wondered how authors put their crime novels together?  Ever thought about plotting your own crime story?  Well, Live at the Libraries will be your opportunity to put those vagues into some sort of order.  With a panel of authors you'll be able to create a crime from the scene of a murder, plan red herrings and misdirections, and gather evidence. Plotting A Crime could be just the event you might need.

Thursday, August 14th

As well as audience questions participation, there will be workshops running during the festival.  I will be hosting a workshop on how to Create A Character for a Crime Novel.  By the end of the session participants will have a character sketched out, will have been taken through a methodology for creating that character and will have some additional information/references to enable them to take their character and research further

Through an audience participation event we be will asking Who Do You Want To Murder? and How Do You Plan To Get Away with It?

Some of the above events will take place at more than one venue and until the programme is finalised, I can't be more precise.  But as soon as I get the final details, I will post the full information here on the blog and across all my social media.

Keep watching this space, and I hope you will join me and other Yorkshire authors at Live at the Libraries in August. 

It's Summer and the Newark Book Festival ...

 … will be here very soon.  Read on for more detailed info ...

This year, the Newark Book Festival will run from July 10th up to and including July 13th. As with previous festivals, there will be plenty of events happening all over town during those four days.

Along with workshops, author interviews, specific events for children, and music, there will also be an amazing Book Fair.  In the Market Place, there will be loads of book stalls and I will be there, too!

So, please do join me on Sunday, July 13th, in the Market Place, Newark, NG24 1DU.

I will be there all day from 10.00 am and I will be signing and selling books. I will have all six of my Jacques Forêt Mysteries with me.  So, if you would like to chat about France, the Cévennes, the stories, or even Jacques himself, please drop by and say hello.  I will also be able to give you the latest info on the next book in the series.

I will be bringing the three fabulous Miss Moonshine anthologies as well.  If you are in need of a feel-good, heart-warming read for the summer, then these collections of gentle stories will see you through the holidays.  They are ideal for those few moments when the kids are busy, and all you need is a cuppa and a bit of me-time.

In addition, I will have the multi-genre miscellanies of tales from the Seasonal Paths Collection. All four are now available in print and E-format.

It would be great to see you there if you can make it.

A full program of events is available to consult or download Here  Let's hope that the weather will be sunny and warm.

Rivers of France ...

Photo by DXR

... I’m continuing my journey along the river La Loire.  I’m making a brief stop at Briare and then making my way to the city of Orléans.  Read on…

In my last post, I took you along the left bank of the Loire to La Charité.  If you want to continue your own trip along the quiet riverside roads, as I do, then leave La Charité on the D7.  This road meanders through to Herry and onwards to Couargues and Sancerre until it joins the D955.  This is a much busier road and it crosses the Loire at Cosne and joins the D907 to take you to Neuvy-sur-Loire and Briare.  Whenever I’m in the area, I always have to stop at Briare.  It’s a vibrant town with a pâtisserie I’ve visited often, and there is the Canal bridge across the river.  This magnificent piece of engineering is down to Monsieur Eiffel and was completed in 1896.  I have a previous post all about the bridge, and you can read that Here.  By all means, have a look at the viaduct and do spend some time here in town – it’s worth it.  But I’m going to move on.

Leaving Briare, you can still follow the river along the minor roads that take you to Ouzouer, Sully, St-Benoît, St-Martin, and St-Denis before reaching the heart of the city.  Orléans is both a city and a metropolitan urban area.  The ‘city’ has a long history and was originally a Gaulish settlement right on the river.  In 52 BC, Julius Caesar destroyed the original settlement and massacred the inhabitants.  I guess that was one way to make his presence felt!  In the 3rd century AD, Roman Emperor Aurelian rebuilt the city and named it after himself - Aurelianorum.  Over time and history, this became the name we use today.

Orléans sits at the most northerly point of the river.  If you look at a map, you will see the river follows a generally northern route from its source, but at Orléans, it kind of turns west and slightly south to cover the final section of the route to the sea at St Nazaire.  Whilst gazing at your map, you will also note that the point where the river turns is the closest it comes to Paris.

During earlier periods, and especially the Middle Ages, proximity to Paris was of great strategic importance.  Because of the river – a major transport and cargo route - Orléans became a rich and powerful city, it was the capital of the kingdom of Orléans, and eventually the principal city of a duchy held by the house of Valois-Orléans.  Through Louis 12, the family became the kings of France and one or two of them were crowned in the cathedral.  And that’s where I’m taking you next.

Once you hit the outskirts of the city, make sure you keep to the north embankment with the river on your left.  There are various areas to park along the road (D2152), and the nearer you can get to Pont George V, the better.  The bridge links in with rue Royale, a long straight road that is worth a look.  When it intersects with rue Jeanne d’Arc, please stop and take in the cityscape.  On your right, at the top of the street, is the magnificent Cathédrale Sainte-Croix.  You really do need to be that distant from it to be able to take in the fabulous architecture.  If you want a pic, be careful to avoid the trams!  They seem to appear from nowhere.

Along rue Jeanne d’Arc – the Maid of Orléans – there are loads of posh shops, so you can give the credit card some serious stress if you wish.  Personally, I just like the association with one of France’s most historic young women.  Born in Domrémy-la-Pucelle in 1412, into a farming family, she grew up to be called into service to save her country from the dominance of the English.  Charles 7 took a risk and sent her, along with more troops, to Orléans to lead his demoralised army and resolve the siege of the city.  Jeanne arrived in April 1429.  Nine days later, after fierce fighting, the English abandoned the city.  Rather than let the fleeing English army get clean away, Jeanne encouraged her men to pursue them to prevent a regrouping and any possible second assault.  The French army continued to rout the Brits until they reached the city of Rheims, where Charles 7 was crowned King of France with the still very young Jeanne at his side.

Regrettably, Jeanne’s personal history is not so great after that triumph.  She failed in the siege of Paris in September and the siege of La Charité in November 1429 – hence my reason for coming from La Charité to Orléans.  In another battle in Compiégne in May 1430, she was captured by Burgundian troops (great mates of the English at the time), and handed over to the Brits six months later.  Jeanne was committed for trial, found guilty of heresy, and burned at the stake on May 30^th, 1431.  And now, almost 600 years later, she is one of the most famous women in European history.  And for me, as an actor who has played the role of Jeanne when I was still a teenager myself, there is something really special about being on a street named in remembrance of her, in the city that is the site of one of her most decisive battles.

Photo by SelbyMay

But the basilica awaits.  Replacing the ruins of a Roman Temple, the cathedral was constructed between 1278 and 1329.  Jeanne reportedly visited the cathedral to pray during and after the rout of the city.  So, walking rue Jeanne d’Arc is something of a recreation of history, and I can muse about the fact that I may be treading in her footsteps!

The cathedral was partially destroyed by the Huguenots during the Wars of Religion in 1568, but it was rebuilt in the Gothic style, and that is what we can see today.  The vast nave is long with high vaulting, and the upper windows let in natural light, giving the impression of lightness despite the substantial size of the edifice as a whole.  The play of the light in this interior inspired a scene in the first of a new series of cosy crime stories.  And when you get here and take a look for yourselves, you’ll fully understand why!

There will be more from my journey along La Loire next month.  So watch this space.  If you want to catch up on any posts you may have missed, click the following links: Rivers of France  La Loire  Digoin  Nevers  

I'm reviewing Ravens Hill ...

... by friend and author, Garth Pettersen.  This is the fifth book in the Atheling Chronicles.  Read on to find out what I thought ...

I read a great deal, and not just particular types of fiction.  I also read non-fiction, too.  Some of the types of books I can’t resist are historicals.  I find they help fill gaps in my knowledge, and if the story is a good one, I get a lot of enjoyment out of living in a previous era for as long as it takes me to get from the first page to the last one.  I can honestly say that when I discovered there was another book in the Atheling Chronicles available for pre-order, I just had to buy it.

Battle-weary Harald, son of King Cnute, has returned from his warring exploits in Wales, and as a reward from his father, has been gifted land.  He and his wife Selia travel to their new estate.  Expecting to find the estate well managed by the incumbent Steward, Harald discovers he has walked into a feud.  There are tensions between the tenants and the Steward, there is open avarice about the estate from the neighbours, and there is general mistrust throughout the whole community.  It’s quite an undertaking that Harald, as the new Lord, has to handle with only Selia at his side, as he works out who he can trust, who he can’t.  When one murder becomes two, deliberate sabotage becomes obvious, and a significant threat to the whole community has to be dealt with, Harald and Selia really rise to the challenge.

I read a lot of crime novels and look to other types of stories to provide a little relief from that particular diet.  That being said, I also have to point out that this ‘who dunnit’ really kept me enthralled.  Whilst the murders are central to the plot, they are not the only threads running through the book.  The tension in the story gradually builds until it becomes a raging race to get to the end.  I read this book in two chunks because I just could not put it down.

It was really good to be back with Harald and Selia again in this, the fifth story in the Atheling Chronicles.  I enjoyed learning more about these two very well-defined and astute characters.  The ‘baddies’, and there are a few in this book, were equally as enticing to read – afterall, we all love to hate someone don’t we, and books most often gives us that opportunity!

The historical setting of the 11th century is very well handled and clearly fully researched – thanks, Garth, for the bibliography at the end of the book.  There are certainly a few of those that I will be reading in the future.  An excellent story that kept me turning the page right to the very end, and fully deserving of its five-star rating.

If you would like to know more about Garth and his books, check out my interview with him Here  You can read my review of the previous book, The Sea's Edge, Here 

You can get all of Garth's books on Amazon

Rivers of France

Photo courtesy of Rolph Kranz

… I’m picking up from where I left you in my last post about the rivers of France – Nevers.  You can read that post Here if you need to refesh your memory.  Otherwise, read on ... 

Nevers to La Charité-sur-Loire is a short hop, and the temptation is to head out of the city towards the RN7 and take the fast route to La Charité.  Please don’t!  If you leave Nevers on the minor road that leads to Cours-les-Barres and Fourchambault, but turn left onto the D40 and cross the river, you will be rewarded with a fabulous view of Nevers and the river. Once on the left bank of the Loire, take the D12 to Cours and then turn right onto the D45.  This much quieter route takes you through rolling countryside and follows the river, which is on your right.  The D45 eventually intersects with the RN 151, and you can head straight into the heart of La Charité.

However, if you choose to dally you will discover a path that runs along the bank of the Loire and, providing the vegegtation doesn’t get in the way, you can get some lovely views of the river and the town.

Heading into town from the left bank takes you across an island in the centre of the river. There are paths along each bank if you want to wander and have a more detailed look at the power of La Loire.  Again, you can get some fabulous views of the town and the river – see above.  Not one of my pics, but a far better shot than the ones I managed to get on a very dull day!

The route from the island in the river brings you right to the old part of the town.  The narrow streets are now fully pedestrianised, but beware of helmeted locals on mopeds!  The street from the bridge will lead you to the church of Ste-Croix-Notre-Dame.  You will also pass the pâtisserie a short way down on your left.  Naturally, I popped in for an amandine for my lunch!  I will find a lovely spot by the river to eat it later.

The church kind of stands right in the middle of the road, but there is pedestrian access and the interior is really worth a look.  The town was established in the 11^th century by a Cluniac Brotherhood who built a priory which was consecrated in 1107.  The town is named after the brotherhood.  Since then, La Charité has survived the Hundred Years War and was finally liberated by French forces in 1435.  Around 120 years later, in 1559, a substantial fire swept through the town, taking with it houses and businesses within the ramparts and inflicting significant damage on the church, which took over a hundred years to repair.  The restoration was completed in the late 17^th century.

By the time of the Revolution in 1789, the town had suffered further incursions during the Religious Wars, and few of the brotherhood remained in residence.  The priory was subsequently sold but has been preserved.  The church was not so lucky, as it was only deemed a monument worth saving in the mid-nineteenth century.  As an edifice full of light, the nave is majestic with simple lines.  I would have loved to have seen the original windows, as the aspect of the church, the nave and the vast windows behind the altar are perfectly aligned to make the most of the sunlight.  The ‘modern’ replacement window designs are pleasing enough and hint at what was once here all those centuries ago.

I leave the church for a meander along the streets, and I eventually find a sign for the campsite. It is by the river.  I find a bench with a view of La Loire and the town.  It’s a perfect place for lunch.

There will be more from my journey along La Loire on June 3rd.

If you enjoyed this post and want to read my earlier posts, you can find them using the following links: Rivers of France  La Loire  Digoin  Nevers

Please welcome, friend and author, Bill Yarborough ...

... to the blog today. Hi Bill, and thanks for taking the time out to talk to us about your book, Memories of MK-ULTRA. Over to you ...

Memories of MK-ULTRA is about three children forced to take part in a life-altering experience. The CIA places them in a covert operation, experimenting with psychoactive drugs, electroshock, and other techniques to mold the human mind.  The experience dramatically impacts their lives, but they don’t remember any of it—at least not right away.

What kinds of individuals will such an experience produce?  How will it shape their personalities, their relationships, their performance in school, and ultimately, their career choices?  And how will their lives change if, suddenly, as young adults, they begin to remember their traumatic background?

Several major themes that run through the novel, including coming of age, psychological thriller, historical, and metaphysical aspects.

The reader can witness the enormous influence of the unconscious mind through the story’s two interwoven narratives.  One follows Dr. Rudolf Holtzmann, an MK-ULTRA psychiatrist, with a secret agenda to create future political leaders.  The other tracks the quirky developments of Beth, Tommy, and Curtis Matthews as they come of age through the turbulence of the 60s and 70s into their early adulthoods in the 80s.

Invisible strings pull them toward their preordained destinies, but their puppet master’s plans are complicated by Holtzmann’s rash and dangerous CIA assistant and by one of the program’s subjects, a 14-year-old indigenous boy with shamanic gifts.  Besides mind control, MK-ULTRA delved into the metaphysical, which drove its interest in psychedelic drugs, such as the magic mushrooms of Mexican shamans.

It takes Curtis’s psychotic breakdown and Beth’s startling vision to open up the pathways to the sibling’s buried past.  These developments lead to the detective work of Lynn Snyder, a diligent therapist—but will it be enough to unravel the tapestry of deception?

Memories of MK-ULTRA is grounded in historical events.  There have been many nonfiction MK-ULTRA books, including Stephen Kinzer’s Poisoner in Chief, which documented MK-ULTRA’s widespread deployment of mind-control experiments, its recruitment of former Nazi SS officers, and its use of psychedelic drugs on adults, college students, and children.  The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and NPR’s Fresh Air all favorably reviewed the book.

As much as the story is about the appalling things powerful people sometimes do—it’s ultimately about healing and transformation.  The first book of a trilogy, Memories of MK-ULTRA, opens a window into the multiple dimensions of the human mind and soul and forces us to question memory, identity, and the fragile concept of truth.

... about the author Bill Yarborough’s debut novel Memories of MK-ULTRA is inspired by experiences from his early childhood, where he along with his brother and sister underwent experiments of the CIA’s MK-ULTRA mind control program.

As a result of his traumatic childhood, Bill engaged in an extensive healing journey during which he employed a wide range of traditional and innovative techniques.  He is currently working on a sequel to his first novel.  Bill lives with his informal editor and wife, Inge, in Northern California.  Besides embracing the joys of becoming a dad for three kids approaching their teenage years when he married, he served in the financial industry and was board president for two non-profits.  

You can get the book on Amazon

You can follow Bill on his Website on Facebook  LinkedIn  and on X

 

I hope you can join me ...

... in Ripon on Sunday.  Read on for more details ...

I will be at the Claro Lounge, 39 Market Square, Ripon (HG4 1BZ)  with lots of other Yorkshire Authors on Sunday, May 11th for the fabulous Promoting Yorkshire Authors' Book Fair.  The fair will be open from  

I will have all six of my Jacques Forêt Mysteries with me.  If you would like to chat about France, the Cévennes, the stories, or even Jacques himself, please drop by and say hello.  I will also be able to give you the latest info on the next book in the series.

The Miss Moonshine anthologies will be making an appearance, as well.  If you are in need of a feel-good, heart-warming read, then these collections of gentle stories will be just the ticket.

Gianetta Murray, (author of A Supernatural Shindig, an anthology and  Moved to Murder, the first in her cosy crime series) will also be at the fair with her books.  I’m sure Gianetta will be only too pleased to chat about how the work on book 2 is shaping up.

Lastly, all four of the Seasonal Paths multi-genre miscellanies of tales from the Seasonal Collective will be available to buy, too.  Gianetta and I both work with our fellow writers from North America to create these editions.  If you want to discover some new authors, these collections are just for you.

Please join me and Gianetta on May 11th from 10.00 am at The Claro Lounge, Ripon, HG4 1BZ.  It'll be great to see you there... 

I'm reviewing Discombobulated and Other Poems ...

... by Michelle L Feltham.  Read on ...

I had the great pleasure of meeting poet Michelle Feltham a couple of months ago. Our conversation moved from general pleasantries about the weather to comments about travel and photography.  But it was when we started talking about our respective passions for writing and reading that Michelle told me she had a book of poems out.  Naturally, I couldn't let her mention that without further questions, could I?  And I am so glad I delved deeper.

Michelle had a copy of her book with her, and very kindly let me have a look.  As I quickly flicked through the pages and stopped to read a stanza here of a couple of verses there, I realised I wanted to have a copy of the whole book.  One of the things I love about poetry is that it is so succinct in nature that a couple of lines can be enough to speak a thousand words because whatever the sentiment, it is conveyed with such power and understanding.  Those couple of lines were in a poem called Armistice.

Back home again, and I searched Amazon for copy of the book.  A few days later, it arrived and, as I was travelling again the following week I took it with me.  The constant rattle of the train in no way marred my enjoyment of these little works of art.  The 37 poems are brigaded into sections, 'Politics' being the first, followed by 'Our Natural World' and running through the seasons, to finally end with 'Reflections'.  So you can dip in and out depending on your mood and the time available.  As my train journey was two hours, I started at the first poem, the Discombobulated of the title, and gradually worked my way through to the last one, Life After Death.

Some of the poems made me laugh, some made me pause for thought, and some I went back to read again.  But it was the revelation at the very end of the book that caused me to sit up and think.  My thoughts were finally interrupted by the announcement from the train guard that I had arrived at my destination.  As a three-year-old, Michelle suffered in a severe vehicle accident which resulted in brain damage along with numerous other injuries.  She was not expected to survive.  But she did, and it was a great honour to have been able to speak to her all those weeks ago and to get an insight into the heart and mind of a poet.

Do I have a favourite amongst this collection?  Not exactly, there were so many phrases and linked lines that seemed to echo so much about today's society, the wars that are being conducted, the general poverty we see around us, and the need to be mindful of others.  But I will leave you with a snippet from Life After Death.

And if ever you should feel bereft,

Close your eyes and see that I never really left,

'Cause at the end of my life as at the start,

I'll forever be right there inside your heart.

I really hope Michelle continues to craft words and sentences and that further books of poetry will be completed and become available in the future.  But for the moment, you can get Michelle's book in print or e-format on Amazon.  Just click the link.  Please also be aware that all proceeds from the sale of this book go to charity.

The characters we all love to hate …

Graphic courtesy of Clker Pixabay

… are often the very best characters to write. At least that’s how I feel about one of mine.  Read on …

All of my characters are very important to me.  I spend just as much time developing my ‘baddies’, who may only be around for one story, as I do my central characters who appear in all of the books.

So, Richard Laurent Delacroix, the Canadian nephew of old Guy Delacroix from the first book, Messandrierre, has had a chequered career!  He first appears in Merle (Book #2) with a backstory that is not detailed but certainly looks dodgy.  He’s not well-liked by the other villagers, and when he decides to stay, you can almost hear the sighs of disappointment from his French neighbours.

In Montbel (Book #3), Delacroix inveigles his way into the life of the village.  But, he also begins to show more of his character, and it becomes quite clear that he is prepared to not only swindle his enemies but his associates as well.  As he says in the book, ‘everything has a value’ and that capacity to drill everything down to some form of value for himself, not necessarily always monetary, is one of the key drivers of his personality.  As the story of Montbel unwinds, Delacriox proves himself to be manipulative and an accomplished liar.

As one reader put it when I was answering questions at an event, ‘Delacriox seems or have no moral compass…’.  And, at that time the statement was true.  I had deliberately planned that this character would be someone that we all loved to hate.  What I hadn’t reckoned on was the level of fun that I would get out of writing such a character.

When we get to Marseille (Book #4) Delacroix has seriously upped his game and is contemplating more complex ways of obtaining the ‘value’ that he so craves.  In one particular scene in this story, Delacriox demonstrates to his associates that he actually does have a ‘moral compass’.  It isn’t much of one, but it is there and openly stated as he directs how the next phase of work that he’s planning will be taken forward.

Of course, in Marseille, Jacques Forêt finally thwarts Delacroix.  I can honestly say that some readers were really disappointed that Delacroix was tamed, and I started getting questions about whether he might return in a later book.  At the time I said 'no' and I kept on saying that each time that question arose.  I really didn’t have any plans for Delacroix once Marseille was published.

But things change, and sometimes characters just won’t leave you, no matter how much you want them too.  The same is true for actors, too.  There are some characters I‘ve played on stage that I would still like to revisit in a new text – the wicked witch in Snow White, Grace in Entertaining Angels, Bella Donna in Hansel and Gretel, or Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream – to name just a few!  There was a dark side to each of these characters, and it was great fun exploring that, but also a personal loss when I had to divest myself of each of those characters once the curtain had come down on the final performance.

But the great thing about books, unlike the characters I’ve played on stage, is that I can live again in Delacroix’s head in another story.  So, if you’ve read Mazargues (Book #7) you will have come across a short paragraph right at the very end giving a hint for the future:

and then…

 

A heavy postern gate slammed shut behind a tall, broad-shouldered and muscled man. He swept his hand through his thick silver-grey hair and donned a black fedora. He glanced across at a waiting car, a silver Mercedes, and smiled. Striding out, he crossed the open space, moved towards the car, opened the passenger door and got in.

“I’ll need a new name,” he said.

 

THE END

And you can read more about Meyrueis if you just click the following links Meyrueis Part 1  Mayrueis Part 2  Life on the Causses

If you want to read my previous posts from my time following Robert Louis Stevenson through the Cévennes, then click Following Stevenson  

Travelling with Stevenson ...

... It has been quite a while since I last wrote a Stevenson post. But, after a trawl through my old journals from my numerous travels in the Cévennes, I've discovered a few nuggets of previously unpublished bits of info and, most surprisingly, a pic!  Read on ... 

On one of my earliest trips to Mende and the surrounding area, I came across a very odd-looking scene on a mountainside.  At that point, I didn't carry a camera with me everywhere I went.  So, I just quickly sketched what I could see in my notebook.  As I was thumbing through my notes from that trip, I came across the said sketch.  I had completely forgotten it was there.  I had also ignored the action point I gave myself at that time: Find out what these funny little trees really are.

Finally, I have done that research, the sketch is above, and an idea came into my head for a plot line as a result.  In Mazargues, one of the local farmers has an issue with wood being stolen from his copse of trees that sits at one edge of his land.  That character is Fermier Sallan.  It's Didier Duclos who takes charge of the investigation, and he brings it to the best conclusion he can under the circumstances.  But it's quite clear that Didier isn't really happy with how the matter is resolved.

In Meyrueis, Fermier Sallan turns up at Jacques' office in Mende along with his younger brother, Maurice.  It turns out that the Sallan family are being targeted again, but this time it's because of their bees.  Maurice Sallan's wife manages the bees and their hives.  She sells the honey in Mende and at markets in and around the area.  The day before the brothers come into town to see Jacques, one of the hives has been destroyed.  As always, Jacques takes on the case, and he and Didier go to the farm to see the real problem for themselves.

It was my research into the origins and use of the 'strange little trees' I had discovered on the hillside that day that came to my rescue when I needed a subplot for Meyrueis.  In the Cévennes, a particular type of bee is kept up on the slopes - the European Black Bee.  It is still a proper honey bee, but it is more hardy than the bees we see all over the UK.  It is particularly suited to the harsh climate of the mountainsides and, because of the uniqueness of the flora in the area, the resulting honey has a flavour all of its own.  A bit like the honey from Scotland, where the bees feed on the pollen from the heather.  Honey has been produced in the mountains of the Cévennes for centuries. You can still see vestiges of this in the national park where the ancient farming practices are preserved.  So there are no white painted square hives as we are used to seeing in the UK.  The hives are old chestnut tree trunks that are hollowed out and then set on a small plinth.  The bees create their colony in the space inside the trunk, and pieces of wood are laid on the top. The flat stone laid across each hive is there to keep it safe from the winds.

Along with the sketch in my notebook, I also jotted down a brief description, and the couple of phrases are the basis for a description that I gave to Jacques ...

'Coming out of the shade of a small stand of trees, Jacques saw that the hillside had some kind of stepped arrangement reaching up, the highest point already in the first light from the morning sun. On the terraces, he could see round tree trunks with what appeared to be large flat stones on top. They were arranged like a resting army in uneven ranks. Not all quite the same height or width. Not all standing perfectly upright.'

There will be more from Meyrueis and the Causse Here, and if you want to read my earlier posts click the links Meyrueis Part 1  Meyrueis Part 2

If you want to read about my time following Robert Louis Stevenson through the Cévennes, here's the link Following Stevenson

Come stroll with me…

… across the Causse that overlooks the town of Meyrueis as part of my #AprilAuthorChallenge…

I'm continuing my travels and I’m picking up from where I left you last week on the blog – sitting, having lunch in the real town of Meyrueis as I considered whether I should rebuild some of the old town walls for my fictional version of the place.

Although my lunch is finished, my internal debate isn’t.  I decide to leave it at that and make my way up onto the Causse that overlooks and dwarfs the town.  I have some scenes that will fit the unique landscape of these vast limestone plateaux.  From Meyrueis I take the D996 heading north-east out of town.  On the outkirts, I take a left on the D986 which traverses the Causse Méjean and head towards Hures-la-Parade.

The Causses, and there are quite a number spread across the whole of France, are vast limestone plateaux that range in height from 550 metres (1800 feet) to 1250 metres (4,100 feet) above sea level.  They were formed during the Second Geological Era, that’s about 250 million years ago.  Yeah, I know.  Seriously, big numbers are impossible to rationalise and understand, aren’t they?  But way back in that time, this area was a vast sea.  After about 70 million years, the sea began to retreat – I guess we had a form of global warming even then! – leaving behind various sediments and deposits.  At some point in the Tertiary Era (that’s between 66 million and 2.6 million years ago) the Tectonic plates had a bit of a barney with each other, the limestone plateau left by the sea was lifted, the Alps appeared, the limestone fractured creating vast gorges and the basis of the landscape that can be seen today was formed.  The rest is all down to 2.5 million years of weather and erosion.  Limestone is quite friable and porous, and it suffers from our changing seasons – rain in spring, freezing winters, damaging winds throughout the year.

Despite the difficult birth of the Causses, the landscape has supported sheep and cattle farming since at least the Bronze age.  It was during these times that the ancient process of what we now refer to as Transhumance was established.  The roads up to and across the Causses have their basis in the old drovers’ roads that enabled early farmers to feed their animals on the grass of the cooler high plateaux and sell the animals at the appropriate maturity in local markets.  The success of living on and around the plateaux led to the establishment of small villages in the lower gorges.

As I meander across this particular plateau, I see single-story farmhouses created from the local rock – mostly limestone.  The habitation here is sparse.  The trees are few and the clumps of low-level scrub are the only features.  As I look across the causse, I see a vast and barely undulating field of pale green with patches of small low-level mountain flowers providing the last vestiges of summer’s colour.  At the horizon I see sky and far distant mountains.  For a child of the Yorkshire Dales and the rolling green and treed countryside of the bit of the county where I now live, the scenery of the Causse Méjean has a meagre palette of colour.  The wind blows through the grass of the plain, creating constant movement and making the flowers dance.  There’s a seemingly ever-present low murmur as the breeze slips by.

The specific kind of silence here, the lack of habitation and passers-by make this a perfect backdrop for a plotline that I’m considering.

There will be more from Meyrueis and the Causse Here.  And you can catch up on previous posts by clicking the links  Meyrueis Part1  Following Stevenson

Come stroll with me ...

… through the real town of Meyrueis …

As it’s April 1st I’m starting my #AprilAuthorChallenge here in the real town of Meyrueis, a place that has a population of around 800 inhabitants in the département of Lozère.  Situated close to the edge of the département, the town overlooks the confluence of three rivers, La Jonte, La Brèze and Le Béthuzon and nestles at one end of the Gorges de la Jonte.  It is bordered on the south by the foothills of Mont Aigoual and the Causse Méjean, a vast limestone plateau that towers over the valley, in the north.  With an elevation of around 611 metres (2005 feet if you prefer) above sea level and spot heights rising to 1562 metres (or 5125 feet), the town outstrips the highest peak here in Britain.  Our claim to fame in that respect, Ben Nevis, is a modest 4,413 feet.

Because of the nature of the geography, a steep river valley, the town is characteristically long and narrow but widens out as you get closer to the centre.  Leaving the car parked by the side of the road, it’s a pleasant walk along Quai de la Barrère, with houses on the right and the river on the left, into town.  I took the scenic route to get here, leaving Mende on the N88 and taking the D986 across the Causse.  At St-Enimie you can deviate and take the D907 to follow the Tarn Gorge if you wish.  As the La Jonte flows into the Tarn at La Rozier, you can still get to Meyrueis using that more circuitous path.  I wanted to explore the Causse as I have some scenes set in that specific landscape in book 7 and titled Meyrueis.

But let’s get back to the real Meyrueis and its fascinating and long history.  The earliest evidence of life in this gorge dates from prehistory, and excavations undertaken in the 1980s have discovered Gallo-Roman buildings dating from the first century.  Prior to that, the area was divided between various Celtic tribes.

Throughout history, the town has grown and prospered, the principal trades being sheep, wool, and the millinery industry.  The market here dates from 1033, and despite the various religious wars, the upheaval of changes of barony through conquest or marriage, and the revolution, the town has survived.  That tenacity is demonstrated in the mixture of architecture and buildings across the streets.

As I go from the outskirts along the quai to the bridge, I see a four-storey house on the far side of the river.  I like the look of the little garden, the steps up to the front door and the fact that there is a narrow stone bridge across the river at that point.  A perfect place for my victim's body to be found, I decide.  Except there’s just one little issue!  In reality, it is still quite a walk to get from here to the town centre.  But then, when one writes fiction, one can make things up or change things.  And that is what I decide to do – so that little bridge and the house, in my fictitious version of Meyrueis, are much closer to the centre of town than in real life.

As I meander along the quai, the hustle and bustle of the town becomes more evident – it’s market day today.  The restaurant on the right is filling up with mid-day diners; after all, it is after twelve.  The location of the eatery is perfect, I think, as the initial scene in the book begins to unfold in my head.  My character of Madame Rose-Marie Longuechampe was formed some time ago, but I ask myself as I pause to take in the street ahead, why is she leaving her house?

I continue on.  There’s a hotel on my left, and the road and buildings widen out from the bank of the river.  Here, there are market stalls and a plethora of people.  Neighbours stop to chat and greet each other, vendors call out prices and weights to their waiting customers. But my question is still running around unanswered in my head.

The street becomes Place Sully, another little bridge traverses the river, more shoppers move between the market stalls.  More shops, more eateries and then I espy the fully extended dark green canopy of the boulangerie et pâtisserie on my left.  Of course, I think, Madame Longuechampe is leaving her house to fetch the bread and cakes for the weekend!  I pop into the pâtisserie.  There are five other customers in front of me, all of whom turn to greet me as I come in.  An elderly gentleman pays his bill, and as I wait, I gaze at the cakes.  Today it will be a tartelette aux fraises.  My lunch securely packaged, I continue my exploration of the town.

At the top of Place Sully, there is yet another bridge and the Tourist Office.  I dive in and get a town map.  I also discover a little place to sit and eat with a view of the river and the bustle of the market.  As I sit there in the sunshine, it being late September there is a definite chill in the shade, I make a few more decisions.  The boulangerie et pâtisserie will have to move, too.  It’s too far away from where I’ve put Madame’s house.  Then I look at the Tourist Office, which is housed in the remains of the old town walls.  Should I rebuild some of the old fortifications in my version of the town or not?  I spend the next hour debating that question as the market traders begin to pack away their wares and the shoppers make their journeys home...

There will be more from the real Meyrueis and the Causse Here.

If you want to read my earlier posts about my time following Stevenson in the Cévennes, then click the link Following Stevenson

I'm reviewing The Lost king of France ...

 ... by Deborah Cadbury today.  Read on to discover my thoughts on this book ...

This book begins in April 1770 when Archduchess Maria Antonia left her family, home, and country to travel to France.  She was making her way to Versailles to be married to Louis-Charles, Duc de Normandie.  Naturally, being betrothed to the Dauphin meant that she would have to adapt to life in the French Court, and upon being accepted into the French Royal family, she became Marie-Antoinette.

Louis-Charles eventually acceded to the throne and became Louis XVI.  There were three surviving children, Marie-Thérèse, Louis-Joseph and his younger brother Louis-Charles.  One has to wonder what was going through Marie-Antoinette's mind as she travelled to France as a young teenager. Did she perhaps envisage the terrible fate that awaited her some twenty or so years later - probably not - but that journey must have been full of trepidation of one form or another.

The revolution took hold of Paris on July 14th, 1789 and then the rest of the country quickly afterwards.  There had been a significant period of societal unrest in advance of the storming of the Bastille, but the changes that were coming for the country, Marie-Antoinette and her family were harrowing and are still studied, written about and debated today, some 230 years later.  The Lost King of France charts the life of Louis-Charles, the boy who would have become Louis XVII and finally answer the many questions about what happened to that little boy.

I really enjoyed this piece of non-fiction on numerous levels.  First, it filled some of the gaps in my knowledge of French history generally.  Secondly, with the focus being the young Louis XVII, and through the author's rigorous research, it was fascinating to have a new insight into the revolutionary cause.  The privations that the dwindling members of the royal family suffered and the way they were treated sometimes made the reading difficult.  Ideology for the cause took precedence over common decency and humanitarianism.  Something, regrettably, that we are still witnessing across our modern and supposedly much more enlightened world today.  But man's capability for inhumanity to his fellow man is within us all.  It's just a question of making a choice.

Thirdly, the book looks at the aftermath of the revolution and the commencement of the Napoleonic age, along with the many pretenders to the throne of France.  Today, of course, with our leaps in technology and science, we can say definitively whether Louis XVII survived or died and whether the descendants of any of the pretenders to the throne have a bona fide claim or not.  I found that section of the book to be as fascinating as the earlier parts.

This is a riveting piece of history, narrated in a flowing and easily readable way.  Some of the subject matter is disturbing, but the 18th century was a turbulent time.  A book that thoroughly deserves its five stars.

Other book reviews include France: The Dark Years  France on Trial  The Vanished Collection  and Cursed Bread

I'm Off My Beaten Track in Casablanca ...

The vast city of Casablanca at twilight

 ... today.  I've been trawling through my journals and found some forgotten notes from my travels in North Africa.  Check out my thoughts from that time ...

MOROCCO MEMOS

'... I opened the curtains in Casablanca to the spectacular view of towers of containers and the wall of the dock.  Not quite what I had been expecting.  My imagined view of the city was all based on the black and white movie of the same name with Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, and Paul Henreid that was released in 1943.  I’d somehow lost myself in the romance of the story and Rick’s Bar.  The real and immediate view from the window of my cabin kinda shot an Exocet missile through the imagined!  But there’s still Risk’s Bar, I told myself in consolation as I meandered along to breakfast, my trusty travel guide in hand to read over coffee...'

This modern city, with a population of more than 4.2 million, boasts of being the largest urban development, the chief port, and the economic and business centre of Morocco. What I encountered and described in my journal was something a little different.  Read on ...

'... as I got off the supplied transport to take us into town, I and my fellow travellers were immediately besieged by men wanting to entice us into their taxis to drive us across and around the town.  Taking ‘No thank you’ for an answer was something unheard of and clearly unacceptable here.  I just kept walking across the vast square to be free of the constant barracking....'

'... as I meandered along the streets I saw derelict buildings next to French Colonial edifices next to 21^st century empty new builds.  Jay walking is inviting a death sentence, and at the standard, marked and managed crossings are just as dangerous.  No-one gives any quarter here.  The standard of driving is the same as I witnessed in Egypt decades ago, it’s just that everything today happens at a much greater speed with absolutely no regard for the green agenda.  Chaos without even a glimmer of organisation to temper it...

'... I eventually discovered the souk and stepped beneath its ramshackle roof.  Lots of little ‘shops’ in every inch of space and lots of stall-holders, again all men, barracking and clamouring for your attention and offering a ‘good price’.  Then a Vespa came storming down the narrow alleyway – it was the first of a number and it became apparent that this was the norm.  I made my way out and back onto the wide streets where there was no-one to bother me with whatever they wanted to sell.  My peace didn’t last long as I made the mistake of turning to look at a mobile stall selling nothing but oranges.  I was barracked again and just ran a few steps ahead to get away.  It seems the standard European art of browsing is an absolute no-no here...'

'A little further on I come across a plaque above an old doorway.  I tried the door, it was firmly locked, but the content of the inscription above was intriguing. I make a mental note to check it out when I can ...'

'... And as for Rick’s bar – that’s not real.  It only ever existed in a studio in Hollywood.  The Rick’s Café, here in Casablanca, was only inspired by the bar in the film.  Another disappointment...'

'... making my way across the square and I’m barracked again.  Luckily, I spy the laid on transport and I decide that enough of this city is more than enough.  It seems that my fellow travellers feel the same way as there are hardly any seats left ...'

There will be more from my journals in the coming weeks and months.  Keep watching this space...

Join me on an #AprilAuthorChallenge ...

 ... and learn much more about the next book in Jacques Forêt Mystery series ...

Every day throughout the month of April I will be posting across all of my social media about book 7 in the Jacques Forêt Mysteries. Check out the list of aspects in connection with the book on the right.  

For the moment, all I'm going to tell you is that the title is Meyrueis.  It's late summer and Lucien, Jacques Forêt's son, is in England staying with his grandmother and his uncles as the story begins.  The timing is only a few weeks after the end of Mazargues.  The crime featured in this book is a very different one from that in Mazargues.  As such, it has been great fun doing all the research necessary for the story.  And a lot more research that I will probably never use!  But that's how it goes - you find an answer to one question which generates other questions and suddenly, your whole day has been spent in the library or on Google!  I so love this job!

For the next story, there will be new characters along with Jacques, Didier and all of their old colleagues.  There will be characters who return, as did one particular individual at the end of Mazargues.  Check out the extract below :

and then…

 

A heavy postern gate slammed shut behind a tall, broad-shouldered and muscled man. He swept his hand through his thick silver-grey hair and donned a black fedora. He glanced across at a waiting car, a silver Mercedes, and smiled. Striding out, he crossed the open space, moved towards the car, opened the passenger door and got in.

“I’ll need a new name,” he said.

There will be more about him during April!