Category: Interview/Q&A

Interview: David Boyle, author of Regicide

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Today’s guest on What Cathy Read Next is David Boyle, author of the historical mystery, Regicide: Peter Abelard and the Great Jewel.   David has kindly agreed to answer some questions about the book, its inspiration and his approach to writing.

regicideAbout the Book

England, 1100. King William Rufus is killed with an arrow on a hunt. Rumours start immediately that he was murdered.

Nineteen years later in France, Hilary the Englishman is dismissed from his position as tutor when his student, Alys, a young girl with whom he has fallen in love, dies of fever. Turned out in the street Hilary meets a strange man offers to buy Hilary a meal if he does him a favour. He gives Hilary a pouch of silver, and a message to be delivered to Count Fulk in Anjou. But by morning the man is dead, and the crows feasting on his body. Fearing he will be accused of murder, Hilary flees. But he owes a debt of honour to deliver the message. Hilary knows only one man can help him. His former teacher, the brilliant Peter Abelard.

Much has happened to Abelard in the years since Hilary knew him. Although he may not be the man he was, he comes to the aid of his former student, deciphering the message… A message about the death of King William Rufus all those years before. A message about who benefited from that death and about the Great Jewel of Alfred the Great… a jewel which rested in the crown used at the coronation of kings, but has been missing since 1066. Hilary and Abelard’s journey will take them through France, England, and Jerusalem as they race against time to save their own lives, and the fate of the monarchy. For there is a mysterious Saxon claimant to the throne.

To purchase Regicide from Amazon.co.uk click here (link provided for convenience, not as part of any affiliate programme)

Q&A with David Boyle

Without giving too much away, can you tell me a bit about Regicide?

Regicide starts in 1118 and is about a not very successful poet and clerk in holy orders, Hilary the Englishman, who is sacked from his tutor job, and finds himself – through no fault of his own – caught up in a medieval espionage murder, which appears to be related to the death, 18 years before, of William Rufus, the King of England, while out hunting. Chased across France by both sides, and himself accused of murder, Hilary begs for help from the one man who he believes can help him, his old teacher, Peter Abelard in Paris. He finds Abelard gone, chastened and beaten after his affair with Heloise – but they manage to escape for Jerusalem, knowing that they must return and find out who killed the King, to clear Hilary’s name…

Your previous books have been largely non-fiction: history, economics, politics, biography. What tempted you to enter the world of historical fiction?

I’ve always written fiction but tended in the past to keep it to myself! But I fell in love with the 12th century – its tolerance and relative openness and its art (and Abelard is key to that too) – when I was writing about Richard the Lionheart and I couldn’t resist trying to bring it alive.

How did you get the idea for Regicide?

I think the first thought was that the mystery about the death of William Rufus would lend itself well to detective fiction. The second thought was that Abelard – his great near contemporary – would make an excellent Sherlock Holmes figure. The third was that, as I researched Abelard’s life, I found he had a friend called Hilary the Englishman, a minor poet. Six of Hilary’s poems survive: three love poems to nuns and three to young monks. Immediately I discovered them, a picture of Hilary rose into my mind.

Peter Abelard is an interesting figure, a medieval philosopher best known for his affair with Heloise d’Argenteuil. What made you decide to make him a central character?

Abelard was an extraordinary man out of his own time. He is famous now for his affair but he was a brilliant teacher and thinker, a great controversialist, arousing rage and delight in equal measures. If he could have solved the Rufus mystery, I felt sure he would have done so!

How did you approach the research for the book? Do you enjoy the process of research?

I love it but have to be careful not to lose myself in it. I read around the characters and the period. It is important to me that everything I have in the book is consistent with history as we know it.

What was the biggest challenge you encountered when writing the book?

The danger if you do too much research is that you lose the story in atmosphere. I think I’ve managed to avoid that but it was a close run thing!

If you could travel back in time, what period would you choose to visit and why?

Definitely the twelfth century in Europe, perhaps in the troubadour courts of southern Europe – I managed to include the first troubadour as a character in Regicide. But I would make sure I would go to the dentist before I started my journey there!

Do you have a special place to write or any writing rituals?

I try and write in a hut surrounded by papers at the bottom of my garden. But I also have two children and a dog who require constant attention, so it is difficult.

What other writers do you admire?

I’m a huge admirer of William Boyd. Also, two generations back, of Henry Williamson.

What are you working on next? Will it be more historical fiction?

As a matter of fact I have been working on a novel, set during the Brexit debate but involving the Pilgrim’s Way – a late 12th century development. So that is rather the other way around.  I have also been commissioned to write three short historical novels about the Enigma code and there is no obvious link there with the 12th century at all…

Thank you, David, for answering my questions. I can’t wait to read Regicide and find out how the mystery is resolved.

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DavidBoyleAbout the Author

David Boyle is the author of The Troubadour’s Song: The Capture and Ransom of Richard the Lionheart and a series of books about history, social change and the future. His book Authenticity: Brands, Fakes, Spin and the Lust for Real Life helped put the search for authenticity on the agenda as a social phenomenon. The Tyranny of Numbers and The Sum of Our Discontent predicted the backlash against the government’s target culture. He lives in Crystal Palace, in south London, with Sarah and Robin (two years old).

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Interview: Sue Carscallen, A Countess in Limbo

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CountessToday I am delighted to welcome to my blog Sue Carscallen, co-author of A Countess in Limbo: Diaries in War and Revolution. If you’re interested in history or personal memoirs, I’m sure you’ll find Sue’s answers to my questions absolutely fascinating and a tantalising glimpse into this wonderful book.

About the Book

Countess Olga “Lala” Hendrikoff kept diaries chronicling her life through some of the most turbulent times in modern history. Her personal writings have been collected and translated by her great niece, Sue Carscallen, to form A Countess in Limbo: Diaries in War and Revolution. A Countess in Limbo showcases Hendrikoff’s transformation from a privileged woman of society to a stateless émigré. Her unbreakable will, combined with razor-sharp wit, provide a fascinating voice to narrate the day-to-day life of those living through World War I, World War II and the Russian Revolution.

Buy a copy of A Countess in Limbo:
Amazon
 Barnes and Noble
 Archway Publishing

Q&A with Sue Carscallen 

What is your first memory of your great aunt?

Before I ever met my great aunt LaLa I knew that she was a kind, loving person. My mother would send her bits of leftover wool from her knitting projects and voila! at Christmas a large box would arrive containing hand knitted hats, sweaters, scarves and mittens for us four children. They all fitted perfectly since my mother provided the measurements. My family could not find an affordable graduation dress for me in Calgary so aunt LaLa scoured the next to new shops in New York and sent me a fabulous dress which I was so very proud to wear. The first time I saw her was when she made her first visit to Calgary when I was 10. I remember her regally walking down the steps of the airplane. She had such a straight posture.

What was she like as a person?

There are many adjectives to describe my great aunt: highly educated, private, reserved, observant, wise, generous, mentally strong, a survivor, calm in a crisis, politically astute, kind and talented.

Can you tell us how you first learned about your great aunt’s journals?

I learned about the journals from my mother who thought they were interesting but nothing special. She only alerted me to the French diary about World War II which was written in French. Neither of us knew about the Russian journal, which was written in Russian longhand detailing World War I and the Russian Revolution. I did not really discover these treasures until after I opened aunt LaLa’s old Russian trunk after my mother had passed away.

What made you decide to publish the journals?

Two reasons. Firstly, I was the only one left alive that really knew aunt LaLa as well as many of the characters who passed through her life. If I didn’t do it, no one else would. Secondly, my French translator was really intrigued by aunt LaLa’s voice in her story.

How did you go about selecting the material to be included in the book?

The material selection was easy. I published every word she wrote with no additions other than the first chapter, a transition chapter in the middle between the two wars and the last chapter.  I also included the photos she had pasted into the World War II diary which she took herself. I included much of the memorabilia that she had saved.

Did anything in the journals surprise or shock you?

I was shocked to realize how many times she was so very close to being put in prison or killed. How matter-of-factly and calmly she dealt with crisis. She never talked about any of this to us.

I understand you undertook additional research to supplement the journals, including travelling abroad. Can you tell us a bit about that?

Yes, a lot of research went into this book as I wanted to do my best to present her life as accurately as possible. Thank goodness for the internet as this book would still not be finished! I had the help of many to identify people who were only mentioned by initials. This was done on purpose as aunt LaLa did not want to incriminate anyone should her diaries be found.  I went twice to the famous Russian cemetery ‘Sanite-Genevieve-des-bois’ outside of Paris and photographed headstones with the idea that it would help me identify those only mentioned by an initial and a last name. It helped, but what was really beneficial was the discovery and translation of the Russian journal.  Some of those who were in her life in Russia turned up again in Paris. I did not know about the Russian journal when I began the project. The initial idea was to do the French diaries as a standalone book. I also went to Russia to our family’s estate (in ruins) in backwoods Russia and was chased off by the mafia, as well as to see the beautiful family home in St. Petersburg. Today, it is an expensive apartment condo.

For those who haven’t yet read the book, can you give us one or two of your favourite stories from it?

There are so many stories. I love the sad, poignant story of aunt LaLa going with her mother to the train station in St. Petersburg to see her brother, Nicholas, off to war. How he joked with them, then the priest saying prayers, the troops singing hymns as the train rolled out of the station, their singing fading in the distance.  Nicholas survived the War but stayed in Russia on purpose to help change the system. He died a prisoner in the Gulag about 1940. Aunt LaLa never ceased trying to get him out of Russia!  In WW II she went with a chamber maid, who was to be deported probably to her death.  Aunt LaLa realized that a man standing off to the side was the Gestapo and really had the power and not the others doing the questioning. Aunt LaLa went right up to the Gestapo and speaking to him in German told him that they could not take the maid as she was desperately needed. This worked and the maid survived.

How do you now reflect on what your great aunt’s generation went through?

It is humbling to realize what they went through. I am the first generation of women in our family for at least 200 years who has not been directly involved in a war. My generation in Canada has had a wonderful opportunity to live freely. They did it for us and we stand on their shoulders. By publishing this book, I have also had an insight into my great grandparents’ lives. Aunt LaLa’s father was the Russian governor of Riga, Latvia . He also had a large estate south and east of Moscow far off in the Russian Steppes.  He gave up much of this land to the local population when there was a mini-revolution in 1905. I gained much respect and understanding for his position when I travelled to this remote estate. I realized that nothing has changed in Russia . How carefully he had to step between the Tsar who was an absolute ruler and the peasants. Displease either and you would never be seen again. The mafia has control of the estate now and we were asked ‘to get the hell out’ fearing I was back to claim the land!

What message would you like the reader to be left with from reading your great aunt’s journals?

My great aunt’s message is one that resonates universally today. It is a timely message: “All war seems absurd to me anyway. The victors only lose in the exchange and the vanquished think only of revenge.”  Long before the term ‘fake news’ she was well aware of its dangers.  She always got her news from many sources such as the BBC when it was illegal, German, French, English and Italian newspapers and radio. She did not believe the rumours that often swirl around in turbulent times. The final message to women that she would want to say is that women are stronger than they think.

Thank you so much, Sue, for taking the time to answer my questions and for providing such fascinating answers. Your great aunt was clearly an amazing woman.

About the Authors

Olga Hendrikoff was born in 1892 in Voronezh, Russia, and attended the famous Smolny Institute. In 1914, she married Count Peter Hendrikoff just as World War I began. In the ensuing years, Hendrikoff lived in Constantinople, Rome, Paris, and Philadelphia. She spent her last 20 years in Calgary. She died in 1987.

CarscallenSue Carscallen spent 20 years with Olga Hendrikoff, before her great aunt’s passing in 1987. Carscallen stumbled upon Hendrikoff’s diaries hidden in a trunk at her great aunt’s Calgary home. Over time she unraveled the mysteries hidden in the manuscripts, traveling to France and Russia to supplement her research into Hendrikoff’s life. Today, Carscallen resides in Calgary.

Website: www.acountessinlimbo.com