Through the letterbox yesterday, all the way from America, came something I'd long heard of but had never actually seen before - The Historical Novels Review, published twice yearly by The Historical Novel Society. This contains an impressive number of reviews of new historical fiction (arranged by period) and some non-fiction, and I anticipate many additions to my wishlist on the basis of its contents.
But it was its companion publication, Solander - the magazine of the HNS, which I opened first because this issue includes an article by me! When I was asked, a couple of months ago, to write a profile of novelist D.J. Taylor I jumped at the chance because I love his books and relished the opportunity to find out more about the background to them and the person behind them.
This turned out to be a very interesting piece to do, not least because, having the luxury of four pages to fill, there was scope for depth and detail that the blog and my other reviewing don't usually afford. David was a most helpful and co-operative subject, and deserves special thanks for the extra trouble he went to on my behalf to ensure I met my deadline!
If you're a member of the society and have the magazine I hope you'll enjoy the article, From Seed-Corn to Harvest ..., otherwise, let me commend to you novels such as Kept: A Victorian Mystery
