Tag: Wayland’s Revenge

Lesley Lodge

Today my guest is Lesley Lodge, prize-winning short story writer and author of Lights, Camera, Gallop which combines her love of film and horses. Her first crime book, Wayland’s Revenge, is a historical novel set during the Siege of Colchester.

Lesley, welcome to my virtual cocktail lounge. What can I get you at the bar?

L: Let me think… I’ll have a Dark and Stormy please. Cheers!

So where did we first meet in real life?

L: In real life we met in the 1990s in East Dulwich, South London – so in both the time and the place of your Hannah Weybridge novels. I hope I haven’t inspired you in any criminal way…

That would be telling. What were your first impressions?

L: I thought what a welcoming person! I watched you take command of a meeting and realised you were someone who could judge characters well. I was soon to catch on to your creative side too.

We’ve known each other a long time so we must have quite a lot in common?

L: We had kids of the same age and journalism. I’d been a journalist for a Middle Eastern business magazine and at that time was cracking out articles on, well, housing regeneration. Actually, there is a very real connection between poor housing, Peckham and gangs. You were freelancing for all kinds of magazines and publications. We both had ambitions to write THE great novel, if only the kids would settle quietly…

What are you most looking forward to when lockdown is finally lifted?

L: Well what I’ve missed most so far, in the writing world, is the Harrogate Crime Writing Festival. Hopefully it will be revived in 2021.

I think you’ve been to Harrogate every year. I’ve never got there but we did both make it to CrimesFest which was fun. What would be your dream panel (at any event) – subject, fellow panelists or a Q&A with someone you have met or would love to meet?

L: I’d love to get Don Winslow, Stephen King and Val McDermid together on a panel. They’re all fabulously enthralling writers – and they’ve all been clear [if I may be just a tiny bit political here] about the leaders who’ve not led us well on Coronavirus on either side of the Atlantic.

Oh be as political as you like and have another drink as you tell us about your latest book.

L: So Wayland’s Revenge is set in 1648, a time of bitter civil wars in England. Wayland, the village blacksmith, returns from army service to find his wife, Rebecca, murdered and his son traumatised. Wayland’s overpowering desire for revenge is thwarted by the collapse of laws and a dearth of clues to her sadistic killer.  Wayland sets out on a perilous journey to find the killer, taking with him his son Jonathan and Alun, a canny Welsh baker. But just as they find their first suspect, they are trapped in the brutal Siege of Colchester, facing ever more dangerous challenges. Wayland, Alun and Jonathan must draw on all their strengths, devise new strategies and make agonising decisions, if they are to stay alive and find the real killer before he strikes again. It’s out in paperback, kindle and audiobook.

I don’t read many historicals but I must say I was totally gripped by Wayland’s Revenge. What are you working on now?

L: My longer-term project is to write a sequel for Wayland’s Revenge. I think this one will be set in the dark, dank Fens in the seventeenth century.  Wayland might just get caught up as slave labour for Cromwell’s project to drain the fen. But in the meantime, I’m working on a memoir about my misadventures in the 1970s. I have a 320 page first draft of that so far.

Well editing that will keep you busy during lockdown! Is there anything this time of pandemic has made you think about or want to do?

L: Run outside waving my arms manically… And head for a train to London.

And I’ll be there to meet you for a real drink. Lesley, thank you for joining me today and please get on with the sequel to Wayland’s Revenge.

You can find out more about Lesley Lodge and her work hereand follow her on Twitter @LesleyLodge

Holiday Reading

My thoughts on some of the novels I’ve recently read.

The Summer of Impossible Things

by Rowan Colman (Ebury Press)

A beautifully written, accomplished novel that captivated me from the very first pages. Narrated by Luna who, with her sister, Pia, makes a trip to Brooklyn after their mother’s suicide to sell off the building that had been her home and workplace. There they find their mother had sent them film reels, the first of which reveals she was the victim of a violent rape and that Henry who has brought Lana up, is not her biological father. Coupled with this horrifying revelation is Lana’s discovery that she can slip from her present back to 1977 where she meets her mother pre-rape. Lana is determined to change the course of history, to save her mother even if it means wiping out her own existence. Go with the flow on this one and fall in love with the characters delivered with such beautiful prose and brilliant structure.

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine

by Gail Honeyman (HarperCollins)

Judging by some readers’ comments, this is every much a Marmite book and fortunately I love Marmite. I bought the book as a treat for myself after Christmas and before it became a prizewinner. I love the narrative style and the quirky protagonist. Although I guessed most of the “surprises”, it didn’t detract from my appreciation as the quality of writing is superlative and the path Eleanor treads is captivating. A superbly accomplished début.

Reservoir 13

by Jon McGregor (Fourth Estate)

Another book I bought as a treat – and I knew nothing about the author or the premise of the book which, it transpired, is how the disappearance of a teenage girl on holiday in the area affects that community over a number of years. Each chapter begins with New Years Eve and the celebrations – or lack of them. Each year the inhabitants of the small village reveal a little more of their lives and how they have been changed. I found the writing spellbinding, reminiscent of Dylan Thomas.

Her Secret

by Kelly Florentia (Urbane Publications)

Although this is the sequel to No Way Back, which I haven’t read, I felt it read well as a standalone and there is plenty of backstory interwoven into the narrative to inform the reader. The protagonist, Audrey Fox, is newly married and enjoying life until she is told a secret that has enormous repercussions on her life and marriage. Lies are revealed and lives are shattered. Not my usual genre but perfect if you prefer mature (in age) heroines.

Whistle in the Wind

by Emma Healey (Viking Books)

Initially I found Emma Healey’s second novel difficult to get in to – it was a slow start for me. It deals with the disappearance then reappearance of a teenage girl on a painting holiday with her mother. Lana, aged 15, has been severely depressed and her mother, Jen, is at her wits end but determined to do or try anything to find out what happened to her daughter during the days she was missing. Lana gives up on school, her friends and sleeps with her light on. I didn’t particularly empathise with the mother whose actions and reactions irritated me at times. By far the most sympathetic character is the father. However it was the quality of the writing which kept me reading – and (no spoilers) the climax of the novel makes it all worthwhile.

Wayland’s Revenge

by Lesley Lodge (Matador)

Historical fiction isn’t my usual read and I wasn’t sure what to expect with Wayland’s Revenge. However, I needn’t have worried as after the first chapter or so I was totally engrossed. The narrative is fast moving and the characters sympathetically portrayed especially the bereaved Wayland and his traumatised son. Teaming up with his friend, Alun, a Welsh Baker, Wayland and his son set off on a quest to find his dead wife’s murderer only to end up trapped in the Siege of Colchester where their own lives are threatened.

The Kindness of Strangers

by Julie Newman (Urbane Publications)

If you look at the front cover of this book, you’ll see I rather enjoyed it! “An intricate portrayal of love and loss, redemption and revenge which will stay with you long after the final page.” This is another book for those who like characters who are mature and come from a variety of backgrounds. Be prepared for a narrative that will shock and surprise you.