by David West | Aug 13, 2023 | News
I will come to Siri, but I’m going to start with Louis XIII. I have just finished reading Sharon Kettering’s biography of Charles d’Albert de Luynes. It has certainly changed the way I was thinking about my next book, the fifth in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures....
by David West | Aug 12, 2023 | News
The Battle of Ascalon was fought on 12th August 1099. It was the last battle of the first crusade, but accounts of it vary. The crusaders had already taken Jerusalem when they learnt that a much larger force, led by Vizier Al-Afdal-Shahanshah, was approaching. Godfrey...
by David West | Aug 11, 2023 | News
I thoroughly enjoyed giving my Canadian cousin Bill and his wife Sue a tour of Oxford this April. Bill must have started painting some of his fabulous watercolours, because he’s started his research to describe his subject. He sent me these facts today. The University...
by David West | Aug 9, 2023 | News
Simon Templar will come, but another fictional character must come first. James Bond has probably been an influence on my depiction of my family’s spy, Sir Anthony Standen. Kirkus say that The Spy who Sank the Armada has a ‘James Bond-esque atmosphere, whilst staying...
by David West | Aug 7, 2023 | News
You may think that I have selected a strange title for this post. Regular readers will know that I have been experimenting with artificial intelligence via Chat GBT. They also know that I often post about historical events that occurred on this day. On 7th August 1782...
by David West | Aug 5, 2023 | News
Point of view, and the reliability of narrators, are of great interest to writers. I’m just under halfway through reading “Power and reputation at the court of Louis XIII” by Sharon Kettering. This is research for the fifth book in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures...
