A Spell of Swallows
This is the third, final – and darkest – novel in the sequence that began with Swan Music. The action is set in 1919. John Ashe, horribly disfigured and damaged by his experiences in the war, looks down on the lovely English village of Eadenford and says simply: ‘This’ll do.’
Haunted and driven by memories of his childhood, and the bloody and mismanaged Mesopotamian campaign, Ashe sets about insinuating himself into village life, particularly that of the Reverend Saxon mariner and his adored wife Vivien.
What follows is a horrible reminder of the fragility of love, truth and respect when pitted against the dangerous pull of passion.
Getting inside the head of John Ashe, even though he was my creation, I shocked even myself.