A Saxon Snapshot

This October sees the release of A Saxon Shadow, the eighth book in my Chief Inspector Shadow Mysteries.

In this story, Chief Inspector Shadow and his sergeant, Jimmy Chang, are investigating an act of vandalism in the ruins of St Mary’s Abbey and several random break- ins around York. Suddenly, they are called out to a moorland village where a wealthy but eccentric businessman, obsessed with Saxon history, has been found dead. Adding to the confusion, the victim’s study’s been ransacked and there’s a second burglary in the village and vandalism in the churchyard. Shadow wonders if it’s possible the cases could be related. Initially, the death seems centred around an ancient Saxon treasure trove and missing parchment map. But Shadow knows all too well, there are many motives for murder. As the list of suspects grows frustratingly long, Shadow and Jimmy must discover if the murder is truly linked to the ancient treasure or the more recent past.

As usual when writing a Shadow book, I had to wade through a lot of research and
most of this involved the Anglo-Saxon period of history. This era spanned the time between the Romans leaving Britain in about 410AD and the Normans invading in 1066. The Anglo- Saxons were a mixture of tribes from modern day Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands, who spoke Old English.

During this time, England was actually made up several kingdoms. The area that is
now North Yorkshire, was part of the kingdom of Deira. However, then as now, the city of
York was the capital of the area. Back then, the city was known as Eoforwic (roughly
translated as wild boar town). Due to its size and strategic location between two rivers, the city was a prime target for the marauding Viking armies of Ivar the Boneless (who named it
Jorvik).

Although many argue that the Saxon rulers didn’t have the impact of the Romans or
the Vikings, they did make a considerable contribution to the city. In the 7 th Century, King
Edwin built the first wooden Christian minster on the site of the abandoned Roman fort and it was Edwin’s successor, Oswald, who began rebuilding the church in stone. York Minster is now the largest gothic cathedral in Northern Europe. During the 8th century, St Peter’s school was established. It became an import seat of learning thanks to Alcuin, advisor to the emperor Charlemagne, being first a pupil then a master there.

We have also found evidence of how skilled and talented the Anglo-Saxon craftsmen
were. In 1982, when work was beginning on a new shopping centre in York, a helmet from
the 8 th century was unearthed. Intricately carved and made from iron and copper alloy, it is now on display in the Yorkshire Museum.

Today, the Anglo-Saxon influence can also be seen in York as you walk the streets
that still carry the names they gave them, such as Aldwark and Bedern. It really does go to
show, the shadow of the past is never far away.

Congratulations on the release of A Saxon Shadow!

About the Author

H L Marsay grew up binge-reading detective stories and promised herself that some day, she would write one too. A Long Shadow was the first book in her Chief Inspector Shadow series set in York. Luckily, living in a city so full of history, dark corners and hidden snickelways, she is never short of inspiration. She has also written The Secrets of Hartwell Trilogy and The Lady in Blue Mysteries. The Chief Inspector Shadow Mysteries have recently been optioned for television.

When she isn’t coming up with new ways to bump people off, she enjoys drinking red wine, eating dark chocolate and reading Agatha Christie – preferably at the same time!