A Civil Contract Part 3

 Adam is concerned about his estate; but he tries not to fuss Jenny about it. He has not had any experience of farming but has been reading up on agricultural reform, growing winter crops, draining the Fenland fields which are often flooded, and using different types of fertilizers.  His bailiff is pleased to see him taking an interest in the estate -which his father never did and is pleased that his new lord is concerned for his tenant farmers and labourers.... wanting to build new cottages for them and improve their lot in life. 
Mr Chawleigh says that Adam should leave the estate to his bailiff, but Adam goes to visit Mr Coke of Norfolk who inherited an estate at Holkham in Norfolk some years before and made it very prosperous.  Mr Coke (a real life historical character) is a friend of Adam's grandfather and is willing to give him advice on agricultural methods, and Adam promises to go and stay with him later in the year. 

Civil Contract Part II

Adam meets Jenny formally, and she seems pleasant and intelligent. They talk and she says that she would be agreeable to the marriage....He tells her that he will try to make her happy. They become engaged and Mr Chawleigh takes over, telling Adam that they will need to marry soon as his financial affairs are in urgent need of attention. Adam is kept busy with the arrangements for his marriage, and tries to tell himself that he is doing the right thing.. but he feels that he has let Julia down, although he knows that he could not marry her, when he had such financial problems. He feels a bit better to know that his marriage will make it possible for his sister Charlotte to marry her suitor, Lambert Ryde, a country squire, who lives near them. Lady Lynton wanted Charlotte to marry a rich man, to save the family fortunes, and now she will be able to resist her mother's pressure, and marry the man she loves. Lydia is very young and upset at the idea of Adam's making a marriage of convenience. She feels it is very unfair that he has to give up Julia, and undertake the responsibilities of saving the estate.. and giving up his army career which he loved. Lady Lynton does not take to Jenny nor to Mr Chawleigh, but she does want Adam to save the situation. However Lord Lynton's sister, Lady Nassington, a rather domineering lady, supports the marriag The couple marry in April, very soon after they have formally met, and spend their honeymoon at Rushleigh Manor, a home belonging to Lord and Lady Nassington. Julia, very upset, leaves London to visit her grandmother for a time. Adam finds his honeymoon a bit embarrassing, but he and Jenny manage to start off married life without too much trouble. He gets to know his father-in-law and begins to like him though he finds him overwhelming at times. Mr Chawleigh does not understand the upper-class obsession with landed life. He lives for his work but does still enjoy a social life with his City friends. Adam admires his shrewdness, but he cannot understand him all that well. Mr. Chawleigh has no interest in art, or books but he does collect China and instinctively chooses good pieces which surprises Adam. Jenny starts going to parties and mixing with society but secretly finds it rather boring.

A Civil Contract

This is one of Heyer's  later novels and is more of a comedy of manners than a romance. There are no elopements or duels, and the comedy is low key. Instead of slangy word play and exaggerated characters, much of the fun derives from the character Mr Chawleigh, an over the top, vulgar merchant who is very wealthy.

The novels starts in January 1814 towards the end of the War with Napoleon, with Adam Deveril returning to the Fen country where his father has just died in a riding accident. Adam has been in the army all his life...His father was a well to do nobleman, jolly and amusing but very careless with money. Adam is quiet and shy, and does not think of himself as charming or popular. He is serious and responsible. He is shocked to find that the family's finances are in very bad state and that it seems they will have to sell their home, Fontley Priory. Adam is horrified by this news as he loves his home, but it seems inevitable. Lady Lynton his widowed mother, is no help, being a weepy complainer...and his 2 sisters are too young. Lydia is not stupid but she is only 17, and Charlotte is older but not very clever. Wimmering, Adam's business manager, hints that one way of saving the estate would be for Adam to consider marrying an heiress. Adam is shocked at this idea, and the more so because during his last leave he had fallen in love with Julia Oversley, the daughter of one of the family's neighbours... Julia is sensitive and emotional, rather a Marianne Dashwood type, but Adam had fallen for her while he was injured, and he still cares for her. He visits Lord Oversley, Julia's father who tells him that unluckily Julia still cares about him too but that he does not think that his daughter would really be suited to Adam.Adam tells him how bad his finances are, and that he is going to have to sell the estate, which is near to Beckenhurst, the Oversleys' estate. Lord Oversley tells him to wait, and that he will try and think of another scheme. The following day, Adam receives a visitor in his London hotel, Mr Chawleigh. It emerges that Chawleigh, a middle aged man of humble origins, has made a fortune as an India merchant and is now a very rich man. He has one daughter, his only heir, and he and his late wife wanted her to marry into the aristocracy. Adam learns that Jenny, the daughter, went to a ladies' school with Julia Overley and was friendly with her, and that Jenny has met him at times at the Oversleys' home in London. He vaguely remembers a rather plain quiet girl... but she seems so completely unlike his real love. Oversley tells him to think about Mr Chawleigh's offer.. that he will be able to pay his debts, save Fontley and improve it - and that Jenny knows he's not in love. He adds that Jenny is not a beauty but she's a sensible girl, and has learned 'ladylike" manners and accomplishments and he would not be embarrassed by her. Mr Chawleigh does not want entry to the upper crust himself, just for his daughter. Adam feels desperate but supposes that he ought to consider the idea.

Civil Contract by Georgette Heyer

 I am going to write a blog on this novel which is one of my favourite Heyer works. I didn't read it for many years, because it seemed dull; quick glances at it seemed to indicate that it was one of the novels where the couple get married early in the book and that can limit interest. But eventually I gave it a try and found that it was an in depth book about love and marriage. 

More will follow

Cotillion VI

Kitty asks Freddy for help in assisting Dolph and Hannah to get married, but he has to go out of town to see his brother Charlie who is in trouble at Oxford. While he's away, she gets a letter from Miss Fishguard which she finds hard to read as her governess scrawls the letter on one page. She decides to go to Arnside for a day or 2, to see what is wrong, and hits on an idea to help Dolph... She asks him to drive her to her guardian's house, and they will take Hannah as a chaperone.... and Hugh as the local vicar, can marry her and Dolphinton. Then he will be safely married and free of his mother. She sets off with Dolphinton and Hannah and arrives at Garside rectory where Hugh lives. He is shocked at the sudden arrival of Kitty, and his cousin's plain looking fiancee. When he hears of Kitty's plan he is clearly reluctant to marry Dolph off to someone when it will cause a family uproar. Dolph is very nervous hiding under the table for fear his mother will come and find him, but he stands his ground. To their surprise, their next visitor is Jack. He jeers at Dolph but tells Kitty that he has come to Arnside to see Uncle Matthew, because the old miser is now planning to marry Miss Fishguard and he fears that she will inherit everything and possibly even produce an heir. Kitty is surprised and now she can understand what Miss Fishguard was writing about. However she is willing to accept the marriage... Jack is not. Then Freddy arrives. He realises that Kitty has not thought of Dolph needing a special license and he has brought one.  Hugh is still not happy but has no excuse now to avoid performing the wedding. During his time in London, Freddy has managed to solve the Olivia problem... He met Olivia, and she told him that her mother was trying to force her to marry an elderly and unpleasant Roue, Sir Henry Gosford, or to become a courtesan. She hates Sir Henry and does not want to become someone's mistress. Freddy takes her to Meg's house and then goes to see D'evron. He persuades Camille that the best thing to do is to take Olivia off to France and marry her there, and she will be safe. The couple elope, happily and Camille hopes that his father will overlook his not managing to find a rich woman to marry. At Garside Rectory, Jack now pretty exasperated, tells Kitty that he is tired of playing games and that he and she should get engaged and then confront Uncle Matthew and persaude him to give up Miss Fishguard. Kitty realises how selfish he is and that she does not love him any more. They quarrel and in the heat of the moment, Freddy knocks Jack down when he abuses Kitty. Freddy is rather shocked at his own behaviour since he is not normally aggressive, but he has grown to love Kitty and is angry that Jack cares so little for her. He walks out, leaving Freddy in possession of the field, and he and Kitty plan to come the following day, to support Dolph and Hannah at their wedding. Kitty knows that Uncle Matthew is marrying Miss Fishguard out of selfish reasons, because she will be a cheap housekeeper for him, but she thinks that the marriage will give her middle aged governess security and that she will be safe and have a home and money. Kitty and Freddy leave Hugh's house to go to Arnside to see Uncle Matthew, after promising to come back and act as witnesses for Dolphinton's wedding. On the way, Freddy tells her that he loves her and wishes that their engagement was a real one.. and Kitty reveals to him that she has come to love him and to realise that although he is not handsome or very clever, he is a good man and worthier than Jack... whom she does not love at all. They agree to send the notice of their betrothal to the papers and get married happily.

Cotillion V

Kitty has been in town for a month, and Meg asks her to stay a bit longer. The Legerwoods are going out of town, so she needs someone to live with her. Freddy still can't understand what his fake fiancee hopes will happen in London...She tries to assure him that just having a trip to town is enough for her.. but she is not sure what will happen with Jack. Jack hints to her that he knows what she's up to and that he wont be provoked by jealousy into making a proposal. He is annoyed that he is being stymied in his attempts to seduce Olivia, because she is now friends with Kitty. He is also annoyed that Camille D'evron has been paying attentions to his would be mistress having been introduced by Kitty. Kitty foolishly agrees to go and dine with the Scortons, Olivia's family and they take her to a masquerade at a public place, where she finds everything very embarrassing. The Scorton sisters flirt shamelessly with strange men. Olivia has also invited D'evron and he tells Kitty that he is not a nobleman but in fact his family own a gaming house in Paris and he was hoping to find a rich bride in London. Kitty is shocked at his deception and he then tells her that he is in love with Olivia but she is not able to marry him.. and that Jack wants to seduce Olivia. She is very upset at this revelation that her mother's family are in the gambling business and adventurers, and that Jack is such a rake. She is then very relieved when Freddy appears and rescues her and takes her home. She is beginning to realise that her fiance is not such a fool as he appears to be.

Cotillion Part IV

Kitty worries that Freddy may let something slip but she is enjoying herself so much with Meg, that she tries to make the best of the present moment. Then Jack introduces her to a cousin of hers, Camille D'evron. Kitty's mother Desiree was a French emigree who came to England during the Revolution and married her father. She only met her French relatives once. They returned to France and her mother had died when she was a baby. Camille D'evron has come to England recently for a visit and met with Jack at a gaming house. He is handsome and charming and Kitty is very pleased to have him as a friend but Freddy, being more worldly wise, is uneasy. Kitty also meets a very beautiful young woman, Olivia Broughty, who has just come to London with her mother, to mix with Society and find a husband. She and Olivia fell into conversation while she was out shopping and they become friends. Olivia is very beautiful but her family are mainly middle class and have no entree into upper class society, as her late father had lost touch with his upper class relatives. Freddy is shocked at this friendship because he knows that Olivia who has no strict upper class chaperone to guide her, has been associating with vulgar relatives who are dangerously flirtatious with rakes. He worries that Olivia while she seems to be a pleasant and respectable girl, may prove a dangerous friend for Kitty. However, he realises that Kitty is soft hearted and loves to help people and she soon finds another lame dog to help. Lord Dolphinton confides in her that he did not want to marry her - as his domineering mother wishes - because he is in love with someone else. Dolphinton seems slow witted but it is clear that he has formed a close attachment to another lady. He introduces Kitty to her and she finds that she is a rather plain girl from a trade family, Hannah Plymstock. However she has no fortune and cannot see any way of marrying Dolph. Freddy worries that Kitty is seeing a lot of Dolph and then meets her going into a museum with her cousin. But she then explains to him that she's trying to help him meet Hannah and try and plan to marry her. Freddy is a bit taken aback by Hannah, who is plain, not very young and blunt in her manners.. but he can agree with Kitty that Dolph needs someone to look after him, and to protect him from his horrible mother.. and marrying a merchant's daughter isn't that big a sin, really. Hannah wants to move to Ireland, where Dolphinton has an estate and she feels that life in the country would be much better for him than a social life in town that he cannot enjoy. Dolphinton's mother holds the purse strings and keeps him short of money and Hannah has no money of her own, so it seems difficult to work out how they can get married.

Cotillion Part III

Freddy who is shy and not very clever, agrees to the fake betrothal and he and Kitty set out for London. Kitty leaves Miss Fishguard to keep house for a month. In London, Freddy's parents are shocked at his sudden appearance with a fiancee. His mother, Lady Legerwood tells him that since the younger children all have measles, they cannot have Kitty to stay. Freddy hits on the idea of taking her to stay with his sister Meg, who is married, and newly pregnant.. Meg's husband, Lord Buckhaven, has gone to China on a diplomatic mission and she is in need of a companion so she is happy to take Kitty in as her guest. Meg, like Freddy, is not very clever but good natured and she and Kitty soon become friends. She has a flirtatious friendship with Jack Westruther who visits her often, and Kitty can see that he is annoyed at her engagement to Freddy and suspicous of it. She hopes that he will soon declare himself and she can marry him. She insists to Freddy that they should not announce the engagement except within the family. Kitty begins to enjoy life, buying dresses, and starting to attend parties. She finds that Freddy and Meg and the Standens are a warm hearted friendly family unlike Uncle Matthew. She likes being with them and having the fun that she has never had before.

Beds and Blue Jeans

 Beds and Blue Jeans: An everyday story of music and mayhem eBook : Sutton, Nadine, Waldock, Sarah: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store

Available on Amazon, this is a story about modern day Nashville and the bar singers there, their lives and loves.  By Nadine Sutton

Cotillion Part II

Matthew tells his nephews that he is ill and intends to make his will, but he wants Kitty married before he dies, and that he will leave his fortune to whoever marries her. He reminds George that he is already married, and wasn't invited. Hugh asks what will become of Kitty if she does not choose to marry one of her cousins, and Matthew says he will leave his fortune to a charity. He is quite heartless about his adopted daughter. He is annoyed though that Jack has not come to make a proposal. Hugh who is very priggish, tells Kitty that he would be happy to marry her but that it has nothing to do with her inheriting Matthew's fortune and she is furious at his hypocrisy. George reminds her that she is penniless and not all that accomplished and would find it hard to earn a living if she does not marry or inherit from Uncle Matthew. . Kitty furious and upset goes to her room and leaves them alone. On an impulse, she packs some clothes and leaves the house, but is forced to seek shelter at the local inn, as it is bad weather. To her amazement she meets Freddy Standen, her other adopted cousin. Freddy is from a well off family, the heir to a viscountcy, and Kitty feels angry that he is visiting Arnside and presumably preparing to ask her to marry him, since he is comfortably off and has no need for a rich wife. But after a conversation, she realises that he did not know that he was being summoned to propose. She tells him how miserable she is stuck in the country with no friends or family, only seeing Hugh Rattray who is the local clergyman and her governess, Miss Fishguard. Freddy is not very clever but he has an impression that Kitty is rather smitten with Jack Westruther who visits Matthew most often of the relatives. She tells him that Uncle Matthew is not really ill but he's a bit of a hypochondriac. Then he is shocked when Kitty asks him to pretend to become engaged to her. She does not admit to her feelings for Jack but tells him that she wants to go to London, that she feels that there is some hope of her making some kind of new life for herself if she can only get there, rather than being stuck in the country. Freddy is not sure that she's right - but he is kind hearted and is willing to help her if he can.

Cotillion By Georgette Heyer

Been reading Cotillion, one of Heyer's best works.  It shows her ability to twist plots and characters to make a new book. She often has a character who is male, elderly and miserly and who dominates his family. In her detective story, Penhallow she has such a character ruling over his family and it all ends tragically, but in Cotillion, she plays the situation for laughs. Matthew Penicuik is a wealthy and old but not very old. He hates spending money except on himself. He has several great nephews and occasionally hints to them that he will leave generous legacies or even the whole of his large fortune to one or other of them. However, he has a favourite, Jack Westruther, who is a rakish gambler, attractive but selfish. Penicuik also has an adopted daughter, Kitty Charing, whom he took in when she was orphaned, but he has never been all that affectionate to the girl who is now 19. Her father was a friend of his from boyhood and Kitty was left an orphan with no money. However Mr Penicuik has never spent more than a minimum on his foster daughter, he is too mean. She is dressed plainly, has no pin money and he does not arrange a social life for her. Kitty has a kind but foolish governess, Miss Fishguard, but has never been allowed to escape from their rural estate and has a rather bleak life. Matthew invites his great nephews to come and see him, as he is making his will. So George and Hugh Rattray, and his rather slow-witted Irish Nephew Foster, the Earl of Dolphinton, turn up to Arnside. The cousins are not close friends and there is a good deal of bickering. Jack does not turn up, nor does Freddy Standen whose mother Emma is Matthew's niece. Kitty is very upset because Jack was also her favourite of her adopted cousins - and she has hero worshipped him for years.

Rough Music- a Music story by Nadine Sutton

  Rough Music eBook : Sutton, Nadine: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store

This is one of my works set in the American country and rock music world.  Its not a romance;  its a story about two members of a country rock band, in the 1970s and 80s.. who are trying to move from the small time to the big time.  Its about the compromises that they make along the way.. their love of their music.. and their friendships.. and the strain that touring and working hard puts on their marriages....and the ups and downs of travelling with a band, in the old days.  

Arthurian Legends Part II

Lancelot was not a character in the early Arthurian tales, so it may be that he was a fictional character created to provide a lover for Guenevere. The story of Tristan and Iseult preceded that of Lancelot and Guinevere. The love triangles and affairs in the story show the complexity of life. Arthur is a good man but his night with Morgause led to the birth of Medraut, who caused the end of the Round Table and Camelot. Guinevere and Lancelot are good people who love Arthur but their affair is another factor in destroying the unity of Camelot. The story of the Arthurian epoch was written by Thomas Malory in the 16th century, portraying the Dark Ages leader as a medieval king with Knights and ladies. In the 19th century, there was a revival of interest in Arthurian matters, which was seen as the story which gave meaning to the nation of Great Britain. Tennyson wrote a series of poems, The Idylls of the King, which gave a highly romantic and religious take on the stories. Other poets and the Pre Raphaelite painters used the legends as materials for their work. Over the centuries, more realistic stories of Arthur have been written, particularly in the 20th and 21st centuries.

Arthurian legends Part I

Many years ago, in my student days, I spent a lot of time reading up on Arthurian legends and the history of the saga. I dont remember it all now but I've read many novels. There is very little historical evidence of Arthur but stories about him were written in Welsh from early on. The sagas often did not portray Arthur as a king but as a soldier or a tribal leader. They introduced other characters, like soap operas and these became added to the legends as time went on. Thus we have characters like Guinevere, Lancelot, Perceval, Palomedes and so on. The early stories show Arthur involved in hunts and fights, and sometimes in conflict with the church. Since monks wrote many of the early chronicles, this may account for Arthur not appearing much in the history, as he may have annoyed churchmen. The stories also involve Celtic magic, which suggests that he might not have been a Christian. If Arthur existed he was probably not a king or an emperor, but a war leader whose exploits made him admired and famous, and more exciting stories were added to his saga. He lived in post Roman Britain and may have had some Roman blood, and he may have managed for a time to push back the Saxons who had come into the country and to preserve something of the Roman way of life. According to legend, Guenevere's earliest name was Guenhumara, and she was from the North, the daughter of a Roman nobleman or possibly the daughter of a Northern King. Legend has it that she had golden or red hair. Gradually other characters were added, and given a back story and a legend took shape. In this story, Arthur becomes king or emperor, because he has successfully beaten back the Saxons and also because, as it turns out, he is the rightful son of the former King Uther. His birth is shadowy, since his father seduced his mother Igraine, who was married to Duke Gorlois of Tintagel. So because of this shade, he is reared in secrecy with one of Uther's lords. He becomes king when he pulls a sword from a stone and is named the rightful King. As a young man, Arthur is seduced by his half sister Morgan or Morgause, who is the daughter of Igraine by her first husband Gorlois. Arthur does not know she is his sister, but the affair results in the birth of a son, Medraut. Medraut and Morgan are bitter and turn to evil and they will be the ones who oppose Arthur's reign, where he tries to do good.; Arthur marries Guinevere, and part of her dowry is the Round Table where all the knights are equal and all swear to do good, and to protect the poor and weak.

Beds and Blue Jeans By Nadine Sutton

 My story, Beds and Blue Jeans, is available on Amazon.  It is set in Nashville in the 2010's, about a young couple who move in together, have a baby and fall in love.  He's a country singer, she's a flakey girl with no job. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Beds-Blue-Jeans-everyday-mayhem-ebook/dp/B01370SMFO/ref=sr_1_1?crid=JKGC6ZRYAXWK&keywords=nadine+sutton%5C&qid=1662995651&sprefix=nadine+sutton%2Caps%2C74&sr=8-1

Rough Music by Nadine Sutton

 This is one of my favourite stories, available on Amazon.  Its not a love story, it is a music based story, set in the 1970s and 1980s, about a country rock band. The 2 lead singers are not pop idols or pretty boys.They love their music; they are talented, fun. The story is about them and their friendship and the compromises that they have to make, in the music world. Their marriages suffer from strain because they are away on tour a lot of the time. They want to be successful but they also want to play real music. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rough-Music-Nadine-Sutton-ebook/dp/B01AEQS0G0/ref=sr_1_2?crid=JKGC6ZRYAXWK&keywords=nadine+sutton%5C&qid=1662995722&sprefix=nadine+sutton%2Caps%2C74&sr=8-2">Rough Music eBook : Sutton, Nadine: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store

Read it, its fun. 

Another few names

A name I like very much is Melisande but it is very unusual. It was a Germanic name, meaning strong worker, and in the German and English format, it was Millicent. However in medieval times there were several princesses called Melisande, the French form, one of whom was queen of Jerusalem. Charmian means Joy or delight and is a Shakespearean name. It is the name of one of Cleopatra's ladies in waiting, and Shakespeare used it in his play. It is pronounced Karmian. Nadia and Nadine are rarely used. They are based on a Russian name meaning hope.. and are the English and French versions of it.

More unusual Names

A name that I've only seen in fiction is Edina.. but it is a variant of Edwina, which is a feminine form of Edwin. Another very rare name is Danae- a Greek name... given to a girl ravished by Zeus in the form of a shower of gold, who gave birth to Perseus. There is also the name Candace or Candice which is the name of a queen of Ethiopia, mentioned in the Bible. It is occasionally given. Posy is a name which has been given as a childish form of Josephine but can also be the name of a bunch of flowers. A name I like, though I dont know if it has been used in real life, is Ondine. It comes from the name of a mythological water nymph and is attractive but very unusual. It derives from a Latin word meaning wave. There is a story written in 1811 about a sea nymph who marries a mortal.

Unusual names

Just a short blog on unusual names. I am inclined to like them, although some people feel that giving children very odd or unusual names isn't fair to them. Some famous kids have changed their names to something mundane. Other unusual names have been liked and taken up and become very popular. One such is Zara, which derives from the Arabic Zahr for flower. Princess Anne gave it to her daughter and it became a popular name though it was very modern for a royal. Another unusual name is Sabrina - which is of Welsh origin. In Celtic mythology, it is the name of the illicit daughter of King Locrine who was drowned by order of the Kings wife. Her name was given to the River Severn, - or the story may be a way of explaining the origin of the name Severn. Ianthe is the name of one of the poet Shelley's daughters, and is a Greek name, meaning Violet Flower. Dulcie is a rather old fashioned name that was used in Victorian times but was considered unusual. It was popular in medieval times. It comes from the Latin for sweet. Allegra is a rarely used name; it means happy or lively. It was invented by the poet Byron for his daughter, who died in childhood. Romayne and Romola both mean Roman woman and are occasionally used, one by the actress Romola Garai. Another odd name is Unity. It was the name of Nancy Mitford's younger sister, who became a Nazi and tried to kill herself when war broke out between England and Germany. It means unity, oneness.

Brenda Jagger (1936-86) and Daughter of Aphrodite.

Brenda Jagger was born in 1936 in Yorkshire. She worked at various jobs, and married, and had 3 daughters. For many years she worked as a probation officer, dealing with young girls. She began to get novels published in the late 1970's. Her first was Antonia, set in the early Roman Empire. The next novel was Daughter of Aphrodite, also set in the Roman Empire. Her heroine in this novel is Danae, who is the daughter of a Greek actor, born in poverty, who becomes a dancing girl and then a prostitute to support her young sister and brothers. She works hard, learns to become ladylike and serves as a listening ear for the upper class politicians who are fighting for power. One of her brothers becomes a poet, the other Dion is a chariot racer. Chariot races were the favourite sports of the masses in Rome, with the population adoring them and betting on them like football teams. Dion is injured in an accident and loses a leg but Danae manages to help him to survive. She becomes the mistress of Drusus, the son of the Emperor Tiberius, who is old and said to be dying. Danae makes a good living and invests in several businesses and ends by falling in love with another charioteer, who has been injured but who will recover. After these 2 Roman novels which I enjoy, Jagger wrote several other longer novels, set in Victorian and 20th Century England, especially in Yorkshire. She won awards and her novels did very well but she died tragically early in 1986. I like her works but prefer the Roman ones.

Catherine Christian Arthurian novelist

Catherine Christian was born in 1901 in London to a German father and British mother. Her family had a German name but changed it possibly during World War One and she was known as Catherine Christian. She became a writer and was very involved in the Girl Guide Movement. She wrote children's books under different pseudonyms. I think that her Arthurian novel, the Pendragon was one of the first modern versions of the Arthur story that I ever read. It was published in 1978 and was popular. I liked it, it was more about Arthur as a leader and soldier, though the women of the saga did rate a mention. Christian died in 1985 after a prolific career.

Stephen Lawhead

 Stephen Lawhead is another Arthurian novelist who has written several historical fiction works set in the world of Arthur.  He was born in Nebraska in 1950, and became a writer...  He wrote some science fiction and fantasy and then went to the UK and began to write Arthurian novels, with an emphasis on history, and on Celtic Christianity.  He also wrote some works based on the Robin Hood legend and a novel about St Patrick.   

TH White

TH (Terence) White was a British author who wrote Arthurian novels in the 20th century and his works were the basis for the musical Camelot. He was known as Tim. He was born in India, in 1906 to a middle class couple, who were not very good parents. His father was an alcoholic and his mother was cold to him. He went to school in England then became a teacher at Stowe school. At college, he wrote a thesis on Malory and was interested in his version of the Arthurian legend-. But he worked at Stowe for several years and then gave up teaching after producing a memoir about his time in England. In 1937, he read Malory and then produced his first Arthurian work, The Sword in the Stone, which was an account of Arthur's boyhood, being trained by Merlin the wizard. He found a cottage where he lived in the woods, learning about ancient crafts like falconry, and enjoying hunting and fishing. He also took an interest in aviation. He was prone to rather obsessive interests and worked these into his writing about Arthur, but he also was more or less a pacifist. With war looming, he moved to Ireland as he did not wish to take part in the war, and in the books he wrote he worked in Arthur's attempts to move from solving disputes by force to solving them by legal means. He lived out the war years in Ireland, and afterwards he moved to Alderney in the Channel Islands and continued writing. His works were popular and sparked public interest in the Arthurian legends. His books sold well and he also wrote some fantasy/Science fiction novels.. and books about training hawks. His personal life wasnt very happy. He seems to have been a homosexual, but with his background he was not happy with this part of his nature. He had few friends and does not seem to have had a romantic partnership ever. In the late 1950's, Lerner and Loewe used his books to write the musical Camelot which was extremely popular in America particularly after Jackie Kennedy said that her husband liked it.. and the President's time in office, was referred to as Camelot after his tragic death. White died on a cruise, in 1964 and was buried in Greece. In his later years, he had taken to drinking heavily. He had a rather difficult life but his works were seminal Arthurian literature.

Other Arthurian novelists

Since the 20th century there have been masses of novels about Arthur, many by American writers. Bernard Cornwell - creator of Sharpe - wrote a trilogy some years ago, which concentrated on Arthur as a ruler and military leader, as might be expected. It didn't stick too closely to the legend and I was not a big fan. Often male writers who tend to portray Arthur as warrior are less than sympathetic to Guenevere, seeing her as a faithless scheming whore.. and in my opinion that isn't a fair portrayal of the character as she has come down through the ages. Malory says of her that she was a "true lover" and she is generally seen in the older versions of the stories as faulty but lovable. Victor Canning, another adventure novelist has also written a trilogy about Arthur as warrior. Mary Stewart, a romantic adventure novelist, who wrote many works set in foreign countries, also wrote a 4 novel saga many years ago. Although I've read them, I cant remember much about them, but they stick closely to the legend. Women novelists who focus more on the women of the saga tend to bring in fantasy elements, on magic, pagan religion and other worldly experiences, while the warrior centred narratives are usually an attempt at a historically accurate portrayal of the Dark Ages in Britain and on life in the warrior bands. Gillian Bradshaw's trilogy is partly realistic but also brings in the fantasy elements and religion. The three books are narrated by different characters; the first one is written by Gwalchmai, (Gawain) Arthur's nephew, the second by Rhys, a farmer's son who becomes Gwalchmai's servant and the final one by Gwynhwyfar, or Guenevere who narrates about her affair with Bedwyr and the fall of Camlann... and Arthur's death in battle. The three different narrators make for a balance between the male and female points of view and between historical novel and fantasy novel. Bradshaw sees Arthur as a Christian, but one who is not popular with the Church because he taxes the monasteries to pay for his wars, and is tolerant of other beliefs. Morgawse, Arthur's half sister who seduced him, is the villain, who has dedicated herself to an evil path, but Gwynhwyfar is a woman character who is much more sympathetic. Gwynhwyfar becomes a nun after Arthur's death and Medrauts (Mordred) and she ends up as an Abbess, following the legendary story.