In October 1941, a porter at Dublin’s North Wall Docks was surprised to hear tapping from a large crate that had been unloaded from a ship from Liverpool, the Slieve Bawn. At first he thought he was imagining this, but he decided to tap back and was immediately answered with another tap from inside.
Upon opening it, he found a 40-year-old French artist, Maurice Carcassus de Laboujac, semi-conscious and encased in a plaster cast…
London, 1890. A crowd jostled on Oxford Street amidst the cries of market traders, the smell of roasting chestnuts rising into the yellow fog. Two well-dressed women lingered at the corner, watching and waiting. Not long now. A tall gentleman walked past, top hat shining on his dark curls. His hand gripped an ebony cane, which he extended to ward off two urchins lounging against a nearby lamp post. The women exchanged glances. With a nod at her accomplice, Mary stepped forwards and hurried after him, her fingers snaking towards the pocket of his greatcoat.
I know why old Irish castles and towers stand on picturesque sites on the edge of the sea or on hillsides. Yes, our ancestors probably admired the views like we would do nowadays, but for them the main purpose was safety. Their homes required prominent positions because they needed to be able to see their enemies advancing from a long way off. It was vital they had time to prepare for an attack. Dunguaire Castle, near Kinvara and situated on the rocky coastline of Galway Bay, is a perfect example.
A happy New Year to you all! We’ve just recovered from a ‘cold snap’ here in Ireland, which is unusual in these days of global warming. My county got away lightly with only a minor dusting of snow, followed by ice for about five days, but many parts of the south were covered in a thick blanket of snow. In Cork and Tipperary, people were stuck in their homes, some without electricity or internet. A group of enterprising teenagers in County Cork, bored without their wi-fi, built a snow igloo of impressive proportions and they ended up on the national television news. It makes a change to see such creativity being highlighted.
On a recent visit to an old estate in County Laois, I was excited to find something very rare in Ireland: an old bathing house. Mr Winterly and I took advantage of a recent dry Sunday to visit Heywood Gardens in County Laois. The bathing house is set into the hillside down by the lake but the small and elegant landscaped garden was designed by the famous Sir Edwin Lutyens, and is one of only a handful he completed in Ireland. He also created the War Memorial Gardens in Dublin. In England, he was known for his garden collaborations with the legendary plants person, Gertrude Jekyll.
I thought I’d do a different sort of post today. I often like to hear what my friends and family are reading and they help me decide what to read next. I’ve decided to recommend one Victorian novel and one modern novel every now and then. My enthusiasm has already run away with me because, in choosing Anthony Horowitz’s Hawthorne detective series, I’m actually recommending five books instead of one!
Obviously, because I am a mystery author, I read a lot of mysteries, especially dual timeline mysteries which I love, but I also like psychological thrillers and literary fiction. I re-read some of the classic novels over and over. I’m a big fan of Jane Austen, the Brontes, Daphne du Maurier and many others.
I’ve visited a lot of ruins in Ireland. They seem to attract me but they also inspire ideas for my novels. I wrote about a few of these old houses before in ‘Scrapbook’ such as Moore Hall, Dunluce Castle, and also some of the more ghostly ones like Loftus Hall and Leap Castle, but if I were asked to pick a favourite ruin to walk around, I would have to choose Duckett’s Grove in County Carlow.
Mr Winterly and I celebrated our wedding anniversary with a trip to Curraghmore House in County Waterford. This beautiful property is the home of the 9th Marquis of Waterford and has been in his family since the arrival of the de la Poers, who were Anglo-Normans, in the middle of the twelfth century. Over 800 years have gone into the creation of Curraghmore as it is today. The tour of the house was fascinating because it focused on what I like best: family history, with many stories of wild escapades and colourful characters.
Exciting news broke in August this year about 800-year-old Johnstown Castle in Co Wexford where a hidden room, previously unknown to historians and caretakers, was stumbled upon by a joiner conducting conservation work.
The revelation of the secret room occurred during repairs to windows inside the castle. Contractors knocked through a section of the wall, revealing a concealed space that had remained untouched for decades. Johnstown Castle, which dates back to Norman times, was owned by various aristocratic families before entering public ownership in the late 20th century.
In the vast archives of the National Library in Dublin lie photographic treasures that transport us to bygone eras, offering a glimpse into our social history. I found these two captivating images, that not only freeze moments in time, but also tell compelling stories of Ireland's past. It’s one of my favourite areas of research for my late-Victorian dual timeline mystery novels and I could spend hours searching through this period. As they say, a picture tells a thousand words.
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© Suzanne Winterly 2025
