All my characters are based on real people. Some are modeled on historical characters and these are interwoven in my story with actual historical figures and real historical events. I did intense research for Hidden Agenda – after all, I had plenty of time on my hands, during the Covid 19 lockdowns! I was stuck in Australia and was unable to leave the country for nearly two years.
I’ve interwoven fictional characters and added topical plotlines – the stereotyping of elderly women, and the challenges of the black market in antiquities and works of Art. Themes that repeat themselves today. During the Syrian and Afghanistan conflicts, the antiquities market was flooded with plundered loot.
In Hidden Agenda, you see that disinformation and misinformation are nothing new. During the 1930s it was spread on a mass scale for ulterior motives. In the cold war, it was rife. Even today, there is plenty of it circulating on the internet!
I particularly wanted to address the issue of the airbrushing of women from some of the significant advancements in major events of the twentieth century. I think my older women characters do this pretty well! They are awesome!
My past experiences working as a radio telegraphist, archaeologist, and financial broker in the city of London have definitely influenced the personalities of two of the main characters featured in my book – the murder victim and the woman detective.