19th century brought to life at Johnstown Castle, Wexford
This Autumn I got a chance to visit Johnstown Castle in Wexford. It was a rare day out for me, one where I was childfree and I had a whole Saturday to do pretty much […]
History
Dowth Point to Point – an ancient Irish race track
If you’ve been following this blog you’ll know that I’m fascinated by a beautiful area in Co. Meath called Dowth. This scenic setting is the backdrop to a novel I’ve written called December Girl which […]
A visit to Dowth Hall, Boyne Valley, Meath
What an unexpected special day. There I was, zooming along the M1, while the soft purr of my two year old snores filled the back seat. We had just been to see a brand new […]
Drogheda – an ode to my home town
Drogheda is a valley town. The River Boyne cuts through it in a great big brown ribbon, the same colour as the trout that swim upstream. Coming down the hill, round the corner from the […]
24 photographs you need to write a book about
I posted about a visit I made to Carstown House in Louth recently, an abandoned manor house, that’s overgrown, in disrepair, but still looms on the landscape and stays in your thoughts after you’ve walked […]
Carstown House, Louth – a magnificent ruin
Carstown House is located on the Cartown Road, about 5km outside of Drogheda. You access it by walking up through a corn field and through a small wood. It appears in a small clearing, its […]
19 things that sucked ass in the 19th century
I recently shared out a blog post I’d written about some of the research I was doing for my historical fiction novels set in the 19th century. The comments that came back were overwhelmingly positive, […]
Do you see the history on your doorstep?
Last night I took part in the Walk & Talk series organised by the Old Drogheda Society and Drogheda Millmount Museum. Like all good things, I’d read about it on Facebook and was quick to […]
Wanted: A Respectable Woman to take charge of a Motherless Child
Wanted: A Respectable Woman to take charge of a Motherless Child Three Weeks Old to Bottle Feed it. That’s the last line I read before I left the library today. It was placed in a […]
A world abandoned: Ireland in the 19th century in photos
In February 2015 I set about researching a historical fiction novel set in the Boyne Valley, Ireland. The idea for the book struck me after reading a thesis essay by Gareth Yore on an eviction […]