Salvete, Omnes!

Welcome to the Villa Corvo on Rooks Ridge, somewhere in the Cotswolds. 

The Lares of the Villa Corvo have been lurking in the back of my mind for over forty years, since a school trip to Chedworth Roman Villa in my beloved Cotswolds.   They finally made it onto paper in 2007, and onto the printed page in December 2008, thanks to YouWriteOn.com, the Arts Council-sponsored website for aspiring writers.

The Lares (Adrogantio, Grumio, Lapidilla, Cibus, Mopsus and Petro) are the little household gods of the Villa Corvo, which was built towards the end of the fourth century C.E. by Caius Verus Pugnax Corvo. Sixteen hundred years on, the Lares are still there on Rooks Ridge in the ruins of the villa, and still doing their job, since no-one has ever told them to stop.

This turns out to be fortunate for the modern day descendents of Caius Verus Pugnax Corvo, quite a number of whom are still around in the nearby Cotswold town of Crowborough. They are immediately recognisable in the novels, since the Corvos are a conservative bunch, and they always have names connected with one or more of their ancestor's family names (Verus = true, Pugnax = warlike, Corvo = crow).

The first novel in the Lares series, Ready Steady, Dig!, set in 1998, is already published and available from Amazon and other book distributors, and the second novel, Gnome or Mr Nice Guy, set in 2002, became available in the early autumn of 2009. The third, The Curse of the Corvos, set in 2008, is in preparation, as is the final book in the series, provisionally titled Lark in the Morning (there may be some more in between).

The final book will take the story back to the end of the Romano-British era in England, and the coming of the Anglo-Saxon invaders. Some Anglo-Saxon enthusiasts have already noticed (with some bemusement) a number references in the first two books to the great epic hero Beowulf: all will become clear by the end of the final book (Anglo-Saxon purists should look away now). Meanwhile you may spot some modern-day descendents of the Great Geat himself, plus Unferth, Hrothgar, Wiglaf and even Grendel the MegaMonster.

The Curse of the Corvos?  Remember the Ancient Curse that did not strike down anyone at all who desecrated the tomb of Tutankhamun? Well, a very similar Ancient Curse is not having the slightest effect in Crowborough either. But tell that to Ace Reporter Flavia Drake, who knows a rattling good story when she sees one, and is not about to be put off by mere facts…

If you want to pick up a bit of Latin (or see how much you remember from your school days) then this is the place for you.   Dr Ronald Horton M.A.(Lond.) will be happy to answer your linguistic queries, both Latin and Anglo-Saxon too, only don't mention late 5^th century local pottery unless you have several days to spare. As a last resort, I am hoping that Moyra Holland, my inspirational Latin teacher at Stratford-upon-Avon Grammar School for Girls, may be prevailed upon to step in to sort out any serious linguistic errors.