I receive regular newsletters from Susan Grossley who is a little
bit interested in financial crime.
For the past four years, she has been
writing a novel on the subject, based on the true story of a crooked banker in
Regency London (1824). Initially, she first wrote Fatal Forgery from the point of view of
the banker, then switched it round to the police officer who investigates him,
Constable Samuel Plank – which works much better (Susan says "I’m happier
working with police officers than criminals!"). To give you the blurb from the
back cover of Fatal Forgery:
"It is 1824, and trust in the
virtual money of the day – new paper financial instruments – is so fragile that
anyone forging them is sent to the scaffold. So why would one of London’s most
respected bankers start forging his clients’ signatures?
Sent to arrest Henry Fauntleroy,
Constable Samuel Plank is determined to find out why the banker has risked his
reputation, his banking house and his neck – and why he is so determined to
plead guilty.
As the case makes its way through
the Regency justice system, exercising the finest legal minds of their
generation and dividing London society into the banker’s supporters and
detractors, Plank races against time to find the answers that can save
Fauntleroy’s life."
Sue did try to go the
traditional publishing route, but the many agents and publishers she contacted all
said the same thing: good story, well-written, not commercial enough – people
aren’t interested in financial crime. As a result Sue decided to self-publish – and here we are.
The book is available in three formats:
Print-on-demand
paperback from Amazon: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fatal-Forgery-Susan-Grossey/dp/1489587403/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1373785341&sr=8-3&keywords=susan+grossey
Kindle from Amazon
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fatal-Forgery-ebook/dp/B00DW5K76W/ref=sr_1_3_bnp_1_kin?ie=UTF8&qid=1373785341&sr=8-3&keywords=susan+grossey
PDF from Gumroad: https://gumroad.com/l/vlfV
This is Sue's first
foray into the world of fiction, and it’s a bit scary – but such fun! She is already planning her next Sam Plank adventure – he goes to Gibraltar in Fatal
Forgery, so it might be Switzerland next time!
Hi Anne
ReplyDeleteHow kind of you to share this information - self-published books need this sort of sharing.
I'd like your readers to be reassured that I spent a long time (four years...) making sure that all the Regency detail was correct - and I went to some lovely museums, houses and galleries along the way. I can particularly recommend Sir John Soane's House in London (http://www.soane.org/) - what a treasure-trove! And as a special thrill, I was looking through some of their archives and came across a document actually hand-written by the banker in my book - I was so excited! I'm now completely hooked on all things Regency, and am researching the next adventure for my lovely policeman.
Best wishes from Sue