Brought up in a small rural village in the New Forest, I went to the local school. Herds of the wild ponies roamed free along the lanes and droves where we lived and we quickly learned that not closing your gate resulted in an invasion. It also resulted in a life long love of both horses and the wide open spaces. Many enjoyable hours were spent riding across the open lawns, heathland, and through the plantations of trees. I had intended a career in the police or in the field of forensics, but marrying a dairy farmer changed my objectives. I became a pig herder, bucket carrier, wheelbarrow pusher, egg collector, and bottle feeder of orphan lambs. Always an avid reader, I particularly enjoyed crime fiction, especially the novels of Ann Cleeves and Elly Griffiths, to name just two of so many. Inevitably, when I changed from writing short fiction to the novel, crime became my chosen genre.
