Here’s a little about me. I was born into the Welsh mining culture of the South Wales valleys to which my English ancestors moved in the 19th century to work in the coal mines. Fortunately for me, by the time I arrived the mines, and the hard way of life they created, were mostly gone and life was a lot easier – as well as cleaner.

I moved to London and the South East of England in my early twenties and worked in office jobs and administration. It’s not as boring as it sounds – really!

I lived and worked and loved and partied, all the usual things people do, but whatever I did, I loved books more than anything else. They were a constant companion – you are never alone with a book – it’s true. It’s still true for me today, the only difference is that I’m also writing my own.

I’ve always loved writing but life got in the way . . . until I discovered Japan. I fell in love with the people and culture and my life took on a whole different meaning.  I went to live there for a year, and stayed for seven. Illness forced me back to England, but Japan has never left me. I decided to write about it and my first book, Cherry Blossoms, Sushi and Takarazuka, Seven Years in Japan, is a memoir of the Japan I discovered and the extraordinary people I met and the equally extraordinary things that happened to me.

I haven’t stopped writing since and I have combined Japan’s tantalising culture and the things I saw, the history, the myths, the intrigue, the curious, to mix fact and fantasy in my Secret Samurai books.

Besides my Japanese books I am writing historical novels set closer to home, all with a touch of romance, adventure and mystery which I hope may just hit the right spot for you as they do for me.

I now live on the South Coast of England and when I’m not writing books, I’m walking my dog, eating out, drinking red wine and hoping you’ll enjoy my stories.