Christmas Day, 1943. In Arisaig, in western Scotland, the body of beautiful, well-connected Polish SOE agent Krystina Kowolska is found in the gardens of the country house where she’s been preparing for a vital mission to France. The question is, was she already dead when she was hanged? Two days later, resistance double agent, Investigator […]
Blood Vengeance by Douglas Jackson
Christmas Day 1943, Arisaig, Scotland. The body of beautiful, well-connected Polish SOE agent Krystina Kowolska is found in the gardens of the country house where she’s been preparing for a vital mission to France. The question is, was she already dead when she was hanged? Two days later, resistance double agent, Investigator Jan Kalisz of […]
Blood Sacrifice by Douglas Jackson
It’s January, 1943. Warsaw is a city of the dead. In the ghetto, the last 50,000 Jews await their fate but, unlike those who preceded them to the death camps, they are prepared to fight to the end. Jan Kalisz, Kripo investigator and Resistance double agent, has promised to supply them with weapons. But how […]
Christmas reading 2024 – top historical books to give or to treat yourself to
We asked eight much-loved authors to each recommend a couple of historical books for Christmas 2024 to give, receive, or treat yourself to — fiction and non-fiction. There are ideas for history-loving children and teens as well. We hope these suggestions help to inspire your Christmas reading. Sharon Bennett Connolly For fiction, it has to […]
Blood Sacrifice by Douglas Jackson
January 1943. Warsaw is a city of the dead. In the ghetto, the last 50,000 Jews await their fate but, unlike those who preceded them to the death camps, they are prepared to fight to the end. Jan Kalisz, Kripo investigator and Resistance double-agent, has promised to supply them with weapons. But how will he […]
Living in the minds of monsters
Many historical writers come across horrific events from the past during their research, and have to, however temporarily, see the world though the eyes of the perpetrators of atrocities. Douglas Jackson, author of Blood Sacrifice, writes about the mental cost of living in the minds of monsters. I recently came across a quote from a […]
Blood Roses by Douglas Jackson
September 1939. A city ruled by fear. A population brutalised by restrictions and reprisals. Amid the devastation, another hunter begins to prowl. What are a few more deaths amid scores of daily executions? Former chief investigator Jan Kalisz lives a dangerous double life, forced to work with the occupiers as he gathers information for the […]
How I discovered my war hero uncle’s secret
Douglas Jackson’s Polish uncle was a bit of a family legend. But it was only while researching his Warsaw Quartet series that Doug discovered that Uncle Kazimierz was a war hero, a secret that he’d kept after the Second World War. The perennial question that eventually faces every writer is: Where do I go next? […]