How do you write a historical heist? The ingredients, TL Mogford decided, were the same in all periods: target, tech and team. But it was while he was working in an Italian kitchen that he found the spark that led to his latest novel: the fact that saffron is worth its weight in gold. And […]
The Saffron Thief by TL Mogford
In 1666, England’s saffron industry is booming, with the spice fetching a staggering £4 per pound — rivalling gold. Fabian Smith, the sensible second son of a Holborn poulterer, has sacrificed his dreams of adventure for family duty. But when the Great Fire claims his father and his reckless brother plunges them into debt with […]
The Plant Hunter by TL Mogford
1867. King’s Road, Chelsea, is a sea of plant nurseries, catering to the Victorian obsession with rare and exotic flora. But each of the glossy emporiums is fuelled by the dangerous world of the plant hunters – daring adventurers sent into uncharted lands in search of untold wonders to grace England’s finest gardens. Harry Compton […]
The Plant Hunter by TL Mogford
King’s Road, Chelsea, in 1867 is a sea of plant nurseries, catering to the Victorian obsession with rare and exotic flora. But each of the glossy emporiums is fuelled by the dangerous world of the plant hunters – daring adventurers sent into uncharted lands in search of untold wonders to grace England’s finest gardens. Harry […]
Apples, Chelsea, and my route to the plant hunters
How did an apple tree and a lecture about the history of Chelsea give TL Mogford the idea which his first historical novel grew from? He tells Historia about his route to The Plant Hunter, set in Victorian England and in China. When I was seven years old, my family left the cosy Oxfordshire village […]