The Dedicatees of Hemlock Bay

Monday was a special day for me. This was because I got to have lunch with three wonderful people who have meant a good deal to me over the years. Their names are Ann Geraghty, Lea Doran, and Jo Wright, and between them they have worked, in succession, as my secretary/PA ever since 1990 (the year before my first novel was published). Without their support in the office, I would have found it difficult to combine twin careers as solicitor and author in the way that I have done for so long.

It's very important - essential, really - to get on well with people you work closely with on a day to day basis. I've been lucky to have three people of the personal and professional calibre of Ann, Lea, and Jo helping me for such a long time. Quite apart from their daily support in the office, they have also not only been very tolerant about my obsession with writing - even though it's quite a strange thing to combine with being a full-time lawyer - but have gone out of their way to make it easier for me to lead this unorthodox double life.

Hemlock Bay is, I feel, one of my strongest novels, perhaps even the best so far - but of course, it's not easy for authors to judge their own work. When the time came for me to decide to whom I should dedicate it, the idea of a joint dedication to Ann, Lea, and Jo seemed very appealing. And on Monday we finally had the chance to get together, at a restaurant in central Liverpool, to celebrate.

The lunch was a lot of fun and there were many reminiscences - especially since I'd not seen either Ann or Lea for quite some time. The time flew by. The only question now is: what will they make of the book?