A DIPLOMAT turned author stressed the importance of local book shops following a talk on her latest novel.

Jean Harrod spoke about her book ‘It Began with a Ghost Story' at a fully booked evening at Pickering Book Tree.

The novel is a fast-paced and original crime thriller based on the true North Yorkshire Legend of ghostly serial killer, Kitty Garthwaite, and is the first in a series of Grace Winter Murder Mysteries set in the region. The novel is based on a short play Jean, who lives in Helmsley, wrote which was staged at the York Theatre Royal several years ago. She spent the covid lock downs writing that play into this novel.

Jean said: "It is very important to support these local bookshops in our area and the Pickering Book Tree is trying to do, and achieving some success, in the traditional event of inviting authors to come and speak directly to readers.

"The book talk and signing was a great success Pickering Book Tree is a wonderful bookshop, and a great space for hosting such events."

‘It Began with a Ghost Story' is set in present day when heroine Grace Winter and her two friends,Evie and Samantha, visit the house in Hutton Le Hole that Grace has just inherited on her mother’s death. The women soon find themselves caught up in a murder. But this is no ordinary murder. A young man has been killed at Lowna Ford, a place that locals believe is haunted by Kitty Garthwaite’s ghost and where this ghost is said to have killed men before.

Jean said: "The legend of Kitty Garthwaite is a dark tale dating back to around 1787. There are several versions of what happened to her. She was a servant girl, who became pregnant by a young man from Hutton le Hole, Willie Dixon. It is said that when he abandoned her, she drowned herself in despair at Lowna Ford. After that, several men were killed at the same spot where she drowned. Her ghost was said to sit naked on the riverbank luring men to their deaths in revenge."

Before writing novels, Jean worked and travelled the world as a British diplomat. She has published three other novels in her international crime series, based on her fictional diplomat Jess Turner: Deadly Diplomacy (set in Australia), Deadly Deceit, (Turks and Caicos Islands, Caribbean), and Missing in Shanghai (China). Jean only writes about, and draws on her experiences from, the countries she has lived and worked in.

‘It Began with a Ghost Story’ is out now and available from all UK bookshops, ypdbooks.com, and from Amazon in both paperback and kindle formats.

Jean will be signing copies of 'It Began with a Ghost Story' in The Helmsley Bookshop on Saturday, October 28, from 11-2pm for Halloween.

She will also be giving a talk at Kirkbymoorside Library on Friday, November 10 at 7pm. Tickets are available from the Library.