MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Falkland’s war experiences comes to life in Tyneside novel

From L to R Amy, Janet and John

A successful Northumberland author’s latest novel has a very timely subject as the UK marks the 30th anniversary of the Falklands War.

Janet MacLeod Trotter from Morpeth has entertained countless readers over the years with her North East based historical novels which include many political events and social upheavals from the last century. Her latest novel however, is set in more modern times.

“For Love and Glory” tells the story of a Wallsend teenage girl who has a special bond with her lively, rebellious friend Mark. As the Falklands War starts, Mark is called up and tragic family secrets come to light that could ruin all their futures.

The novel has very strong family and friend connections as Janet explains;

“The novel is set in Wallsend on the River Tyne where my husband's family come from. I have them to thank for much of the background information on this vibrant community where many of the world's greatest ships were built, including many that took part in the Falklands campaign. In fact, the ship portrayed in the story is called HMS Gateshead emphasising the local connection even further.

The Falklands material was inspired by veterans I'd read about, ordinary people who'd shown extraordinary courage long after the short war was over and out of the news.”

A lot of the research material was contributed by Janet’s friend, John Mew from Dinnington, North Tyneside who served on HMS Coventry which was hit by three Argentinian 1000lb bombs, sinking the ship with the loss of life of 27 of John’s shipmates.

“I will never forget the horrific things I witnessed in the South Atlantic,” said John. “I am very proud of the time I served in the Royal Navy and was only too glad to give Janet technical advice about my experiences during the conflict.”

The digital age has opened up Janet’s books to a new generation of readers who use Kindles and e-readers to purchase e-books online through bookstores and giant internet companies.

The electronic readers have given Janet the opportunity to re-brand her traditional books. Now, each book cover uses actual old photographs of her ancestors and “For Love and Glory” her daughter Amy who was only too happy to model for her mother.

“It is a bit weird to see my face on the front of the novel and even stranger to think that people will see the main character as being myself,” said Amy, (22) who is a nursing student at Manchester University. “It is a family tradition now to feature on the covers so I am really happy to be involved.”

Janet has been delighted by the increase in the sales figures for her other e-Books too including “The Jarrow Trilogy” which is based on the early life of Catherine Cookson. The three books in the trilogy are in the Kindle top 100 of Amazon’s e-Book chart, a chart that features approximately one million books.