Cathie Dunn writes...

I’m so thrilled to share my new cover and the title of the first Loup de Foix Mystery with you: The Monk’s Secret Historical background: Loup de Foix was the illegitimate son of Raymond-Roger, count of Foix. The town of Foix lies in the south-west of France, and the counts held some sway, politically. Raymond-Roger in particular was known to be a flamboyant character, with an outrageous dress sense (for his time) and a glib tongue. He was a great orator, and his speeches are well-recorded. Raymond-Roger (’Roger’ in the novel, to avoid confusion with other Raymonds – a popular name at the time!) had at least four children: Roger-Bernard (’Bernard’ in the novel, for obvious reasons) and Cécile were legitimate. Amongst his illegitimate children were Loup and Esclarmonde (named after her famous aunt).  The count’s sister, Esclarmonde de Foix, was a well known Perfect in the Bon Chrétien  religious movement, now known as the Cathars. And his wife, Philippa, ran a h...

I'm so thrilled to celebrate my new release today: Love Lost in Time ! I'm out of bubbly, but a nice G&T with blueberries will suffice! Later, of course...  A dual-timeline mystery, Love Lost in Time takes you to sunny Carcassonne, in the south-west of France.  For the historical part of the story, I chose the late 8th century – a time when the Franks under Charlemagne expanded and solidified their presence in Septimania (today's Languedoc-Roussillon) on the Mediterranean Coast. The locals were a mix of Visigoths, Merovingians and descendants of the Romans. After decades of upheaval, the Franks brought some stability into the region, and fortifications like Carcassonne helped to beat back any Saracen incursions.  But not all dangers came from the enemies. Some lay much closer to home... A tale of love, death and redemption… AD 2018 Languedoc, south-west France Madeleine Winters discovers ancient female bones under her kitchen floor. How did t...

I have exciting news: Love Lost in Time is finally available on pre-order from Amazon through Ocelot Press !  It’ll be released on 28th November 2019 , my 11th wedding anniversary. Thrilled to bits! Based partly on a true story, Love Lost in Time is a dual-timeline mystery set in the late 8th century and the present day, right here in the Languedoc in south-west France. The ’true story’ part is the bit where my present-day character, Maddie, finds several old bones under her kitchen floor. This happened to my former neighbours in a small Minervois village – they even showed me some remnants of bones and parts of a cranium. Needless to say, it inspired a plot, and Love Lost in Time is the result! Sadly, no paranormal activity was observed by the neighbours, even though our houses stood on the grounds of an ancient Merovingian graveyard. I love graveyards, so I didn’t mind. So any paranormal activity is entirely down to my imagination.  The ’historic’ part of...

As I'm struggling to finish the contemporary part of my dual-timeline mystery, Love Lost in Time , I thought I share with you a brief excerpt. A little teaser, if you like. Having written several historical novels, getting my writing mind to accept modern technologies and communications is a bit bizarre. But I'll get this done, one way or another! lol About Love Lost in Time: Maddie Winters, a history lecturer and author, inherits her late French mother's house near the historic town of Carcassonne in the south-west of France. During renovation works, she discovers several ancient bones which turn out to belong to a woman who had lived in the area, then called Septimania, over 1,200 years earlier. But just who was she? And why was she not buried properly? Excerpt: The silence of the house unnerved Maddie. Only in remote places had she experienced such quiet. Out in the open countryside she’d welcomed it. The past was talking to her there, in ancient ruins or...

This is our third winter in this beautiful part of France, and our first full winter living in Carcassonne, after two years in the Minervois on the plain. And yes, it’s been cold here too! 😉 In recent weeks, the peaks of the Pyrenees and the Montagne Noire were covered in beautiful snow, but yesterday was a rebel day: the temperatures rose to 16C here in Carcassonne, and up to 25C in the plain of the Languedoc. ' Tout le monde ' (everyone) was outside walking, sitting in cafés and just soaking in the the sun. View towards the medieval Pont Vieux and citadel River Aude We enjoyed a beautiful afternoon walk up to la cité with our dog, to enjoy a small bottle of rosé on the large food square, Place Marcou. And it was heaving there. As the sun set over the buildings, the crowd moved with it. At first, one particular restaurant was full of people, but later, new arrivals picked their seats in the sunshine, and so another place got all the business. Fun to watch... T...

Over the last week, we've had a friend staying with us and showed her our new home town of  Carcassonne . What a brilliant opportunity to explore this fabulous place again... Carcassonne (c) CD Apart from the obligatory visit to 'la cité' (the citadel), much of which was rebuilt in the 19th century after it had become abandoned, we also explored the 'ville basse', the lower town, and drove to the beautiful medieval market town of Mirepoix in the Ariège – on a bustling market day! Carcassonne is the ideal place for a wander, the odd glass of wine or two, and delicious food. We visited a few restaurants that we hadn't been to before, and we enjoyed our time just as if we were on holiday, too. During our walkies, we also visited the 'chateau comtal', the inner sanctum of the citadel, the castle of the old counts of Carcassonne, built on a much older structure dating back to pre-medieval times. You meander through the rebuilt towers and turret...

Belated Happy Easter wishes! 🐣 I hope you enjoyed precious time with your families. We did, with our four-legged 'babies’! Canal du Midi near Carcassonne On Sunday, we were fortunate enough to see the sun all day, so, after putting the washing on so it can dry outside, we took Ellie Dog on a 2-hour walkie along the Canal du Midi, close to our home. The path on one side is wide enough for us to walk and chat, however, the other side – our return from the lock – was narrow, and often overgrown. Still, quite an adventure, especially when we spotted the gorgeous views that reached as far as the snow-capped peaks of the Pyrenees. Ellie relaxing Ellie loved her exploration, but she was completely zonked out afterwards, enjoying the sunshine in the garden. One happy girl. And even hubby and I managed to relax a little in the garden on our return, with a delicious Aperol Spritz. I had a chance to catch up on re-reading Dark Deceit , alongside some r...

Hello again, bonjour & guten Tag! It's been a while, hasn't it? I know. Much has happened in the last 1 1/2 years. Writing, editing, teaching novel writing, moving house again, losing and gaining pets – where do I start?! I take it you've visited my website www.cathiedunn.com ? You'll have seen my latest updates. My new literary 'baby', Love Lost in Time , has a fabulous cover. Unfortunately, I've still some writing to do, but it'll be finished soon. As I'm about to embark on new adventures – expanding my editing business and looking to offer novel writing courses online and possibly here, in Carcassonne in the (usually) sunny south of France – my aim is also to finally write the sequel to Dark Deceit . Yes, I know. It's been a loooong time coming, but my lovely readers deserve to know what happens next. And I promise it won't take me nine years to write, like Dark Deceit ! Toby, much missed As for pets, we sadly lost gorgeous ...