about me

Hi. I am a retired Chartered Surveyor. I live in Essex, in the UK, with my wife, and daughter.
I came into writing novels quite late in life. I had always wanted to write but could never think of a decent plot. In 2005 we went for a holiday in Austria. We stayed in a place called Grundlsee. This was the first of three lakes. The next lake, Toplitz, was used by the Germans during the war to test torpedoes, and missiles. As the war came to an end many items were hidden in the lake, including millions of counterfeit pounds, and dollars. There was also jewellery, weapons, and documents. There were rumours that gold bullion was also placed in to the lake. Several searches were made, but no gold was discovered. In my first novel, The Kammersee Affair (available on Amazon), gold is found, only in the third lake, Kammersee.
Since then I have developed a character, Tom Kendall, a private detective. To date there are four books published and available on Amazon. A fourth novel to feature Tom, A Killing In The City is with a publisher and I am waiting to hear. I have made a tentative start on a fifth, but very early days as yet.

favourite books

My list of favorite books would, without doubt include Dickens. Oliver Twist, A Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations, just cannot be bettered. I also would include Treasure Island, Journey to the Centre of the Earth, and Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.
Agatha Christie, the master of crime, would be high on the list. Alistair Mclean, Hammond Innes, and Wilbur Smith would also feature. I was brought up on Enid Blyton - remember The Secret Seven and the Famous Five. Sadly not so fashionable these days, but great fun
I hate modern stories, especially fantasy and horror. I hate un-necessary swearing. I hate books containing messages. I hate psycological thrillers. I also hate anything to do with Satan and the occult.
When it comes to the movies, once again I hate modern movies in general. The greatest films came from the fifties and sixties. Humphrey Bogart, Robert Mitchum, Cagney, Bette Davies, and later stars like Charlton Heston, Gregory Peck, Burt Lancaster, Kirk Douglas. Not forgetting the great musicals, Singing In The Rain, Oklahoma. west Side Story, Sound of Music.

my websites

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kammersee-Affair-John-Holt