Available on Kindle from 30 November 2011
Price £1.99
My novel, A Fateful Aberration, has its genesis in my interests in both
working class history and the development of social ideas. The cauldron
of working life in northern England in the 1880's threw up both ideas
and heros; pathos, humour and tragedy.
Our hero, if he can be called such a name, has received a raw deal from
life, and learned that ruthlessness and violence can be deployed to his
advantage.
His girlfriend, (one of many, but the one who has stuck), is Ida, a frothy
concoction of cheap scent, low cleavage and wild and colourful language.
She is cheeky and can be spiteful, as can be gathered from the extract
below of Ida's exploits in the pub ---
"Hey", the drink might have deadened Ida's sharper instincts,
but she knew an insult when she heard one, "who the bloody 'ell d'you
think you are then eh, eh".
"Well I never ever seen anythin' luv, live an' let live, that's what
I says", Henry could see where this might lead, and did'nt like it
either.
"You bloody little liar, you bloody little liar", this was the
effervescent Ida starting to fizz.
"Who you callin' a liar?", the woman, much to Henry's chagrin,
was'nt going to let Ida's wild accusations go unchallenged.
"'Im, that's who, 'im", and her accusing finger pointed straight
at Henry.
"What you talkin' about?", Henry gurgled.
" Why, them eyes' o'yours 'ave never been off my bust since I come
in 'ere", Ida, who was an expert on masculine eye movements, delivered
the verdict.
"What", spluttered the unfortunate Henry.
"You 'eard, you bloody well an' 'eard".
But one thing is certain, she is deeply and irrevocably committed to Noakes, through all the vagaries of his eventful and violent existence.
Things seem to develop between them, both physically and emotionally. She mocks him in the most charming way, turning to the vernacular when it suits her ---
"Hey lad, I can eat mi tripe wit' best of 'em tha knows"Ch5
Their future seems idyllic, with Noakes' success at his evening school suggesting an extra mural place at Oxford, and his heroics in the mine making him a local celebrity.
However, Noakes' dark side, his shady dealings, begin to catch up with him. Their relationship begins to sour, and Noakes begins to retreat to safety, the ever welcoming arms of Ida.
Fiona for her part seeks solace with her friend, Daisy May. This displeases Fiona's father John, who has profound suspicions about Daisy regarding her dress and her lifestyle. His concerns are to some extent assuaged by his brother, the mischievious uncle Richard, whose wise counsel Fiona always seeks, and whose 'lady in waiting' is both a constant source of amusement and 'emancipation baiting' for Fiona. Fiona discovers in Daisy something more than a companion.
Noakes' final downfall is triggered when a fellow tough miner discovers Noakes' secret dealings with management and takes the decision to blackmail Noakes. This leads to a cataclysmic midnight encounter between the two, resulting in the murder of the fellow miner. Noakes disposes of the body.
Noakes' life changes, he suspects everything. He takes up with Ida, and they rent a small house. This Ida, however, is a different creature than previously. She has been attending Fiona's ladies evening classes, and has now aquired a developing interest in life and literature. This is a distortion of Noakes' settled vision, where women like Ida have a certain place and a certain functon in life. He is, to say the least, disquieted.
The body is discovered, but noone suspects Noakes, except Ida. Profoundly troubled, she goes to see Fiona. But Fiona, herself in a turmoil of emotion, and to her great chagrin, is full only of platitudes, and sends Ida back to her fate.
Whether Noakes feels threatened by Ida's new learning, or whether he finds out about her visit to Fiona, we can only guess. Whatever it was, it led to Ida's grisly fate.
Fiona, filled with remorse regarding the way she spoke to Ida, finds her way to Ida's house accompanied by Daisy May. The scene that meets her there sets her path, she crosses her Rubicon.
Noakes feels he is safe from Fiona, for is'nt she a part of the upper classes, and whatever she spouts, whatever revolutionary rhetoric escapes from her lips, she will never, never threaten her position and the position of her family.
But has Noakes reasoned correctly this time, has he stirred something so deep in Fiona that she must, whatever the cost, shake this mind set of the inherent selfishness of mankind???