A reader asked me, "Why have two amateur sleuths when you could have had one?" That was a good question, but apart from the flip response of "Why not?" I admit my characters came about because I so enjoyed Dashiell Hammett's Nick and Nora Charles stories. OK, so that dates me, but I don't mind. Hammett is probably best known for The Maltese Falcon but wrote many detective novels and short stories, some of them no doubt prompted by his years working for the Pinkerton Agency.
Nick and Nora first appeared in the novel The Thin Man, published in 1934. Nick is a retired private eye, and Nora is a wealthy socialite. They both like to drink and have a good deal of flirtatious banter between them. They also had a dog, Asta, who was a Miniature Schnauzer in the novels but was played by Skippy, a Wire-Haired Fox Terrier, on screen. The Nick and Nora characters, played by William Powell and Myrna Loy, appeared in films from 1934 to 1947, had a radio show from 1941 to 1950, and a TV series from 1957 to 1959.
Later, another couple created by Sydney Sheldon caught my attention. The TV show Hart to Hart starred Robert Wagner as Jonathan Hart and Stephanie Powers as his wife, Jennifer. They also had a dog, a Lowchen named Freeway. The series began in 1979 and ran for five seasons until 1984, followed by eight made-for-TV movies.
Apart from Nick and Nora and the Harts, Agatha Christie penned the Tommy and Tuppence novels, the first of which was released in 1922. Tommy and Tuppence were childhood friends who later married. Tommy is known for his common sense, while Tuppence has a daring streak. His cautiousness is matched by her curiosity. There were five Tommy and Tuppence books, the last published in 1973, so we see Tommy and Tuppence grow from childhood friends to an elderly couple.
My characters, Lord Randolph Buxton and his wife Lady Serena, grew out of these stories, but I set them firmly in the Edwardian era for no reason other than liking the fashions. The first book was published as Always A Lady, but after a couple of questions from readers, I decided to rework it as Cold Gold and add more to their story. Cold Gold is set in 1907. The next book, On Borrowed Time, is set in 1913 and answers a reader's question about what happened to the Pinkerton agent character from Cold Gold. Shell Shocked is set at the end of WWI in 1918 and, as all three were novellas, were published in one volume as The Buxton Chronicles.
So, not only two for one but also three for one. Enjoy.
Victoria Chatham
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