Storm Bay

by Jessica Blair

Whitby farmer, John Dugdale, is involved with a local band of smugglers, seeing it as an easy and harmless way of making money. But John is shocked when Mark Roper the dependable Joe, or the handsome schoolboy, who has disappeared from her life.

352 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 1996

About the author

My real name is Bill Spence. Jessica Blair came into being when my publisher, Piatkus, accepted my first historical saga and declared that, for various reasons, they would prefer to publish it under a female name and they suggested Jessica Blair.

I was born in Middlesbrough in 1923. I trained as a teacher but never followed the profession as war intervened. I served in the RAF as a bomb aimer doing thirty-six operational flights in Lancasters of 44 (Rhodesia) Squadron Bomber Command. After the war I was sent to Rhodesia by the RAF.

It was on the voyage to Durban that I wrote my first short story and was bitten by the writing bug. On return to England I wrote articles for newspapers and magazines and fulfilled my desire to write a novel by using some war time experiences as background.

My second book was a Western and 36 were published between 1960 and 1993. During that time two more war novels and a romance appeared in print. Along with my wife, Joan, I wrote three books dealing with aspects of Yorkshire. I started a review column in the Yorkshire Gazette and Herald and that is now in its fiftieth year.

Visits to Whitby, on the Yorkshire coast, sparked off an interest in whaling and ten years intermittent research into the subject resulted in the publication of an illustrated history. It was from this study that the Jessica Blair novels arose. The first of these appeared in 1992 and a new phase in my writing career began.

There have been twenty-five Jessica Blair novels published to date (February 2015) One more is with my publisher, Piatkus, an imprint of the Little Brown Book Group. All Jessica Blair novels are available in hardback, paperback, ebook, audio download, and Large Print.

Writing was a part-time occupation until 1977 when, with the full support of my wife, Joan, it became full-time. Throughout my whole writing career I have had her, and my four children's, unstinting support, advice, and inspiration.

Reviews

[Sanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beginning in the autumn of 1762 the story begins with the scene where the 3 teenage children of John and Grace Dugdale, are hurrying home across the Yorkshire moors a lot later in the afternoon than they usually did, and the mists rolled in and confused them all. The Yorkshire Moors are not a place for the faint hearted in the evenings or night fall for anyone, especially when the weather rolls in from the sea.

Emma, the eldest, Amy 2 years younger and 13 year old Jay want to reach home when a thick mist rolls around them and they become confused and fear being lost on the moors...but someone comes to save the day.
When John Dugdale becomes involved with a band of local smugglers, he believes he is the only family member to know about it, but hadn't counted on his daughter to follow him and the leader of the smugglers into a deep dark wood in the pitch of night.

Then pedlars start to go missing on the roads from the seaside town of Whitby, on there way to the inland town of Pickering, and there are no explanations.

Emma has received marriage proposals from a young man she has known all her life...but she is reluctant to accept, even though she knows the young man will be a very good husband and provider. Her sister Amy, has her eyes set on the young man as well making things quite difficult.

Then one day Emma and her cousin Meg, who lives in Whitby, are walking along an embankment one afternoon and spot a ship berthing at the harbour and a man they think is Emma's old flame, (who they couldn't actually see properly due to the half light) Mark, disembarks.

A few days prior, there had been the arrival of a dragoon troop led by a rather ruthless lieutenant, in order to try and stamp out the smuggling as it was out of the control of the resident 2 dragoons who never seemed to be able to catch them.

Then one day while in town at the markets, Emma spots Mark in the crowd and they meet up again...and although both are delighted Mark has returned to run the family business, Emma has no idea what his secret mission is to be.

This is a story of smuggling, ruthless people, love and loss, and mysterious disappearances.

I found this book absolutely intriguing and although I've not read any Jessica Blair before, I will certainly be looking for more of her work. Top read!

[Rowlie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book apart from the old English thees and thous.

[MS Julie Don · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

This author writes a good book and grips you to the end . I have enjoyed all his books so far . Anybody who enjoys Judith Saxon (Katie Flynn) and many more like her will enjoy this author .