Goodreads asked Steve Robinson:

What mystery in your own life could be a plot for a book?

Steve Robinson The mystery in my own life, which in this case actually has inspired me to write one of my books, is that of my previously unknown GI grandfather. I've touched on this in my author biography. He met my maternal grandmother during WW2, fathered two children with her: my mother and uncle. Then for reasons I think will always remain unknown to me, he went back to the US, leaving my grandmother and her two young children behind. I often wonder at the circumstances that led him to do that, as I wonder how any man could just up and leave such a young family. I suspect, though, that there were other issues to consider on my grandmother's side. Perhaps he yearned to return to his homeland and my grandmother didn't want to go with him, or was not allowed to. History is a great place to hide secrets, and never more so than when they concern family. As my GI grandfather died in 1990, having been identified too late for any kind of reunion or answers, as I've said, I'll likely never know. Their story is possibly the reason I started writing genealogical mysteries, on a subconscious level at least. It's definitely the inspiration for the second book in my Jefferson Tayte Genealogical Mystery series, To the Grave.

flag