Dinner with an author

These days it’s rare to find an author who writes in several genres. Publishers prefer to pigeonhole their authors so they can better market them. Publishers rarely embrace authors who write a different kind of book every time.  An outstanding exception is Ken Follett, though he hasn’t strayed too much into genres other than suspense and historical saga. Indeed, authors wishing to break out of their genre ghetto often have to resort to one or more pennames.

Dennis Wheatley was prolific but never used another name and wrote in virtually all genres, save westerns, and his millions of readers had no problem adjusting to his choice of story.  Wheatley’s first published book was The Forbidden Territory (1933), a Duke de Richleau tale. Most of these stories began with a similar paragraph, the Duke and his friends going in to dinner! After which the adventures began in earnest. The following year, he introduced another continuing character, Gregory Sallust in Black August. Sallust and de Richleau books were produced regularly, later to be joined by two other series characters, Julian Day and the very popular French Revolution adventures featuring Roger Brook (1947).

 

Wheatley didn’t restrict himself only to writing about these series characters, however. He wrote many standalone novels, with crime, adventure, historical romance and supernatural themes.

Among his sci-fi books were They Found Atlantis, Star of Ill-Omen, Uncharted Seas, while his supernatural books included The Haunting of Toby Jugg, The Ka of Gifford Hillary, To the Devil – a Daughter and The Satanist.

 

In the politically correct present, Wheatley's work is frowned upon. Yet he enthralled millions in his day with his detailed fast-paced adventures. I believe they can still be enjoyed for what they are - escapist entertainment; they are of their time.

A friend of mine, Iwan Morelius lived in Campoverde on the Costa Blanca with his charming wife Margareta. Iwan was born in 1931 and, from the age of about eleven, he became fascinated with books, particularly adventure, action, westerns, sci-fi and thriller stories. He began with Swedish translations and then moved on to English originals.

In 1961 Iwan wrote to Dennis Wheatley, to let the author know Iwan and his brother-in-law Jan had built up quite a Wheatley collection, as the books were popular in Sweden. Wheatley graciously replied, complimenting Iwan on his English: ‘I can assure you that I get many letters about my books from British people whose English is nothing like so good as yours.’ In all, Iwan received 63 letters from Wheatley and a good number of signed books to add to his collection in English.

Ten years after writing his first letter to Wheatley, Iwan was visiting London with his wife, who was attending an English conversation course. Iwan wrote to Wheatley, explaining he would be in the neighbourhood and received a pleasant surprise when he and his wife were invited for lunch at the Wheatley home in Cadogan Square.

So at 12.30 Iwan and his wife stood outside the two-storey house and a butler opened the door and showed them into the hall. They were taken into the sitting room where they met Mrs Joan Wheatley. ‘I don’t know how to describe that lady,’ Iwan said afterwards. ‘She was very much upper-class. She wished us welcome rather formally. After only a few minutes Dennis Wheatley entered the room and finally I was to meet my favourite author.’

Iwan with Dennis Wheatley

 

As soon as Wheatley entered the room, the atmosphere changed. He had a wonderful smile that lit up his face and Iwan felt the man’s genuine warmth as he wished them welcome to London and their home in his rather hoarse voice. He’d been invalided out of the army after suffering a chlorine gas attack at Passchendaele and actually functioned on one lung.
 
After a short walk Wheatley took Iwan and his wife to an elevator that took them very slowly up to the second floor. Each wall in the elevator was covered with photos from the two world wars; later, the Wheatleys told them stories about these pictures. ‘Holding our breath, we entered the dining room, which was enormous,’ Iwan recalled, ‘and there the table was set with beautiful porcelain and crystal glasses and silver cups. The butler served us a most excellent meal from the first drink till the coffee and liqueur. It didn’t take long to relax and we talked about almost everything.’

Wheatley revealed that he and Joan had been a bit nervous as they didn’t know how much English Iwan and his wife could speak. ‘They also showed us their home,’ Iwan said, ‘and I was of course especially interested to see his big book collection. Most were signed by the authors and he had complete sets of Peter Cheyney, Ian Fleming and many others.’

 
The butler announced that Rolf Adlercreutz, a Swedish news photographer, had called for permission to take a few pictures of the meeting. Wheatley graciously agreed and even offered the man lunch, but he politely declined, not wishing to intrude.
 
When it was time to leave, Iwan presented the Wheatleys with a crystal candlestick from Kosta. Dennis Wheatley said, ‘I have a little gift for you too, Iwan.’ It was a proof copy of his latest book, The Ravishing of Lady Mary Ware, due to be published that spring. Inside was a printed dedication to Iwan, and this became one of Iwan’s prized possessions.

 
Iwan died tragically in June 2012. See my blog here

 

 

 

 

Book list - 1966

What was I reading so long ago? Does it matter? Trends and general interests change. The early 1960s, thanks to Dr No et al, was crammed full with espionage thrillers, many of which have indeed withstood the test of time. There were plenty of good popular mainstream writers available in paperback, too, and most paperback lists contained a generous sampling of science fiction and westerns. Eventually, spy books would make way for crime thrillers and both the western and the sci-fi books would end up in ghettoes for several years.

Wreckers must Breathe is an unusual submarine spy adventure from Hammond Innes (which has just been reissued as a Vintage Classic). In contrast, I read Up the Junction, social realism in fiction, depicting the lives of Ruby, Lily and Sylvie in 1960s London (now reissued as a Virago Modern Classic). Having read the previous two volumes, I now finished That Hideous Strength, the conclusion of C.S. Lewis’ science fiction Cosmic Trilogy: the hero Mark is a Sociologist who is enticed to join an organisation called N.I.C.E. which aims to control all human life (Hmm… nothing to do with the current named organisation, of course!)

 

Harold Robbins’ The Carpetbaggers, which I found quite remarkable; two films evolved from its pages. It interlinked lives over decades; I feel that, along with A Stone for Danny Fisher, it’s one of his best, before he deteriorated into lazy writing and excessive sex scenes.

 

Death on the Prairie is a sweeping narrative of the Indian wars on the western plains by Paul I Wellman. Part of the blurb on Amazon, which sums it up well, states: 'There is never a quiet page as Wellman describes the Sand Creek Massacre (1864), the Fetterman Massacre (1866), the Battle of the Washita (1868), the Battle of Adobe Walls (1874), the Battle of the Little Big Horn (1876), the Nez Perce War (1877), the Meeker Massacre (1879), and the tragedy at wounded Knee (1890) that ended the fighting on the plains. Celebrated chiefs (Red Cloud, Crazy Horse, Black Kettle, Satanta, Joseph, Ouray, Sitting Bull) clash with army officers (notably Custer, Sheridan, Miles, and Crook), and uncounted men, women, and children on both sides are cast in roles of fatal consequence...'

I enjoyed Isaac Asimov’s original Foundation trilogy, and felt it came to a satisfying conclusion – though some years later, he embarked on additional books in the series.

Trial by Terror is by an author now hardly read, yet he was big in his day, Paul Gallico. He couldn’t easily be pigeonholed. This book was about an American reporter imprisoned as a spy by the Hungarian authorities. I was reading it as research for future writing. Gallico created Hiram Holliday – there was a comedy TV series about this character. He wrote Thomasina, the Mrs Harris adventures, The Small Miracle, The Snow Goose, The Poseidon Adventure and The Hand of Mary Constable, and my favourite, Scruffy, an amusing tale about an ape of Gibraltar during WWII.

 

1066 And All That by Sellar and Yeatman. History as it wasn’t, tongue in cheek, and still funny. Followed by a darkly humourous classic, Catch 22 by Joseph Heller.

There was little humour in King Rat by James Clavell. I’d already been won over by his monumental Tai Pan. Rat was in complete contrast, drawing upon his own experiences as a POW under the Japanese. The film never did it justice.

 
I continued to read Dennis Wheatley’s books, notably his Gregory Sallust adventures. He was a fictional spy even before James Bond came on the scene. The Scarlet Imposter (took place in August-November 1939, and was published in 1940), Faked Passports, The Black Baronness, V for Vengeance, and Come into my Parlour. I also read his Richleau novel set in WWII, Codeword Golden Fleece and his extraordinary Ka of Gifford Hillary.
 
At this time, some Edgar Rice Burroughs manuscripts were being released in paperback apparently for the first time, so I grabbed them from WH Smith’s at Waterloo Station on the way home on leave - Tarzan and the Madman, Tarzan and the Castaways and The Chessmen of Mars.

I still enjoyed Leslie Charteris’ Saint books and read The Saint’s Getaway and The Saint Meets His Match (previously titled She was a Lady).

And I discovered a new thriller writer, Gavin Lyall, with his two adventures The Most Dangerous Game and The Wrong Side of the Sky. He drew on his experience as an RAF pilot to pen adventure stories that usually involved dangerous flying missions in exotic places by cynical young men of dubious morals. He was married to columnist/author Katherine Whitehorn.

 

As is quite obvious, I was keen on spy books. I’d read a number by Helen MacInnes by this time. She was dubbed ‘The Queen of Spy Writers’ and the title was well deserved. This year I read The Venetian Affair, a classic cold war espionage thriller. Titan Books has recently reprinted her books in attractive covers.

 
My Bones and My Flute (1955) is a haunting ghost story by Edgar Mittelholzer, an author I discovered with the book Kaywana Stock and others in the plantation series, which are sadly hard to get hold of these days...

On Her Majesty’s Secret Service and You Only Live Twice, as well as The Real World of Spies, revelations about spying in the early days of the Cold War; pretty tame by later accounts. And Understrike, the second adventure of Boysie Oakes by John Gardner, an author who subsequently took on the task of writing new James Bond thrillers. Also, Deighton’s Funeral in Berlin (1964), the third in the unnamed hero series (Harry Palmer in the movies); I saw the film in the same year.

The Moving Target (1949), Ross MacDonald’s first novel to feature his sleuth Lew Archer. MacDonald is justly highly regarded. The 1966 film of this book starred Paul Newman, scripted by William Goldman.

 
The Ginger Man, J.P. Donleavy’s 1955 novel (once banned in Ireland and the USA for obscenity).  

I was still reading non-fiction, mainly about war escapades: among them, Escape Alone (We Die Alone), The Dam Busters, The Frogmen, I Will Survive, and Mark of the Lion, the incredible story about Charles Upham who won the Victoria Cross twice! He was a sheep farmer who fought in the war, won his medals and then went back to his sheep.

Overload (1959), Undertow (1962), Shockwave (1963) and Feramontov (1966), novels in the Johnny Fedora series by Desmond Cory; greatly underrated, regarded as 'the thinking man's James Bond'..