LITTLE LOST LORD was sometimes difficult to write. Lucy believes her little son has drowned. The man arrested for manslaughter is found not guilty. Insisting Sean is alive, he needs her help to find the boy. What does she feel? What does she hope for? Should she trust this man?
I like to write light-hearted adventures. This is certainly an adventure, but there is nothing amusing about a missing child. How could I make my novel more lively?
My answer was to make my hero Jesse Fitzhenry a happy-go-lucky fellow. In spite of spending several months in Lincoln Castle Prison, on his release he sings to Lucy, he encourages her, and he fights some of her battles.
Where is Sean? Is he safe and well cared for? When her former husband learns she’s looking for their son, what will he do to stop her? When she finds her son, is there a way she can get custody?
Until the 1839 Custody of Infants Act became law, an English mother had almost no right to custody of her child or children. Her husband could take his offspring and make sure they didn’t see their mother again until they reached the age of consent.
The early part of LITTLE LOST LORD takes place in and around Lincoln. This ancient city on England’s east coast is about 130 miles (209 kilometers) north of London. The River Witham flows through the town. Out in the countryside, Lucy’s husband faked Sean’s death in this swift water.
In the late 11th Century, William the Conqueror had Lincoln Castle built. Centuries later, the castle became a prison for debtors and criminals. Awaiting trial, Jesse is locked up in a small, filthy cell there.
Spring and fall, the Assizes Court held trials throughout the kingdom. Judges traveled from town to town to preside over civil and criminal cases. Most town halls didn’t have courtrooms. When a judge arrived to hear cases, a local tavern owner or an innkeeper would rent his largest room for the duration of the session. The proprietor provided furniture for the witnesses, the accused, the jury, and the judge. Included were chairs and tables from the establishment, a wooden box or two, sometimes a raised stage where fiddlers and singers ordinarily performed. Trials were expected to be quick. Many lasted only a few minutes. Jesse has an excellent attorney and several witnesses including Lucy, so his trial took from morning until just after lunch.
I researched other places, but mentioning these locations would give away the rest of the mystery of the LITTLE LOST LORD.