To say that the inspiration for my third whodunit, Murder on Lake Garda, came unexpectedly wouldn’t quite be doing it justice.
When I first happened on the seed of an idea, I was actually well into working on a completely different novel, involving a murder that takes place during a funeral in Yorkshire. So I wasn’t looking for another. Not in the slightest. And yet, while on holiday in Italy, one decided to present itself.
During a visit to the breathtaking Castello Malcesine, on the shores of Lake Garda, I happened to see a wedding taking place inside the castle walls. I can’t have stopped for more than a minute or so to watch. But I was so taken aback by the scene before me – the landscape, the architecture, the glamour of the ceremony itself – that when I returned to the
