Occasionally you find yourself reflecting on history. Such opportunities often lurk in innocuous places. When explored, an intricate tale often emerges. For some it is mere history, a lesson to learn. For others, it is a lesson to celebrate.
Tentatively based around the remarkable life of my great-aunt, Frau Hilda Richter (née Campbell, 1889-1956), this story merges her life with the great events of World War 2. Her niece, and my godmother, Vera Wild (née Caldwell, 1900-1992), revealed the story of Hilda’s life to me in her penultimate year. My uncle, Dr A. Stanley Caldwell (1920-2013) gave me some of Hilda’s personal communications, stamps and the story of her initial espionage for the Nazis in 1938. The novel fills in the voids I have in Hilda’s life, focusing strongly on Vera’s memories of a most unusual and courageous great-aunt.
With the exception of identified historical personalities and significant world events, this novel is the product of my imagination and knowledge of my remarkable great-aunt. Netherholm Dumfries
2019