Did anything about Inspector Ryga surprise you

When creating Inspector Ryga did anything about him surprise you or did he come fully formed in your mind before putting finger to keyboard?

The pace of life in the 1950s was very different today. Britain was experiencing deep austerity with shortages and rationing still part of life. Many lives had been fractured by the war, the scars of which were still raw. When I created the series I wanted a central characater who had been shaped by his war time experiences.  I also wanted to differ him from my other fictional sleuths, DI Andy Horton and Art Marvik i.e. make him quieter, more reflective, not an action man. 

It would have been easy to have picked a ‘typical’ war hero i.e. a flying ace but I wanted Ryga an unsung war hero who had no option but to sit out the war as a prisoner-of-war in Germany where he had witnessed compassion, cruelty, cowardice, heroism, deprivation, frustration and despair.

I also wanted to bring in a sea element, (my brand/trademark as all my novels are set against the backdrop of the sea) hence him being a former merchant navy seaman. These men were incredibly brave during the war as they risked their lives to bring much needed supplies to Great Britain. As I researched the history and background of the period, and began to write the first draft of the first book in the series - DEATH IN THE COVE - Ryga began to take shape and become alive.

He is empathetic, compassionate, intelligent, lonely but not from choice and not morose. He understands how the war has fractured so many lives and that gives him a deep understanding of the people he encounters - witnesses, victims and criminals.  He is never quick to judge.

He's seeking stabilty and a loving relationship and is torn between his admiration for former war photogrpaher, Eva Paisely, who joins him on the majority of the investigations, and Sonia Shepherd, former landlady of The Quarryman's Arms on the Royal Island of Portland Dorset who he also meets in DEATH IN THE COVE. But Sonia is married to a war deserter and conman and leaves Dorset before Ryga can help her.

As I discovered more about Ryga I found that surprisingly he is musical and plays the piano really well. He learned how to in the POW camp and although he can’t read music he has a well-developed musical ear and is a talented musician.

There are more surprises for Ryga as I write the series.  He has flashbacks of his war experiences and a deep longing to put down roots and have a family.  Will he end up with Eva or does he come across Sonia during an investigation? How does she felel about him? is she saddled with her rogue husband?

I'm looking forward to writing number six in the Inspector Ryga 1950s set mystery series.  I have the idea, the beginnings of the plot and the location.  I hope to start on this novel in January 2025.