Samuel Pepys and the Stolen Diary

England, 17th century.

Samuel Pepys has been keeping a diary for many years; a diary that tells of all the political shenanigans he is witness to at the court of King Charles Stuart. And of all his own marital indiscretions as well.

And now it has been stolen, along with his wife’s favourite locket. Samuel must get it back, or he might lose his head in the Tower. He will certainly lose his wife, who thinks he’s given her locket to his latest mistress.

Enlisting the help of his friend Will Hewer, they track the locket to a fence in London, who tells them who stole it for a fee.

Necklace in his pocket, Will and Samuel make their way to the young thief’s home, only to find him dead in a chair, with a curious button clasped in his hand.

Will spies a man fleeing the home and gives chase, only to run into a one-armed man who steals the locket.

Things are looking pretty grim, when Samuel is summoned to see the King.

It seems some skulduggery is a foot in the Chatham dockyards, and King Charles sends Samuel to investigate. Leaving Will behind to find the diary, he sets off with his brother in law, Balthazar ‘Balty’ St Michel, hoping he will learn the gossip from the locals, if he stays sober long enough.

No such luck…

Balty soon disappears and Samuel is curious as to why so many armed guards follow him wherever he goes. Then they both end up locked in a cellar, and the only way out is to start a fire.

Samuel Pepys and the Stolen Diary is a laugh out loud romp through the filthy streets of London, where hackney drivers boast of having the best seats for a hangin’ and the poet laureate Dryden rewrites his plays for the highest bidder. Filled with historical colour and clever plot turns, you’ll be cheering for Samuel and Will well after the last page is turned.

Martin Lee has spent most of his adult life writing in one form or another. As a University researcher in history, he wrote pages of notes on reams of obscure topics. As a social worker with Vietnamese refugees, he wrote memoranda. And, as the creative director of an advertising agency, he has written print and press ads, TV commercials, short films and innumerable backs of cornflake packets and hotel websites. He first encountered Samuel Pepys when an auntie gave him an edited version of the diaries when he was fifteen years old. The man and his world have remained an obsession ever since.

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