Welcome to The Bloomsbury Trilogy
The Bloomsbury Trilogy is the home of three historical novels inspired by the lives of members of the Bloomsbury Group from the outbreak of The Great War in 1914 through to 1946, when the world set about re-constructing itself after the horrors of two world wars, the Great Depression and the Holocaust.
It’s a fascinating period of history, and one in which a small group of friends, none of whom were destined for greatness as the story begins, played crucial roles in the artistic, literary, political and, of course, sexual revolutions of the first half of the 20th century.
As individuals, none are ever less than fascinating to read about, but as a group they provide us with the historical / cultural equivalent of the Hubble Space Telescope, helping, through their various involvements, to illuminate the events of that tumultuous time.
But first and foremost the novels are about the lives of a group of people who just happened to find each other early on in life. There could only have been one Bloomsbury Group, and there will never be another.
And while millions of words have, and continue to be written about them, there is still a great deal which hasn’t made of the pages of the myriad well-researched volumes, and into the wider public consciousness. For me, the three most interesting and intriguing members of the group are John Maynard Keynes, Vanessa Bell and Leonard Woolf, and it is through the eyes of these three that the stories are told.
Maynard’s War is the first book in the trilogy, and covers the period from the outbreak of war in 1914 to the signing of the peace treaty at Versailles in 1919. It is currently being serialized in 40 chapters, one a week published each Sunday morning at 11am UK time.
Who am I?
I’m a writer who some years ago became fascinated by Bloomsbury. It was my interest in economics that led me to explore not just the work, but also the life, of the economist John Maynard Keynes. And once I looked beyond the General Theory and Bretton Woods, there was no going back.
To pay or not to pay
Maynard’s War will be free to read for everyone. There is so much great writing on Substack, much of which is behind a paywall. Not everyone can afford to pay multiple subscriptions and I want Maynard’s War to be available to everyone.
However, if you can afford to pay and would like to support my writing, I would be very grateful if you would take out a paid subscription. It would help ensure I can deliver a chapter a week across the three novels. I have set pricing at the lowest levels allowed by Substack, £3.50/month or £20/year.
If I was publishing conventionally, you would expect to pay less than £20 for the paperback of Maynard’s War, but a £20 annual subscription will get you all three novels over the next two years. Or, thanks to the way Substack works, you can take out a monthly subscription and cancel it after two or three months while continuing to have full access as a free subscriber.
Whatever you choose to do, it’s great to have you on board: I’m grateful for all subscriptions, paid or unpaid.
I hope you enjoy Maynard’s War and the next two novels in the series.
My Other Substacks
You may also be interested in my other Substacks:
At Progress/Survival, I write about politics, economics and the prospects of saving civilization from the multiple threats it currently faces.
And at The Wine Guide (which will fully launch in June 2025) I write about wine.
Both of these are free to read for now.
Spread the word
It goes without saying: the best way to bring more readers to The Bloomsbury Trilogy, is for people who are already enjoying it, to pass it on to everyone they think might be interested. Thank you!
To find out more about the company that provides the tech for this newsletter, visit Substack.com.
