Robert Macfarlane's debut, Mountains of the Mind, was released to unanimous praise - and a string of literary accolades - in 2003. His writing has since established a new authority on the relationship between nature, identity and art, and in so doing cemented his reputation as one of the region's most prolific naturalists.

The first time I wrote historical fiction I had no idea what I was taking on. Even now, with one historical novel under my belt, and with a second on the way, I am filled with admiration for anyone who can craft a good period narrative. Of all the literary genres, historical fiction must be the toughest.

A bold novelist takes the big bite - life and death, the metaphors within, identity and symbolism. Lucy Caldwell grew up in Northern Ireland, a fertile ground for all of that. She was not tribal, yet not entirely free from the intersection of death, once the signpost to the province.