From Venice to Cathay …’ begins Niccolò Rising, placing the series firmly against a background of traders and merchants, and alluding to the network of ancient trade routes along which luxurious goods and exotic produce travelled between the markets of the east and the west. In this issue we visit Uzbekistan in the company of a Dunnett reader to experience the romance of the Silk Road and its influence on the novels.

This is the third year the Society has collaborated with the Historical Writers’ Association to run a short story competition, and we are delighted to publish the winning story in this issue.

John Banks, the narrator of the newly published House of Niccolò audiobooks, summarises the four months he spent in 2018 turning Dunnett’s books into audio productions. He began recording Niccolò Rising in June and completed Gemini in October, an amazing feat of dedication! His engaging article offers an entertaining insight into the business of recording an audiobook.

We have a detailed exposition that makes the case for Marthe knowing far more than we realise about the secrets within the Crawford family. Our covers series reaches the 1990s, with a touch more discernment shown in the image choices, and we travel with Lymond through ten cold winters.