The Lost Jewels

From the bestselling author of The Jade Lily comes a thrilling modern-day treasure hunt brimming with family secrets.

Author bio:

Kirsty Manning grew up in northern New South Wales. A country girl with wanderlust, her travels and studies have taken her through most of Europe, the east and west coasts of the United States and pockets of Asia.

Kirsty's first novel was the enchanting The Midsummer Garden published in 2017. Her second book, the bestselling The Jade Lily was published in 2018. Her novels are also published in the US and in Europe.

The Lost Jewels

Allen & Unwin

Author: Kirsty Manning

ISBN: 9781760528102

RRP: $32.99

Read our interview with Kirsty Manning below! 

Question: Can you tell us how you found out about The Cheapside Hoard?

Kirsty Manning: It was a random newspaper article that popped up on the same page as a topic I was researching for another book--The Jade Lily

It was about an exhibition of The Cheapside Hoard that had obviously been on at the Museum of London, and I paused to read it. I mean, who doesn't love a diamond, right? 

But the thing that caught my attention as a novelist were just how many holes there were in this history. I mean, nobody knows who these jewels belonged to, why they were buried, or who found them.

Who would bury 500 precious jewels and gemstones and never return? It just seemed unfathomable to me!

Question: Based on a true story, what inspired you to write The Lost Jewels?

Kirsty Manning: I realised the real story was not just about the jewels, although they are certainly beautiful, it is about London and the expanding world.

In the 1600s, Cheapside was the hub for gold, silver and precious gems that had threaded their way around the world to London. However, this century was also filled with fire, plague, revolution and an expanding empire . . . Seventeenth-century London was a city equal parts thriving and in turmoil. There were a million reasons why someone might not return for their precious jewels.

Question: Other than traveling to London, what research did you do prior to writing The Lost Jewels?

Kirsty Manning: I trawled the internet, ordered books on goldsmithing, gemstones 1600s London, Shakespeare and Samuel Pepys and Edwardian London. I went to antique jewellery exhibitions and eventually booked myself a flight to London to take some walking tours with historians, visit the museums and see some of these precious pieces for myself.

As my imagination took flight … the same questions haunted me: how could someone neglect to retrieve 500 precious pieces of jewellery and gemstones? Why was such a collection buried in a cellar? Who did all these jewels belong to? Why did nobody claim this treasure in the subsequent years? Who were the workmen who actually discovered the jewels in an old London cellar at Cheapside in 1912?

Question: Was it difficult reliving certain aspects whilst writing the book?

Kirsty Manning: Not everything that happens in my novels has happened to me personally. But I've certainly had some tough moments in my life, and walked alongside friends who've had very dark times.

I think it's important to hold a space for empathy and kindness"in novels and in life. This humanity is what connects us.

The future seems uncertain right now, and most of us have been reduced to thinking about how we will get through the next few months. There are key lessons to be learnt from history: how a population recovers from trauma and moves forward to reinvent themselves. The Lost Jewels features London almost as a character. I'm in awe of this heaving metropolis that has been invaded since Roman times, brought to its knees by the plague, razed by the Great Fire, aerial bombardments during the Blitz and shaken by recent terrorist attacks. Always, London and  her population gather together and rise: the result is a more diverse, more resilient and more interesting city.

I had no idea when I was researching The Lost Jewels that in 2020 Australian would be battling the worst bushfires ever seen along with a viral pandemic. But I know"because history tells me so"that our community will come out the other side different, but stronger. Humans are optimistic creatures and we all carry a bit of hope in our hearts, don't we?

Question: What advice do you have for aspiring writers?

Kirsty Manning: Make time to write, give yourself permission to write badly and keep going!

Question: Who inspired your love of writing?

Kirsty Manning: Oh so many people! All the great books I read as a kid, then at school. I read everything from the classics to thrillers to experimental new releases. Teachers at school and university were an enormous influence"suggesting reads and giving thoughtful feedback on essays. My family always had lots of books"and encouraged me to read. I find most writers are crazy readers first and foremost!

Question: What's next for you?

Kirsty Manning: A screenplay. Then my next novel, a mystery set between the French Riviera and Germany …

Interview by Gwen van Montfort