Co-Writer Of BBC/FX Award-Winning Series “Taboo”, Chips Hardy, Releases A Powerful Tale Of A Man Haunted By A Crime Against Nature

On The Table Read, “The Best Book Reader Magazine in the UK“, Chips Hardy releases a powerful, provocative, and emotionally raw character portrait of a man haunted by a crime against nature in Seaton’s Orchid.

Chiselbury Publishing is pleased to announce the release of SEATON’S ORCHID, the latest novel by author and screenwriter Chips Hardy (“Taboo”), on sale now and available globally at Amazon and at good booksellers.

Seaton’s Orchid

Set between the First and Second World War, SEATON’S ORCHID tells the story of the enigmatic Captain Ainsley Seaton – a retired and much decorated professional solider, amateur explorer and talented artist living a reclusive life in the peaceful community of Highleigh, a charming English village in West Sussex. But one evening Seaton’s quiet existence is shattered when he finds his well-buried past unexpectedly resurrected over dinner by a shadowy Church diplomat, who seems to know more about Seaton’s history than he does.

Forced to re-open chapters of his life that he has been at such pains to forget – from the phantasmal, savage events that unfolded in the deep jungle of the North West Amazon to the horrors of the Western Front – Seaton withdraws into characteristic seclusion. But the diplomat refuses to let matters lie, and for his own secret purpose will stop at nothing to get to the truth; a truth which reverberates through the village itself, and beyond, with devastating results.

Disturbing Insights Into Human Nature

As Captain Seaton battles with a dark past so dubiously resurrected – reliving acts of savagery, dislocation and despair – a powerful and haunting tale of love, loss, and personal redemption unfolds, throwing up powerful and disturbing insights into human nature, desire, truth, art, sexuality, civilization, and the forces of nature and decay.

As Hardy’s latest work, SEATON’S ORCHID reflects upon many of the same preoccupations the author developed in the acclaimed TV series “Taboo,” expanding upon his investigation into dislocation and social dysfunction, the dark processes of Empires and their institutions, and the quest for personal redemption for those who have crossed a line of no return.

Emotionally Intense

In a story rich with historical insight, vivid detail, and emotional intensity – Hardy moves the action backwards and forwards in time, deftly weaving the subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) workings of English country life with the narcotic pull of jungle life, as two parallels stories seamlessly unfold and entwine. Hardy’s visceral and evocative writing immerses readers into Seaton’s world, taking them on an intimate and moving (hypnotic) journey through the heady memories of Seaton’s time in the jungle, his descent into madness, and the resulting struggles he faces to overcome the anguish he feels over his own savagery.

At its heart, SEATON’S ORCHID is a powerful, provocative, and emotionally raw character portrait of a man haunted by a crime against nature, denied all redemption, confronted by polite society, and forced to reconcile memories of a self he can no longer recognize.

About Chiselbury Publishing

Chiselbury Publishing was originally established as James Leasor Publishing in 2011 to make the works of James Leasor, one of the bestselling and most prolific British authors of the second half of the 20th Century, available to new and old readers. With a growing list of authors it now has over 40 titles currently available. More information can be found at https://www.chiselbury.co.uk

About Chips Hardy

Chips Hardy was born in West London and educated at Latymer Upper and Downing College, Cambridge. He has written successfully for television, theatre, film and publication, alongside a career as a Global Creative Director. Paradox, dysfunction and the quest for redemption are ever-present themes in his work, culminating in the award-winning, hit TV drama series “Taboo”, which he co-created, wrote and produced with his son, Tom Hardy, for BBC1 and FX.

The project went on to earn him the Writers Guild of Great Britain award for Best Long Form TV Drama. Work with comedian Dave Allen won him a British Comedy Award. An earlier novel, Each Day A Small Victory, plotting the unyielding quest for survival amongst the wildlife inhabitants of an English country lay-by, was published in English and Polish.

More information can be found at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chips_Hardy and on his Amazon Author’s page.

Find Seaton’s Orchid Now

SEATON’S ORCHID is available from Amazon and all good booksellers using ISBNs 978-1-908291-60-8 (Hardback), 978-1-908291-61-5 (Paperback) and 978-1-908291-62-2 (Kindle) or from Chiselbury.

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