Dear Bernard Cornwell, I have just read A Crowning Mercy and am looking forward to the next Lazender story. Was Kit Aretine inspired by Kit Marlowe or what Kit Marlowe might have been if he had not (probably) been gay and died young? I am also enjoying the Sharpe series very much and thought you might like the following account from my bookseller. Apparently a local history teacher was having trouble getting her class of teenage boys interested in history. She bought the whole Sharpe series which engaged them and when they asked ‘But how do we know it’s true?’ she pointed them in the direction of the various sources and they were hooked. Keep up the good work! Elizabeth Smith PS: congratulations on the OBE! Nice to see one going to a writer!