Mr Cornwell, I appreciate you must get thousands of fan emails, letters and the like, also that thousands must start off like this and because I got the idea of starting like this so must others. However, I like probably others would like to thank you for writing such an excellent set of books which provide hours of imaginative creativity. I am talking of course about the Sharpe series. I first watched them on television while sitting on my grandfather’s knee. After he passed away a few years ago I was wandering among the shelves of our local library and to my curiosity found your books. I had until then thought that Shapre was purely television! so I am thanking you for your books which bring back brilliant memories of my grandfather and for many exiting hours reading them, but also for creating a series about battles and a very interesting time in history that is not pure gore and gung ho and holds interest for male and female readers such as myself. But I must ask, how did you come up with the personality of Richard Sharpe? Yours in Gratitude Sarah Lee 16