The Girl and the Ghost: Family Secrets by JACQUELINE HARVEY is the second instalment in her ‘The Girl and the Ghost’ series. Her latest novel is filled with a trip to Paris and Versailles, an escaped convict, an ancient underground cave network, family mysteries and . . . ghosts. Read on for a Q&A.
The Girl and the Ghost: Family Secrets is the latest instalment in your new series. What motivated you to start this series?
I met a prince in a bookshop in Singapore enroute to France a couple of years ago. It was a chance encounter – I had just finished a book signing and a friend pointed out that Prince Abdul Mateen of Brunei was right nearby – along with at least six bodyguards and his very beautiful fiancé. I was convinced by a friend and the girls who worked in the shop to introduce myself. It was the most nerve-racking moment of my life when I approached the prince and was suddenly surrounded by six bodyguards – one of them demanding to know what I wanted with the prince. I explained that I was an author from Australia there doing a signing and thankfully the prince was kind and waved them off. He asked me about myself and then if I would sign the book I had for him. It was quite surreal and later on I started thinking about writing a story with a prince in it.
After spending over a month in France I began to wonder about setting the story there and involving a French prince but of course the revolution ensured that there aren’t any these days. So, after a few days in Versailles, I began to research the last young princes of France and decided that I would write about Louis the Seventeenth, but of course he’s long since died so he would have to be a ghost prince! The idea of a thirteen year old moving from Sydney to France was inspired by the fact that I would have loved to have done something like that when I was a teenager.
What adventures will Josephine and Gabriel go on in this book?
The book begins at The Louvre in Paris where Josephine and Gabriel are in for several big surprises. The appearance of another ghost is startling for Josephine but then a visit to Versailles changes everything when Gabriel too is introduced to both Louis and the mystery ghost. There’s also the terrible revelation that Anastasia Ivanoff – who was one of the leaders of the gang of art thieves that Josephine and Gabriel brought unstuck in the first book has escaped from prison and is now on the run. Harriet, Josephine’s best friend comes to visit from Singapore, and the children embark on another adventure back at the chateau involving the possible discovery of ancient cave art.
What drew you to writing about Louis XVII?
I love history and have always been drawn to Marie Antoinette. When I read about the awful time her second son had after she and her husband were executed, I wanted to learn as much as I could about the boy who would have been king. There’s a gap in the records (where no one saw Prince Louis for over a year) that allowed me to give the poor boy a different trajectory (and a better life) for a few years at least.
This book is set in Paris and Versailles. What was involved in your research and writing process?
My husband and I have been to both Paris and Versailles on a number of occasions. On the last visit, we stayed in Versailles for several days which meant I was able to really explore not only the palace and grounds but the town as well. We ate in a restaurant that was over three hundred years old and was purported to have been a favourite place of the aristocracy. We explored the immense stable blocks that are now markets and generally got a great feel for the place. I spent a lot of time in the Petit Palace – which is where a part of the story takes place. I love to take loads of photographs and of course I research online too.
What was your favourite part of writing this book?
Imagining what it would be like to have all of these life changing experiences as a young teen. Having Gabriel and Harriet meet Louis and form wonderful friendships and taking myself back to the Dordogne – to Sarlat La Caneda, Saint Genies, Les Eyzies, Paris and Versailles. I loved the discovery of long-lost family members and the promise of wonderful things to come. I also enjoyed writing about Anastasia and exploring what her ultimate end goal will be for Josephine and Gabriel – knowing that she’s still out there, plotting and scheming.
What’s next for Josephine?
I’ve only just started writing the third book, but I can say that when Josephine’s locket finally gets valued, there are some stunning revelations. Josephine and her newly found grandmother take a deep dive into the history of the Chateau Margaux and begin to uncover some links that will leave the family desperate for more information. Josephine’s relationships with both Louis and Gabriel come under threat in different ways and Anastasia Ivanoff is still taunting them all from afar. And Harriet is in Singapore providing much needed friendship and comic relief!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jacqueline Harvey worked in schools for many years but has had a passion for storytelling since she was a child.
She is the author of the popular Alice-Miranda, Clementine Rose, Kensy and Max and Willa and Woof series, which have sold almost two million copies in Australia alone. In 2022, she released a picture book, That Cat, illustrated by one of her former students, Kate Isobel Scott. The pair has since gone on to publish The Daring Tale of Gloria the Great and the Kevin the Sheep series. Jacqueline’s books have received numerous shortlistings and awards while her picture book, The Sound of the Sea, was a CBCA Honour Book.
Jacqueline speaks to thousands of young people at schools and festivals around the world and says the characters in her books are often made up of the best bits of children she’s met over the years. While she is not a twin, like Kensy and Max she does have excellent powers of observation and has always thought she’d make a great spy.
She has narrated over thirty audio books.
Jacqueline lives between Sydney, Australia, and Queenstown, New Zealand. The first book in her new middle grade series, The Girl and the Ghost, launches in 2025.
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