Novel tells story of soldiers in Great War

DIARIES of a soldier have helped inspire a novel about the Leicestershire Regiment in the First World War.

Don’t Be Late in the Morning was written by Dr Karen Ette.

Set in Syston and culminating in the Battle of Loos in October 1915, the novel tells the story of David Adcock, a Leicester Tiger, who fights alongside friends from his home town of Syston.

The book is based on Karen’s research carried out during her PhD at Loughborough University.

She said it “weaves together truth and fiction to illuminate what has become a forgotten battle, fought by men from a town often overlooked in considerations of the Great War – Leicester”.

“My intention is that writing a novel using original, previously unseen documents, will rightfully establish the second offensive of the Battle of Loos in literature as one of the recognised battles rather than a forgotten one,” she said.

Publisher, Sarah Houldcroft, of Goldcrest Books, said: “My interest was piqued when Karen explained to me that her story was based on original letters and diaries.

“When I heard more about the content, how could I not want to get involved with the book?

“So many brave men lost their lives for us in that awful war. I don’t usually get emotional when typesetting a manuscript but when I saw and read the magazine articles included in the book it did bring tears to my eyes.

“It is a wonderful testimony to all those young men.”