Louisa Treger

Louisa Treger's new novel is The Dragon Lady.

From her Q&A with Barbara at Women Writers, Women's Books:

What inspired you to write The Dragon Lady? How much research was involved?

The Dragon Lady began with a question from a friend. ‘Have you seen Zimbabwe’s secret Monet?’ The painting was allegedly hidden in the vaults of the National Gallery of Zimbabwe to keep it safe from Robert Mugabe, who was then President.

My mother was born in South Africa, so I have strong roots in that part of the world, and on a trip to Harare I managed to access a few of the ‘secret’ paintings. There was no Monet, but I did see works by Rembrandt and Durer, donated to the Gallery by Sir Stephen Courtauld and his wife, Virginia [Lady Virginia ‘Ginie’ Courtauld AKA "The Dragon Lady"]. My curiosity was well and truly piqued and I began to research them. The more I found out, the more I became convinced that theirs was a fascinating untold story.

Quite a lot of research was involved, including a trip to the Courtaulds’ house in Zimbabwe, where I slept in Virginia’s room and discovered a ghost on the...[read on]

Visit Louisa Treger's website.

The Page 69 Test: The Lodger.

My Book, The Movie: The Lodger.

Writers Read: Louisa Treger (December 2014).

Coffee with a Canine: Louisa Treger & Monty.

--Marshal Zeringue