The Mark of the Salamander, Guest Post by Justin Newland

1575.

Nelan Michaels is a young Flemish man fleeing religious persecution in the Spanish Netherlands. Settling in Mortlake outside London, he studies under Queen Elizabeth’s court astrologer, conjuring a bright future – until he’s wrongly accused of murder.

Forced into the life of a fugitive, Nelan hides in London, before he is dramatically pressed into the crew of the Golden Hind.

Thrust into a strange new world on board Francis Drake’s vessel, Nelan sails the seas on a voyage to discover discovery itself. Encountering mutiny, ancient tribes and hordes of treasure, Nelan must explore and master his own mystical powers – including the Mark of the Salamander, the mysterious spirit of fire.

THE MARK OF THE SALAMANDER is the first in The Island of Angels series: a two-book saga that tells the epic story and secret history of England’s coming of age during the Elizabethan era.

England’s coming of age

The title of Justin’s latest historical fiction novel is The Mark of the Salamander. It’s the first part of a two-book series entitled The Island of Angels, which tells the epic story and secret history of England’s coming of age during the Elizabethan era.

The idea for the protagonist of the novels came to me when I was researching Sir Fransis Drake’s The Golden Hind, and read the list of crew members. One of them was Nelan, a Flemish immigrant (NB The region of Flanders sits between Northern France and the Netherlands). I used that nugget of information as a starting point and filled out the backstory, which involved Nelan and his father settling in Mortlake, near London, England.

Dr Dee performing before Elizabeth’s cour

In the 1570’s, Dr John Dee lived in Mortlake, and this was one of the reasons I wanted Nelan to settle there, in order to introduce the good Doctor to the readers. As well as Nelan’s neighbour, Dr John Dee also became his mentor.

A real life historical personage, Dr John Dee is shown in this picture applying his conjuring skills. You can see how he has enraptured Queen Elizabeth’s court. Also, in his visionary work, The Limits of Empire, he provided the incitement to the people of England to sail the Seven Seas and build an Empire.

As the court astrologer, he advised the Queen on various matters, including the date of her coronation. The Queen was keenly aware that the date should harmonise with the astrological influences at play, because basically, she needed all the help she could get to have a successful reign and secure England’s future against the might of Spain. Dr Dee advised her to select the 15^th January, a date which sits within the astrological purview of the sea-goat, Capricorn.

At a time, Elizabeth’s England was at war with Spain, the most powerful nation in Europe. The constant threat of invasion hung like a sword of Damocles over court and country. Intrigue and conspiracy were legion. Spies and intelligencers scoured the country for traitors.

This didn’t stop Elizabeth and her courtiers from enjoying themselves. It was even more important for them to do so in order to manage the stresses and strains of managing the country at such a difficult time. One way this happened was through the song, dance and music. The Queen herself was a consummate dancer, and expected her courtiers to be the same. One can imagine the entire court shaking off the anxieties of Spanish incursion with a night of virginal, flute and tabor. Dances were imported from France, Italy and Spain, and included the Galliard and the Paval.

Here’s a picture of the famous La Volta, which means the turn or the turning. In it, the man lifts the lady with one hand placed – controversially both for then, and now – at the base of her corset, and spins her around. One wonders if the hidden purpose of this dance was to discharge unwanted sexual and emotional energies in the body?

Alongside Dr John Dee, another famous personage who features in my novel is Sir Francis Drake. Much has been written of his exploits on the Spanish main, and whether the son of a Devon preacher was a buccaneer or a pirate – or both. Drake was a renowned naval commander, so much so that his enemies believed that he had supernatural assistance.

Mariners were inveterately superstitious. Spanish mariners whispered tales that Drake had a magic mirror. Through it, they claimed, he could know the position of all the ships at sea! This probably contributed to the famous story about Drake was playing bowls on Plymouth Hoe on 20th July 1588 while they waited for news of the invading Spanish Armada.

Sir Francis Drake playing bowls on Plymouth Hoe

When the news of the first sighting of the Armada was brought to him, he is reputed to have said that he had plenty of time to finish the game before taking on the Spanish.

The regular explanation is that he knew that the wind and tide conditions in Plymouth Sound prevented the English Fleet from putting to sea immediately from Plymouth. I prefer the idea that he did indeed possess a magical mirror aka supernatural abilities, which I explore in the novel. Through these arcane skills, he was able to know that the Spanish ships were located a long way away, and so he still had time to finish his game of bowls, which of itself contains interesting esoteric elements.

Astrologers and dances, conjurers and scholars, supernatural abilities and spying, these are some the mores of the time which add fantastic colour to the Elizabethan palette and are explored in my novel, The Mark of the Salamander, and the sequel, The Midnight of Eights.

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Meet Justin Newland

Justin Newland’s novels represent an innovative blend of genres from historical adventure to supernatural thriller and magical realism. His stories explore the themes of war and religion, and speculate on the human’s spiritual place in the universe. Undeterred by the award of a Doctorate in Mathematics from Imperial College, London, he conceived his debut novel, The Genes of Isis (Matador, 2018), an epic fantasy set under Ancient Egyptian skies.

The historical thriller, The Old Dragon’s Head (Matador, 2018), is set in Ming Dynasty China in the shadows of the Great Wall. The Coronation (Matador, 2019) was another historical adventure and speculates on the genesis of the most important event in the modern world – the Industrial Revolution. The Abdication (Matador, 2021) is a mystery thriller in which a young woman confronts her faith in a higher purpose and what it means to abdicate that faith. The Mark of the Salamander (Book Guild, 2023) is the first in a two-book series, The Island of Angels. Set in the Elizabethan era, it’s an epic tale of England’s coming of age. His work in progress is the second in the series, The Midnight of Eights, the charting of the uncanny coincidences that led to the repulse of the Spanish Armada.

Author, speaker and broadcaster, Justin appears on LitFest panels, gives talks to historical associations and libraries and enjoys giving radio interviews and making podcasts. Born three days before the end of 1953, he lives with his partner in plain sight of the Mendip Hills in Somerset, England.