Saying Goodbye to Alice Éclair – a blog by Sarah Todd Taylor

Last month we were absolutely delighted to have published the final book in the beloved Alice Éclair series, A Dash of Daring– a story that will whisk you away on a fabulous adventure, full of daring action and delicious cakes written by author Sarah Todd Taylor. Today we are very excited to be sharing a blog from Sarah, herself, about saying goodbye to Alice and her journey writing the series!

Goodbye to Alice

There are two words that authors always love writing – The End. When we get to those two little words, all the months of dreaming up our worlds and characters, working out structures and plot and laying clues for our readers come to an end. We finally have a complete story, and though we then have to do lots more work to polish it till it is good enough to go into a book, it feels very satisfying to have a complete story in front of us.

But I confess that when I typed those two words at the end of A Dash of Daring I had to wipe away a tear, because it has been so wonderful sharing Alice’s world for the last few years and I am going to miss her, and Casper, so much.

Alice began back in 2018 when I decided I wanted to create a spy series with a girl with creative talents at its heart. I set it in the 1930s because they were a time when espionage was really coming into its own, and there was so much going on across Europe, where nations were still recovering from one war but poised for another. It was a time of upheaval against a backdrop of nations trying to feel hopeful. Art and music were decadent and joyful, but politics was fraught and tense. It felt like the perfect setting for a spy series.

I wanted Alice to be talented and creative and clever, but also vulnerable and to see her confidence build through the series. I also wanted to surround her with a cast of friends who would help her solve her mysteries, using their own particular talents. It’s been important to me that Alice’s stories involve teamwork, with loyalty and friendship at the core because although every story needs a hero, none of us can do everything and it’s by working together that we solve life’s great challenges. Alice learns this though the help she gets from the friends she makes along the way.

I’ve loved all the research I get to do for Alice. I studied History at University and have a PhD in Seventeenth Century history, and reading up on 1930s Europe, with the breakthroughs being made in art and industry, has been fascinating. The research for Alice’s second adventure, A Spoonful of Spying, was my favourite. I learned about the great exposition that happened in Paris In 1937 and realised it would be a great setting for a spy book. Half the city was turned into a huge exhibition site, with grand pavilions for every type of industry and floating theatrical shows down the Seine every evening. I used video footage of the event and detailed maps and pictures from the exposition to create Alice’s version and I loved creating the different pavilions that she and Sophie explore, from the opulent fashion pavilion to the gleaming chrome and glass of aviation. Another reason A Spoonful of Spying is very special to me is that I was so happy to introduce Sophie, a character inspired by some of Europe’s great young female aviators and engineers. Clever young engineer Sophie is the character that readers asked me to bring back, so I was delighted to oblige and she makes a reappearance in A Dash of Daring.

Of course codes and ciphers are at the heart of Alice’s adventures and they have been another joy. I’ve always loved ciphers because I love how they play with language. I’ve enjoyed finding ways to weave Alice’s spywork and cipher breaking into her baking (sometimes this was quite a challenge, but if Alice has taught me anything, it’s that challenges always push you to be more creative). I try to make the ciphers ones that readers can solve along with Alice, so that all my readers are super-spies along with her.

I’m so grateful to all the librarians, teachers, booksellers and readers who have supported and championed Alice’s adventures. I’ll miss her lots, but I’m sure that after A Dash of Daring finishes she will still be out solving mysteries and fighting for good. I like to imagine her at Bletchley Park as one of the many young women who helped break codes and shortened the war by up to two years.

 A Dash of Daring is the end of my adventures with Alice, but I’m sure that she lives on after I type The End.

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