The idea for the two books in the Niello Mysteries series – The Niello Necklace Mystery and The Secret of the Niello – came from two words, the name of the main character. Bun Hare.  I was driving from Sydney to Brisbane with my husband when we decided to stop for tea and cakes. We were on the highway looking for somewhere to stop when a sign on the side of the road just outside Moorland, New South Wales, caught my eye, ‘Devonshire Teas’.

The tearooms were a few kilometres from the highway and what a find they were. The building was an old wooden home with a wide veranda and surrounded by trees. The owner was a young girl whose father was helping her get the business started. The scones were hot and moist, the cream fresh and the jam homemade. As we sat on the veranda we began talking to the owner’s father. He pointed out a stone building in the back yard, near a huge weeping fig tree and explained it used to be an old bakery and the baker’s name was ‘Bun Hare’. We laughed at the connection between bakery and ‘Bun’ and left with good wishes ringing in our ears.

That night I wrote the first words of ‘The Niello Necklace Mystery’. We’ve never been back to Moorland but I often wonder what the man and his daughter would think if they know one small stopover changed my life and set my on the path of writing children’s books.

The second influence on the book was the Niello necklace, a tiny gold heart bought from the Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met) in New York. The Met is one of my favourite places in all the world and I knew I had to get it into my book. The necklace became the centre of my mystery.

Here’s an excerpt:

The shop assistant smiled. “A very good choice.  The Niello Heart Pendant.”

“Niello?”

“Yes.  It’s based on a Renaissance design. The heart and chain are 14-carat gold.  It’s a perfect gift for a young lady.”

Bun took his heart from his pocket and laid it on the counter.

“Oh, you’re already got one.”  She sounded disappointed.

“Yes, it was my mother’s.” He rubbed the heart like a talisman.  “I was wondering if you could tell me about the engraving on the back.”

The assistant turned the pendant over. “Of course,” she said.

Bun held his breath. Surely it was not going to be this easy.

“MMA 585,” she read. “You’ll find the MMA on all of these.  It stands for Metropolitan Museum of Art.”

Bun nodded.  “And the number.”

“That’s just the number of this particular set of hearts.  We only released limited copies and yours is number 585.”

“Thank you,” he said.  Tears of disappointment prickled behind his eyes. He hadn’t really expected to find out anything but, still, there had been faint hope that it might be a clue.

“There is one thing a bit unusual about your heart.” The assistant picked up the heart again. “If I’m not mistaken this is one of the hearts especially made for the opening of the Buntain Collection.”

“B-Buntain?”

“Yes, in the American Wing.  When the Buntain pieces were donated, special 24-carat gold hearts were made – and all of the hearts for the opening had the same number. It refers to the month and year the Buntains arrived in America.”

“May 1985,” Katie breathed. “I told you.”

“Well, it was May, dear, but the year was 1785.  The Buntains are an old New York family.”

Bun’s face flushed with excitement.  He could hardly believe it.  It was less than 24 hours since he’d arrived in New York and already he was hearing about his family. From what seemed a long way away he heard the assistant say, “If you go along to the American Wing you’ll find out more about the Buntains.”

“Thank you very much,” Katie said. She tugged Bun’s sleeve but he didn’t move.  His brain was whirling.  Could his family still live in New York?  Was it possible that he would see his real mother soon – maybe even today?