AN AUSTRALIAN writer is drawing on his Haworth and Denholme ancestry as inspiration for his novels.

Paul Rushworth-Brown has also used Keighley as one of the settings for his second novel Winter of Red which is set during the English Civil War.

Paul name-checked the local locations during a recent interview on the US TV show America Tonight to promote Winter of Red.

Presenter Kate Delaney describe Paul's research as "incredible" for the tale of a peasant family unexpectedly caught up in the ravages of the 17th-century war.

Paul's first book Skulduggery is set on the moors around Keighley and fictionalises the life of his ancestor Thomas Rushworth.

The follow-up, Winter of Red, follows Thomas's son and his family in 1642 as they are caught up in the ravages of the Civil War.

Winter of Red is aimed at people who like "history, adventure, intrigue and a dash of spirited love" in their reading matter.

Paul said he was inspired to write the novel five years ago after starting to write a history of his family, for his children.

He said: "I spent six months preparing a 400-page history of the 1600s and my ancestor Thomas Rushworth, a peasant farmer who worked for Lord Birkhead, the lord of the manor in Haworth.

"Thomas's family came from Haworth. They stayed there until the early 1800s then they moved to Denholme."

Skulduggery is set on the "bleak Pennine Moors" and follows young Thomas and his family after they lose their father to consumption in 1590. He is set to marry Agnes in an arranged marriage, but a love story develops between them.

Paul said: "This rollicking adventure paints a descriptive picture of the characters and the landscape they fill. You are kept in suspense till the final pages where one hopes good will triumph over evil.

"Winter of Red continues this generational story. The book isn't really about the English Civil War, it's about how the circumstances affect the family. There's history, a love affair, there's birth, death, fires. It's historically accurate and really descriptive.

"I want readers to escape when they read this book. They will walk the moors of Yorkshire, they will fall in love with the characters."

Skulduggery and Winter of Red are available from Amazon.