A labour of love in memory of brothers

City-born Richard Herniman, who died in 1987, is believed to have written the book in 1964 when he was practising surgery in the UK.

But it wasn't discovered until his twin brother John came across the manuscript in 2008 and realised its worth.

Sensing a lost gem had come to light, John determined to get it published, a task completed by his children following his own death in May last year.

Sadly, Richard's and John's older brother Peter also passed away in 2009 - and it is memory of all three brothers that the book has now appeared, masterminded by John's son Robert.

The previously-untitled manuscript is now published as The Northern Borough, the title John gave it.

Both Richard and John, a well-known figure in Chichester through his work as Clerk to the Magistrates and various voluntary activities, were born in Chichester in 1934. Their father, Cecil, was Mayor of Chichester in the 1950s.

"My father was just looking through his archives and came across this manuscript", Robert explains. "He may have known it had existed from his younger days, but had never seen the finished article before - and it was the finished article. It was typed and had been proofed. All the chapter headings were there, but it was untitled."

Robert added: "I remember him as a friendly and warm-hearted gentleman. He was a surgeon and ended up working for the World Health Organisation in quite a senior role, posted around the world - so I didn't know him particularly well. But he was a quiet man - very kind and very clever."

Early last year John was diagnosed with cancer and asked Robert to take on the arrangements for the publication of the novel.

"This entailed copy typing the novel from the manuscripts (a job shared amongst the six children), proofing and production of cover art (I was assisted by my partner Lisa with the cover image). The publication has been a real labour of love for the whole family."

John gave it the name The Northern Borough after the fictional London hospital that features in the book - as much a richly-portrayed character as those that work within it.

The book is set in the late 1950s. Grace Royson-Thomas is a surgeon working at The Northern Borough Hospital in London. Grace has reached 30 and is struggling not only to replicate the achievements of her renowned surgeon father, Reg Royson-Thomas, but also to drop her guard and find a man who she can enjoy a settled relationship with.

James Hadley is a new surgeon to The Northern Borough, recently qualified and keen to make his mark. James' natural rugged charm is a hit with the nurses but conceals a curious shyness with people'¦

Robert promises a witty novel which follows the ups and downs of Grace and James' relationship: "The novel charmingly captures the mood of the times and offers a snapshot of city life in late 1950s Britain"

The novel has been published through AuthorHouse. See www.authourhouse.co.uk. It is available for order online from the AuthourHouse website (7.30), as well as online from Amazon and Waterstones (12.49).