Sue asked Jennifer Ashley:

I really enjoyed reading the Mackenzie books. Mac is my favorite, but I loved all of them. My question is -- What influenced you to write Ian having Asperger's? I think he is one of the most intriguing characters I've ever read.

Jennifer Ashley I've gotten several questions like this so I'll answer in one: I wrote Ian as having AS, mostly because I wondered how someone in a time when autism wasn't recognized would fare. It's hard enough to deal with it now; what would it have been like in Victorian Britain, when psychology and psychiatry were just beginning to be explored? (psychology was referred to as a branch of philosophy). I did much research into Asperger's Syndrome, which I assure you was heartbreaking.

How did I come up with Ian in particular? He simply walked into my head (whole family did), and was just himself. I had to watch him a long time before I realized he was autistic, and I needed to do some research! I could not get that man out of my head, and I thought--if I can't, perhaps other people won't be able to either. He keeps coming back in other stories. It's all his fault. :-)

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