About me
Greetings! Thanks for visiting my blog.
My name is Leigh Turner, writer and ex-ambassador. Since 2022 I have been proud to be represented by Caradoc King and his assistant Becky Percival at United Agents. You can buy my books on Amazon or from leading independent bookshops such as Shakespeare & Co in Vienna or the English Center in Salzburg.
I started writing novels in 1986 when I worked at the British Embassy in Vienna. One night, my girlfriend was late for a date. While I waited, I had an idea that turned into my first novel. When I worked at the British Embassy in Moscow 1992-95, someone told me to “write about what you know”. I wrote a thriller set in early 1990s Russia.
The first became my satirical thriller Eternal Life. The second is “in the drawer” – not yet among my first four published books.
My latest novel is my Istanbul thriller Palladium, published Immortal Works Press in May 2022. My next book is my diplomatic and life handbook The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Diplomacy, to be published by Czernin Verlag on 12 April 2023.
To find out more about my writing, click on the “Read More” link below. Otherwise, “Books” or “New Posts” are good places to start. Happy reading!
Latest Articles

Writing The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Diplomacy
Writing “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Diplomacy” was fascinating and demanding. It will be published in German on 12 April 2023, by Czernin Verlag, Vienna. How did this happen?

Rezensionen: hallo Deutschsprachige Freunde!
Am 12. April erscheint auf Deutsch mein neues Buch “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Diplomacy – Wie Diplomatie die Welt Erklärt” (Czernin Verlag, Wien). Ich habe einen Vorschlag und eine Bitte.

Russia-Ukraine War One Year On
The Russia-Ukraine war: one year on. Three lessons. 1. The war is not over. 2. The war is neo-colonialist. 3. Putin’s position is vulnerable. What you can do.

How to travel: adventures with leeches
How to travel in an age of global tourism is less obvious than it looks. Is your goal to see things? Meet people? Harvest experience? Tell us!

Komodo cruise – highs and lows
A Komodo cruise in the rainy season includes ecstatic highs as well as some pretty awful moments. Want a holiday you’ll never forget? This could be it.

20th Century Books: top 100
20th Century Books – one for each year from 1900 to 1999 – which would you choose? How many have you read? And do you agree with the ratings?
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