A journalist on local and national newspapers for 36 years, Jackson left The Scotsman, where he was assistant editor, in 2009 to become a full-time writer.

Jackson's first novel was Caligula (2008), the story of a young slave and animal trainer, Rufus, who becomes keeper of the famously mad Emperor's elephant, Bersheba.

Rufus and his friend, the famous gladiator, Cupido, struggle to stay alive in the complex web of plot and counter plot in Caligula's court on the Palatine Hill.

This was followed in 2009 by Claudius, which continues Rufus's story as he accompanies another emperor on the invasion of Britain in 43 AD.

Jackson's first series, The Doomsday Testament (James Douglas), follows art recovery expert Jamie Saintclair as he tries to unravel the mystery behind his soldier grandfather's final mission of World War Two, a quest which brings him within a fingertip of the most famous painting still missing from the war, and a buried secret that could destroy the world or safeguard the future of mankind.