Hello again,
Long time no see—life caught up with me over these last few months, which led to an unfortunate decline in blog content, but I am back, and very happy to be!
Now, before we get onto the blog, I have some very exciting news about both The Fire Within My Heart and Scalding Waters!
The Fire Within My Heart is now available in hardback on Amazon (as you’ll see in the pictures below), which, well, I am exceptionally giddy about.
As well as this, Scalding Waters is available for preorder on the UK and US Kindle, and the hardback/paperback/Kindle version will be released worldwide on June 24th—so, soon! My gosh, to think that soon this book will be released to the public, and once again the character’s supernatural escapades will be shared with all, is a thrilling feeling—literally and figuratively. The excitement deeply outweighs the trepidation, though to say I’m not also deeply nervous would be a lie.
Now, with all of the excitement of Scalding Waters’ impending release, I think it’s time we take a little trip back down Memory Lane, to the wonderful world of Britchelstone, and the role it played in The Fire Within My Heart.
Brighton and Britchelstone
Some of you might remember my first ever blog post, The Naming of ‘Britchelstone’, in which, I explore some of the histories of Brighton and just how Britchelstone came to be known as what it is today.
For some context, for those of you who don’t know, the Scarlet Cherie: Vampire Series is set in Britchelstone, a fictional city based heavily on my home city of Brighton. This means that all of the street names and areas have been written with inspiration from real places, whilst also giving me the ability to take creative liberty. There are several locations in The Fire Within My Heart that are prominent in the story, all of which come from real places around my city. Today, in this blog post, we are going to be looking at three of those and comparing the reality and fantasy.
I will keep spoilers to a minimum, except for the last of the three locations (so, don't read past Woodvale Crematorium vs Bear Grove Cemetery if you haven't read the book yet!).
Lovers’ Walk vs Sweetheart Lane
I opened my eyes, finding myself at Sweetheart Lane off from Bolton Park. If it weren’t for the sign at the bottom of the concrete staircase, I wouldn’t have recognised it. Sweetheart Lane is actually just a long, steep stairway made of concrete nestled deeply between two walls. Usually, the crumbling stone walls are decorated with slender, curling vines and small colourful flowers.
When you reach the top, the view looking over Britchelstone and Bolton Park is worth the lung-aching steepness of the stairs. At the top, large Victorian houses stretch on in rows; a sea of attractive architecture lining the rolling hills that Britchelstone is built on.
Moss blooms in the cracks of the concrete, small green patches of damp softness against the stone. Lavender and roses appear with sudden beauty from the patches of dirt between the wall and stairs—human developments futile against the force of nature. It is a very attractive, if not underappreciated, part of the city usually.
- The Fire Within My Heart, 2020
Lovers’ Walk, or Sweetheart Lane, as it’s known in the Scarlet Cherie universe, is an interesting, and gruesome, part of Brighton history. In 1831, much to the shock and horror of Brightonians, a body was found—or, more accurately, pieces of a body were discovered. Although the torso and bloody rags of Celia Holloway, a local nun, her head and limbs were nowhere to be found.
Holloway’s husband, John Holloway, a drunken womaniser, was a reluctant husband, to say the least. After she fell pregnant, he still refused to marry her, and it wasn’t until five weeks in jail for his crimes of (lacking) passion, did he relent and wed her. Even after their marriage, John found comfort at the bosom of another, Ann Kennett, who he illegally married. Both women fell pregnant at the same time, their unborn children both fathered by John, who had become increasingly violent and cruel to poor Cecilia. Finally, the court ordered John to pay Holloway maintenance, something he was severely reluctant to do.
When Cecilia was found dead soon after, it was no surprise that both John and Ann were the first two under suspicion for her gory death. Little did the police know just how wicked the two of them were, all in the name of money. John had tricked poor Holloway into his place of residence near Edward Street, under the guise of reconciliation. Evilly, John leant in for a kiss, but, as Holloway collapsed gleefully into the arms of her beloved, she was met with a noose around her throat. Unsurprisingly, Holloway struggled against the noose, forcing John to call Ann to his side, implementing her in the murder. The following night, John finished the gory deed by dismembering Holloway’s corpse, spreading the limbs across Brighton.
John Holloway got his comeuppance, as he was found guilty and hanged on December 16th 1831. His accounts of Ann’s involvement in the crime had been so contradictory that she was acquitted of the crime.
Sweetheart Lane offers no respite from the gore. Much like its Brighton counterpart, this particular spot plays a vital role in The Fire Within My Heart, where the moon-streaked walls bear witness to another gruesome murder. I promised no spoilers, so, if you haven’t read the book, then let’s just say, Sweetheart Lane is a grisly turning point in the novel.
Woodvale Crematorium vs Bear Grove Cemetery
Bear Grove Cemetery is spread over twenty-one acres of land. Opened in 1857, it is one of the oldest cemeteries in Britchelstone, and also one of the only ones that still has spaces for new graves. After the war, a lot of cemeteries in the area got too full or were opened specifically as memorials. The grounds close to the public in the early evening; when we arrived at nightfall, there was very little chance of us being disturbed.
The entrance to the cemetery is a large, black wrought iron fence with Bear Grove Cemetery twisted into the metal and painted gold. Adalia and Gwydion were waiting for us outside the gate. Adalia sat up on one of the tall brick planters blooming with more weeds than actual flowers. The flowers that did make it through the strangulation of weeds were light pink, yellow, and baby blue. Gwydion stood tall and straight just a bit in front of her, watching us approach.
A pub towards the end of the road to the left of us filled the night silence with drunken chatter. A punter stepped out into the street, bringing the sound of heavy rock out with him through the door. He spared a glance in our direction as he planted his pint on one of the wooden tables, the cigarette between his teeth bobbed in his mouth as he nodded in our direction. I turned my head away. As far as the good people of Britchelstone were concerned, I was supposed to be dead. Getting noticed wasn’t on the plan for tonight.
- The Fire Within My Heart, 2020
For some context on the naming of Bear Grove Cemetery, I will need to highlight some of Brighton’s geography. Positioned along Lewes Road, and stretching up for miles, with multiple entrances, is Woodvale Crematorium. It really was opened in 1857 and is one of the oldest and largest graveyards in Brighton. Now, two of those aforementioned entrances are on Bear Road and just off of Elm Grove in Brighton. Consequently, we ended up with Bear Grove, which is the Britchelstone equivalent of Elm Grove. All of the descriptions of Bear Grove Cemetery reflect the real graveyard.
Some of you might be familiar with the notorious, and revered, English occultist Aleister Crowley. For those of you who aren’t, here’s a quick rundown…
Crowley was born to a wealthy British family in 1875 and is known as the founder of Thelema, as well as a pioneer of modern esotericism and occultism. He rejected his families devout Christian beliefs in favour of Western esotericism, finding his solace in the arcane and occult from a young age. It was Crowley who differentiated between magic and magick, looking to redefine the archaic spelling as, “the Science and Art of causing change to occur in conformity with will.” Though Crowly had a following during his life, he was also denounced for his decadent and immoral lifestyle, leaving him to die both in obscurity and poverty in 1947. Posthumously, however, Crowley’s name gained a great cult following, from some very surprising sources. Jimmy Page, of Led Zepplin, bought an old house belonging to Crowley in Scotland, and the Beatles featured his picture on Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album cover.
Interestingly, Crowly was cremated at Woodvale crematorium. After a lifetime of controversy and fame, he died in quiet anonymity, with only a few attending his funeral. Crowley’s cremation took place to the whispers of occult prose and calling of rituals. (Also, on a quick sidenote, does anyone else think he looks like Colonel Walter E. Kurtz, played by Marlon Brando, in Apocalpyse Now? Honestly, Google them both, and you might see what I mean!)
In The Fire Within My Heart, though no mention of Crowley is made, Scarlet’s own esoteric rituals take place. It is here that Gwydion, otherwise known as Rune, performs necromancy in front of her for the first time, using a ritual based on a collection of genuine archaic practices of necromancy (as most of the magick in my novels are). Once again, it is another vital place in the novel based on an area of Brighton shrouded in the macabre and obscure.
Preston Drove vs Bolton Drove
This was the first time I had been back to the scene of my murder. I gripped Nikolaos’s hand so tightly both our skin mottled. The pavement had been cleaned of any blood; there was no evidence that only two months prior a murder had taken place. I stood in the spot where my body had collapsed, almost able to see my figure on the ground like a shadow of the past come back to haunt me. So many feelings were fighting to the surface of my mind.
This was where I had died. Where Nikolaos had found me and given me a second chance. Without that, I never would have met Kai, Adalia and Gwydion. Without me, they never would have thought to put an end to the murders. Who knew how many more women would have fallen victim to his blade the way I had. Now I stood here and, although I was dead, I had not died. In some ways, I was experiencing more of life than I ever had before. Maglark, however, was about to face the true death. He would be given no second chances; any opportunity to make a plea of redemption had been ripped away from him when Nikolaos tore his head from his body.
- The Fire Within My Heart, 2020
I must preface this by saying that this section will contain spoilers for the end of the novel, so read on with that in mind.
Bolton Park is mentioned several times throughout the novel, at first when Nikolaos and Scarlet take a stroll through the park, and then again when she experiences Sophie’s death on Sweetheart Lane. Well, Bolton Drove is where the novel both starts and ends. You can see it mentioned in the Sweetheart Lane segment of this blog.
Preston Park is one of Brighton’s largest and oldest parks, as well as known as being one of the most haunted places in the whole of Britain—well, the manor is, at least (and it also has a pet cemetery there, for extra spookiness). Going back to the 1800s again (honestly, what would this blog be without a little bit of history thrown in?), the Stanford Family, who lived in Preston Manor, had been troubled for years by ghostly and paranormal sightings. In 1896, a séance was held at the infamous manor, during which a plethora of terrifying supernatural phenomena occurred.
Ada Goodrich Freer, the hired medium, said that she was communicating with the ghost of Sister Agnes, a nun who had been wrongly excommunicated from the Church and buried in the grounds outside. It was Sister Agnes who had been haunting the family, causing horrifying mayhem for the family. She promised to cease the hauntings if she was offered a proper Christian burial, which the Stanford family agreed to.
At the beginning of the novel, when Scarlet is murdered, it is on Bolton Drove, just opposite Bolton Manor. This is also where the book ends. The tree that Nikolaos climbs to hang Maglark’s body is a real tree standing tall and ancient outside of Preston Manor, or, in this case, Bolton Manor.
Ah, this concludes my blog for today, but worry not! I shall be returning in a fortnight for our next topic (let’s be honest, it will inevitably end up being another history lesson, but I guess that’s just what this is now?). I’m so glad to be back and writing for you all again. By that time, Scalding Waters will also be out to the world—which I will definitely be discussing here at some point. Oh, and I must give a special shoutout to my dad, who drove me around Brighton today in the boiling sun just to take pictures of me with my book. Thanks, Dad, you're wonderful!
Anyway, farewell, for now, my friends. See you all in a fortnight!
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