Dawn to Deadly Nightshade
Dawn to Deadly Nightshade is the sequel to my first novel Brandy Row. It is set in the Yeovil area in the mid-nineteenth century and follows the life of Joshua, the handsome and altruistic young son of Violet and Richard Dryer as he takes on the ownership and title of Lord of the Manor of Alvington (loosely based on Brympton d’Evercy). Joshua arrives in Somerset to find the folk on his estate are just as superstitious as those he left behind him on Portland. He is soon to learn that people’s fears are justified when he discovers the existence of a coven in the neighbouring parish and he comes into conflict with their warlock.
Joshua’s main adversary is Nathan Meakins, the arrogant son from a neighbouring estate. They first clash over Meakins’ cruel treatment of Joshua’s sister, Rebecca, but this discord and tension is to escalate throughout the story, exposing long held secrets from within his own family. Meakins is a sadistic womaniser, a threat to all women, no-one’s sister is safe, even his own.
The image that came into my head and inspired the sequel was that of a foggy September night and the echoing sound of a crying, abandoned baby, left beneath the clock tower at Alvington Manor. The search for the true identity of the child’s parents ultimately leads to the discovery of a coven, an opium den and a rapist and murderer.
You moved to Somerset in 1972 to renovate a derelict estate cottage, so can you tell us a bit more about this?
I was married on 22nd July 1972 and my husband and I moved from Dorset into a mobile home sited in the garden of a two up - two down estate cottage. We were entitled to an improvement grant as the cottage was derelict, but we had to spend the money on the work before we could receive the grant. We were only in our early twenties and it took time to earn the money to do the work. After two and a half years we had completed the first stage of the renovations and I went into hospital to have our first child, a daughter. While I was in hospital my husband was able to decorate one of the bedrooms and install a fitted oak kitchen with, very importantly at that time, an automatic washing machine. Thus we were able to move into the cottage immediately and thankfully our daughter did not have to join us in the caravan.
Why did you want the sequel to Brandy Row to be set in the same vicinity?
It was partly sentimentality as the estate was very beautiful and we overlooked it in our first home. We would never have been able to afford our own house if we had not found the row of five derelict cottages at Camp Road, as it was we only just managed to scrape together the deposit. So I felt I owed a debt to Brympton for our lovely home with its beautiful views. Of course we would not have been able to contemplate it if my husband had not been a carpenter and working on building sites, he was able to find wonderful experienced tradesmen who could help us in our task. It was a very happy time and there was a kind of camaraderie with the other couples who were renovating the other four buildings.
It is also an advantage to write about what you are familiar with and I know the Yeovil area well as I have lived here for 42 years, and before that I was just over the border in Dorset for 17 years.
Tell us about the research process into the book.
When I wrote Brandy Row I relied mainly on books from the library, I used census information and I purchased several books written about the history of Portland by local authors, but with Dawn to Deadly Nightshade I have made good use of the Internet. There is so much information there at the touch of a button and it is so time saving that I have come to rely on it.
On a small shelf beside my desk I have every writer’s essentials: The Concise Oxford Dictionary, Roget’s Thesaurus, Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, The Slang Thesaurus by Jonathon Green, The Book of Firsts, and the Penguin Book of Historical Slang. Another must for historical writers is Trevelyan’s English Social History.
Who are your favourite reads?
I have always loved the Bronte sisters, Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, and Thomas Hardy, but also modern day writers like Margaret Dickinson and Catherine Cookson. Another great favourite is Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind. I have also learnt a lot about local history and our traditions and superstitions by reading Walter Raymond. He has a lovely warm pastoral style and a wonderful gentle sense of humour.
What is your writing process?
With Brandy Row I wrote the story out in longhand and then I transcribed it onto an electric typewriter and finally I was able to copy it all out again onto my new Apricot home computer purchased in 1980. But with Dawn to Deadly Nightshade I lie in my bath and think for about half an hour to an hour each morning and then I get dressed and start typing my thoughts directly onto the computer, until I come to something I need to research and then I switch to the Internet and get carried away all the historical information.
What is the appeal of historical fiction for you?
I feel it adds another interesting dimension for the reader. I have never had any patience myself with science fiction or fantasy because for me it is all too unbelievable and I want my readers to feel that my stories really could have happened in the past.
You have been praised for your twist and turns and development of warm characters so how have your achieved this?
I don’t really know, it just seems to happen when the characters take over!
If I could ever get my novels serialised on the television I think they might make a good historical soap. I am a big fan of the soaps and I think the secret of their success is having so many varied characters there is always someone who can be relied on for a sarcastic comment, or a funny quip, or a good moan etc.
What is next for you?
I have started the third book of the series, but I cannot tell you what it is called at the moment as it might give away the end of Dawn to Deadly Nightshade. This one is going to take longer as there is a lot of research necessary.
I had already written Dawn to Deadly Nightshade when I decided the moment had come for me to publish Brandy Row and so therefore I was able to bring it out the following year, but it took me at least two years to write and so unfortunately the next one will not be available for some while. It is surprising how time consuming it is marketing and selling the books and unfortunately this is quality time taken away from being able to concentrate on the writing.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
I would like to thank all those who have read and enjoyed Brandy Row and given me such good feed back, and I hope everyone enjoys the sequel, Dawn to Deadly Nightshade, just as much.