I’m so happy to be welcoming Rosie Fiore to Novel Kicks and the blog tour for her latest book, The Death & Life of Lucy Westenra.

What desperate steps will Lucy Westenra take to save her own life?

Hillingham in Hampstead, once the home of the well-to-do Westenra family, is now divided into apartments. When teacher Kate Balcombe sets about renovating her flat in the attic, she finds an unsent letter written 130 years before by Lucy, the nineteen-year-old daughter of the house.

You may know Lucy from Bram Stoker’s Dracula… a pretty, flirtatious girl with three ardent suitors, she is Mina Harker’s best friend. When Lucy falls mysteriously ill and dies, Van Helsing identifies her as a victim of the vampire.

But what if the monsters who hunt Lucy are much closer to home?

As Kate begins to investigate Lucy’s story, she meets James Harker, Mina’s great-great grandson, and together they uncover a long-hidden story of deception and murder. 

Rosie has shared an extract with us today. We hope you enjoy it. 

*****beginning of extract*****

This is the opening of the novel. It features two letters: one from Lucy Westenra to her friend Mina (in 1894), one from Noni Rosen, who lived in a flat in the same house in the 1980s, and the opening of a chapter told from the perspective of Noni’ s daughter, Kate, in 2024.

Prologue

Letter from L.W. To Mina Harker

14 September 1894

Hillingham

Dear Mina,

I am so weak; I think I may not recover. Can you come to me? I know Jonathan needs you, but I am in terror for my life.

Oh Mina, I have never felt so alone. Mother is weak and frail and can offer me no aid. I pleaded with the Professor, but he scorned me and dismissed my words as the delirious ravings of a child.

I watch my window every night, waiting for that ominous shadow. I feel certain that he will return soon. Every time I try to sleep, I sense his dark eyes on me, slicing my skin like hot blades. He is relentless and I know that should he gain entry here once more, he will have no mercy.

I think if you came and came soon, there is a chance we could plan my escape. Although he knows of our friendship, I believe I might be safe if I came to Exeter to be with you. I have considered fleeing to Whitby, but of course he would know to follow me there.

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