Byronic Heroes and the Bad Boys of Ballet

This post about Byronic heroes was written back in 2022 when I was very ill but still editing Tendu, a book that some people have since found to be just as shocking as the antics of the dancer Sergei Polunin, mentioned below. All three books in that ‘diabolical’ series are out now. They are not pink-and-fluffy ballet books, and the blurbs have always refuted that idea 😀

Original Byronic Heroes Post

I’m still deep in the TENDU manuscript, though the end of this edit approaches, and I’ll soon be returning to SISTERS (later note – Sisters at the Edge of the World is also out now).

Between chapters, I’m watching things like this:

Bad Boys

Sergei Polunin, known as the bad boy of ballet, was born in Ukraine, as was my own ballet bad boy from TENDU. There ends the similarity, though. The fictional character of Aleks is not based on Polunin, or anyone else.

Byronic Heroes

Unlike the mainly perfect men from MERMAID and FIREFLIES, Aleks is a Byronic hero. What’s that, you ask?

From Dictionary.com:

A Byronic hero is a type of fictional character who is a moody, brooding rebel, often one haunted by a dark secret from his past. The term describes the type of main character found in many fictional works by Lord Byron, who is said to have had this type of personality.

I love Byronic heroes. I love reading them. And I love writing them. He is very naughty, though, and I will have to punish him for the rest of his life. Oh, the FUN!

Side note: see my post on Gight Castle, the ancestral home of Lord Byron.

Interview

I was recently featured over on Instagram in a Fast Facts type interview. Read about my obsessions, fears and atrociously bad singing here.

A Dancer’s Journey Series

Scotland’s all misty lochs and magical forests and perfect boyfriends, right?

When dance student Amalphia Treadwell embarks on a secret relationship with her charismatic new teacher, she has no idea of the danger that lurks in his school in Scotland…

My dance background and love of history and spicy stories are what inspired this wild mix of contemporary romance and ballet set in a castle. Readers of my historical fiction will recognise the castle and stone circle that feature in these books.

There are no cliffhanger endings in this series; each book completes a story, but then there is more. So much more. Read all the blurbs here

Series on Amazon UK

Series on Amazon worldwide

More Posts with Dance Content

• Chosen Sisters: Friendship and Dance
• A Celebratory Dance in a Stone Circle
• Dance Research in the Dungeon
• London, Baby!
• Blues Skies, Crashing Waves and Ballet Terms
• A Ballet Novel and a Tale of Publishing Woes

There’s also this strange little post about what the characters of A Dancer’s Journey get up to when I’m away from the keyboard.

Historicals

Set in 1st century Scotland, my latest novel, SISTERS AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD, includes the battle of Mons Graupius between the Romans and the Caledonian tribes. There’s a neurodivergent main character and some rather complicated romance.

Set in a castle, THE MERMAID AND THE BEAR features the Scottish witchcraft accusations and a love story.

FIREFLIES AND CHOCOLATE was inspired by the 18th century kidnapped children of Aberdeen and is set in both Scotland and Colonial Pennsylvania.

Paperbacks and kindle: Amazon UK or Amazon Worldwide

“Filled with excitement and suspense…” Historical Novel Society Editor’s Pick (Fireflies)

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