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Burning Times (The Circle)
Bridget Peabody is more than her husband ever imagined. Unfortunately, Steve hasn't been himself lately, either.....
BURNING TIMES was a challenge for me in more ways than one. The main challenge was to write a romance novel in which the hero and heroine not only knew each other, but were married--until I started it, I hadn't realized how much rare that was. Another challenge is that I was still trying to find my balance in the Shadows line; for example, the rallying cry seemed to be "make them darker!," and so I did, creating what might be my darkest book to date...only to then learn that one of the things the editors really liked about the prequel, WAITING FOR THE WOLF MOON, was the sense of humor.
Oops.
I had to go back to the drawing board once, but I am glad I did. The story that developed, about marriages and secrecy and trust--and yes, witch hunts--is one of my favorites and, I think, one of my best written. Burning Times has been thrice blessed with good covers that capture the mood and the characters. To the left bottom is the new cover for the June 2002 Dreamscapes re-release, and above it is the cover from the initial 1994 Silhouette Shadows version.
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Italian Cover
Along with those, two of the Circle Series, Burning Times and Forest of the Night, were also reprinted into Italian, for the Sesto Senso (6th Sense?) line. The Italian cover for Burning Times, shown here, is one of my favorites--she really looks like Bridget to me! The title, La notte delle streghe, seems to mean Night of the Witch. |
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"This book is a pretty short read at 251 pages. I really liked this story.
It was dark and did a great job describing the pure evil that was chasing Steven
and Brie. Brie is a very strong woman. She is a witch and loves her craft, but
is willing to sacrifice everything for her husband. When evil comes at her, she
does not go down without a fight. Steven is a little less likable. He is very
hard headed and intolerant of Brie's belief in "hocus pocus." You will probably
hate him for the first 220 pages, but hold on tight for the nail-biter ending of
this book!
I would definitely recommend this book. Don't be surprised if you jump at all
the "bumps" in the night while reading this one!!! *****"
"BURNING TIMES is a powerful, dark, and sensual addition to the
Silhouette Shadows series.... With a flair for creating a tangible sense of
evil, the author pulls readers along through a plot that packs one dramatic
punch after another. Readers will be searching anxiously for a night light
before they close the cover on BURNING TIMES."
"Readers of supernatural romances will thoroughly enjoy BURNING TIMES.... There
are thrills and chills in abundance as the forces of evil and the powers of love
meet in a battle for the souls of three innocent people. Evelyn Vaughn is a
momentous storyteller with an uncanny ability to make readers want to believe in
the powers of witchcraft."
"BURNING TIMES is a chillingly delightful occult romance, filled with
dark spirits and white witches. Evelyn Vaughn challenges her audience, even as
she entertains them, into suspending their own belief systems and, for a brief
period of time, allowing the magic to overwhelm them." 4-Stars
"The gifted Ms. Vaughn takes another giant step up the ladder of success with
this intense and compelling foray into the dark side of romance."
"Outstanding character development enhances the intricate story line. Only
Evelyn Vaughn, a master of this genre, can keep you spellbound and intrigued in
such a fascinating manner. If you didn't believe in the power and possession of
spirits from another time, you will after reading the remarkable BURNING
TIMES. Five star reading!"
"BURNING TIMES is highly suspenseful with a brooding sense of imminent
danger that gathers power during the last few chapters. Readers who cannot
resist the combination of a creepy supernatural thriller with torrid romance
will find this book an exciting offering." |
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Where I Got My Ideas for Burning Times (and Other Trivia) SO WHAT ELEMENTS WENT INTO THIS BOOK? One of the earliest deciding factors was that I planned this series for four witches, each one representing a "quarter," or element. Brigit is representative of the element of FIRE, which meant she was particularly powerful (and, along with the fact that the characters were married from the start, also resulted in a sexier book!) It's also why I made her a redhead, by the way! Of course when one thinks of fire and witches at the same time, one thinks of the European witch burnings, which nudged me toward my possession plot. And since I had introduced her in WAITING FOR THE WOLF MOON as Sylvie's sister-in-law, she was already married for her book--the secrecy issues made a good conflict for a married couple, and I wanted to create a Family Tradition witch. I also made her Celtic, which fits much of the history of Witchcraft. If her stand was keeping secrets, then for ultimate conflict Steve's stand had to be gathering knowledge--thus he became a reporter (that fit the Air-like communications angle I'd already established for Sylvie, too). The cat, Romeow, is based on my back-up cat, Jonesy. THERE REALLY ARE "FAMILY TRADITION" WITCHES? Absolutely! You don't hear much about them because of the secrecy issues... and hey, if you could name the relatives who had been executed for practicing witchcraft, you might take a vow of secrecy too! Modern Wicca is largely an adult-conversion religion, but the older traditions of the Craft are often hereditary. I had fun playing with the contrast between Brigit and Andy, who is clearly a newbie, as well as exploring some of the biases of Brie's HP (high priestess) mother. WHAT WERE SOME CHALLENGES WITH THIS BOOK? At the time I planned it, I did not fully appreciate how difficult it would be to write a romance about a couple that not only was already married, but was happily so. Some authors have written excellent books about couples who, at the start of the story, are divorced or on the verge of divorce, but I did not want to do that--for me, for this book, that would undermine my faith that they could make a relationship work (you'll notice that while the idea of divorce comes up in BURNING TIMES, it is never embraced by either Steve or Brie). I also had trouble making the story too dark, the first time around, and had to rewrite my proposal to get rid of some of the worst angst. I think the book benefited from it. In the first version, the characters were fighting too much which, again, undermined the romance.... DOES BRIGIT HAVE A TAROT CARD TO REPRESENT HER? Yup. Sylvie was the Queen of Swords, and Brie is the Queen of Wands. HOW DO YOU PRONOUNCE BRIE ANYWAY ? I usually say it as "bree." Like the cheese. But "bry," as I've also heard, is no less correct. If it were a true shortening of her name, after all, it would be "brih." And that just doesn't work. I named her Brigit because Brigit is a Celtic fire goddess. Gwen, her mother, I chose as short for Gwenevere--also Celtic. Steven just sounded truly normal. Peabody came from a rumored ancestor of mine, who may or may not have been hanged as a witch in New England. Conway (Brie's maiden name) came from the author of a book called CELTIC MAGIC, D.J. Conway. WAS BURNING TIMES YOUR FIRST TITLE? Yes and no. I immediately thought of the book as BURNING TIMES, since before I'd written WOLF MOON, but I soon began to question myself. After all, the real Burning Times were a period of true horror for witches and accused witches alike, from 14th-century Europe through the 18th-century--a common witch rallying cry is, "Never again the Burning!" I did not want to trivialize that by making it the title of my book, did I? So I offered some other suggestions to my editor, particularly suggestions that would parallel the first book's title--DRAWING THE DARK MOON was one, and HOLDING BACK THE NIGHT. But they liked BURNING TIMES... and that really is how the book first manifested itself to me, so I took another look. True, there was the sexy double-entendre of the characters "burning" passions, but I certainly don't see either the book or its message as trivial, so I made my peace with the title and have approved of it ever since. However, feel free to disapprove if you like. I'll understand. WHAT MUSIC DID YOU LISTEN TO? Celtic music--lots and lots of Celtic music. Loreena McKennit. Enya. Anam. friend of mine made me a tape with Celtic music from many different artists, and I played that sucker over and over again. I still love Celtic music to this day. WHAT ACTORS DID YOU IMAGINE WHILE WRITING THIS?
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All four of the Circle Books were reprinted into French for the
Sexieme Sens (Sixth Sense) line. They kept the same covers, though with
the colors artistically washed out, but got new names:
Now remember; you don't have to envision the same people I do! But for
curiosity's sake--I actually envisioned an actress as well as an actor this
time! BRIGIT looks, in my mind, like the Victoria's Secret model, Jill Goodacre.
(Remember, I wrote this in the 90's). She's redheaded, and has a very
mysterious look about her. Steve, I based on the actor TIM DALY, who at the time
was starring in the TV show WINGS.